Wasted Honor -

Carl R. ToersBijns is the author of the Wasted Honor Trilogy [Wasted Honor I,II and Gorilla Justice] and his newest book From the Womb to the Tomb, the Tony Lester Story, which is a reflection of his life and his experiences as a correctional officer and a correctional administrator retiring with the rank of deputy warden in the New Mexico and Arizona correctional systems.

Carl also wrote a book on his combat experience in the Kindle book titled - Combat Medic - Men with destiny - A red cross of Valor -

Carl is considered by many a rogue expert in the field of prison security systems since leaving the profession. Carl has been involved in the design of many pilot programs related to mental health treatment, security threat groups, suicide prevention, and maximum custody operational plans including double bunking max inmates and enhancing security for staff. He invites you to read his books so you can understand and grasp the cultural and political implications and influences of these prisons. He deals with the emotions, the stress and anxiety as well as the realities faced working inside a prison. He deals with the occupational risks while elaborating on the psychological impact of both prison worker and prisoner.

His most recent book, Gorilla Justice, is an un-edited raw fictional version of realistic prison experiences and events through the eyes of an anecdotal translation of the inmate’s plight and suffering while enduring the harsh and toxic prison environment including solitary confinement.

Carl has been interviewed by numerous news stations and newspapers in Phoenix regarding the escape from the Kingman prison and other high profile media cases related to wrongful deaths and suicides inside prisons. His insights have been solicited by the ACLU, Amnesty International, and various other legal firms representing solitary confinement cases in California and Arizona. He is currently working on the STG Step Down program at Pelican Bay and has offered his own experience insights with the Center of Constitutional Rights lawyers and interns to establish a core program at the SHU units. He has personally corresponded and written with SHU prisoners to assess the living conditions and how it impacts their long term placement inside these type of units that are similar to those in Arizona Florence Eyman special management unit where Carl was a unit deputy warden for almost two years before his promotion to Deputy Warden of Operations in Safford and Eyman.

He is a strong advocate for the mentally ill and is a board member of David's Hope Inc. a non-profit advocacy group in Phoenix and also serves as a senior advisor for Law Enforcement Officers Advocates Council in Chino, California As a subject matter expert and corrections consultant, Carl has provided interviews and spoken on national and international radio talk shows e.g. BBC CBC Lou Show & TV shows as well as the Associated Press.

I use sarcasm, satire, parodies and other means to make you think!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
































































































































Friday, May 11, 2012

Contagion in Prisons - the editorial


Contagion in Prisons



Looking at various definitions of the word “contagion” you will find words that should upset you or at the very least alert your awareness that something is wrong with what you are reading, hearing and seeing about prisons inside the United States.

Doing a web search on the word contagion, you find not only “the direct cause, such as virus or bacteria, of a communicable disease” but also, the “tendency to spread of an influence or emotional state” or “a harmful corrupting influence”. It is, therefore, a very fitting title for an editorial about a prison pandemic that has spread since the late 1990’s and is peaking out as we speak today. The spread has certainly brought a lot of attention to the topic but it has not yet figured out a way to stop the pandemic of prison growth or those diseases within them.

This article or editorial opinion explores the effects of prison growth, the lack of effective prison care and management of its population as society ignores those subtle changes within the prison walls. Up to this point, I have not seen governments deal with this matter with reality. They have not acknowledged the tremendous burden and expense to run a prison appropriately and orderly.

This outrageous burden on taxpayers to pay for prison medical and mental health care and other actions associated with public safety and sound prison operations is out of control. It is proposed this editorial is both relevant and accurate in its empirical evidence presented as well as supportive evidence based information that shows prison projects or the entire prison industrial complex is failing the public’ needs and taxpayers by projecting an endless vision of maintaining prison growth and mismanagement of funds to keep them going while ignoring other social and educational needs within the state.

 This story is told from a former correctional administrator’s perspective that has been also been ignored and deemed invalid or not relevant to those characters in the community who support prison growth. Since my retirement, the prison systems have grown and expanded showing a pandemic pattern of doing business with the private prison and health care contractors under the falsehood of saving taxpayers money.

 In the meantime, there is a pandemic outbreak of mass communicable diseases that include Hep C, HIV AIDS, Tuberculosis, MRSA as well as suicides, homicides and unexplained deaths wherein this storyline does not include a quick fix or special potion to remedy this disease of contaminated and growing prisons nationwide. For example, the spread of MRSA, in particular, has some officials alarmed. "An untreated infection of MRSA can cause swelling, boils, blisters, fever, pneumonia, bloodstream infections, and eventually loss of limbs and even death.”

It offers instead a recommendation for all concerned to review and examine prison alternatives that will gradually reduction prison population and costs, as well as associated problems in the medical, mental health and custodial care of the prisoners.

This former prison administrator / professional does however suggests that we go one step beyond prison reforms and look for individuals outside the current prison and political system to become advisors on the subject matter and through his or her advice comes up with legitimate and sound correctional practices to reduce the impact of this social disease called mass incarceration. The state(s) can hire one or more lead characters to come up with a solution to fix these growing reports of what amounts to "a new public health threat" for those inside and outside facilities as well as rapidly injected growing pains. Employees deserve this consideration as they are exposed daily to the dangers of these pandemic conditions that exist and can bring the disease into the community and families without warning.

In addition and along with the scientific / medically directed avenues, investigative reporters should come along to gather the facts as they really exist and document such existence accurately and independently from the prison providers.

Perhaps between the scientists and the journalists, a breakthrough can occur and progress made into the pandemic of prison growth. This way the chance of “fooling anyone or the people” is a legitimate method to release the information rather than through whistle-blowers or other paranoid former or current correctional administrators or employees that face the quick death of character assassination for speaking out about this internal disease that exists within our prison systems blowing any chances of being labeled a conspiracy theory to the public.

So who are the villains and who are the good guys?  First and most, the science of prison management must be kept open-minded and transparent. Facing the various dilemmas’ inside prisons, the first question always asked is “who is going to pay for this?” after all, most if not all decisions are made or based on money. Thus the villains are those who are ignorant of the problem, those who lack of knowledge these problems exist and not communicated by state leaders and those who have developed an attitude of “deliberate indifference” on the matters at hand.

The intent here is not to save anyone or to change prison conditions to be softer or less harsh in confinement. It is about maintaining the prisons systems healthy and cost-effective. Every politician should take the time to make a financial and threat assessment on prison growth, policies and applicable laws to see if this disease can be controlled and minimized through sound and legal practices instead of industrial or profit sharing performance.

We can’t afford to drag our feet on this contagion of prisons as it is likely to spread like a wild fire if not contained in spending and judicial oversight. Not trying to be dramatic but stating the facts that if you think that the present conditions are scary, just wait till you see what this pandemic might look like in a few years as it consumes budgets and robs the civic coffers precious funds to keep it rolling in a most unrealistic portrayal of what prisons should be.

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