A staff member that works regularly at LDU (detention unit), alleges that 3 women came in this month that were covered in mace, and not washed off after being restrained at their respective units. He says policy requires that the woman is washed off in the shower BEFORE she is driven to LDU.

He reports that a teenager was forcibly extracted from her cell on Santa Cruz, maced repeatedly, plastic tied AND handcuffed, and transported that way to Lumley. She screamed all the way and didn’t stop till they cut off the plastic ties, which cut into her skin. And then, finally, put her in the shower clothes and all. She quit screaming.

He couldn’t help but notice that 5 men, dressed in full riot gear, were needed to subdue an 80lb girl.

Prisoners are worth a lot of money to companies that make money from punishment. There is a price tag on their heads. Companies like prison telecoms, Securus, IC Solutions food service, Trinity, Keefe. Financial services like Securus and JPay charge outrageous fees for email, cards, music, games to their ‘captive’ customers.

The tablets the inmates use are cheap Chinese-made products that malfunction constantly. The Wi-Fi in Perryville is spotty at best, and in some cases nonexistent.

For-profit medical providers contribute to the needless suffering of the women too. Centurion Health has a contract with Perryville. They are sued for malpractice constantly. We have many horror stories about them posted on this blog. This health care provider routinely cuts corners, is deliberately understaffed, and denies medications and treatment to maximize profits.

The women and their families pay exorbitant amounts of money to Keefe for junk food just to subsist. They pay 2 or 3 times the price you’d pay on the outside for ramen, chips, and other unhealthy snacks.

Trinity provides often inedible rations served to Perryville residents. Think of the money they make by serving a meal that only costs them $0.60!

These prison pirates know that families will spend money on their loved ones, and they take advantage of that caring. Perryville will never be a clean, modern marvel of humanitarian treatment. But that doesn’t mean we should turn a blind eye to abuses it inflicts on the women, and their families.

The DOC is woefully short-staffed on guards. Many mistakes are made and communication is problematic at best. Every day on every unit in Perryville, they run around like crazy trying to staff the 6 am to 2 pm shift.

Many a day, inmates don’t get out at 6 am because there are no guards for that unit. Sargents and COIII’s have to cover yard duty. Sometimes there is only one guard for an entire yard on a shift.

We have no idea what the DOC is going to do about this problem……. maybe pay them more than a Walmart greeter???