Poor prison conditions is a top human rights issue in the United States, according to sources from the American Civil Liberties Union. It is another twisted bureaucratic system that leaves no room for human treatment, but plenty of room to deny medical attention to a contained overpopulation of people and restrict them from voting rights.
I had a conversation with a friend who I'll call "Alex," about his stay in the Delaware prison, Ganderhille.
After turning himself in to Delaware police, he was charged with burglary in the third degree and was put on probation. During a period of personal mental anguish, he checked himself in to a rehabilitation center and by doing this broke his probation.
I was astonished to hear how he was treated in the state prison. Alex was told he was only staying overnight in the infirmary unit, but ended up being there for a month. When he arrived, they stripped him naked and took his eyeglasses, making him almost blind.
The cell had nothing in it except concrete flooring and his toilet - a hole in the floor. Twice per day he was given water, and once per day brought food without utensils. Today, Alex has completed the three levels of probation and has paid off all fines and restitutions. But if he wants to vote, he needs to expunge the felony from his record and wait seven years.
This is just one minor experience out of thousands which exist across the country. The New York Times recently cited a study that stated the population in prisons has grown by 25,000 since last year, coming to an estimated total of 1.6 million people in state and federal prisons.
This means one out of every 99.1 American adults are jailed and the numbers continue to increase.
It disgusts me more to learn about other events which have occurred in Delaware prisons. Drewery Fennell of the Delaware ACLU, spoke to my law class at the university this semester about such cases. The ACLU's general objective is to let citizens know their rights and to protect them.
One case mentioned was about poor health conditions, which were a result of over-population. A prisoner had called the ACLU saying they were sharing a cell with three to four other prisoners. One inmate had a severe case of diarrhea, and because they were all packed in, it would get on the other inmates.
According to the Prison Litigation Reform Act, prisoners are not medically treated unless something actually affects or harms them, so nothing was done for these prisoners.
Prison doctors do not prevent harm, but will possibly react if someone is harmed.
I do not know how people could breathe in those cells with three other people, let alone deal with feces.
Another case dealt with two women who gave birth in prison, unattended. One woman reported having labor pains but received no response. The other gave birth in the prison bathroom into a toilet.
Despite whatever crimes those women committed that landed them in jail, it is inhumane to not properly care for their pregnancies and labor. Health care is not a privilege, but a responsibility humanity must share, especially when holding people captive.
A 2005 News Journal article titled, "Cruel & Unusual," was about Delaware prisoner Anthony Pierce who reported having a small lump on his head. It was first misdiagnosed and later revealed to be a tumor.
At his last examination, the medical director stabbed at it to withdraw blood, but threw the syringe away instead of saving it for analysis. The tumor became so large that other inmates called him "the brother with two heads."
The medical staff did nothing and Pierce died at the age of 21 from the tumor. His sentence was serving 14 months for a parole violation, not slowly dying from a neglected tumor.
Thankfully, this case was reported, but who knows how many are in the dark? The article said, "Inmates in their 20s and 30s die from diseases that people outside prison routinely survive."
It is ironic because most states prohibit prisoners from voting, therefore they cannot vote for a candidate who may try to change unhealthy prison conditions. For Alex, there is a seven year waiting period because he is a Delaware resident.
Most prisons are doing less to educate and encourage prisoners to become positive citizens. According to Fennell, Delaware spends more money on prisons than education, yet it is not showing.
Why is nothing being done about these situations? Is it because once a person goes to jail, even for a minor instance, it is the end for them? I strongly agree that punishment is needed for law breakers, especially murderers, rapists and similar criminals.
But the system puts every crime into one pot, instead of separating case by case. I have more compassion for Anthony Pierce's need for healthcare as oppose to a serial killer and rapist. The law should have guidelines and rules that are determined by the crime a person committed. It appears the real sentence for all prisoners is possibly dying from unsanitary conditions and health problems, and not having any hope to change it, by the right to vote.
America's system acts like it is more humane than other countries, when it is not.
Robin Cebula is a senior at the university. Her viewpoints do not necessarily represent those of the Review staff. Please send comments to rcebula@udel.edu.
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