Times Op-Ed Piece: "Breeding Psychotics"

[Ralph]

The author is a colleague and friend of mine. He is one of the leading experts on Prisoners Rights and is the author of a multi-volume treatise on the subject.

*****

From The New York Times:

March 27, 2005
OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR
Breeding Psychotics
By MICHAEL B. MUSHLIN

AS the State Legislature considers reinstating the death penalty, lost in the debate is any mention of the appalling conditions that are often inflicted on prisoners sentenced to death.

Since the death penalty was re-enacted during Gov. George E. Pataki's first term, seven people have been condemned to die, but none have been executed. Prisoners on death row have been kept in virtual solitary confinement while they await the outcome of their appeals, exoneration or execution. A recent study by the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, of which I am a co-author, has found that the conditions on New York's death row are among the harshest in the nation.

According to the study, each condemned man in New York is locked in his isolated 78 square-foot space for 23 hours each day. Each cell contains only a toilet, a sink, a bed, a mattress and a pillow. The cells are not air-conditioned and fans are not permitted. All meals are given to inmates in their cells during the daytime shift, which means that inmates go more than 16 hours without food. The inmates cannot see other prisoners from their cells and are not permitted to hold prison jobs, attend programs or engage in organized activities. When a prisoner is allowed out of his cell for his one hour a day, he is confined to a solitary cage of about 2,000 square feet, aptly called a dog run.

Compounding the isolation, visits are greatly restricted and take place in booths separated by a plexiglass barrier that prevents physical contact. Inmates are limited to two 10-minute phone calls per week.

Judge James L. Dennis of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in New Orleans, has said that restrictive death row conditions are "enough to weaken even the strongest individual." Psychologists who have studied such conditions have concluded that they can lead to severe psychological consequences, including withdrawal, hopelessness, hallucinations, aggression, rage, paranoia and psychosis.

Death row inmates who may be rendered insane by these conditions may no longer be deemed competent when the time comes to execute them. There is also the possibility that inmates will be driven by these conditions to abandon their appeals and volunteer for execution, a phenomenon that occurs with more than 10 percent of all inmates on death row nationally.

And, of course, some prisoners subjected to these conditions might actually be innocent - last month, an Ohio inmate who was convicted in 1985 became the 119th innocent person to be freed from death row since 1973.

Not only are conditions harsh, but the state is also highly secretive about how it runs death row. The Department of Correctional Services has refused to open death row to inspection even to representatives of the New York City bar association asserting undefined security concerns. When the death penalty law was passed, the Legislature and Governor Pataki gave the department the authority to close death row to inspection by judges, members of the Legislature, district attorneys, ministers in towns where prisons are located and even by the governor himself.

Inmates on death row are not the only ones who must endure these horrible conditions. New York confines approximately 5,000 other inmates by locking them into their cells for 23 hours a day. Approximately 2,800 of these inmates are housed in disciplinary lockdown units, some of which approach the severity and degree of isolation of the notorious "supermax" prisons in other states.

The conditions in these units are analogous to those on death row. The toll exacted by these conditions has not been fully calculated, but some things are known. A recent review of public data by lawyers from the Prisoners' Rights Project of the New York Legal Aid Society found that from 1998 to 2001, 30 percent to 50 percent of prison suicides occurred within these harsh confinement units, which house less than 8 percent of the total prison population.

There is never justification for prison conditions that cause mental torture. And it is a mistake to think that the conditions do not directly affect us. Many inmates will some day return to be our neighbors, some even from death row. New York State should not be in the business of creating dreadful conditions that breed psychotics who then return to society.

Given the extreme conditions of death row, one might expect that the inmates held there are exceptionally dangerous. But they are not.

The bar association study found that prisoners on death row are among New York's most cooperative inmates. From 1996, when New York's death row was established, to 2001, there was not a single reported incident of violence, an attempted escape or even a serious security violation, like the possession of a banned item that could be made into weapons.

The time has come to correct these problems. No longer should any areas of the New York prison system be off limits to observers. Governor Pataki should ensure that state prisons, including death row, are open to inspection by responsible persons outside the system. And legislation should be enacted that ensures that the harsh isolation and brutal conditions that are inflicted on death row inmates are stopped.

Whether or not the death penalty is reinstated in New York, death row conditions and the ill treatment of thousands of other inmates in supermax units need to be part of the debate. We cannot close our eyes to their suffering. The Legislature and the governor should immediately undertake reforms to ensure that New York State prisoners are no longer subjected to what is essentially state-sponsored torture.

Michael B. Mushlin is a professor at Pace Law School.

[jbuck919]

Ralph, I doubt that you and I are going to find much company here when it comes to the principle that humane treatment of prisoners is an absolute value as a matter of basic morality and keeping ourselves within bounds of decent human conduct. The mentality that criminals forfeit their right to be considered as human beings prevails in our society, largely because politicians have succeeded in playing upon the self-righteousness of ordinary people in order to gain votes.

[Ralph]

Ralph, I doubt that you and I are going to find much company here when it comes to the principle that humane treatment of prisoners is an absolute value as a matter of basic morality and keeping ourselves within bounds of decent human conduct. The mentality that criminals forfeit their right to be considered as human beings prevails in our society, largely because politicians have succeeded in playing upon the self-righteousness of ordinary people in order to gain votes.

*****

Apart from moral reasons, maltreatment and cruelty to prisoners is well repaid by recidivism. My colleague teaches a seminar on Prisoner Rights which includes an all-day visit to Sing Sing which I took as his guest. As a former cop I was responsible for people winding up there and some, I'm sure. are still incarcerated. They need to be. That said, visiting Sing Sing was one of the most sobering experiences of my life.

There has to be a more humane and effective way to handle most malefactors so that they can be restored to society as productive citizens. The simple fact is that the overwhelming majority of prisoners WILL be released at some point.

[jbuck919]

What the heck is a "moster poster"? Is it a misspelling of "monster," or is it just Corlyss' rhyming sense of humor? I'm also flattered to be a "master guide." Jeez, folks, I just come here to pass some time in a pleasant way every day.

Some state penal systems still have strong rehabilitation programs, but they remain so only until some politician gets elected governor or whatever on a "let's not be soft on crime" platform. People read about and react to the rapist who is released and rapes again, caring nothing for the fact that many thousands of properly rehabilitated criminals are released into society every year.

[Corlyss_D]

Psychologists who have studied such conditions have concluded that they can lead to severe psychological consequences, including withdrawal, hopelessness, hallucinations, aggression, rage, paranoia and psychosis.

And assuming that he isn't just lobbying for cable TV, conjugal visits, and monitored furloughs, and assuming the inmates are guilty, nobody made them kill. I should feel bad for them because . . . ?

Death row inmates who may be rendered insane by these conditions may no longer be deemed competent when the time comes to execute them. There is also the possibility that inmates will be driven by these conditions to abandon their appeals and volunteer for execution, a phenomenon that occurs with more than 10 percent of all inmates on death row nationally.

Oh, please! Yeah. I see them lining up right now . . . He's making this stuff up by linking it to the psychology of the prisoners at Gitmo.

last month, an Ohio inmate who was convicted in 1985 became the 119th innocent person to be freed from death row since 1973.

So how was he? Did he go for sex and a Big Mac, or did he off himself?

Not only are conditions harsh, but the state is also highly secretive about how it runs death row. The Department of Correctional Services has refused to open death row to inspection even to representatives of the New York City bar association asserting undefined security concerns.

And I suppose that there is no Inspector General, regular audits, and inmate legal representatives too! Ralph, this is just not credible, all due respect to your friend.

Inmates on death row are not the only ones who must endure these horrible conditions. New York confines approximately 5,000 other inmates by locking them into their cells for 23 hours a day. Approximately 2,800 of these inmates are housed in disciplinary lockdown units, some of which approach the severity and degree of isolation of the notorious "supermax" prisons in other states.

Ahhhhh, here we get to the crux of the matter.

The conditions in these units are analogous to those on death row. The toll exacted by these conditions has not been fully calculated, but some things are known. A recent review of public data by lawyers from the Prisoners' Rights Project of the New York Legal Aid Society found that from 1998 to 2001, 30 percent to 50 percent of prison suicides occurred within these harsh confinement units, which house less than 8 percent of the total prison population.

I'd like to see a study on how many of these suicides are really suicides and how many are really murders and after that I want to see a study on how many of the real suicides were the result of housing violent and non-violent offenders together.

There is never justification for prison conditions that cause mental torture.

Here it comes. The lash up with the detainees.

And it is a mistake to think that the conditions do not directly affect us. Many inmates will some day return to be our neighbors, some even from death row. New York State should not be in the business of creating dreadful conditions that breed psychotics who then return to society.

Get real. How many of death row inmates ever get out? Not even 1% I'll wager.

Given the extreme conditions of death row, one might expect that the inmates held there are exceptionally dangerous. But they are not.

Duh. Death row has tighter security than any other cell block in a prison. They are presumed violent offenders. They have been convicted of murder and are presumed killers. Other prisoners may or may not be.

We cannot close our eyes to their suffering. The Legislature and the governor should immediately undertake reforms to ensure that New York State prisoners are no longer subjected to what is essentially state-sponsored torture.

There it is again, the linkage to detainees. I ain't buyin' it.

[Corlyss_D]

Ralph, I doubt that you and I are going to find much company here when it comes to the principle that humane treatment of prisoners is an absolute value as a matter of basic morality and keeping ourselves within bounds of decent human conduct.

Humane I agree we should have. The humane treatment most needed and needed now is to segregate violent from non-violent offenders, to bulk up the prison guard force to stop the outrage of prison gangs enforcing most of the order with the prisons, and to put an end to the sexual predation among the population that will return to society with AIDS. That to me would be a humane program. After that, we can discuss whether they get cable tv, conjugal visits, and monitored furloughs.

largely because politicians have succeeded in playing upon the self-righteousness of ordinary people in order to gain votes.

Wow! Talk about self-righteous! Explain to me again why society is somehow primitive because it wants to keep violent offenders segregated and controlled?

I want to see an end to the drug laws that put so many non-violent offenders in jail for outrageously long terms where they are victimized, brutalized, and really turned into pathological predators by their fellow inmates, not by the fact that they are made uncomfortable and lack the commerce with society that non-prisoners have.

[Corlyss_D]

There has to be a more humane and effective way to handle most malefactors so that they can be restored to society as productive citizens. The simple fact is that the overwhelming majority of prisoners WILL be released at some point.

There's the big dichotomy, between warehousing and rehabilitation. I agree that more discussion needs to occur on which we want, which is more likely to be successful, and how much will it cost as opposed to the price. I could hear arguments about the social cost of not rehabing, just as I could hear arguments about what kinds of things should be taught if we go with rehab. Somehow I don't think doing the laundry and making license plates are particularly terrific skill sets. I would like to see more economically useful skills taught. And how do we reconcile that moral conundrum that arises when we teach college courses in prison but we cut funding for scholarships and grants for kids who's only crime was being ineligible for state aid to go to college? There are a lot of complex issues involved in public policy on prisoners and the least of them is how death row inmates who are not physically abused are treated when they have no demands placed on them, they get 3 squares, comfortable clothes, a warm bed, a roof over there heads, and all the free time they could possibly want.

[Corlyss_D]

What the heck is a "moster poster"? Is it a misspelling of "monster," or is it just Corlyss' rhyming sense of humor? I'm also flattered to be a "master guide." Jeez, folks, I just come here to pass some time in a pleasant way every day.

You know, I didn't even know what ranks were when Lance and I were stumbling around in the admin panel. We both had no idea. We discussed it but it was almost 3 AM my time and 5 his. He must have figured it out because the next day I found people getting these titles like 'newbie.' The rankings are based on the # of posts of the poster. I think 'moster poster' is one who posts the most. I think Ralph was up to 7000+.

Some state penal systems still have strong rehabilitation programs, but they remain so only until some politician gets elected governor or whatever on a "let's not be soft on crime" platform. People read about and react to the rapist who is released and rapes again, caring nothing for the fact that many thousands of properly rehabilitated criminals are released into society every year.

I know. These two kidnapping/rape/murders of children in the news this week just underscores the "lock 'em up and throw away the key" mentality. Unfortunately, that's not what most sentencing statutes read. We either have to have a more rational policy about what we criminalize and how we are going to pay for our righteous ire, or we have to start thinking rationally about what we want the system to do with people that will eventually return amongst us. I think both you and Ralph would concur in that.

NB: Most humble Site Administrator must confess to screwing up John's post because she hit the edit button instead of the quote button. I apologize to John and the readers of the forum. I have asked John to come finish fixing what I screwed up and could repair only a little. Again, my apologies.