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Fire posted:I doubt I could make it 12 hours without being damaged. I don't think anyone deserves that, even the one-percenters I talked about earlier. I'd rather die than have to go through ten years of that. And seeing them expand the use of it on people who are in jail for selling dope or something is abhorrent. Well you might be surprised, people tend to find reserves of strength they never knew they had when they're in prison. Like many inmates, I did my share of seg time (on seven occasions, although that's on the high side for military inmates). Never longer than 9 days in the case of D-SEG (disciplinary segregation) or 3 days in the case of ADSEG or administrative segregation. The one in Hawaii was the hardest, because the cell doors were plexiglas, no sleeping was allowed during the daytime, most of your cell was taken up by one of those chairs with a desk built in, and no sound was permitted, nor was anything allowed in the cell except a Bible and your legal paperwork. Even your clothes, soap, etc was kept in a footlocker outside of the cell. So you had to get up at dawn and get in your uniform and then sit in the desk until bedtime. But depending on the guard in the cell block it could be better or worse. Some of them would let you have a pencil so you could write letters or notes or whatever on the blank paper inside your legal folder (most of the JAG defense attorneys would include notebook paper in the folder for this purpose), or turn on their radio or portable TV real loud so you could listen to it from your chair. Plus when the inmate workers came with the meal carts to feed you they might be able to say a sentence or two. The other guards were more literal-minded when it came to the rules, so it was just sit in your desk and read your Bible, and try not to doze off because sleeping 'on the job' got everyone in trouble. California was a lot different, you could sometimes bring a book or writing materials. That was how they negotiated with you when it was time to go to seg sometimes: come out and cuff up and we'll let you take a book; make us come in there and get you and you get nothing- aside from the gas and the asswhipping. Most people took the book. Still though, seg is seg, and there's no rec time or whatever in the military seg for the most part- it's not 23 hrs/day, it's 24hrs/day, especially in D-SEG. And it's difficult to go more than a week or so like that, maybe less depending on how good of an imagination you have or how much you like doing pushups... The guys going in for years and years, in the civilian system? Yeah those guys get mindfucked big time, and there's plenty of research on it.
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Dec 2, 2010 00:20
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HidingFromGoro posted:Red Onion also happens to be one of the most brutal supermax prisons on the East coast. Don't believe me? Check this out: HidingFromGoro posted:
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Dec 2, 2010 00:21
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HidingFromGoro posted:
Huh. They try to ban prisoner rights newspapers there too. A bunch of years ago I sat in on an Australian Supreme court case which a buddy of mine (who is now a civil rights lawyer in Arizona) was working on about a newspaper by a group called "Justice Action" that outlined to prisoners what the positions of various political parties to prisoner rights where for the upcoming election. The New South Wales prisons decided letting prisoners know that the socialists and the greens think they are being mistreated would inflame them and maybe lead to riots, and thus banned it. Justice Action took the case to court to get the ban revoked, but because it would require a constitutional ruling and thus needed representation from all 7 states it was ajourned till after the election, effectively making the case moot. Not sure what the decision was, or if it was even pursued to the end. The Judges did seem to be sympathetic to the notion that since the constitution declares australia to be a democracy, anything that abrogates a prisoners right to an informed vote was unconstitutional. If it succeeded the reasoning would have been perfectly exportable as a referencable ruling in an American Common law challenge in defense of voting rights over there, being that the US is both guaranteed as a democracy AND regularly denies the prisoners a vote. I have no idea whether the case was ruled on however. duck monster fucked around with this message at 09:36 on Dec 2, 2010 |
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Dec 2, 2010 09:33
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^^^ Wouldn't that invalidate the election if found that a group of voters was deliberately kept from being informed by the state?
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Dec 2, 2010 16:28
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HidingFromGoro posted:Abuse is widespread and heinous at Red Onion.
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Dec 2, 2010 20:44
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JMBosch posted:This link is broken, and I can't find where these reports are on the site. Court documents Collection of inmate complaints
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Dec 2, 2010 21:31
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HidingFromGoro posted:Court documents Slightly related, if anyone on Twitter doesn't already follow @InjusticeNews they should. They give links to new cases of police abuse, misconduct, and outright criminality several times a day.
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Dec 2, 2010 21:42
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The recent story of 'pharmacologic waterboarding,' at Guantanamo Bay- where detainees were exposed to massive doses of controversial drugs- is nothing new in the long, sad story of American medical experimentation on (and doctors’ abuse of) prison inmates.quote:The experiments were overseen and sponsored [between 1951 and 1974] by the U.S. Army, the CIA, The University of Pennsylvania, and private corporations including Dow Chemical Co. and Johnson & Johnson. quote:The government has exposed detainees "to unacceptably high risks of potentially severe neuropsychiatric side effects, including seizures, intense vertigo, hallucinations, paranoid delusions, aggression, panic, anxiety, severe insomnia, and thoughts of suicide," said Nevin, who was not speaking in an official capacity, but offering opinions as a board-certified, preventive medicine physician. "These side effects could be as severe as those intended through the application of 'enhanced interrogation techniques.'"
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Dec 4, 2010 01:25
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Obama grants his first nine pardons.quote:For 42 years, Ronald Foster didn't know he had a felony conviction for cutting up pennies. It seemed like a nickel-and-dime crime at the time. President Obama apparently agreed, and on Friday he pardoned Foster and eight other people for unrelated crimes:
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Dec 4, 2010 19:47
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Wait, adultery is a crime? You can go to jail for cheating on your wife? Is this serious?
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Dec 4, 2010 20:01
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21stCentury posted:Wait, adultery is a crime? You can go to jail for cheating on your wife? Is this serious? Looks like a court-martial sentence*, and yes in the military you sure can (although it's rarely enforced). If you cheat with a member of the same sex you can even get three charges (Art. 92 failure to follow orders, Art. 134 adultery and Art. 125 sodomy). * based on "confinement" and "reduction in pay"
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Dec 4, 2010 20:20
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I'm confused by the dates on the pardons and by my own ignorance of how pardons work. Are those token gestures saying, "Hey, that sucks that you guys had to deal with it, but now we've pardoned you so your record is clear!" or are they charges that the people never went to jail for and were pardoned before the sentences could be carried out, or is this a nod to the fact that we have some stupidass laws on the books that shouldn't be enforced ever, or what?
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Dec 4, 2010 21:36
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S.T.C.A. posted:I'm confused by the dates on the pardons and by my own ignorance of how pardons work. Are those token gestures saying, "Hey, that sucks that you guys had to deal with it, but now we've pardoned you so your record is clear!" or are they charges that the people never went to jail for and were pardoned before the sentences could be carried out, or is this a nod to the fact that we have some stupidass laws on the books that shouldn't be enforced ever, or what? The first one.
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Dec 4, 2010 21:48
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HidingFromGoro posted:The first one. Is that normally how presidential pardons work? I had assumed that a presidential pardon would be something (beneficially) life-altering for the people pardoned, not a stupid pat on the head for having their lives disrupted.
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Dec 4, 2010 22:08
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S.T.C.A. posted:Is that normally how presidential pardons work? I had assumed that a presidential pardon would be something (beneficially) life-altering for the people pardoned, not a stupid pat on the head for having their lives disrupted. He can give a pardon, which essentially forgives/absolves you of the crime and takes it off your record, or he can give you a commutation which reduces the punishment without forgiving you. Now, the benefit is going to depend on your situation at the time, if you're in prison you get let out (more or less) immediately; but for example one of the guys Obama just pardoned was convicted in 1960 and only got probation. So if a probation conviction from half a century ago was still negatively affecting that guy's life, Obama has spared him from it. Democrats have to be careful with giving clemency because of this, so that's why you're seeing these relatively light sentences being pardoned now. Sometimes they are more dramatic though, such as when Dubya (as TX governor) pardoned this guy: HidingFromGoro posted:A guy was serving a 99-year sentence for rape, gets a DNA test which comes back negative, Texas throws it out because "it probably wasn't done right," and does their own DNA test. When that one also comes back negative they say "well all this proves is the (16 year old) victim was a slut who had sex with someone else right before you raped her" and leaves him in prison until Dubya finally pardons him after 10 years in prison.
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Dec 4, 2010 22:30
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Orange Devil posted:^^^ Australian judges are a pretty independent lot, but I doubt many of them are THAT brave to try and invalidate an election over a bunch of prisoners.
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Dec 5, 2010 16:22
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duck monster posted:Australian judges are a pretty independent lot, but I doubt many of them are THAT brave to try and invalidate an election over a bunch of prisoners. I realize that it is unlikely in practice, I was speaking from principle. Also HidingFromGoro, please never stop with what you are doing, it's great, even if the content of most of your posts is absolutely terrible.
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Dec 5, 2010 17:14
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HidingFromGoro posted:A guy was serving a 99-year sentence for rape, gets a DNA test which comes back negative, Texas throws it out because "it probably wasn't done right," and does their own DNA test. When that one also comes back negative they say "well all this proves is the (16 year old) victim was a slut who had sex with someone else right before you raped her" and leaves him in prison until Dubya finally pardons him after 10 years in prison. How is this even possible?  Do you know if anyone ever gets punished for this kind of thing, or are the parties responsible for keeping people in prison even when DNA evidence shows their innocence simply slapped on the wrist and told to give a heartless apology? I mean, a decade in prison for something you didn't do - that ruins your life forever.
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Dec 6, 2010 21:53
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VoidAltoid posted:How is this even possible? Why would they punished? They did what they are paid to do.
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Dec 6, 2010 22:31
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Dec 6, 2010 22:32
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CSPAN2 is currently broadcasting oral arguments before the Supreme Court on Plata V. Schwarzenegger, a federal class action civil rights lawsuit alleging that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's (CDCR) medical services are inadequate and violate the Eighth Amendment, the Americans with Disabilities Act. Apologies if this is late or a rebroadcast, but I didn't even realize that this case even existed, much less was taken to the Supreme Court. Edit: Jesus Christ, Alito disgusts me. TDepressionEarl fucked around with this message at 01:38 on Dec 7, 2010 |
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Dec 7, 2010 01:32
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Obama's Drug Warquote:For those who might imagine that the 2009 stimulus package was an aberration, Obama's proposed drug control budget for 2011 reveals that hard economic times are not translating into any scaling back of the drug war.
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Dec 11, 2010 02:39
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TDepressionEarl posted:CSPAN2 is currently broadcasting oral arguments before the Supreme Court on Plata V. Schwarzenegger, a federal class action civil rights lawsuit alleging that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's (CDCR) medical services are inadequate and violate the Eighth Amendment, the Americans with Disabilities Act. Apologies if this is late or a rebroadcast, but I didn't even realize that this case even existed, much less was taken to the Supreme Court. Alito's basically a fascist. His entire drat legal career he has neither hidden it nor been ashamed of it. When you get corrupt police commissioners and prosecutors go "uh... isn't that a bit much, sir?" you know you've made it.
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Dec 11, 2010 02:47
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HidingFromGoro posted:Obama's Drug War I'm not following, is "supply reduction" some sort of Orwellian euphemism? Does it not refer to attempting to intercept the drugs as they come into the country?
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Dec 11, 2010 08:37
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The Reaganomicon posted:I'm not following, is "supply reduction" some sort of Orwellian euphemism? Does it not refer to attempting to intercept the drugs as they come into the country? You can attack drugs by attacking supply (interdiction efforts, going after dealers, ect), or by attacking demand (treatment programs and the like). The latter, economically speaking, makes more sense: lower demand, less money going to criminal organizations. Attacking supply increases the profits for the surviving organizations, which is counterproductive.
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Dec 11, 2010 09:21
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evilweasel posted:The latter, economically speaking, makes more sense: lower demand, less money going to criminal organizations. Counterpoint: reality. Reagan used more or less the same phrasing when declaring the ill-fated war in the first place. Attacking the demand side is why you have a shitton of people in prison(who you have to pay for!) who will never hold down a job in their life due to that felony on their record. Who, by the way, will almost certainly turn to crime(organized and/or drug-related) after getting out because prison is basically a bootcamp for gangs.
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Dec 11, 2010 09:53
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The Reaganomicon posted:Counterpoint: reality. Reagan used more or less the same phrasing when declaring the ill-fated war in the first place. You don't attack demand with legal sanctions, you attack it with free, accessible treatment and social programs to reduce peoples desire for drugs and treat addicts. The increase in drug offenders in prison is more down to the system going after street level dealers (which has no effect on drug use, but can be spun to be going after "supply")
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Dec 11, 2010 15:01
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You can attack supply in some drugs (like meth) that require highly technical labs to make the main chemical. We could Kill meth if we wanted (and the entire cold med market) if we put the chemical makers out of business or ordered them to stop making it. We've done it with less popular drugs already. Meth is a political problem, the legal uses of the main drug work for there intended purpose, The illegal uses of the drug are the problem but they make to much money from the legal side to talk about reducing the availability of the illegal. There are most likely other drugs in this category
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Dec 11, 2010 18:22
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Apparently thousands of prisoners are striking right now, and have been for a couple days, in at least six prisons across Georgia. They are staying in their cells, refusing to leave or do work until their demands are met. The strike was organized largely through banned cellphones they smuggled and crosses typical divisions between race or gang affiliation. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/us/12prison.html?_r=1 http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/12/11-0 They've even had their demands distilled and released in a press release. quote:* A LIVING WAGE FOR WORK: In violation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution prohibiting slavery and involuntary servitude, the DOC demands prisoners work for free. Prison authorities have thus far declined to comment to the media, and have responded to the strike by placing them under continuous lock-down (as though they were rioting), cutting off their heat and hot water, and selectively beating who they think the ringleaders are. Besides the NYT article above, I can't find any mention of it in corporate media. There's much more media interest in prisons' decisions to use shorter socks and re-use underwear between inmates to save money.
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Dec 12, 2010 19:19
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JMBosch posted:Apparently thousands of prisoners are striking right now, and have been for a couple days, in at least six prisons across Georgia. They are staying in their cells, refusing to leave or do work until their demands are met. The strike was organized largely through banned cellphones they smuggled and crosses typical divisions between race or gang affiliation. This is great news! I can't help but want this to turn bloody. I know bloodshed is a tragety, but there is no way they will get any demands met without it. If they riot or engeneer a mass escape there might be some real talk about prison reform. They're wrong about the 13th amendment though, it specifically allows for prison slavery.
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Dec 13, 2010 03:49
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JMBosch posted:(as though they were rioting) It's a 'mass action' which is the same as a riot as far as policy is concerned. JMBosch posted:I can't find any mention of it in corporate media. It will be difficult to get access to information about what's really going on until phone & visitation privileges are reinstated. Some people on a GA prison forum have talked to their loved ones inside and apparently it got pretty crazy in some of the facilities (and likely still is). Although as of this morning they haven't started shooting anyone yet, which is a good sign. If any smuggled cell phones are left they're likely being kept turned off to conserve batteries since they won't have access to power. Expect a wishy-washy press release from the DOC in a couple days, it will take longer for the inmates' side of the story to get out based on the nature of covert prison communications. Also quote:* ACCESS TO FAMILIES: The DOC has disconnected thousands of prisoners from their families by imposing excessive telephone charges and innumerable barriers to visitation. These are direct and predictable results of privatizing those services. Whenever you hear about things getting privatized to streamline them, make them more efficient and profitable, that is what they are talking about. That Global Tel-Link is one of the shadiest companies in the prison phone industry and believe me, it's a shady industry. There's a reason they're in Mobile, as well, and that's so they can pay their own support staff as little as possible in a state with one of the most "business-friendly" set of at-will employment laws in the country. How do I know? Because at most AZ call centers I've worked at, our sister site was invariably in Mobile. Check out JMBosch's commondreams link to see how they just straight-up skim profits off of everything in addition to jacking up prices for inmates and their families. Rutibex posted:
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Dec 13, 2010 04:23
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HidingFromGoro posted:Mass escape is impossible in a modern prison, especially in a situation like this. You're right on the 13th. I believe you're wrong on the bloodshed part. What makes mass escape impossible? I imagine that response time for a prison riot is likely pretty good, but we're talking about thousands of healthy young males. I can't see it being stopped if they where united and determined. As far as bloodshed, I abhor it as a problem solving method but I do agree that in certain absolutely morally repugnant situations (like the US prison industry) it is called for. All I'm saying is the riot police and guards hurt in this scenario aren't the corrupt assholes who created this situation, they are victims of the exact same system.
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Dec 13, 2010 05:00
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Rutibex posted:What makes mass escape impossible? I imagine that response time for a prison riot is likely pretty good, but we're talking about thousands of healthy young males. I can't see it being stopped if they where united and determined. You have to be brain-damaged to think that a prison riot that causes bloodshed would lead to improvements.
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Dec 13, 2010 05:08
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evilweasel posted:You have to be brain-damaged to think that a prison riot that causes bloodshed would lead to improvements. Not a riot no, that (like this protest) will be largely ignored by mass media and nothing will come of it. A bloody escape, and maybe taking some important local officials hostage would get the issue in the national narrative. People would be talking about it, which is more than I can say for now. These people are literally slaves, do they not have the right to harm their captors to attain freedom?
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Dec 13, 2010 05:51
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Rutibex posted:Not a riot no, that (like this protest) will be largely ignored by mass media and nothing will come of it. A bloody escape, and maybe taking some important local officials hostage would get the issue in the national narrative. Yes, in the "lock down these barbaric monsters and strip them of the few rights they have or you may wake up with one of them in your house" sense of getting it into the national narrative.
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Dec 13, 2010 05:53
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Prisoners aren't considered people in the eye of the general public. An escape (let alone a bloody one) wouldn't magically lead to a dialogue on near-slavery, it'd lead to bloodthirsty calls to execute the whole lot of them, shoot to kill, etc etc etc. Followed, of course, by ever-more-draconian rules to "prevent" a repeat.
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Dec 13, 2010 06:10
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evilweasel posted:Yes, in the "lock down these barbaric monsters and strip them of the few rights they have or you may wake up with one of them in your house" sense of getting it into the national narrative. Many are already protesting the conditions they are in now, if they got worse it would only serve to unite prisoners further in the cause. Eventually something will snap. Trying to fix the current system is polishing a turd, it needs to be run into the ground and smashed before something better can be put in it's place.
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Dec 13, 2010 06:14
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The entire premise of prison seems loving stupid. The only reason we don't address it and try something completely different, only locking up the truly dangerous, is because we've had it for so long. I wonder how long it will take until we find another means to deal with crime. The way things work now is stupid. I cannot think of something more useless than locking people up in cages, particularly for so loving long.
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Dec 13, 2010 06:26
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Rutibex posted:Many are already protesting the conditions they are in now, if they got worse it would only serve to unite prisoners further in the cause. Eventually something will snap. Fantasies of violent revolution are stupid. Things can get worse and making them worse squelches your dumb rebellion.
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Dec 13, 2010 06:34
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evilweasel posted:Fantasies of violent revolution are stupid. Things can get worse and making them worse squelches your dumb rebellion. Do you think this non-violent protest will accomplish anything? Besides extra beatings and solitary confinement? It may very well, there have been lots of success stories of non-violent disobedience. There has been a larger amount of successful violent revolutions. It's not a stupid fantasy, it's worked before. The USA is proof positive.
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Dec 13, 2010 06:42
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