This week’s latest pronouncement involved, among other things, the visitation room. From the inception of the prison level system (low level 1 up to high security level 5) the policy has been more contact, more programs, more movement at lower levels. In the “old days” there was really only one level. You went to prison, did your sentence and made parole. But back then only seriously violent criminals went to prison. Now, you’ve got 40,000 men and women locked up at dozens of prisons. At level fives, inmate movement is tightly controlled under officers in gun areas. It’s called “moving under the gun”. But, at level 2 – like this place – movement is less restricted. At least it was until this clown showed up.
This past week a young guy – Brandon, age 22 – collapsed on the weight pile on our side. He was in the dirt twitching violently. The guys were screaming for an officer, any officer, to call medical. No one could get to a building door because – per Assistant Warden Einstein – gates must be locked. Even worse, there was no officer in the tower observing the rec yard (you would think placing an officer in the tower overlooking the yard would provide more security than locking fifty to four hundred guys behind multiple gates with no supervision, but that’s just my opinion. I’m not a trained assistant warden).Ten minutes Brandon was unconscious twitching on the weight pile before the officer on the boulevard saw the commotion and radioed medical. Then, two nurses and an officer came casually pushing a stretcher to the yard. By the time Brandon was finally loaded, unconscious on the stretcher and transported to medical, twenty-five minutes after the seizure began had passed. Yeah, this new emphasis on security is making this place run much more smoothly!
Back to the visitation room. The ass warden (I’m not sure I abbreviated that correctly) has painted the visitor picnic tables. One side is painted red and marked “offenders only”. The other side is for guests. Inmates can no longer sit beside family members. In the visitation room, a red line has been painted three feet in front of the vending machines. The red line states “No offenders beyond this point”. Even when I was at Receiving with level 5 inmates there was no line by the vending machines.
Then there is school. This coming Friday is graduation. The principal here, Ms. C, makes a big deal out of GED graduation and guys completing vocational certification. The Community College even participates and awards Associates Degrees as part of the ceremony. Last year, over one hundred inmates received GEDs, another hundred vocational certification and three Associate Degrees. As I wrote last year, with these men having family and friends present it was perhaps a more moving ceremony than my own high school or college graduation. I knew I’d succeed. For most of Lunenburg’s graduates, that ceremony marked their first academic success anytime in their lives. And every year the warden and assistant warden show up because they know education matters. That is, until this year. The little weasel warden isn’t coming (sent his “regrets”). And the assistant? He remarked “why do I want to go to that thing?”
While Director Clarke is busy telling the press about his “mission” to rehabilitate Virginia’s inmates, perhaps he could take a little side trip to Lunenburg and kick these two losers in the ass. This place is deteriorating. Programs will suffer. Both inmate and officer attitudes are souring and that’s a bad mix in a prison. What, I am asking, is Director Clarke thinking putting these nuts in charge?
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