IN THE LIFE OF A CONNECTICUT PRISONER vol. 3 No. 1
By Richard Stevenson

GREETINGS FREE WORLD! Have a wonderful new year! Well, it's been nearly a year and those of us who work in the Marker Shop are still being retaliated against by not giving us work showers. This in itself may not sound like much but these people know what they're doing. Understand, because we work during the day, we will only get 1 hour out of our cells after work. Since everyone much shower, that means the average wait is about 30 minutes. Actual showering is another 10 minutes. That leaves only about 20 minutes to phone my family. Phone calls are limited to 15 minutes each. That means I get 1 call. Keep in mind that there are usually a number of other things that we are only allowed to do in this hour such as cleaning one's cell which is necessary every day due to the massive dust problem, socialize with others (after all, we are human), haircuts, go to medical to obtain daily medications and much else.
Since we get off work at 2 pm, that means we must wait in our cells 6 to 8 hours in order to shower. We work in an environment that is dusty, dirty, our clothes contain bits of fiberglass, paint and paint thinner, and shards of metal. We then must eat our dinner in this condition along with other prisoners who must smell our B/O along with all the other "aromas" we bring back from the shops. This puts us in a volatile situation. This is what I meant when I said that they know what they're doing.
Now, let's talk about one form of corruption that's going on here. Twice a week the prison is locked down so that these people can train. This is something that is supposed to happen on their time. Basically, the deal that was made is that a few officers would train for up to 2 hours (1 day it's 1st shift and the other day it's 2 shift) and the rest of the day they have off. Since most of the prisoners are locked in their cells there is nothing for anyone else to do for the most part. So they just sit in the mess, eat treats from the vending machine, watch TV and kick the Willy-Bobo the rest of their shift. Not bad at $30/hr.
If that's not enough, check this out. On state and federal holidays the warden has stated that there would be no training. On Christmas, the warden was called at home and had to actually come in and order his staff to run religious services and let us out of our cells for unit recreation because they just weren't going to do it otherwise. This is how bold the unionized employees are here. They have no problem committing insubordination. Their union is extremely powerful in this state. There are many progressive things that the administration want to do in order to reduce recidivism but are constantly blocked by the guard's union. The result is an extremely high recidivism rate. Yet, they are consistent with their nays in the name of safety and security. In my book these people are committing Fraud and Unlawful Restraint, both are crimes in every state. In committing these crimes and benefiting from them, I believe that this organization may have even violated the federal Racketeering laws anagrammed R.I.C.O. On too many occasions they have sat in the Officers' Mess and received payment when they should have been manning their posts and running the prison. They even turn away our visitors on these occasions.
We are already locked in our cells too long throughout the day, but to further lock us up when they are told not to do so creates further safety and security risks. If about 50% of marriages don't work out how are 2 men in a cell expected to get along under these conditions? They know this. But their contract incentive the behavior of these employees. As such, I intend to file a sworn complaint against them. They are literally driving us nuts in here, then sending us home to our families and communities in this condition.

What won't they do for a pay check!

Rich.