Infrastructure Nightmares

 

Introduction to this Topic by the Editor

I need to give you a little background on Perryville so this will be more understandable. This prison was built in the early 1970’s by male inmates, for male inmates. The women didn’t come here until about 1990. AS in all government, the cheapest bid got the job. By all reports, this prison was raised fast, and I suspect, with the minimum of supervision of the builder/inmates. These are eye witness reports from the current women residents.

Explaining the Shower Picture

 

This is an accurate sketch of a real shower in “B” yard, Santa Cruz unit. Do you see the loose wires hanging in the lower door jamb? I was told they were “live” because this shower light is still on. I won’t test this theory! I’ve tried to portray all the standing water in front of those wires. All the shower units have standing water because the drains are all plugged.

Standing water = black mold we see everywhere

When inmates complained about the condition of this shower, they just took off the door and left it open. In the shower next to this one (not pictured) is the same filth.

The regulators (hot and cold) will not engage so moving the handle from Hot to Cold does nothing. The temperature the DOC sets is what you get. In the winter the water is cold and in the summer, it’s hot. The water pressure would increase dramatically if they would soak the shower heads in Lime-aWay to remove 50 years of accumulated minerals.

Contrast CA to AZ mental health watch

Contrast CA to AZ mental health watch

(We had the opportunity to interview a lady that recently transferred from California’s CIW prison to Perryville.)

“I was going through severe mental health issues at California Institution for Women, which is a prison in southern California. I was never handcuffed but was taken to a watch cell where I changed into a smock with velcro fasteners. An RN in the mental health care division immediately saw me in the room. No guard is staring at you as they have cameras instead.

I received 3 hot meals a day although that came with a paper spoon and cup. Recreation was twice a day, I was allowed to socialize with others, and I was given my clothes back on the third day. We had access to a library at all times. The maximum stay in watch is 5 days. There was constant counseling available, and a psychologist on site.”

Open Letter to Ryan Thornell: Director Letter on Mental Health Awareness

Open Letter to Ryan Thornell: Director Letter on Mental Health Awareness

Your March 5th mental health letter went over like a lead balloon with the ladies at Perryville. You are so out of touch. Ryan, you live in your ivory tower insulated by sycophants who treat you like a mushroom. Didn’t that encounter with Erica Stapleton teach you anything?

Some of your front-line staff are NOT PROFESSIONALS! They lie, they cheat, and they cover their ass. They are not the least bit interested in helping a resident with a mental health crisis. I have seen many women beg for help only to be told by staff, “I can’t do anything unless they endanger themselves or others.”

You couldn’t possibly know the extreme stress these women are under 24/7, by their oppressors and by the system. There WILL be more self-harm and dead inmates in Perryville. I overhear women discussing “best ways to hang by the shower head”.

You write:”…. draw a picture to represent your mood or to remind you of your favorite things.” I can hear the ladies of Perryville singing Sound Of Music’s ‘My Favorite Things’. Really????

Speaking of drawing…we used to be able to get coloring books to assuage the anxiety, but Shinn banned them. We used to use acrylic paint to be creative with….but Shinn banned them. Every Unit in Perryville used to have an Art Department…. but they were shut down. When I taught in the Cruz Art Department, (2012-2018) we had coloring time with soft music in the background. The SMI’s loved it! They frequently said it was the only way they felt calm.

If you asked the minimum inmates where they’d rather be, 98% would prefer a two-man cell again. Yes, even if it meant no air conditioning. Perryville is down 2 units….no more Maria or Pedro. All the women in minimum are packed to the gills with no privacy or autonomy.

Stress? You want to know stress? San Carlos “A” bay has had 5 major shakes (average time 5 hours) and four K9 shakes since November 29, 2023. That’s NINE SHAKES IN 3 MONTHS! What happened to one per quarter?

Perryville residents have bad food, bad water, and bad medical care. Let’s talk No-Care Naphcare shall we? Recently, the ACLU asked me to round up people with serious health problems to be interviewed by them on March 14th. I submitted a very long list starting with three terminally ill cancer patients. After talking with half of Carlos I was very depressed…..these people are not getting proper care. The patients blame the staff at medical, but I think their anger should be directed at Naphcare. The staff are hamstrung by the vendor’s proclivity to saving money over lives.

Your staff will insulate you and tell you what you want to hear. Come here and listen to the inmates, don’t be herded around by the DW’s. Keep trying to make our lives better.

Surgery Patients and The Sh*t Show They Must Endure Afterwards

Surgery Patients and The Sh*t Show They Must Endure Afterwards

In EVERY interview I’ve conducted on women who have surgery or are admitted to IPC, say the prison HAS LOST THEIR PROPERTY! This recent story is just an example of how this works. The other constant in these stories is the rude transport guards, and their vans that never seem to carry (as required by policy) step stools.)

Ms. E. was admitted to Abrazo West for a complete hysterectomy on Feb. 26th, 2024. Because she was in a fog of pain after surgery, she could only describe her tormentor guard as “a woman with a Russian accent, last name sounds like Warner.” According to Ms. E., this guard was rude, prevented the nurses from entering her hospital room, and was making constant noise to make rest impossible.

In three days she was released and the gauntlet was underway. E. said the transport guards brought a van with no heater and no step stool. They chained her up and told her to “crawl in”. That was Feb. 29th at 1:45pm so tracking down those officers should be a cinch. When they arrived back at Perryville’s vehicle gate, E. asked the guards to get a step stool. They didn’t have one so they used a plastic TOOLBOX as a makeshift step. At IPC she tried that but it wouldn’t hold her weight, so again she crawled down. IPC released her back to Carlos, she barely made the crawl again back into the van.

When E. got to the Carlos gate she showed the officer her wheelchair chrono and was told, ” We don’t have one you’ll have to walk.” So she slowly, painfully, shuffled to the medical unit which is about 1/4 football field away. When she was given a bed assignment they told her they couldn’t find her clothing!! They LOST ALL HER CLOTHES. The next morning the property officer magnanimously gives her one T-shirt and one pants. In the meantime medical says they can’t find her a wheelchair even though she has a chrono for one.

Ready? Property didn’t find her clothes for FOUR DAYS.

Another Death, This Time On Lumley

Another Death, This Time On Lumley

Reliable staff sources confirm a lady died on March 1st at Lumley unit. Reportedly, the day before she went to the medical unit complaining of severe stomach pain. Sources allege she was told to "drink water" and no other diagnostic care was given. The next morning an...

Officers Watt and Phillips Make Visitation a Great Experience

Officers Watt and Phillips Make Visitation a Great Experience

After last year's less-than-stellar interaction with visitation officer M, I prepared to dehydrate myself prior to the first food visit of 2024. Why? Officer M made us all line up in mass to use the restroom during the visit and frisked us in the line for good...

Breaking News! Has the DOC sabotaged the Injunction App?

Breaking News! Has the DOC sabotaged the Injunction App?

For our readers who don't know why this is so critical, let us explain it to you. On April 7, 2023, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona entered a Permanent Injunction to address the unconstitutional provision of health care and the...

Excessive “shakes” on DW Jones watch

Excessive “shakes” on DW Jones watch

Deputy Warden Jones has been on the job for 6 months now, and we're about to give him a failing grade. He has not instituted any policy or program that has been for the benefit of his residents. This is just one example of his "always the stick never the carrot"...

ClusterFlock (again) on 1-9-24

ClusterFlock (again) on 1-9-24

This looks like a monthly event....just like cramps. (And here I thought I was too old for that anymore:-/ Instead of 5 am, they woke us up at 6:13 am. They learned something from my last blog, that there had been no time for breakfast. Hurrah, they figured that out....

Women’s Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2023

Women’s Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2023

Prison Policy Initiative (PPI), published the above article (find it here) and found an astonishing number of women and girls---almost ONE MILLION---- were either incarcerated, on probation, or on parole last year. Women have a mortality rate significantly higher than...

New Prison Suicide Statistics from Arizona Republic

New Prison Suicide Statistics from Arizona Republic

The unfortunate death at Perryville spawned depressing numbers about suicides at the DOC. The number of suicide attempts since July of 2022 totaled 71, which was 19 more than the previous year. Just in the last 6 months, 10 incarcerated people have taken their lives....

Update on Deceased Woman 1-8-24

Update on Deceased Woman 1-8-24

The woman who hung herself Monday was on Charlie yard, not Delta. She waited for her roommate to go to work in the morning, removed her ID from the window, and hung herself from the vent above the toilet. The inmate was not found until count, and by that time she was...

KPHX: Guard Arrested For Sex With Female Inmate

KPHX: Guard Arrested For Sex With Female Inmate

JOSE MARIO FIGUEROA was charged with assaulting a woman inmate and booked on September 26, 2023. The victim, a resident of Santa Cruz, provided evidence and eventually, Figueroa admitted to unlawful assault upon a prisoner. Sources at the prison say, off the record,...

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