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From: Hans Bennett <hbjournalist1@gmail.com><br><br>
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<a href="http://www.phillyimc.org/en/urgent-action-alert-6-prisoners-assaulted-camp-hill-smu-inauguration-day">
http://www.phillyimc.org/en/urgent-action-alert-6-prisoners-assaulted-camp-hill-smu-inauguration-day</a>
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<a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>On January 20, 2009 guards
in the Special Management Unit (SMU) at the State Correctional [sic]
Institution (SCI) in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania assaulted six prisoners,
reportedly citing as reasons that these men file grievances against guard
misconduct and are engaged in civil litigation against DOC officials;
contact outside organizations (HRC/Fed Up! and
<a href="http://www.prisoners.com/">www.prisoners.com</a> in particular)
to expose conditions of torture; also to send a message-in their words:
"fuck a historical day, y'all always going to be niggers."<br>
<br>
Seven men inside the state's premier torture unit have testified to the
following events in reports to HRC/Fed Up!, including six men who
submitted Declarations of Truth pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1746 and subject to
the penalty of perjury, adding to the hundreds of pages of prisoner
reports, additional Declarations, institutional paperwork, and civil
litigation documents sent to our offices from the SMU at Camp Hill alone
since only June of 2008. The incidents have been verified in a
personal interview with Mr. Damont Hagan, who has since been transferred
(as we've been demanding for 5 months). Superintendent's Assistant
Robert Volciak further verified that four or five men were subjected to
forcible cell extractions on the 20th in a telephone conversation of
January 26th. Several others around the state and the
country, from Louisiana to California, have received reports of these
assaults as well and contacted our offices.<br>
<br>
We are asking that you read the alert, become angry, and act accordingly
to help protect the men in the SMU and by extension all others subjected
to the normalized white supremacist torture occurring on a daily basis
inside prisons in the state of Pennsylvania and throughout the U.S.
<br>
<br>
<b>Inauguration Day<br>
</b> <br>
<i><u>David Smith #FZ5176</u></i>: On 1/20/09 <b>C/O Liddick, C/O
Zeigler</b>, and <b>Lt. Kuzar </b>approached Gary Tucker's cell upon the
pretext of wanting to conduct a search, despite having conducted one on
1/15/09. When Tucker came to the door, <b>Liddick </b>said,
"Since this guy likes filing grievances, let's make an example out
of him." Tucker refused to leave his cell after Kuzar denied
his request to have a Captain or Unit Manager present. Willie
Robinson then refused to leave his cell out of fear for his safety.
David Smith then consented to a cell search, and was promptly assaulted
by the above named staff and thrown in another cell, separated from his
property. Mr. Smith reportedly suffered undisclosed
injuries.<br><br>
<br>
<i><u>Gary Tucker
#FG8520</u></i><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>: In his own
words: "A little later that morning a cell extraction team came to
my cell. I was then told to come to the door and cuff up.
When I walked to the door a guard opened the slot and sprayed me in the
face with a whole lot of OC mace. I backed away from the door
blinded; seconds later more mace was sprayed inside the cell, trapping my
lungs up, that's when about 7 guards (including Lt. Kuzar, C/O Brant)
charged into the cell slamming me to the bed with electric shields [that
discharge 50,000 volts of electricity]. These electric shields were
pressed against my body and held there for several minutes while the 6
guards took turns beating, kicking, and shocking me with hand held stun
guns. After cuffing me they continued beating me down and shocking
me. The guard holding the camera maneuvered the camera so that the
beating couldn't be caught on it. From D-12 I was dragged out the
cell and hoisted into the medical cell. There the beating continued
(shocking, choking, and punching) and a male nurse squirted a liquid in
my eyes that didn't seem to help at all. Next I was airlifted up a
flight of stairs (after protests from several inmates about my medical
condition [which requires me to be] bottom tier status. I was taken
into D2-20, slammed face first to the metal bed frame and the 6 or 7
guards continued jumping and shocking me with stun guns. After
several minutes of this I was stripped naked, dragged to the floor and
pulled up to the tray slot and the cuffs were taken off after they tried
to break my wrists. I requested to see medical but was denied the
request so my injuries weren't [recorded]. The injuries suffered
were as follows: face swollen both sides; wrists with deep cuts from the
cuffs; stiff neck (I can barely move my neck); severe pain in my lower
back which makes it hard for me to move; my right arm dislocated; badly
swollen right ankle that I can't put pressure on and a bloody
mouth. Several inmates witnessed this assault and the Lt. Kuzar
kept yelling, "Stop resisting" which was merely a means to
justify their actions in assaulting me. Truth was I never resisted;
I couldn't resist at all."<br><br>
<i><u><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>Damont Hagan
#DS9488</u></i><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>: In his own
words: "I was approached by C/O Brant who threatened me, informing
me that I had to come out for a search, stating 'the camera can be
manipulated Hagan, remember that.' He also called me a 'nigger.' .
. . After a while, I told Unit Manager Chris Chambers [about the threats]
. . ., and informed him that 'I fear for my life.' He retorted,
"Hagan, I'm tired of this complaining to HRC and
<a href="http://www.prisoners.com/">www.prisoners.com</a> and preliminary
injunctions. Y'all did this to y'all selves, now y'all
scared. You're coming out regardless, so write HRC [which he
did-let's be there for him] or have .com write the Attorney General
again, who cares.' . . . A cell extraction team came and the same
SMU staff (Brant, Kuzar) were in suit. I also witnessed them abuse
Gary Tucker. They told me to cuff-up and I told them I feared for
my life (on camera). Sgt. Maxwell then sprayed me with OC which got
in my lungs and eyes, forcing me to cuff up." After being
cuffed Hagan was taken to a cell where his clothes were cut off of him
and Sgt. Maxwell whispered sexually lewd comments to Hagan regarding Lt.
Flowers (a female) being present. Mr. Hagan was denied water for
two days, his food was tampered with when it wasn't denied altogether,
and he was left naked in a freezing cell, which caused him to become
sick. He was transferred on 1/27/09 to SCI Pittsburgh.<br><br>
<i><u><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>Ronald Jackson
#CF3994</u></i><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>: Mr. Jackson
refused to exit his cell because of the threatening and assaultive
behavior of the guards, and was subsequently attacked with mace and
punched several times in the back and head by C/O Brant, carried to
another cell where C/Os Brant, Liddick, Ziegler, Lt. Kuzar, and Sgt.
Maxwell cut off his clothing and cut his dreadlocks. Mr. Jackson
was left bleeding behind both ears, had numbness in both hands, and cuff
markings remained on his wrists for 6 days. Mr. Jackson was left
naked and without property or state issue items for six days-like all the
others assaulted on this day. On January 26th he was returned to
his cell, which was still contaminated with mace. C/O Huber, Jones,
Sabolsky, Banks, Martz, and a Lt. stole and destroyed much of his
personal and legal property. In a written response to Mr. Jackson
regarding this theft, Superintendent Palakovich justified yet another
unmistakable effort on the part of SMU staff to deny access to the courts
under the pretext that his property was contaminated with mace and needed
to be destroyed as a result. Given that several of the prisoners
extracted that day have reported being returned to cells still
contaminated with mace, this explanation cannot be taken seriously.
Mr. Jackson's lawsuit against the DOC will likely be sabotaged by this
theft and destruction of his legal documents, which is a widespread
practice throughout the PA DOC.<br><br>
<i><u><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>Willie Robinson
#FX7258</u></i><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>: After
refusing to exit his cell for obvious reasons, Mr. Robinson was attacked
by the same guards with mace and thrown in a cell that had dried blood on
the walls and floor for 6 days without bed sheets or underclothing.
Following this he was returned to his former cell, which was still
contaminated with mace, including his bedding. <br><br>
<i><u><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>Jamar Perry
#DQ4432</u></i>: Mr. Perry was also attacked with mace and cell extracted
on this day. According to Michael Edwards, in a Declaration subject
to the penalty of perjury, Mr. Perry is severely mentally retarded,
constantly covers his cell and his person with bodily waste-which he also
ingests-and suffers from suicidal tendencies. Staff, including C/O
Flynn, Sgt. Jones, and Lt. Kuzar, frequently call him names such as
"retarded nigger," and encourage him to kill himself. Mr.
Perry has been constrained in a "restraint chair" on several
occasions, including the first three days of February. These
devices are widely recognized as implements of torture. He
reportedly wants to die, and ranking officials, including Regional Deputy
Secretary Shirley Moore-Smeal have witnessed his fetid condition and
taken no remedial action, despite policy provisions against housing
severely mentally ill and developmentally disabled inmates in the
SMU.<br>
<br>
<b>White Supremacy and Repression<br>
</b><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a> <br>
In another Declaration from Michael Edwards, Unit Manager Chris Chambers
is again alleged to have threatened Mr. Edwards for his correspondence
with HRC/Fed Up! Chambers and Huber and others have repeatedly
threatened Damont Hagan and Gary Tucker about their involvement with HRC
and <a href="http://www.prisoners.com/">www.prisoners.com</a>, along with
other efforts to expose torture and officially-sanctioned sadism inside
the SMU at Camp Hill.<br>
<br>
An all white staff in the SMU is holding hostage and waging a one-sided
war against a captive, defenseless population that is "99.9% blacks
and latinos," according to Mr. Edwards.<br>
<br>
A small sampling of racist remarks made by SMU staff, according to
Declarations submitted by Michael Edwards, are as follows:<br>
<br>
<i><u>*1/19/09</u></i>: C/O Brant stated over the PA system, "I have
a dream that one day all of you niggers will be dead," after which
he laughed, clapped his hands, and lit a smoke; *1/20/09: Lt. Kuzar
stated, "He [Obama] may have won, in my eyes he's still a
nigger." Brant and C/O Flynn started laughing at this, and
Kuzar continued, "There will be no showers or yard today. We
are going to show you niggers who run this SMU."<br>
<i><u>*1/20/09</u></i>: When told Tucker has a medical condition and is
not to be housed upstairs, Chambers replied, "I don't give a fuck
what medical says, I want that nigger upstairs now."<br>
<i><u>*1/30/09</u></i>: After Chambers told Mr. Edwards he would not be
receiving any law books or property in retaliation for his working with
HRC/Fed Up!, Huber told the inmate, "Hey listen up nigger, I have
the green light to kill your black ass," before walking away from
the cell laughing.<br>
<i><u>*2/1/09</u></i>: Lt. Kuzar stated to Mr. Edwards, "Nigger do
you honestly believe we are going to let you, or any of these other
niggers get away with what you are doing?"<br>
<br>
Hagan, Jackson, Tucker, Robinson, Smith, Edwards, Terry Brooks, and
others in the SMU are being targeted for their refusal to be silenced and
submit to a regime of white supremacist torture. These men continue
to file grievances, pursue civil litigation, and write family, friends,
and other allies on the outside to expose the illegal and degrading
conditions they are being subjected to. <br>
<br>
Despite being starved, gassed, electrocuted, beaten, sickened, and
subjected to racist death threats on a daily basis, these men refuse to
submit, they continue to resist, and they are calling on us to take
action again. <br>
<br>
This action alert is more comprehensive and far ranging in the targets it
lists than the ones in November and September (provide links). We
have watched the Emergency Response Network grow considerably over the
last 12 months, especially during the last 4, and countless people have
answered the call to defend the rights and lives of prisoners. This
is why we are asking even more from our allies this time, because we
trust you will continue to intensify your efforts, channeling your
outrage into action and building this movement against torture and racism
and for human rights.<br>
<br>
As Michael Edwards recently wrote from the SMU: "Keep doing what you
are doing, because it surely is working. Some of these guards are
just walking around here banging on any and everything, and using racial
slurs. This means we are winning the war." I take this
to mean that this latest outburst of hate and violence by SMU guards is a
desperate reaction to growing outside pressure. They are trying to
silence the men in the SMU through daily acts of terror, but it is not
working. Resistance continues, and the outside pressure is growing.
. . . <br>
<br>
<b><i>Action Alert Targets and Talking points<br>
</i></b> <br>
<b>DOC Targets<br>
</b> <br>
DOC Secretary Jeffrey Beard-717-975-4918<br>
2520 Lisburn Road<br>
Camp Hill, PA 17001<br>
<br>
Superintendent John Palakovich<br>
SCI Camp Hill<br>
P.O. Box 200<br>
Camp Hill, PA 17001<br>
<br>
Office of Professional Repsonsibility<br>
Director James Barnacle (formerly with the FBI (i.e. u.s. political
police) for 30 years-see the book Agents of Reprssion by Churchill and
Vander Wall for more on the criminal nature of the FBI)<br>
717-214-8473<br>
2520 Lisburn Road<br>
Camp Hill, PA 17001<br>
<br>
1)-<b>Report the truth of the Inauguration Day atrocity</b>: six men were
targeted for assault with chemical and electrocution weapons by guards
calling them "niggers" in retaliation for these prisoners
continuing to file grievances, pursue civil litigation, expose prison
conditions to the public, and otherwise seek justice. Be specific,
name the names of the prisoners, guards, the threats made and injuries
suffered. Tell them that you are sickened by the endless reports of
flagrant racism on the part of guards and the obvious approval of such by
top officials in Camp Hill and the DOC. Grievances and civil suits
reach Supt. Palakovich and Secretary Beard by the thousands regarding the
racist attitudes and actions of staff under their command, and they
refuse to take action<br>
2)-<b>Emphasize the role of Unit Manager Chris Chambers</b>-demand he be
fired: As our abuse logs indicate
(<a href="http://www.thomasmertoncenter.org/fedup/abusereports.htm">
http://www.thomasmertoncenter.org/fedup/abusereports.htm</a>), Unit
Manager Chris Chambers, who oversees the SMU, bears command
responsibility for the actions of Jones, Kuzar, Sabalsky, Banks, Flynn,
Brant, and the rest. We want to build his infamy and make him a
liability to the PA DOC and SCI Camp Hill. If his superiors lean on
him because of the heat they feel from the people, then he will lean on
SMU staff to end the torture in order to protect himself. Tell
Beard that you have reviewed the accumulated evidence from the 20th and
the preceding months, and that Chambers needs to be held accountable for
his crimes. Failure to do so will be understood as complicity in
torture. Emphasize that several prisoners consistently report that
Chambers has personally told them on multiple occasions that he is
punishing them for filing lawsuits and contacting HRC/Fed Up! and
<a href="http://www.prisoners.com/">www.prisoners.com</a>. <br>
3)-<b>Transfers for Tucker, Jamar Perry, Michael Edwards, Terry Brooks,
Ronald Jackson</b>: These men need transferred immediately. When
speaking of Gary Tucker tell them that his continued confinement in the
SMU is a violation of DOC Policy 6.5.1 (which is top secret-forbidden to
the public-and has been provided to HRC via clandestine means) which
states that an inmate who does not show progress in the initial 12 to 18
months should be deemed a failure and transferred. Mr. Tucker has
been in the SMU for 28 months. Furthermore, Jamar Perry suffers
from severe developmental disability (i.e. reportedly mentally retarded)
and needs an immediate transfer. Edwards, Brooks, and Jackson
continue to face retaliation for filing grievances and lawsuits.<br>
4)-<b>Speak your own truths, make your own demands</b>: If you have
ideas of who to contact (press, lawyers, the Justice Department, law
enforcement, United Nations, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch,
NAACP, ACLU) then tell the authorities of your intention and then get a
hold of these organizations and have them contact us to learn more.
Each one needs to conduct their own investigations to verify these
truths. Also, be encouraged to tell them that they need to close
down the SMU for good-it is a failed program that does nothing but
torture vulnerable prisoners, and it is irredeemably racist. Please
inform HRC/Fed Up! of your efforts so we can keep track of where this
alert and the supporting evidence are sent and the various responses it
receives. Be encouraged to become a point person for reaching out
to Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the NAACP, or
whoever. Just make sure you are familiar enough with the talking
points and the evidence that supports them and stay in touch with
us. <br>
5)-<b>Prior Notice</b>: Beard and Palakovich have been notified of the
criminal acts of retaliation, racist hate crimes, denial of access to the
courts, assault, medical neglect, etc. months ago. There is a paper
trail leading to their office and their adamant refusal to accept
accountability for the actions of staff under the command of Unit Manager
Chris Chambers amounts to complicity in torture.<br>
6)-<b>Accountability</b>: Let it be known, finally, that we intend to see
criminals held accountable, and that each denial, evasion, and deception
on the part of prison officials will only strengthen our resolve to
pursue justice by every means possible. We want accountability
now.<br>
7)-<b>Special for OPR</b>: The Office of Professional Responsibility
(which is neither professional nor responsible, but is-supposedly-an
office), the DOC's own internal "investigation" unit assured an
HRC/Fed Up! investigator in early January that they were in fact
conducting an investigation into documented human rights violations
inside the SMU at Camp Hill. After declaring that they always talk
to the inmates, OPR Director James Barnacle went on to directly
contradict himself by admitting that their "investigation"
consisted of cross-checking our documentation with the prison's own
records. Given that the prison records will report only what guards
say, since the word of prisoners is deemed prima facie untrue according
to their totalitarian (and, yes, racist) ideology, Barnacle more or less
admitted that his investigation was in fact not an investigation at
all. Furthermore, we have specifically asked several of the men in
the SMU if OPR has interviewed them, and with one exception (Brooks was
interviewed two or three months ago about an assault he suffered in
2007), nobody had seen OPR-despite several having contacted them-by the
end of January. Tell OPR that we know they are not engaged in
transparent and good faith investigations, because if they were SMU staff
under the command of Unit Manager Chris Chambers would not dare
perpetrate such atrocities. Demand responsibility and
professionalism from Barnacle.<br>
<br>
<b><i>Political Targets<br>
</i></b> <br>
<b>Governor Ed Rendell<br>
</b> <br>
See numbers 1-6 above. Rendell was informed at the end of November,
with considerable documentation. He sent it to OPR. <br>
<br>
<b>Senator Stewart Greenleaf<br>
</b> <br>
Inquire into the appropriate process for requesting hearings in front of
the PA General Assembly, and then request a hearing-to be organized by
HRC/Fed Up! and our allies-regarding torture in PA prisons. Provide
him our contact information and ask that his staff get in contact with
us. Tell staff what is going on in the SMU at Camp Hill.<br>
<br>
<b>Local PA Representatives<br>
</b> <br>
Hammer away at them, make these lazy, incompetent, and corrupt parasites
take a stand. Demand they petition Greenleaf for a hearing.
Who are these fools anyway?<br>
<br>
<b><i>Reminders about demeanor, temperament, manners, composure,
etc</i></b>.<br>
<br>
Just a reminder, it is acceptable and appropriate to express anger, be
firm in our demands, and not tolerate deceptions and diversions.
That said, it is critical that we control our anger and not vice versa,
and maintain composure and dignity in our demeanor. We want the
functionaries manning the phones and reading the mail to be impressed by
our command of the facts and message consistency. <br>
<br>
Mary Ann Kushner at SCI Fayette apparently told one of our allies that
HRC people had been "nasty" to her. Given Mary Ann's less
than sterling reputation as a truth-teller, I assume that means you were
all doing your job and holding firm to our shared principles in defense
of prisoners' rights and lives, which no doubt upset Mary Ann. So,
keep the cursing to the minimum amount necessary and get at them day
after day after day.<br>
<br>
And pace yourself. Make a call today, two tomorrow, another the
next day, and keep at it for weeks on end. This is a long struggle
and we're in it for life. Invite others to join, today. Thank
you.<br>
<br>
<b>We need lawyers! Please help us find lawyers with grit,
intelligence, and integrity who are willing to go to war </b>with the
DOC.<br>
<br>
<b><i>PS-Taking it to the Streets<br>
</i></b> <br>
Phone calls and letter writing are important, very important for
providing some measure of oversight and security to the men in Camp Hill
and other torture chambers in PA and the U.S. But it is but one
tactic amongst many. We need to take this to the streets and get on
a move. Be on the lookout for an invitation in the near future,
when the entirety of the country-and beyond-will be welcomed into the
state to voice their collective outrage over the dehumanizing white
supremacist torture of the PA prison system.<br>
<br>
HRC/Fed Up! has accumulated over 100 pages of documentation of human
rights violations in PA prisons in the last 16 months alone, supported by
thousands of pages of prisoner reports, affidavits, declarations,
grievances, requests to staff, and civil litigation documents, and
further corroborated by hundreds of hours of interviews/conversations
with prisoners and their loved ones on the outside. We can assert
with absolute confidence and substantial-in fact,
incontrovertible-evidence that torture is a widespread, systemic feature
of the prison system that deliberately sabotages parole and increases
recidivism, hence creating the conditions for continued market growth for
the prison-industrial complex.<br>
<br>
<b>PPS-Call and/or write us!<br>
</b> <br>
Who are you? Have you taken action? Can we know one another
and work together to beat back this insufferable brutality? Call,
email, write whenever. <br>
<br>
Please provide feedback as to your conversations with the peoples above
and other efforts undertaken to protect the men in Camp Hill's SMU.<br>
<br>
Thank you.<br>
<br>
Solidarity, Health, Respect, <br>
Trust, and Struggle<br><br>
<b><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>Contact
Information</b></font><a name="11f8228d8927c7ef_LETTER.BLOCK5"></a>
<font size=3> <br>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ <br>
HRC/FedUp!<br>
5125 Penn Avenue<br>
Pittsburgh, PA 15224<br>
<a href="mailto:hrcfedup@gmail.com">hrcfedup@gmail.com</a><br>
412-361-3022x4<br><br>
<br><br>
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