Letter to Lieutenant Governor Nunez by Ronald W. Clark Jr
Dear Lieutenant Governor Nuñez
I'm coming to you concerning the psychological and physical torture that we're enduring here at Union Correctional Institution by an Administration who is try- ing to push men into committing suicide. The most Reverend Thomas Wenski Archbishop of Miami, informed you last month on what they were doing with the recreation, denying men of their six (6) hours of outdoor rec, for any reason that they can find. Men who only get two (2) recreation periods a week, if were lucky. So basically it's 24 hours a day, 5 to 6 days straight of solitary confinement. Please see attached The Scientific Consensus on solitary confinement where it states "all [individuals subject to solitary confinement] will... experience a degree of stupor, difficulties with thinking and concentration, obsessional thinking, agitation, irritability, and difficulty tolerating external stimuli." "Anxiety and panic are common side effects. Depression, post-traumatic stress dis- order, psychosis, hallucinations, paranoia, claustrophobia, and suicidal ideation are also frequent results." These findings support that we are in a life and death struggle for daily survival, of our lives as well as our sanity! The least we spend in these cages, is 162 hours out of 168 hours a week. And with this Administration we're lucky if we see the bare minimum 6 hours a week guaranteed to us in 33-601.830 Section(7)(j). And we have never seen over (6) six hours! And we can credit this, to it being inconvenient to the Admin- istration rec officers, who are trying to do as little work as possible. For the past several years they were packing 50 to 60 death row inmates, on a rec yard that was design- ed for a maximum capacity of 28 inmates. Well approx two months ago, due to a senator's interference, the Admin put a maximum capacity of 35 inmates per yard, Rec staff then
began looking for any excuse to deny inmates of signing up and going out to rec.One inmate was denied rec due to a salt pack being on his T.V. stand. They then began writing frivolous disciplinary reports known as a DR. Well these DRs cost the tax-payers anywhere from $700.00 to $1,400. And this was done to keep men off the rec yard, See attached Informal Grievance log #04-10-123 filed on 4-5-10 Approved on 4-7-10 by Lt. Salle, who recognized that even while on disciplinary confinement known as D.C., you are entitled to weekly recreation without waiting 30 days, which is also supported by 33-601.830 section (7)(J) 2. which only author- izes the ICT. (Institutional Classification Team) to suspend rec- reation for 15 days, and thats only after the inmate has been found guilty of a major rule violation. Yet records will show that inmates are being placed on D.C. and being denied rec for the first 30 days, and then given only one 3 hour rec a week. We need your help to correct all this.
On top of this, the administration refuses to set up a protective management wing under 33-602.221 for inmates who can't go to recreation because they've sat in these cells cussing at other inmates, using racial slurs ect ect, knowing that the other inmates can't get to them. This exasperates the psychological effects of solitary confinement, for all the inmates who have to suffer through these racial and verbal attacks.And the administration has knowledge of this, yet will not take corrective actions. We've got inmates housed in 6104, 6105 and 6214 that need to be separated from the rest of us. These inmates have continued to call inmates m_ _ _ ers among other things. It's easy to identify these inmates by viewing their DC6-2293. And the inmate in 6104 informed the Admin, sat here in P-dorm that he can't go out because people want to beat him up. When Major Mason asked the inmate if he wanted to move, the inmate said "No!" and came back here after speaking
with the major, and began cussing the other inmates housed around him. This shows the administrations reckless disregard for our mental health and wellbeing. Inmates like these, who can be identified by not participating in weekly recreation, need to be house seprately. We are prating for your assistance with this. Our mental health depends on this.
The Admin is also causing further stress, anxiety by calling cell inspections, where the inmates have to shut down their legal work, arts and crafts ect and sit around for 6 to 8 hours waiting on an inspection that never takes place. And this may happen 3 to 4 days a week. You can't set up to exercise, or do anything! "You've got to sit here in a cage, thats little more than a psychological torture chamber, and do nothing! You can't listen to music to get away from the madness of these racial and verbal insults of the protective management inmates, because you've got to wait on this cell inspection. That's anything but an inspection!" If your not, standing at attention with everything put away, then you receive a DR and 30 days on D.C., and possibly strip cell/proprety restriction, Another avenue of torture to try to push inmates in killing themselves. We've had one successful suicide here in P-dorm and two suicide attempts here in P-dorm this year. And at least 3 suicides in U&R dorms. These deaths scream the truth for what I'm telling you.
And to further show that the cell inspections is a fraud, we've got toilets that overflow sending raw sewage into our cells. On 9-19-19 I had Informal Grievance #213-1909-0137 aproved since them we've had several toilets overflow. These toilets need back up valves installed, This violates the constitutional rights of the inmates enduring this. See Williams V. Griffin, 952 F.2d 820 at 825 (#cir 1991) and McCord v. Maggion, 927 F. 2d 844 at 847
(5#cir 1991)(cell flooding with raw sewage and foul water was a "clear violation of the 8th Amendment") You've got numerous inmates who will testify that this has happened to them.
Another constitutional violation is we've got hall lights, that have had the covers removed. The lights are shining into our cells on to our pillow, which messes with our sleep. I won the grievance #2005-213-039 having it approved to have covers placed on them that would reflect the light off of the pillow. They recognized the unconstitutionality in Keenan v. Hall 83 F.3d 1090 ('more over there is no penological justification, for requiring [inmates] to suffer physical and psychological harm, by living in constant illumination, this practice is unconstitutional") Yet the admin is now failing to fix the unconstitutional problem. Another serious issue is in grievance log #2012-213-017 currently being appealed. Its dealing with the admin's unwillingness to spray weekly for ants. We've had three men that "I know of" who's had to be seen by medical because they've gotten eat up by ants in the middle of the night while sleeping. And theres not only a documented medical record, but photos of the ant bites. These people will not work with us. Everything has to be a battle!" which goes to show that these people are just trying to make our lives as miserable as they can. My cell was suppose to be sprayed in Oct and Nov. Here it is Dec and it still hasn't been sprayed, and I didn't even get around to addressing, the mold and mildew in the cells, shower and vents. Or the fire hazard outside the clinic where waters running out of the light. Or the fire hazard in the cell vents. We need your help Lt. Governor Nuñez.
I thank you for your time and hopefully your help.
Sincerely Ronald W. Clark Jr.
C.C.
Office of the Chief Inspector General, LG. Kenneth Sumpter, FDOC Secretary Mark, Inch, Regional Direction John Palmer, Warden Travis Lamb
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