For Immediate Release
April 19, 2005
WARDENS, INMATES DESCRIBE CULTURE OF VIOLENCE IN NATION'S PRISONS
Experts decry lack of data, means for collecting it
Tampa, FL — Today a number of corrections officials and former inmates described a culture of violence within the nation's prisons and jails. Their testimony, provided during the first hearing convened by the Commission on Safety and Abuse in America's Prisons, was sometimes graphic in detail.
Witness Ron McAndrew rose through the corrections ranks to become warden of the maximum security Florida State Prison. He described the dangers that corrections officers can face from inmates, including in his experience: finding a fellow officer unconscious and bleeding from razor slashes over his face and entire body and being beaten himself with a piece of iron rebar and a steel chair. He also testified to the frustration and dread of being unable to stop rogue corrections officers whom he said were feared by staff and prisoners alike.
Testimony from three former inmates ran the gamut from violence perpetrated by individual bad actors to a system that inflicts inhumane and abusive treatment. Garret Cunningham described being brutally sexually assaulted by a corrections officer in a Texas prison. Jeffrey Scott Hornoff, a former Rhode Island police detective who spent years in prison and was later exonerated, testified about institutional policies that resulted in systemic abuse. Judith Haney, the lead plaintiff in a civil case involving thousands of women, recounted the degrading experience of being strip-searched in a Miami-Dade County Jail.
"Much of today's testimony paints a picture of life in prison that doesn't fit with the values of our democratic society and, therefore, should trouble all Americans, said the Hon. John J. Gibbons, co-chair of the Commission. "Given the enormous number of people incarcerated today, we need to understand whether such events are isolated or widespread."
According to experts who testified today, it's difficult to know how closely stories of violence and abuse reflect life in prison across the county because reliable national statistics are lacking — leaving policy makers and the public to form impressions about safety and abuse based on high profile incidents that make headlines and quickly fade away. "This Commission will work to build on those anecdotes, gathering whatever evidence we can find and, I expect, make a strong case for better record-keeping and transparency as part of solving the problems," said Nicholas Katzenbach, who co-chairs the Commission along with Gibbons. "We aim to work closely with corrections professionals every step of the way. We have to remember that the majority of corrections officers and administrators are dedicated, well intentioned professionals whose performance — often under extremely difficult circumstances — usually equals their high intentions."
Witness Mike Gennaco, who oversees the Los Angeles County jails, described a growing trend among corrections administrators toward transparency and offered the example of LA County Sheriff Lee Baca responding to a spate of inmate murders by conducting an open inquiry and releasing information never before provided to the public.
The hearing continues tomorrow. Steve J. Martin, former corrections officer, now national expert, is expected to discuss what he describes as "de facto" corporal punishment, often carried out through the use high-tech, non-lethal weaponry such as tasers and pepper spray. Don Cabana, former warden of the maximum security, death row Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman, is expected to testify that inmates are needlessly exposed to violence at the hands of fellow inmates, particularly gang members, because staff ignore obvious warning signs or are not adequately trained to recognize them. Other witnesses include Anadora Moss, a consultant and expert on staff sexual misconduct, and Douglas Thompkins, a former prisoner and gang member who now studies the sociology of incarceration.
The Commission on Safety and Abuse in America's Prisons formed in March 2005 and will work for one year to explore the most serious problems inside U.S. correctional facilities and their impact on the incarcerated, the men and women who staff facilities, and society at large. The hearing in Tampa is the first of four public hearings (the second is scheduled for July in New Jersey) that will culminate early next year in a report that better defines the problems nationally and offers practical recommendations that officials at all levels of government can act on.
The diverse 21-member Commission is co-chaired by former United States Attorney General Nicholas de B. Katzenbach and the Honorable John J. Gibbons, former Chief Judge of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. The members include Gary Maynard, President-Elect of the American Correctional Association and Director of the Iowa Department of Corrections; Timothy Ryan, a Past President of the American Jail Association and Chief of Corrections in Orange County, Florida; Stephen Bright, who directs the Southern Center for Human Rights; California State Senator Gloria Romero, who has taken a lead role in reforming corrections in her state; and Pat Nolan, who is President of Justice Fellowship, a national faith-based organization, and also a member of the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission.
The Commission is staffed by and funded through the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit organization that has worked closely with leaders in government and civil society for more than 40 years to improve the administration of justice. For information about the Commission and statements by the witnesses, visit www.prisoncommission.org.
Contact:
Jennifer Trone
(212) 376-3155
Dwayne Lawler
(212) 222-4477
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