Daniel Gwynn Blog Update
Subject: "Oppressing the Mentally Ill"
Date: 4/25/16

Just the other day, a mentally ill prisoner was sent to the Hole over a belligerent comment to the guards. The staff are well aware of this prisoner's mental health history. He's been in and out of the Hole for this very thing. He doesn't comprehend that he is doing anything wrong, but this makes no difference to the administration or the upper management that keeps placing him in the Hole.

Just days before, the guards confiscated some of his commissary because he had too much of it in his cell. The guards came back, and while putting him back into his cell he stated, "My mother fucking fruit punch better still be in there." The Captain heard this and ordered the guards to write him up then take him to the Hole.

It's a known fact, and of record, that this prisoner gets verbally abusive when agitated. Sending this prisoners back-'n-forth to the Hole serves no purpose if he doesn't comprehend what is happening. This is more of a reflection of how inept the guards and administration are at handling mentally ill prisoners. Majority of the prison population is in some state of mental deterioration or suffer from mental illness due to the oppressive conditions of confinement, or they came in that way.

There's no rehabilitation behind these walls, only the clumsy iron fist of corrections. The punishment for our crimes suppose to come from the loss of our freedom, not from what the administration can dish out. Everyday, we are packed in here all jumbled together with no regard for our mental health. The administration puts on a good front claiming to be in compliance with the law, but we know better. At best, their efforts are patch-work or knee-jerk reactions to an incident. This man didn't need to be placed into the Hole or punished for his belligerence. He should be in a program where he can receive treatment, and where the guards are trained to manage his care. Oh snap! He is in a program on the Row. I guess you can see how that is going.

This week, 2 prisoners' cell doors were mounted with a camera. I'm told this was for "observation" purposes because these prisoners are handicapped. But there's no real justification for the surveillance on these prisoners. I believe it's another form of harassment & retaliation by the administration directed at these 2 for their constant grievances and lawsuits filed against the officers & the administration.

These prisoners has been a thorn in the administration's side since the beginning of their incarceration. They have a history of filing complaints about every little thing, and some have stung or bugged they hell out of them. They've challenged the administration at every turn. From how the meals are served to the oppressive conditions of their confinement.

One of the prisoners is bedridden after a struggle with the guards some years ago. Back then the guards liked to man-handle us while we were being escorted in restraints. This prisoner spoke out against them and was harassed (bogus write-ups, sent to the Hole, & daily activities disrupted). One day he was slammed into the wall then the floor, and sat on while in restraints. He came out of that with a spinal injury that has crippled him. His lawsuit is pending.

The other prisoner has been at odds with the staff over his medical treatment & the conditions of his confinement. He's been in a wheelchair since the beginning of his incarceration (injured during arrest). The medical department has given him the wrong meds, the wrong treatment & diagnosis. Or it has been the disruptive presence of the guards during medical examinations (injecting their opinions about his condition). There has also been issues with the distribution of his medication (either he's gotten the wrong meds or he didn't get it at all).

This is the first time any prisoner on the Row has had a camera mounted on his door. Back in 1998, it was used for Phase II prisoners on death watch, which they've stopped this practice over 10 years ago. As long as people out there show no concern for us, the administration will continue to treat us like this-- literally getting away with murder.