Violence Overruns Georgia’s Model Prison

Georgia’s FY 2011-12 prison of the year has an “unacceptable level of violence and security,” the Southern Center for Human Rights said in a January 31 letter to the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDOC). The letter comes on the heels of three prisoners murders at Hays State Prison (Hays) in one month.

Just five years ago, state officials promised lawmakers they would tighten the reins at Hays. Those promises came after two prisoners convicted of armed robbery scaled Hays’s fence and fled into the woods, kidnapping a woman along the way.

Yet, cell phones have proliferated in Hays, and not a week goes by without a stabbing or beating. In February, 2012, a guard was stabbed 22 times. Not long afterward, another guard was attacked in the chow hall. Both survived.

“We can’t tolerate this level of trauma in prisons,” said Sarah Geraghty, a senior attorney for the Southern Center for Human Rights, in her letter to GDOC.

“An officer’s going to come out in a box,” said a former guard who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation. While a guard has not yet been killed at Hays, three prisoners were, in a month.

The December 19, 2012, killing of prisoner Derrick Stubbs, 25, from a severe beating, began a spat of violence at Hays. Just a week later, on December 26, prisoner Damion MacClain, 27, died after he was strangled and beaten in his bed. As a guard was escorting prisoner Nathaniel Reynolds, 31, on January 18, he was ambushed and killed.

Following the murder of Reynolds, Hays was placed on full lockdown. In a show of how lacking security is at Hays, two guards were stabbed while prisoners were supposed to be locked in their cells.

The letter from the Southern Center says they receive daily calls and letters that say cell doors remain broken. They do not lock or can be manipulated with a card or even a finger. Prisoners roam the hallways and go into other cells or even other buildings, a former administrator said. This prevents investigators from tracing crimes back to perpetrators when violence breaks out, guards say.

Of the 1,635 prisoners at Hays, about half are considered violent. Mixing them with burglars, thieves, meth users, and pot peddlers is not uncommon. Many prisoners say they live in fear for their lives in an environment that creates a hierarchy of predator and prey.

Gangs wield the real power and influence. “Gangs are running rampant,” said one Hays prisoner, who has been there eight years. “They could lock them down, but they don’t. Most of the staff members are scared of them. So they cater to them.” Guards say the maximum-security cells are full, leaving no room to lock the gangs up.

One of the problems at Hays lies squarely at GDOC’s feet. Hays has 248 guards on the payroll. While GDOC refuses to say how many guards are on duty, former state Rep. Barbara Massey Reece says one guard mans each tower and another oversees a cell with 62 prisoners or a building of more than 120 prisoners.

That problem is masked when an inspection is forthcoming. A former 20-year Hays employee said that when officials from Atlanta came to inspect staffing and conditions, Hays officials would call in off-duty guards to make staff levels appear higher than normal. “Bad things happen in prison,” said the former guard. “By covering it up, you’re not learning anything and no one is held accountable for poor decisions.”

Rick Jacobs, GDOC’s field operations manager, contends that everything at Hays is under control despite its outdate technology, more violent prisoners, and shortage of 45 guards. “It’s a very challenging environment,” he said. “Our number-one priority is to protect the public, staff, and protect inmates.”

Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics show 25 prisoners were killed in Georgia prisons between 2001 and 2010. That speaks to the intensity of violence currently at Hays. “In the last decade, we can’t recall three homicides in one month,” said Sara Totonchi, director of the Southern Center for Human Rights. “That’s truly a shocking statistic.”

“I’m not sure at this point what we can do,” said state Rep. Jay Neal. The Southern Center’s letter to GDOC made some suggestions.

An impartial prison expert should be hired to evaluate the violence and propose solutions. A technical grant from the National Institute of Corrections should be applied for. Regular shakedowns for cellphones, knives, and other contraband should be conducted. It should already be ensured prisoners are sleeping in their assigned cells.

“We can’t eliminate all prison violence, but we can take steps to do it,” said Geraghty. “The department has failed thus far.”

Source: www.timesfreepress.com

Subscribe today

Already a subscriber? Login