10/22/2012
Posts /1346/

Pelican Bay Days

Around March 19th 1996, I arrived at "PBSP" - Pelican Bay State Prison. I got off the bus at 4.30pm on a Thursday night. The prison fed hamburgers that night, but we got a nice cold snack lunch. After being stripped out, finger printed and photo'd we were all handcuffed, leg shackled and chained together - they call it the chain gang. We were walked like cattle to B-Facility. Keep in mind, this as my 1st time being at a maximum security prison - "Level 4". Was I scared? No, but I was worried. This was 1 creepy looken joint. After all, this was PBSP and it is very dangerous and quite intimidating.

Staff took me to my 2 man cell. Put me in therewith a stranger. Who knows, he may have been in the bay for murder, or he could be in the joint for his 3rd strike. Either way, over 80% of Pelican Bay inmates are lifers. CDCR sends its worst convicts to the Bay. It's how they roll.

When the staff left I introduced myself to my knew cell mate, and the first question I asked him was, "I need to read your paperwork." That's so I know who I'm living with. When you get to prison all inmates are given paperwork which shows what they are in prison for. My new cell mate let me read his paperwork. Everything checked out; he wasn't in prison for any sexual offences.

Before I go on about PBSP I want everyone to know that there is a major difference in inmates and what charges they are in for. The sex crimes are the worst of the worst. Murderers don't walk the same prison yard as a sex offender. They are considered creeps and have no respect coming, period. This is prison politics, and in future posts I'll explain politics in detail.

After I read my cell mate's paperwork, he asked me for mine. Once the prison gave me mine I allowed my cellmate and any other white inmate to read it. Showing your paperwork in PBSP is mandatory. It's a must or you will get "WHACKED", attacked, stabbed. In future posts I will post my paperwork so everyone will know what I'm in prison for.

Me and my cellie sat up for a few hrs, then I made my bed and went to sleep. The next morning I waked to chow breakfast. Then waited for yard to open. At PBSP every morning before the staff allows us to go to yard, "staff guards" use metal detectors to search in the ground for weapons. After they collect all the weapons that they can find then they run us all out to the yard. Before yard release staff will stand in front of the cells and make the inmates strip off all clothing, search it. Then make us bend over butt naked, spread your cheeks and cough. Then give you your clothes back, then use a metal detector/hand held model wand your person. Then you're allowed to go out to the yard. This is an everyday thing. It's called Safety and Security of the Institution. PBSP does this for everyone's safety. That prison has lots of acts of violence. That's Pelican Bay.

I was on B-Facility for 12 days. On my 13th day at the Bay, I was sent to A Fac to go to school. My 1st morning yard release on A Yard at yard recal I was standing in front of the building I was housed in, building 2, when I heard the prison PA yell "get down". A loud alarm went off and then directly in front of me I saw 2 Mexican inmates stabbing 1 very big black inmate. The gun tower in front of Building 2 saw the incident. He used a block gun. It's a shot gun type weapon that shoots rubber/wood blocks. The guard shot the block gun off 4 times at the incident with negative results. Then I would say 10 to 15 guatds were there quickly. They used their pepper spray on the 3 inmates. They didn't stop. The gun tower then put down the block gun and picked up his mini 14 real bullets and yelled get down or I'll shoot. He shot 2 times in the grass area where they were still at it. When the Mexicans saw the real bullets start to hit the yard they knew the 3rd shot would be fatal. That's when the 3 of them finally got down on the ground. I watched all of this happen, probably 3ft in front of me. When the staff got the 3 cuffed up, the Mexicans first, then every guard in PBSP was on the scene with the quickness. Every inmate was cuffed up and we all watched as the 2 Mexicans were taken away first. Then every Mexican on the yard was picked up off the ground and sat in one big area by themselves. Then the black inmates were moved to the opposite side of the yard away from the Mexicans. While all this movement was being done you should have seen the pool of blood that was on the ground underneath the black inmate victim. It took the nurses 20 minutes to help.

That was the 1st of many attacked that I saw at PBSP. I couldn't believe how long it took for the MTA-nurses to get to the incident. The victim lost an eye and lost so much blood that he almost died. Do the nurses get to an inmate attack victim in a timely fashion? No, of course not. When the attack is not on an inmate, do the nurses get to that attack faster? You bet they do.

I have seen many, many incidents at Pelican Bay and I've been involved in some of them as well. I will tell you about everyone that I saw and everyone I was involved in. I will post the photos of the incidents that I've been in. I was a victim at PBSP and I'll show you the photos of it. The photos are real, and I think everyone should see them so that they can see for themselves what really happens at prisons like PBSP. People, there are 33 adult prisons in CA, so just imagine what really goes on inside these walls. Don't let TV, Hollywood, show you movies about prison and believe what they show you. I have lived it for 19 yrs and I'm still living it every day. The difference is, I'll tell you the whole truth. I'll show you incident packets/photos of what really happens. on Oct 3rd 2012 my profile page was posted. Now that my blog is up and running I'll start sending weekly posts. So far I have told you a little about CMC and today I have sent in a 4pg Post on PBSP. Look up Pelican Bay Days - those are the facts/true life stories of my prison life at PBSP.

Write more later,

Donnie.