Behind the Prison RIot in California

The bloody riot at California's prison at Chino raged for for long hours, injuring 175 inmates, with 55 with such serious wounds that they were rushed to local hospitals. 16 inmates were still hospitalized on Monday. Inmates suffered vicious stab and head wounds as prisoners attacked each other with makeshift weapons including shards of glass and broken water pipes. 16 inmates remained hospitalized Monday.

This violence was predicted in 2007 by the former director of the Texas Prisons, Wayne Scott, based on his evaluation of the prison at Chino. "If the prisoners wanted to take over the dorm they could do so in a second and no one would know," Scott reported after he visited Cleveland Hall located in Chino's West Facility, where Saturday's riot occurred. The dorms were built in the '40s during World War II. They house 198 inmates, guarded by only two officers, one of them separated from the living area in an office. The bunks are so close together that there is no way that the officers can observe the entire dorm at once.

Inmates arrive at Chino to be assessed as to the danger they pose to staff. After they are classified, they are bused to one of the 33 prisons in California sprawling corrections system. Inside the prison at Chino the inmates range from low level offenders doing time for check kiting or technical parole violations to murderers and rapists returning to prison after multiple prior stays. Violent prisoners are mixed with vulnerable offenders in dorms where there are no cells and no place to hide. The prison, originally designed to hold 3,000 prisoners is now bulging at almost double that number - 5,900.

Imagine the conditions in which these prisoners are held. The prison is in a hot, desert with the sun baking the compound and its inhabitants. Packed inside are twice as many inmates as it was designed for. A constant flow of bodies jostle through the narrow aisles between the sea of bunk beds. The inmates hassle over toilets and wash basins because there are only half as many as are needed. With the men stacked like cords of wood, the noise, heat and smell of sweat is overwhelming.

In this roiling cauldron of tension add the twin curses of loneliness and boredom: the inmates spend hour after hour like rats in a cage with nothing productive to occupy their time. The budget cuts have eliminated the educational and addiction treatment programs that used to fill their hours and give them hope. Then add in the racial tensions that permeate our inner cities and our prisons and you have an extremely volatile mixture.

This was the atmosphere in Chino's Cleveland Dorm when it exploded in violence last weekend. When the officers finally took back control, many inmates had been permanently maimed.
Don't blame the corrections officers for these conditions. They are merely carrying out the policies adopted by the legislature and the governor. Unfortunately, meting out long sentences gets more adoring headlines than appropriating the money to pay for them. Corrections leaders have warned of the dangers of crowded prisons for years, but the legislature and the governor haven't responded with enough money to solve the problem.

Comments on several news sites suggest that we shouldn't care about these inmates. Some writers said that the guards should have held back and let the inmates fight until they had all killed each other. My hunch is these attitudes would be very different if one of their sons or brothers were housed in Chino.

When the government incarcerates an inmate it strips him of all control over his life, even the ability to defend himself. The inmate has no choice over where he sleeps, whom he lives next to, when he gets up, where he goes, where and what he eats. If the lights are out in the shower room -- a very dangerous situation -- he can't shower somewhere else and can't fix the light. He is prohibited from arming himself. He is vulnerable. When the government takes away all ability of an inmate to defend himself, it assumes responsibility to keep him safe. In many cases, the government has failed in this responsibility. It certainly failed at Chino last weekend.
And some in government don't seem to care. The local Assemblyman for the Chino area, Curt Hagman, commented, "By nature, prisons are violent". With a shrug he accepted the stabbings and broken bones, the eyes gouged out and the heads cracked open that occurred over the weekend. Assemblyman Hagman's remark reminds me of a similar callous remark by a Massachusetts Corrections Official who, when asked about prison rape, said, "What can I say? It's prison."

Actually there are prisons where violence is not a problem and where beatings and rapes do not occur. Rather than shrugging off the violence, leaders like Assemblyman Hagman should be supporting corrections leaders who are trying to make prisons safe and restore the programs that allow prisoners to prepare to live contributing and law-abiding lives after they are released.
Prisons can be safe. In Louisiana, Angola State Prison is the largest maximum security prison in the US. Until a few years ago it was also America's most violent prison. The inmates slept with metal plates or phone books on their chests to prevent stabbings to their chests.

Under the leadership of Warden Burl Cain, all that has changed. Angola is now the safest prison in the US. Cain shows the men respect. Although 98% of the inmates will die in that prison, he promises them good food, good medicine, good fun and good praying. I have visited Angola and have seen the difference in the prisoners. They look you in the eye. Most inmates in maximum security avoid your eyes out of fear. At Angola, the inmates are taught how to prepare delicious food for their fellow prisoners by New Orleans chefs. There is a seminary in the prison, training men to become pastors for their fellow prisoners. The inmates have a great time at the annual rodeo, which draws thousands of local residents who get a chance to see that the inmates are human just like them.

As a member of the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission and also a member of the Commission on Safety and Abuse in America's prisons, I had the chance to learn from corrections professionals what steps can be taken to make prisons safe rather than descending into violence. Leadership is a critical element in establishing a safe environment for staff, inmates and volunteers. But good leaders have a harder time if the inmates are packed liked sardines in a can. Both commissions identified prison crowding as one of the key factors leading to physical assaults and rapes in prisons.

All of us should care what happens to inmates while they are incarcerated because 95% will serve their time and be released back to our communities. When they are released, what kind of neighbors will they be? The skills the inmates develop to survive violent prisons like Chino make them dangerous when they are released. You can't cage men like animals and then expect them to be model citizens when they return home.

The next time a politician promises to lengthen sentences, ask him if he is willing to support more money to house the increase in inmates caused by the longer sentences. Hold your representatives' feet to the fire. If they aren't willing to spend the dime, they should not be voting for more time.

Here are more resources on the impact of violence in our prisons and ways to stop it:
Prison Violence
Prison Rape
Warden Burl Cain

Follow Pat Nolan on Twitter: www.twitter.com/justicereform

Comments

[ash711]

Thanks for the article. People have no idea how much money the state of California is wasting by our draconian laws. If you don't care about your fellow human being, you should care about how many tax dollars are wasted having nonviolent offenders and technical parole violators being sent back into prison for small things. And if that doesn't motivate people, these people get out and have EXTREME HATRED TOWARDS THE POLICE AND SOCIETY, and might kill you in the process. The other aspect is that when you drive with 4 or 5 drinks in you and some accident occurs, whether your fault or not, you could be looking at manslaugher or at least a year in jail if anyone is injured. People in GLASS HOUSES NEED TO LOOK AT THEMSELVES when they buy into draconian laws.

[S1m0n]

"... a Massachusetts Corrections Official who, when asked about prison rape, said, "What can I say? It's prison."

This *should* be grounds for an immediate constitutional challenge from anyone sentenced to prison in MA. If the state expects the inmates at its prisons to be raped, and takes little or no action to prevent it, then any sentence of prison time amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.

When shariah courts in Afghanistan and Pakistan sentence people - women, typically - to rape, the world is justifiably outraged. In the US, according to this official, a de-facto rape sentence is a routine occurence in Massachusetts.

[tbone99]

In all fifty states its a given

[kalli007]

Pat I worked inside one of the toughest prison systems in the nation for a decade (Texas Dept of Criminal Justice) and wholly agree w/ Wayne Scott on his assessment of the overcrowding. How the state of CA allowed this prison to remain at 2x capacity is beyond me - not for the comfort of the inmates but for the safety and security of the staff and general public.

[mdemploi]

Look at the monthly population reports for CA prisons.
http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/Reports_Research/Offender_Information_Services_Branch/Population_Reports.asp
As you stated, many are at more than 2x capacity, most are at much more than 1.5x capacity.
The population levels could be brought to to the +/-110,000 level within the court ordered 2 years simply by revising Parole board practices, without any increase in risk to public safety.
CDC likes to present the picture of 60,000 felons suddenly let loose, to scare the public into vetoing any rational incarceration practices.

[mdemploi]

I fear this coming fall, when overcrowded prisons will again lock down for weeks for swine flu quarantine.

[Pat Nolan - Huffpost Blogger]

Dear Kalli007, As you point out, it is mindboggling that this situation was allowed to occur. However, the overcrowding at Chino is typical of most California prisons. As you point out this is dangerous for the staff, volunteers and the public.

[tbone99]

California - penny wise/ pound foolish.
How much will the medical care, wrongful death suits, assault trials , medical care and repairs cost?
Not to mention the mentality that thinks locking up a person is a real solution .

[AnotherMcIntosh]

Mr. Nolan,

As the former Republican Leader of the California State Assembly for a number of years, and as the Vice President of Prison Fellowship, you are no doubt familiar with the California prison system.

Is it still true that approximately 30% of the prison population consists of illegal aliens?

[Pat Nolan - Huffpost Blogger]

I am not sure of the percentage, but a sizeable number are here illegally. One problem we have is that their native coutnries will not accept many of these offenders back. The Governor has proposed a more aggressive effort to return them to their home countries.

[mdemploi]

Mr. Nolan,
Why did the governor eliminate more cost effective and socially beneficial programs (rehabilitation, retraining)? Even though the Prison system is under court receivership?
Why is roughly 30% of the prison population parole violators. The average cost (not including medical) to house an inmate for a violation term is +/-$10k! I am reading documents: http://ucicorrections.seweb.uci.edu/node/19, the Plata and Coleman decisions, Donovan Facility MEdical Inspection Results, The PVDMI tool etc.
I have studied actual parole assessments and found that risk rates and values are more often than not entered at the high end of the allowable range, resulting in a 'guarantee' of return to prison.
More than one unnecessary death per week in CA prisons. What is the liability cost on that?

[DanielZuma]

No, it isn't. The Pisas--the main group of "illegals"--are a very conspicuous group in California prisons because their language sets them apart from the other two major Hispanic groups, the Nortenos and the Surenos. They comprise less than 10% of all Hispanics, who comprise about 30% of all prisoners, or 3% at best. For the most part they are drug mules who, if they don't get deported at the county level, end up in minimum security settings in the state prison system.

They wouldn't mind being deported, since they always intended on returning to Mexico anyway, but for some reason we have decided to "teach them a lesson." The big joke on us is that prison is no big inconvenience for them. From their point of view, the food is good, the work is easy, and the companionship agreeable. The guards can yell insulting crap at them all day, and they don't even hear it. And, best of all, they make plenty of contacts with American citizens in prison that minimize the risks if they do decide to make another drug run.

There are now small numbers of Punjabis and Southeast Asians, but most of them are here legally. The notion that we are overrun with foreign criminals is a wingnut radio talk show urban legend.

[WebForce1]

Part 2

In 2002 I was transferred to the Lebanon Correctional Facility where I had the occasion to meet a man who ran the college program at that facility.
Unlike most of the people working in the correctional industry this man spoke to me not only as if I were a man but a human being. People who have never lived in a continued state of degradation and humiliation could understand this, but something that simple made me want to conduct myself like a man and a human being.
Under his guidance I decided to take advantage of what educational opportunities were available to me and started my college career.
I was released in the fall of 2005 and have started and failed at two separate businesses. Most recently I was employed at a tool shop and was layed off in January of this year. I immediately enrolled in college courses and just yesterday received a letter from the provost congratulating me on making "Honors" for the summer semester.
These are hard economic times, and a criminal record doesn't help. But no matter what I have to do, whether it's folding and sorting clothes for a charity to earn my food stamps or shoveling driveways to get a few extra bucks to make the rent, I will not go back to prison. I'm worth more than that. It took only one man to make me see that, now imagine an institution of men and women working in the same way.

[WebForce1]

Part 2

In 2002 I was transferred to the Lebanon Correctional Facility where I had the occasion to meet a man who ran the college program at that facility.
Unlike most of the people working in the correctional industry this man spoke to me not only as if I were a man but a human being. People who have never lived in a continued state of degradation and humiliation could understand this, but something that simple made me want to conduct myself like a man and a human being.
Under his guidance I decided to take advantage of what educational opportunities were available to me and started my college career.
I was released in the fall of 2005 and have started and failed at two seperate businesses. Most recently I was employed at a tool shop and was layed off in January of this year. I immediately enrolled in college courses and just yesterday received a letter from the provost congradulating me on making "Honors" for the summer semester.
These are hard economic times, and a criminal record doesn't help. But no matter what I have to do, wether it's folding and sorting clothes for a charity to earn my food stamps or shoveling driveways to get a few extra bucks to make the rent, I will not go back to prison. I'm worth more than that. It took only one man to make me see that, now imagine an institution of men and women working in the same way.

[tbone99]

wonderful story reminding us how we can all make a difference in someones life by really 'seeing" them.
Good luck , you've won the hardest part already by freeing your mind.

[Pat Nolan - Huffpost Blogger]

Thanks, tbone99. Your nice comments made my day.

[WebForce1]

Part 1

This is a good article.
I spent sixteen and a half years of my life in prison between Michigan and Ohio and there are extreme differences in how prisons are run, and these differences have an effect on prisoners.
I was locked up in 1992 in Ohio on an 18-53 year sentence for robbery and felonious assault. For the better half of my incarceration I got worse and not better. My lowest point coming in the fall of 99' when I was sentenced to a year and a half in solitary confinement for my second offense for drug smuggling.

[WebForce1]

Part 2

In 2002 I was transferred to the Lebanon Correctional Facility where I had the occasion to meet a man who ran the college program at that facility.
Unlike most of the people working in the correctional industry this man spoke to me not only as if I were a man but a human being. People who have never lived in a continued state of degradation and humiliation could understand this, but something that simple made me want to conduct myself like a man and a human being.
Under his guidance I decided to take advantage of what educational opportunities were available to me and started my college career.
I was released in the fall of 2005 and have started and failed at two separate businesses. Most recently I was employed at a tool shop and was layed off in January of this year. I immediately enrolled in college courses and just yesterday received a letter from the provost congratulating me on making "Honors" for the summer semester.
These are hard economic times, and a criminal record doesn't help. But no matter what I have to do, whether it's folding and sorting clothes for a charity to earn my food stamps or shoveling driveways to get a few extra bucks to make the rent, I will not go back to prison. I'm worth more than that. It took only one man to make me see that, now imagine an institution of men and women working in the same way.

[Pat Nolan - Huffpost Blogger]

Congratulations on your perseverence and sucesses. Your "can do" attitude will get you through these tough economic times. Thanks for giving us an example of how one human being can give hope to another. Your teacher in prison gave that hope to you. Dr. King said that "To change someone you must first love them, and they must know that you love them." Healthy relationships are even more important to inmates than good programs. Best of luck in your future endeavors.

[LisaLisa1234]

Webforce1, your posts have been like a light in a dark place for me today.

My best wishes & prayers for your perseverance & success!

[DanielZuma]

@datone, even "savages" have constitutional, if not human, rights. These men are living in prisons running at 200% occupancy, under extremely mismanaged conditions which the courts have repeatedly declared "cruel and unusual." On any given day, 56% of Calif. prisoners are in for technical parole violations for things that are not even crimes; 25%-30% are in because they are mentally ill and there are no mental hospitals; the vast majority of them are in on drug charges; less than 12% are in for serious property crime; and less than 4% are in for violent crimes; less than 1% are illegal aliens here because we passed NAFTA and it ruined their economy. They are not paying a debt to society; they are paying for what a deeply racist society OWES THEM in terms of quality education, protection from discrimination, voting rights, and economic investment in their communities. The drug war has nothing to do with "crime" and "criminals"; it is nothing more than a pretext to disenfranchise minorities and the poor by sending them to prison at a cost of $47,500 per person per year--roughly three times what it would cost to send them to college.

[tbone99]

keeps hundreds of thousands from competing with the white man economically.
Imagine if they received that much in tuition and became professionals - new world order

[datone]

Folks like these are savages that have no rights. They are paying their debt to society. Destroying what is state or federal property is a crime and they should pay for it. Better yet, have them live in the mess that they themselves created.

[TomFox]

I'm sure the check-kiters are savages, and the shoplifters too. Prison is simply meant to remove offenders for a period of time and then release them, hopefully as better members of the community than when they went in. It's called a penitentiary because hopefully the offender will become penitent and desire to change their ways. This system is only throwing gas on a fire.

I'm very curious as to how 'privatized' CA's prison system is and the level of lobbying for longer sentences is part of that picture.

[mdemploi]

CA prison system is not private, but the Guard Union exerts a great deal of political leverage in Sacramento. They want to keep prisons full. The governor has eliminated the more effective and less expensive treatment, rehabilitation, and retraining programs from the state budget.
While the crime rate in CA has dropped, the prison population has risen. Why? Not for housing lifers and 3rd strikers. But for holding technical (trivial) parole violators for up to one year.
Annual costs: + $36,000 per inmate, not including medical care. Those costs are paid for by taxes and fees of CA residents and businesses.
CA Prisons have been placed under court receivership (supervision) for having conditions (overcrowding and inadequate health care) amounting to 'cruel and unusual punishment.'
for a start: http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2007/07/analysis_of_fed.html
then: http://ucicorrections.seweb.uci.edu/node/19
Technical parole violators--mostly picked up extremely trivial reasons--constitute about a third of the population of CA state prisons. The average parole violator serves about 90-120 days.

[mdemploi]

Technical violators (failed drug test, failure to report) most often are not rearrested during the commission of a new crime.
As defined by many states, Recidivism includes technical parole/probation violators along with those who have committed new crimes.-- artificially inflating the recidivism rate. This is a common statistical strategy.

[mdemploi]

Typical unthinking law and order reaction. You obviously did not read the entire article. Murderers and rapists and other violent sociopaths are mixed with check bouncers, addicts.

Inmates have rights, including rights against 'cruel and unusual punishment'! The conditions in CA prisons have been classified as such by the courts--for overcrowding and inadequate medical care-- and are under receivership.

[radmul]

The first step to solving this problem is to end prohibition on drugs. Releasing all non violent drug offenders immediately will cut the overcrowding. Without the feeder system of the drug war prison population will plummet.

[BarryS]

how many court orders are needed before the legislature does something. maybe the court should put all the legislators in the hole until they solve this problem