A Prisoner Voice
Frustration over facilities
Date:
January, 2009
Location of Prisoner:
Montana
Dear PARC,
I'm writing get some things straight.
Who's the comedian who sent the "standard minimum rules for treatment of Prisoners" ? Had to be a comedian because thats a joke.
1.Accommodations?
Seen 3 in a 6 by 9?
2. Medical?
You're fucked. Chronic Hep C patients get dogged.
They can only give you 2 blister packs of Ibuprofin 800 twice a year for "acute" injuries.
My partner had a compound fracture, was sent back because he wasn't dressed properly.
3. Discipline?
Lets not go there.
In short, I was tortured for 90 days, put in cells in winter, in a freezing cell, naked with nothing but a blanket. I was dehydrated, given one bologna sandwich a day. My room was never cleaned. There was my own feces, blood and urine there for days.I was beaten badly, lost 33 lbs, denied medical help, and made to defecate in a foot basin 46 times in two days under a camera.
I just wanted you to know that I didn't even scratch the surface on the way things happen here.
Denial of Religious Service
Date:
April, 2004
Location of Prisoner:
New York
To whom it may concern,
My name is _____ and I'm currently an inmate in _____, New York. I am a Muslim and it is imperative that I attend Jumah (Friday) services. It is a sin to miss services. The Imam has tried unsuccessfully to get the administrators to allow me to attend Jumah services. In my 18 months of incarceration, I have only been allowed to attend 3 special services.
I am not a sentenced inmate, however I have been awaiting trial for over 18 months. I am in the process of filing a civil suit against ___County for violating my constitutional rights. For the past 18 months the facility has denied my right to worship within a congregational setting. This is in direct violation of New York state's minimum standards for country inmates. They are in violation of parts 7024, policy numbers 7024.1A, 7024.1B, 7024.2, 7024.2B, 7024.5 and 7024.9
It could be argued that because of the severity of my charge, or teh fact that I'm in administrative segregation that I would be, or could be at risk to the facility, however, my co-defendant, who has the exact same charges as I do, has been given and utilizes all of the "freedoms" that the jail has to offer.
A second argument could be one of a discipline issue or reasons of punitive sanctions, however, I have never had one single violation of the jails code if conduct where as my co-defendant has had several incidences of violence including fights and inciting a small riot. He is still given full access to the facility's program including religious services, where as I am not, even though my conduct has posed the security threat that his has. For these reasons I have filed a notice of claim to the county attorney in preparation for a law suit.