DON'T BE DUPED (part II) SOLUTIONS

  FOR DECADES WE have been running away from our problems and now have to face them. We have the tools. :

1) Problem: we closed our mental health facilities in the 80's and offered no alternatives. Today, most of the mentally ill who cannot afford private care, wind up in prison where there is no treatment except heavy drugging, 

WE need  to get effective and available treatment in our communities and avoid future incarcerations fo these vulnerable people but we must also treat those that are in prison now. They are funneled into obscene conditions in various forms of solitary confinement ( mostly called RHUs or Restrictive Housing units) BECAUSE they are too ill to be in general population. The WIDOC has no tools to deal humanely with this population and we need to give these tools to them- training , new rules and a treatment center.

THE WIDOC has been here before- A lawsuit mandated the building of a mental health treatment center for the Women's prison in Fond du Lac. Until the present mess, covid and lockdowns, it was working well according to two Former DOC psychologists.

here are some photos of the center from a DOC powerpoint document document:

links to the lawsuit complaint that mandated the center

link to the whole power point, tell of massive rule changes and training 

What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger: Surviving Amidst Mental Health Litigation

FFUP's shortened version

COLORADO SYSTEM_ the model for all of us-

      they have no solitary confinement over 15 days and NO staff shortages.

Rick Raemisch, one of the main architects of colorado's new system now heads a foundation that consults with prison systems around the country on how to facilitate a similar healing.

   Rick raemisch on his night in solitary

    link to falcon organization web

    Article comparing CO and WI i 2016.

SECOND PIECE OF WHAT WE NEED:REDUCTION OF POPULATION

graph on population rise

Details on folks that need to be released: 

CA bill that lead to prison population reduction - factors most important were NO MENTAL  HEALTH TREATMENT and NO GENERAL TREATMENT

     CA BILL/ shortened/TREATMENT  /RAEMISH  MY NIGHT/

 OUR TAKE ON THE LOCKDOWNS AND STAFF SHORTAGES

(I. e. WISCONSINITES !!   DON’T BE DUPED ( PART 1)

 

ARE YOU AWARE THAT WE TAX PAYERS GIVE OUR PRISON SYSTEM TWICE THE AMOUNT OF MONEY WE GIVE OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS

1.  Wisconsin Department of Corrections (WIDOC) gets 5.1 billion dollars from the years 2023 till 2025 

2. Don't your children deserve better from your elected officials?

3 Many students come from poverty conditions and there is only 120.32 million allocated for Nutritious meal programs.

4.235,8 Million is allocated for mental health programs.

5 10 million over 2 years for the public library system

 

AND LOOK AT WHO YOU ARE INCARCERATING ? Most will return to you in much worse mental and physical condition that when they went in.

2. 22.4% of inmates are incarcerated for Drug Charges.

3. 9.8% of inmates are incarcerated for OWI Offenses,

4.A Whopping 32.4%  of inmates are incarcerated for rule violations and no new charges..

6. Sad fact is the court sent inmates to Receive Treatment to return to Society as Productive Citizens. WI DOC  does not Honor Court’s mandate to give inmates treatment.

 

THE PRISON STAFF IS Walking out because people need meaningful work.

 

ARE YOU AWARE THAT THE WIDOC IS WAREHOUSING most PEOPLE ONLY- that there are few programs and it has been that way for a very long time?

        A)The focus is on punishment and the strategy is to keep you, the public, in constant fear of your prisoners while holding prisoners until they can no longer legally keep them.  

       B) There are some good programs as you get to minimum security prisons but many prisoners never get there or spend decades in Maximums before they get there. They call most their days “Dead time”.

C)  Between 40 and 70 percent of the prison population should not be there- They have been eligible for parole for decades ( old law prisoners,most convicted before 2000) , are mentally ill,  are there because they were revoked for rule violations or have obscenely long sentences mandated by the seriously flawed truth in sentencing laws.

 

The “Fights  and disruptions” that the WIDOC claims are the Cause of the lockdowns are instead CAUSED by intolerable prison conditions. culminating in the lockdowns. 

The most recent spate of fights and the stabbing were over the phones-

prisoners main source of hope and caring is their families and some of these people have not spoke to their loved ones in months- The phone system is poorly run , causing disputes over who gets to call.

 

 This is a total misuse of your tax dollars. Please reach out to your legislators and demand they allocate more for your children and less for Corrections and ensure prison population is slashed, and that there is real  drug alcohol and treatment outside the prison system and outdated prisons that drain the taxpayers’ resources are closed.  Most important :Until we as a society, start to deal effectively with the mental health and addiction crisis in our country, we also need a mental health treatment center within the system, for today, that is where most of our mentally ill are ending up           

The statistics above were gleaned from government websites  by a member of the group FOR A SECOND CHANCE. We meet by phone weekly and are a group of activists, advocates, families and friends of prisoners dedicated to  restoring balance and justice to our “Just -us” system.  We hope you can join us. For more information contact:

Peg Swan: pgswan3@aol.com  (  or write 29631 Wild Rose Drive, Blue River, WI 53518 OR leave a message at 608-536-3993);

Tony Zilstra: timothy.zylstra@yahoo.com

Kandis Volaske kandis.voelske@gmail.com

Rob Slamkabob slamkabob@gmail.com

Websites: www.prisonforum.org and www.secondchancewi.orThe statistics above were dayof prisoners dedicated to  restoring balance and justice to our “Just -us” system.  We hope you can join us. For more information contact:

 

Next; Our take on lockdowns an staff shortages/Don’t be Duped (Part II)

SOLUTIONS

WI PRISON CRISIS CONTINTUES /WIDENS webpage 2

 Poor conditions for Staff and prisoners

 1)Waupun prison responds to staff shortages with three month lockdown  and no end in site/

 2)Green Bay prison responds to protests over conditions with same strategy

3) All prisoners from maximums and many minimums are suffering from lack of programs and support and are released to the pubic traumatized and in much worse condition than when they went in. 

recent: Waupun , on lock down for three months, recently started allowing one showers week and one rec session weekly.  Here is friend of one prisoner asking for our help. WE are doing what we can to expose this obscenity. 

here is one email: 

"I'm a friend of DarRen Morris.

He is at Waupun.  Waupun has been on lockdown for almost 4 months.  It's pretty much like he's in solitary confinement.  The prisoners are going absolutely crazy.  No one will listen to family and friends who desperately want to see their loved ones.

Do you have any suggestions?  Help!

Thank you,"

Alert we received beginning of July: Lockdowns spread to GBCI:

MASS PROTEST AT GBCI

Derrick Jones 432373,GBCI

"I am hereby writing to report that there is currently a mass inmate protest taking place at the Green Bay Correctional Institution in response to arbitrary and punitive policies/practices. At least thirty inmates have engaged in actions ranging from self harm, setting fires, disruptive conduct requiring the use of tasers and pepper spray, overdoses on medications necessitating trips to the hospital, just to name a few. All of this has been happening since last week. Brown county sheriff deputies were also here in the prison at one point. The issues being protested include, but are not limited to, the following:
  
• Unsanitary living conditions- Inmates are being forced to exist in foul conditions not compatible with communal living. Inmates do not receive adequate cleaning supplies and there is accumulated filth. An inspection by the health department is needed.

•Bat and mouse infestation- These animals are all throughout the prison. They enter inmates cells, leave their urine and droppings everywhere and pose a substantial risk to inmate health and safety due to the potential of being bitten and spread of disease. There is no meaningful efforts being made to rectify the problem. The infestation is most likely due to the unsanitary conditions mentioned previously.

•Denial of schooling, rehabilitative programs and recreational activities- For the better part of the past two years, inmates have been denied the opportunity to pursue an education, participate in rehabilitative programs and recreational activities or exercise. Inmates are regularly kept in our cells for twenty-four hours a day except to come out for one shower a week. Inmates are also being denied access to adequate mental health services. The cumulative effect of the lack of out of cell services and activities are exacerbating existing inmate mental health issues.

•Restricted phone use- Prison warden Chris Stevens recently implemented a new and restrictive practice which limits inmate phone usage and disrupts our access to family, professional contacts, religious leaders and others due to unnecessary changes to the phone schedule which serves absolutely no legitimate penological interest that can't be met and satisfied thru more reasonable alternatives (It should be noted that this bullet point is what initially triggered the mass inmate protests).

•Nutritionally inadequate meals- Inmates are being served meals that are believed to lack adequate nutritional value while staff keep the better quality food for themselves.

These are just some of the issues being protested as I have come to understand them. Although I am not myself involved in any of the protest actions, I have a front row seat to them as a witness to what is, and has been, transpiring. I beseech the recipients of this email communication to investigate and spread the word about what is going on here. Your time and attention is greatly appreciated. "

Brad Grossman 394775  gbci  62623

 " Well, we are on lockdown again and have been on it for about a week and a half already. I don't know what got us put on it to start with but we did have a couple people light fires in their rooms and one room has the wall Locker torn off the wall. Hopefully won't be on this for too much longer. I’m supposed to go back to school next week but I don't think that we will be done by then. I'm hoping to get my schooling done so that I can get into my wood tech class. I am close to being able to start. I only have four packets left to redo my TABE test. a part of me wonders if I want to keep going because I can't stand the unit that I'm on. It was supposed to be for people who are in school but most people over here don't go to school. They just yell out their cells day and night. Also if I do choose to stay and do my class I have to turn down my medium and stay here 

 I have never been to any prison that has so many lockdowns. I've been to almost five prisons and have done over 15 years. I know that I am getting too old to be doing this. I kind of would like to get out of this prison because they really don't do anything to help people here and they stall when you need to get things done. The medical and dental here is a joke. They like to push things off or make up excuses why they can't do things. I do have some medical problems that I am dealing with. This is not a good place to have to do that. I was hoping that maybe you'd be able to order me a fan. I think that these people like to mess with us just to see how far they can go. They still have the heat turned on even though it has been in the '80s. Most of the windows on the unit don't even open and there is no air flow in the cells .I have almost gotten to where I have to sleep during the day because it is so hot in the cells that I think with my asthma it makes it hard to breathe. This is the only place I've been that we only get two showers a week sometimes only one. Just like today, just to mess with us we get ice every day and it is usually in the afternoon after dinner so theOUR Ty came around today right after breakfast so now we don't get any when we need it in the afternoon. They wonder why people snap on guards and get mad but it is just a constant game with these people. I am just trying to get my time done but it does get hard not saying things to these people. I don't really make enough to be able to do too much besides getting my basic things and even that is close. I am sending an order form for a fan if you're able to help out with that it would be greatly appreciated.  

 

Communication is difficult as with the lockdowns they rarely are allowed phone calls and most do not have a tablet for corrllinks. The corker is that Because of a third party mailing system, TEXT BEHIND our mail INTO the prison first goes to Maryland and takes almost a month to get into the prison  while prisoners'  a tablet for mail comes to us directly- two or three days.

AND OUR TAKE ON THE SITUAIION

Our take on the situation:  Shortage of staff has been the much touted reason for the lockdowns and lack of programming but is actually just one symptom of a wider systemic breakdown. Long ago ,with the 1994 prison expansion bill, WI lost its mission to rehabilitate prisoners and keep the public safe and went for the billions of dollars in taxpayer money designated for prison expansion. Prisoners were demonized  and rehabilitation was dropped in favor of endless punishment and warehousing. The public is kept duped with incessant hate and fear mongering by politicians and all who gain financially from the reallocation of taxpayer money. for school and community to prisons. Now our  children are saddled with student debt and homelessness skyrockets  Our cry: Schools and communities NOT prisons"  and ”look at who you are incarcerating!. See them as real people and  give them as second chance/ take back your future" 

HOW ABSURD IS THIS?:All Maximum segregation units housing seriously mentally ill prisoners who will be released by law at court ordered date ,untreated ,after years in solitary torture, often to homelessness. This while the OLD LAW prisoners, often who have college degrees garnered when we believed in second chances and ALL are ELIGIBLE for release, are kept until death or prison cannot legally hold them. 

( old law prisoners_ those convicted of crimes committed before 2000

TIS truth in sentencing- all convicted of crimes committed after 2000- have mendatory release dates and little judge flexibility

 

Our demands

1) Build mental health treatment center modeled after one court mandated at taycheaah with complete change of rules. ( link to  power point doc presented by DOC after opening) ALSO LOOK at CO's system , which we hear has an effective treatment program. 

2) Reduce prison population by half. Hold only those prisoners who need to be kept separate from th e public for or the public's safety and rehabilitate , the release them. Make clear the amount of time needed to be served for punishment.

A) Secretary and Governor reverse policy of holding OLD law prisoners as long as legally possible to pressing for release for all those who are eligible and ready to be good citizens- allow families and friends to testify at hearings and release all possible- all are over 30 and many in 70s and 80s. VERY few crimes are committed by people over thirty and the number decrease 

B) Abolish TIS and enact new system modeled after IL system-How a working parole systme works

C) Abolish reincarceration for non felonies/  bring back “Good time”” for time spent well on probation- many other rule changes etc/

D) plug the prison pipeline. -give grant for an independent non profit dedicated to finding safe and secure housing and healthy situations for prisoners nearing release or held long beyond their eligible date-

3) And so on…………

CRISIS IN WAUPUN CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION= we need your help

     Waupun Correctional  ( WCI ) has been on lockdown since March 28th and we, the public, are just learning about it. The word is spreading in there that FFUP will try to help and I have written warden and Security Director and begun the search for people in power who can help. the stories are gruesome and many letters are now coming in and have to be transcribed to word because they are written in light pencil from RHU. ( Restrictive Housing Unit), where most of the mentally ill in the system are housed.

I will sum some of the facts here and link the letters original and transcribed below:

It has been nearly three months of lock down. Most of us have heard of sporadic lockdowns for many prisons lately, including WCI but none that has gone on consistently for this long.-  Think two men and a toilet stuck in a cell the size of a large bathroom  for months. 

There was a memo sent to prisoners delineating what must happen for lockdown to end : here is one summation of it:

Lockdown has been continuous at WCI since March 29, 2023. According to the Public Address Memo from Warden Hepp, normal operations will not even begin to be considered until :

1) Inmates begin to stand for formal Standing Counts with cell lights on.

2) That cell fronts not be covered in any way.

3) That inmates not "fish" items from cell to cell or otherwise pass items of any sort to each other.

4) That inmates not yell to each other or otherwise make any loud noise.

Psychological Services : None

Health Services : Dire Emergencies Only

Religious Services : None

Work : None. Only 12 kitchen workers each day.

Recreation : Limited Groups once per week. If you have been marked down as not following 1-4 above, your not

going.

Showers : Once Per Week.

Meals : One "hot" meal per day.

As of right now, no end in sight, and no additional memo's released.

there is confusion about the reason for the lockdown- one prisoners says a guard got hit in the face , was not hurt. Another says the media has been told that there was an attempted take over of RH by prisoners- prisoners say nothing like that happened we have not heard that story form media. and will research it. 

but the memo is real and prisoners have give us responses to that: Two of the requirements for ending the lockdown are absurd:1) yelling: OF COURSE prisoners are going to talk with one another and they have to yell to hear each other. (2) standing for count- what I am told is that the first count is at 6 am and there is a bell and then the guards start immediately- if you are in a beginning cell, it is nearly impossible to be up and standing in time- one would think this could be resolved- have two bells-first one a warning and 15 minutes the next, for example. Those with alarm clocks make the 6 am count _ and Why so early?(2) covering cell window is done to get privacy- none of us can imagine living in conditions where anyone can look in any time= where your toilet is in full view. And finally “fishing”- this is passing stuff from cell to cell- how inmates help each other as well, I am sure, as passing illicit materials- none of these rise to the level of needing complete lockdown.

We believe the real reasons for the lockdown is lack of staff and overcrowding- Even in “normal “conditions all programs are cut and the prison only warehouses. Blaming the prisoner is the motis-operendi used to mask these real problems. And the media, most legislators and courts accept the excuses. All seem scared of the public, large parts of which believe all the hate rhetoric surrounding prisoners. The public needs to be reeducated.

here are some statements from  latest letters. The conditions are horrendous: 

Next, we get one shower a week. clean our cells and RHU once a week. clothes ripped, blood, torn sheets, no toothpaste or toothbrush, more people dying in RHU than in GP due to CO staff mistreating us Water comes down Brown and we supposed to drink it.  They're not giving us legal rec(recreation) or proper Medical Care. Like I took a flu vaccine 11 16 22 and been suffering from pain/ aches and right arm, hard to write, sleep, shower ,wipe when I use the bathroom, also it's causing stress,, anxiety,, trauma, chronic pain emotional distress, due to falsified lockdown, I can't get medical care, They Lie like we been refusing  our appointments cuz they don't like working., They give us ripped face towels/ dry towels that they clean institution with- rubber cups and spoons that suicidal inmates has urined on or human wasted in- they play with our mail, They break/lose Electronics our Family send us, They Feed Us peanut butter jelly everyday, old bread, old bologna/ molded, shorting our meals, cold food, mices in kitchen, every meal we eat got chopped up bologna in it- it's food in that kitchen we never see, due to staff eating it. Birds flying/ living in units with us flying around our food, bird waste laying around, cockroaches mices bats spiders ants. Failing to protect/ taking inmates safety serious, Visits on 90-minute twice a week(??). giving out inmates they don't like personal information. Staff paying to get inmates beat up/ telling inmates who's snitching. If  people get AIDS N staff in here that they allow to shower with us and don't clean showers, stealing money from inmates account, staff lying, get away with writing fabricated tickets, food fruit veggies milk outdated. Its dead mice, birds in ventilation system that I've breathe in every day killing us slowly, They plant cell phones/ drugs in people's room they hate. No programs here. The way we living is inhumane. We get punished for doing the right thing, this place is driving me and others crazy but I'm sane but wanna explode, cause it's no one to back us up. Please can you help us, also can you send me envelope paper and pens please and thankyou . They're tampering with Evidence and hiding the real from the public the latest letters:

The first email  states conditions. The second email below list the conditions for lifting the lockdown- they are absurd and target things that are normal in any prison. This is group punishment and definitely cruel and unusual.

As for the conditions, many of these are things that make survival for inmates possible. Two of the most obvious:(4) yelling: OF COURSE prisoners are going to talk with one another and they have to yell to hear each other. (1) standing for count- what I am told is that the first count is at 6 am and there is a bell and then the guards start immediately- if you are in a beginning cell, it is nearly impossible to be up and standing in time- one would think this could be resolved- have two bells-first one a warning and 15 minutes the next, for example. Those with alarm clocks make the 6 am count _ and Why so early?(2) covering cell window is done to get privacy- none of us can imagine living in conditions where anyone can look in any time= where your toilet is in full view. And finally “fishing”- this is passing stuff from cell to cell- how inmates help each other as well, I am sure, as passing illicit materials- none of these rise to the level of needing complete lockdown.

We believe the real reasons for the lockdown is lack of staff and overcrowding- Even in “normal “conditions all programs are cut and the prison only warehouses. Blaming the prisoner is the motis-operendi used to mask these real problems. And the media, most legislators and courts accept the excuses. All seem scared of the public, large parts of which believe all the hate rhetoric surrounding prisoners. The public needs to be reeducated.

 

Here are the emails. Two recent phone calls also reinforced. Plus they all say they are having a hard time psychologically and there is NO counseling except if you threaten suicide you go to obs.

 

BENJAMIN QUINCY (394245) /sent Monday, May 15, 2023 8:23 PM

As I was saying we have been on lock down since 3/28/23. because A Staff member got hit in the face by another inmate. The staff member Did not suffer any major injury at all. They give us A shower once A week They give us one hot meal A Day. The only way we get to go to Rec is if We stand for count and have are lights on have nothing on the bars door. No matter what by law we suppose to get rec once A week. I'm in the Northwest cell hall last week only 30 inmates was on the list to go to Rec The reason they say is everybody Else did not fallow the rules. they Making up there own rules as things go alone. I don't think its right at All .Something needs to be done about this problem.

BIESE BENJAMIN (282786)

Tuesday, May 16, 2023 9:53 PM

Lockdown has been continuous at WCI since March 29, 2023. According to the Public Address Memo from Warden Hepp, normal operations will not even begin to be considered until :

1) Inmates begin to stand for formal Standing Counts with cell lights on.

2) That cell fronts not be covered in any way.

3) That inmates not "fish" items from cell to cell or otherwise pass items of any sort to each other.

4) That inmates not yell to each other or otherwise make any loud noise.

Psychological Services : None

Health Services : Dire Emergencies Only

Religious Services : None

Work : None. Only 12 kitchen workers each day.

Recreation : Limited Groups once per week. If you have been marked down as not following 1-4 above, your not

going.

Showers : Once Per Week.

Meals : One "hot" meal per day.

As of right now, no end in sight, and no additional memo's released.

Sent : 5-16-23 @7:51 PM

FFUP to Marlena Larson on lockdown

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AoTuujQsrolq4D6vTbFa3iQV1vzPZiV6/edit?usp=drive_link&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

 

FFUP to EVERS, Carr and Cooper on WCI Lockdown

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dukZ1qRY3MsCmMbPZtSP0WS0DVKSC_EL/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

 

Rebuttal to group punishment for rule violations

Part of my letter to Deputy warden on rule violations

On your complaints- the one that stands out the most to me was the complaint about prisoners  yelling to each other- They need to communicate- I will include here the essay of former DOC secretary Rick Raemisch who spent part of one night in solitary- he could not stand it for even one night.  Inmates have to yell to be heard through the thick walls and need to communicate to keep a little sane . Others, of course - go nuts with the noise- Solitary , whatever you call it, is torture, 

I see the rule violations listed as petty stuff that can be handled with understanding- for example,  the standing for count- I am told that the first bell is a 6 am. Why so early? I am also told that the guards start checking the cells right after bell so those in the first cells are often just waking up- the person who told me this says he has an alarm clock and sets it 15 minutes early- can you have two bells- one a warning? 

About prisoners block their window-I often get complaints from prisoners that there is no privacy- none of  us out here would tolerate not having anyway to block the view of others while taking care of our bodies.

For all of this , a discussion needs to be had- - talk to the prisoners- maybe in a group setting - - all these”infractions” have a reason- are addressing a problem- I think you need to understand that problem. These are human beings, most of whom would love to have programs that help them heal and would respond positively to an earnest attempt to at real communication. 

Summations of rights violated by Dewhite Johnson

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1U23l94jWjevJw5ulDDmE0OmwnBFCmfAO3xlIGRF5dAE/edit?usp=sharing

 

First letters/emails on the lockdown

Benjamin Biese: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xJdYDu_N58rHAEDn1rXMLMsjOXlXOe6m/view?usp=sharing

Benjamin Quincy:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ejjaVXtHi6oxE7TLjhv11okoh0ZRxWYb/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

Russel Rose: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JDZBqfi6FV5oiDKpQjo2yLoNr6LwvB0f/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

 

Stabbing, staff response and lockdown

  I am in contact and working with Dennis Bufford’s wife/ working with her specially to maintain good contact with Dennis

My report to DOC powers 

“The stabbing referred to- the one I know of is of Dennis Buford.  The report is that he was stabbed 13 times by his cellmate- he had pleaded with WCI powers to protect him and they did nothing and  basically stood around while the stabbing was going on. When he collapsed unconscious they carried him out of the cell, still shackled -he never got medical care and tells me that when he wrote me and I wrote the deputy warden and security director , he was transferred to WSPF. This is , I guess, the usual tactic to stop prisoners from litigating. I do not take credit for the transfer but am glad he is out of there and assure you that his transfer will not prevent me or him from securing a full blown investigation of this WCI lockdown obscenity. I have been so upset about the systemic lifelong trauma that is afflicts RHU prisoners in general times, you can imagine my concern when learning of this wholesale group punishment effort.”

 

Dennis bufford second letter

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wRAijnsTB010tjSfhnVn91TrfqGKqKSP/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

 

Dennis Bufford conduct report and photos of shank

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1z9jzNtCakPPjEVFZZoSsf3aQj62g29t0/view?usp=sharing

 

Davonci Hennings two letters https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CwLHmHOf2PgC_6bGXFKiIyEn_ZM0ZCpaBMUKGcujMi4/edit?usp=sharing

 

 

Cazionne WIlliams

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VG8Jn6z5cgwpKCoKcf5rSogy0jcMRNHY/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

 

Daniel Owens- First part of this is losing his proerty, secpnd is conditions in RHU loackdown

https://docs.google.com/document/d/138rbov0mJCzmVAhLCgYOJRoaXvODG2WAh-R_gpTqKT8/edit?usp=sharing

Letter from a few years ago fro GBCI- where he is forced to love in a feces smeared cell.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kdGiE4ypMXsXaTI2I9Kbrnnkl8INxCfn/view?usp=sharing

 

Jason Kurtz first part property lost- second part lockdown/then followup- got property

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HZuRk_-yec0jEwvzI1j0i1bu6KpgC3FgDdG0dPrxXak/edit?usp=sharing

 

Derek  Arthur Tabbert afraid for safety ,not getting health care

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_UHxm5jnp7ce6v4NIXdUMVxo3JqY8G2p/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=110165518202991476262&rtpof=true&sd=true

 

Wisconsin Families for a Second Chance -YOU ARE INVITED !

"prison assembly line" from old magazine

                 Wisconsin  Families for a Second Chance

                      we meet twice a week 

for more information, email : pgswan3@aol.com

Wisconsin Families for a Second Chance is a new group made up of families and friends of prisoners, activists and  advocates. We are coming together after many years of  battling alone for healing. We are  dedicated to bringing fairness and  balance to our Justice System. Much of  each weekly meeting is spent brain- storming strategies for individual prisoners, and we learn much from each other,  But we also believe that the WI Department of Corrections (WIDOC) needs to change fundamentally and so, have filed a report with the US Department of Justice ( USDOJ), asking for an investigation of the WIDOC. We are also working on a lawsuit to mandate real mental health treatment in our prisons and the building of a mental health treatment facility and are working with legislators and the media.

 And we need your help, We need you to stop listening to the constant fear mongering incessantly applied to prisoners. We need you to spend a bit of time learning just who you are incarcerating and what your billions of dollars are being spent on. We are developing a website to show you in detail who the State of Wisconsin holds in your name, including their stories and writings, but for now we ask you to think about these three groups of he wrongfully held people:

1) Officially 40 % of the population are mentally ill.( we have been told by a public defender that is it more like 70 % ). They are here  because prisons are our defacto mental health institutions- we have confused and alienated people out here- problems escalate until they land in there. Many end up acting out in general population while in prison and then are put into segregation, called “restrictive housing units” or RHUs-. Which is 24/7 solitary confinement. The prison will deny they have “solitary confinement”   but this is playing with words. They are given a rubber pencil or a crayon to write with and virtually no other tools with which to express themselves in a healthy way ; self harming is common. They are punished for this behavior and often receive more prison time for other behavior they have no control over., Our families group includes distraught parents of prisoner who desperately need treatment, but are caught in this endless cycle. Those who escape increased sentencing, are released upon their court mandated release date,- untreated, untrained and severely traumatized.

 2) The reason you don’t know about the above group is because of a second factor- Half of the prison admissions each year are for rule violations- NON felonies. It is a neat little trick, that once a prisoner is released, often with virtually NO Support, he or she is carefully monitored by his or her parole agent and for even minor rule infractions, they are easily revoked. The balance of the unserved sentencing is used to return these “offenders” to prison without charges appearing on CCAP, nor processing through the courts. Administrative Law Judges within the DOC render the decisions which return these men and women to the prisons.

The practice of incarcerating for rule violations is one of the reasons for prison overcrowding and must be stopped. Instead, prisoners need treatment and training while in prison and help with  maintaining and building a strong support system  when they get out. .

.3) The third group is the most astounding- Why  are we building geriatric and hospice units for  the elderly, sick and infirm rather than letting them go home to their loved ones? And did you know that there are at least 2000  prisoners who can be released at ANY time, those incarcerated before 2000/ What is called OLD LAW prisoners?- Most have been eligible for decades. And why not let them go home? We recently tried to gain release for an old law prisoner who  was dying of cancer- compassionate release, letters etc failed, and a lawsuit was too late. All he wanted to do was to be with his family when he died. Dominique Marak. He died in prison. He loved to do collages of portraits of prisoners using pictures of garbage- I include one here- in his honor.

And with that  glimpse, I will end with this.  Prisoners often say that once they enter prison, they are no longer considered human.  I ask you to learn something about the prisoners we are warehousing. People change, they are not their crime. Also, please consider joining us in our weekly meetings.

For more information or to join our weekly group:

Email: Peg Swan: pgswan3@aol.com  (  or write 29631 Wild Rose Drive, Blue River, WI 53518);

Tony Zilstra: timothy.zylstra@yahoo.com

Kandis Volaske kandis.voelske@gmail.com

Rob Slamkabob slamkabob@gmail.com

TAXPAYER ALERT:Some astounding, maddening statistics

 Taxpayer Alert

 We feel it is important that Wisconsin Taxpayers be aware of these staggering facts and how your tax money is spent:

 1. Were you aware the Wisconsin Department of Corrections gets 5.1 billion dollars from the years 2023 till 2025?

2. 22.4% of inmates are incarcerated for Drug Charges.

3. 9.8% of inmates are incarcerated for OWI Offenses,

4. 24.9% of inmates are incarcerated for Sex Offenses.

5.A Whopping 32.4%  of inmates are incarcerated for rule violations and no new charges..

6. Sad fact is the court sent inmates to Receive Treatment to return to Society as Productive Citizens. WI DOC  due to staff shortages and lack of transparency, does not even Honor Court’s mandate to give inmates treatment.

 

 Now comes the inexcusable statistic: Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, which is tasked to educate your children,only receives one half of the prison budget- 2.5 billion for the same time.

 

1. Don't your children deserve better from your elected officials?

2. Many students come from poverty conditions and there is only 120.32 million allocated for Nutritious meal programs.

3 .235,8 Million is allocated for mental health programs.

4. 10 million over 2 years for the public library system

 

 This is a total misuse of your tax dollars. Please reach out to your legislators and demand they allocate more for your children and less for Corrections and ensure prison population is slashed, inmates receive needed drug alcohol and treatment outside the prison system and outdated prisons that drain the taxpayers’ resources are closed.

 

All the statistics above were gleaned from government websites  by a member of the group FAMILIES FOR A SECOND CHANCE. We meet by zoom and phone weekly and are a group of activists, advocates, families and friends of prisoners dedicated to  restoring balance and justice to our “Just -us” system.  We hope you can join us. For more information contact:

Peg Swan: pgswan3@aol.com  (  or write 29631 Wild Rose Drive, Blue River, WI 53518 OR leave a message at 608-536-3993);

Tony Zilstra: timothy.zylstra@yahoo.com

Kandis Volaske kandis.voelske@gmail.com

Rob Slamkabob slamkabob@gmail.com

Websitez; www.prisonforum.org