Arizona Prisons are Crippled and on Crutches !!

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

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Arizona Prisons are Crippled and on Crutches !!

Taxpayer-Funded Prison Expansion Plans Needs Amputation by Governor Brewer

Earlier this week, it was reported by numerous media publications about a campaign launched by the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) indicating a “a broad coalition of over 50 state and national leaders and organizations sent a letter to Governor Brewer asking her not to go ahead with awarding a contract with a for-profit prison corporation for up to 2,000 new prison beds in Arizona.” One can be assured that these issues contained within this campaign are factual and not written to mislead the public. Arizona prison expansion plans needs to be amputated by our governor immediately.

Failure to amputate this plan will result in abundant unnecessary and very expensive prison projects that will result in further fiscal deficit as evidence has already been delivered that “We don’t need more prison beds. Arizona’s prison population is dropping, and projected to continue to decrease for two years.”

Additionally evidence shows that “for-profit private prisons are more expensive than state-operated facilities.” The ASFC group demonstrated “a recent study estimates that Arizona taxpayers are wasting $3.5 million per year on for-profit beds and that for-profit prisons have poor safety standards, are chronically understaffed, and do little to rehabilitate prisoners.”

This leads us to the question whether Governor Brewer will continue to embrace and approve the unneeded expansion of our prison system. Her position will likely not waver in the end and allow these contracts to be approved as she draws strongly on her own interest as well as her closest advisors’ interest in this matter related to private prison contractors within our state.

The fact is that Arizona prisons do not need more prison beds. Arizona prisons are currently working on crutches as their systems are failing every aspect of correctional planning, operations and services. Basically speaking, our Arizona prisons are crippled as their strategy plan has stalled out, failed the taxpayers and left floundering in limbo related to an increasing number of serious staff assaults, the number of deaths, a high recidivism rate and the manner the existing prisons are becoming more and more dilapidated because of lack of funding for physical plant maintenance and building / security systems.

Governor Brewer’s wish to sever the taxpayer’s opinion and concerns is another example of government’s insensitivity to the public’s needs and demonstrates she is willing to wander away from our realistic and practical priorities as she shows her unwillingness to listen those concerns or shortcomings of our current system and what she can get away with. What jumped out at me is her steadfast choice to follow a course that has no fiscal resolution within the next few years and will certainly burden the taxpayers in the near future as our Arizona prison system will be experiencing more complications, including more operational failures and mismanagement for any future leadership, regardless what party or individual that may be.