MANSFIELD — Magistrate Gary J. Carter of the Shelby County Common Pleas Court, recently participated in “Take a Lawyer to Prison” Day, an event sponsored by the Aviation Law Committee of the Ohio State Bar Association.

Lawyers from around the state flew in private airplanes to Mansfield, where they toured the old Ohio State Reformatory.

Retired Logan County Judge Doug Chamberlain flew his Cessna 205 airplane from Bellefontaine to the Sidney Airport, where he picked up Carter before proceeding to Mansfield.

After arriving, the two men joined other judges and attorneys in a tour of the now-closed prison. The prison has a look similar to a mid-evil castle from the outside, but inside are long rows of 5-by-8-foot cells, stacked six high.

Mansfield developed a notorious reputation for housing some of Ohio’s worst criminals before closing in 1990.

The prison was used as a location during the filming of several movies, including “Shawshank Redemption” and “Air Force One.”