A letter to Arizona legislators and the Governor (mailed today)

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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

A letter to Arizona legislators and the Governor (mailed today)

RAMIFICATIONS FOR POORLY RUN PRISONS

This letter is written to highlight some of the critical impacts poor prison living conditions e.g. overcrowded with temporary housing accommodations, poor medical care and an overall neglect of well-being and denial of social and educational achievement can have on a systems failure to perform according to expectations set by policies and procedures written for safe and secure prison management.

In the end, it will impact high financial costs to return to better standards and sound prison operations. There are wide social and safety implications to such poor investment of our prisons. At a time when the government is contemplating providing additional growth for our prisons in the budget, it is important to understand the ramifications of such action taken.

In the area of overcrowding and temporary housing accommodations, the Arizona Department of Corrections has engaged into a double bunking concept since 2007 that impacts encumbered living space and reduces availabilities of toilet and shower facilities creating hostilities and altercations for the use of such facilities..

Although the agency has officially announced the existence of empty beds, these beds are not permanent beds but rather beds installed in existing space where there used to be single bed space in all custody levels including maximum custody. This type of arrangements increase staff endangerment and provokes continued criminality behaviors creating more tension and violence that may eventually create a large or mass disturbance resulting in loss of life or excessive loss of state property.

Criminal activity within prisons can be a factor that contributes to overall unrest and offending and rather violent behaviors. These conditions enhance further committing of crimes within the prison system such as gang attacks, assaults, theft, drug taking, and other measures needed to survive the incarceration period. Overlapping factors include increased drug and substance abuse, mental health issues, medical care and systemic disputes with care or treatment.

The system’s main concern should be the added financial costs tacked onto incarceration because of this criminal activity that stems from poor housing assignments and other associated security concerns. The costs for providing this additional risk factor is included in rising health costs, security costs on crime prevention and intervention as well as restoring peace to the environment after disturbances and riots. This is not spending taxpayers’ money wisely and should be addressed.

There is anecdotal and empirical evidence that demonstrates that poor housing conditions impacts both social and educational achievement levels. This is an essential element of the agency’s responsibility to prepare the felons for release back into society and communities along with a better chance of not returning to prison after doing their time.

Impacting the health costs and rising medical concerns are based on internal factors revealed inside prisons today. The highest risks to health are associated with heat, cold, damp and moldy conditions within the system. The type of risks to health stemming from these hazards include respiratory and asthmatic conditions, infections and other chest conditions, coronary disease and strokes, as well as fractures, burns, and a range of psychological and mental health conditions that can be exacerbated by poor conditions

It impacts an increased report of illnesses and is primarily associated with respiratory, dysentery, headaches and fever, weight loss and poor breathing problems associated with the poor air quality living with tobacco smokers and other toxics in the air.

Naturally this links these health problems will also link with mental health problems increasing the costs of those treatment requirements as well. There has been significant attention drawn to the high rate of suicides, homicides and “natural deaths” within the Arizona prison system. There has been a considerable discussion regarding the relationship between poor housing practices, conditions and mental health.

It is recognized there are a range of factors that impact an individual’s well-being and that some are more relevant than others. First off, there is the stress and anxiety of living in such violent, over-crowded and ill kept housing conditions that trigger mental disorders or the very least; exasperating existing mental illness of those already diagnosed mentally ill making those victims of treatment deprivation and attention to care standards. Realistically, this impacts their mental health conditions deeply and only worsen their mental health conditions that exist and result in high suicide attempts and self- harm incidents.