| Posted: Sat Jul 05, 2003 9:15 pm Post subject: Our own "Gulf War" | |
| It has been unusually quiet here for days. I hope
you all are taking time to spend with your own families. I am consumed with thoughts of
Daniel and how Independence Day had no meaning for him. He must wonder if he will ever
have his own independence. As I learn more about other kids in Florida who have been abused, I am more outraged about why it is tolerated by state officials. Daniel continues to be tormented in his own taste of hell - the Escambia County Jail. Time for more letters to the editor and emails to the ACLU. While they are taking a look at the deadly force used on two more victims in recent weeks, they should also take alook at the Escambia County Jail. Last week, Daniel and another boy were taken to "the tank" for acting like kids, using halves of their scrabble board as skateboards - doing kick flips off a stool and off their bunks. Following routine procedure for "the tank," after a pat down, the inmates are instructed to remove thier jumpsuits to search for contraband that may be hidden. When Daniel was told to take off his jumpsuit, he "freaked out", sic. We would call that a panic attack. He told the CO, "I'm not taking off s**t." Four COs surrounded him and began to take his jumpsuit off. Daniel crossed his arms and fell to the floor in a fetal position. The COs applied pressure points to inflict pain - try it yourself - put your thumbs on either side of your face below your ears just below the point where your lower jaw hinges. Now press hard and see how it feels. Daniel said one CO was applying pressure on both sides of his face and Daniel tried to pin his face against the floor so that only one side of his face could be reached. The CO just applied more pressure to the point he could reach. They wrestled him out of the fetal position, turned him on his stomach, put a knee in his back and handcuffed him. Then they took him to "the chair" and strapped him in - arms, legs, torso, head, wrists, ankles - so he could not move. They left him there for 12 hours. Stokes once told me he never knew of a time when they put a juvenile in "the chair" - only adult inmates who were being violent. They refer to it as the motorcycle chair because that's sort of the position you are in. If, in the 12 hours you need to urinate, you must urinate on yourself. If you must defecate, you defecate on yourself. When I saw him last Monday, he was very subdued, having what psych people call a flat affect. He had a few scuffs, and was very sore, particularly his neck. He was sad that the watchband was broken on the watch that Stokes gave him for his birthday. Tuesday evening when he called, he said he thought his wrist might be broken. I told him to fill out a medical request to have it X-rayed and he said he would. I followed that up Wednesday with a call to Captain Chromiak. She said that they had him checked out by a nurse while he was in the chair. I explained that 24 to 48 hours after a fractured, the bones begin to separate and what may not have been painful in the beginning, becomes painful as the edges of the bone swell, separate, and begin to rub against one another. She said that she would follow up on that. Can someone please explain to me why inflicting pain, handcuffing, and 12 hours in the chair was necessary? I understand that he did not follow a direct order given by the CO, but they didn't even try to reason with him or talk him down, or reassure him, they just manhandled him and punished him in the chair that is supposed to be for violent inmates even though he was resisting WITHOUT violence. Maybe the ACLU can find that out if they will include the jail in their investigation. He is now, again, in adamant lockdown - alone. They/the jail personnel, really think they can do and get away with anything. I titled this entry as our own Gulf War since most of the Florida coast is bordered by the Gulf of Mexico. Do we need a civilian board to police the police in Escambia County? Duh! Anybody for a letter to the editor? An email to the ACLU? And how about that Guardian Ad Litem I requested? Can we be like drops of water falling on a stone - splashing, breaking, dispersing in air - weaker than the stone by far, but be aware that as time goes by, the rock will wear away - and the water comes again. . . dan'smom |
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