“Jail
and prison staff throughout the United States have used unnecessary,
excessive, and even malicious force against prisoners with mental
disabilities, Human Rights Watch charged in a report released today.”
“The
127-page report, “Callous and Cruel: Use of Force against Inmates
with Mental Disabilities in US Jails and Prisons,” details
incidents in which correctional staff have deluged prisoners with
painful chemical sprays, shocked them with powerful electric stun
weapons, and strapped them for days in restraining chairs or beds.
Staff have broken prisoners’ jaws, noses, ribs; left them with
lacerations requiring stitches, second-degree burns, deep bruises,
and damaged internal organs. In some cases, the force used has led
to their death.”
“Although
no national data are available, Human Rights Watch’s research
indicates that unwarranted, excessive, and punitive force against
prisoners with mental health problems is widespread and may be
increasing in the more than 5,100 jails and prisons in the United
States. Experts blame deficient mental health treatment, inadequate
use-of-force policies, insufficient staff training, and poor
leadership.”
“Staff
in US correctional facilities are authorized to use force when
necessary to control dangerous or highly disruptive prisoners. But as
Human Rights Watch found, staff at times respond with violence when
prisoners engage in behavior that is symptomatic of their mental
health problems and even when it is minor and non-threatening, such
as urinating on the floor, using profane language, banging on a cell
door, masturbating, complaining about not receiving a meal, or
refusing to come out of a cell. Staff also sometimes use force to
punish inmates who annoy or anger them.”
“In one
case, staff at a California prison sprayed a prisoner approximately
40 times with pepper spray, and threw four pepper spray grenades into
his cell after the man, who claimed to be 'The Creator,' resisted
removal from his cell. In another, a Florida prisoner diagnosed with
schizophrenia defecated on the floor of his cell and refused to clean
it up. Officers allegedly put him in a scalding shower knowing he
could not control the water’s temperature or flow. After being left
in the shower for more than an hour, the inmate was dead.”
“Corrections
experts say that best practices require special use of force measures
for prisoners whose disruptive behavior is symptomatic of mental
illness. For example, following recent class action litigation,
prison officials in Arizona and California are adopting policies that
greatly restrict the use of chemical sprays on prisoners with mental
illness except in an emergency. But most agencies lack such policies.
Similarly, most agencies do not train their staff to understand the
impact mental illness can have on behavior and to use verbal
negotiation strategies to end disruptive behavior without force.”
Summary
and full report:
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