Posted
Date
2004-3-10
The family and friends of Richard War-Eagle have requested your help
in a letter-writing campaign to move this very ill, very elderly man in
a wheelchair from his cell at Corcoran to a medical facility at Salinas
Valley State Prison -- or even better, to request release to a state VA
hospital. Mr. War-Eagle's transfer was approved long ago but he still
has not been moved. If you plan to write a letter on his behalf, his wife
makes the following suggestions:
1. Use your own words and be as brief as possible.
2. Please do NOT us an accusatory or condemning tone. It will fall on
deaf ears an hurt our cause.
3. List the cc's: and send them
4. List the VA option only if you feel like it.
5. Say why you are writing
6. Please do NOT emphasize the Indian aspect because of the tensions between
the Gov. and CA Indians.
Send to:
Honorable Governor Arnold Swarzenegger
Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Mr. Cal Terhune, Director
CA Dept. of Corrections #251
1515 "S" Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Mr. Derral G. Adams, Warden
CA State Prison 7100 Corcoran II
PO Box 5242
Corcoran, CA 93212
Rosen, Bien, and Aszaro
Attorneys at Law
155 Montgomery St. 8th Floor
SF, CA 94104
Honorable Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger,
Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Re: Corcoran prison inmate Richard War-Eagle #E94140-D4-102-L. Serving Life without parole. Also: a 15 year Marine Veteran (Sgt. Major) World War II and Korea - Has a purple heart with 2 oak leaf clusters, Marine Brevet, Bronze Star and Distinguished Service Meal + ribbons. He has a "last remaining son" Honorable Discharge - two brothers died in WW II and one in Korea.
Greetings Governor Schwarzenegger,
I'm writing on behalf of Richard War-Eagle, who is now 81 years old,
in failing health, crippled and in a wheel chair, to request his transfer
from Corcoran to a medical facility in Salinas or to a VA Hospital.. He
is not a danger to anyone at this stage of his life, yet can cost the
state a great deal of money by continuing to keep him in housing meant
for substance abuse and mental illness. He has a clean record without
a write-up for 25 years. A court order has approved his transfer to a
full medical unit in Salinas Valley. This order required all medical inmates
who are adversely affected by the desert climate at Corcoran to be moved
to SVSP.
Mr. War-Eagle is suffering at Corcoran. The staff is not equipped to handle
his level of medical problems. For instance, for many weeks, Mr. War-Eagle
has had constant serious nosebleeds day and night. Recently he passed
out and fell from his wheelchair. The officer said he was "faking"
and did not attend to him. Later a doctor confirmed that the nosebleeds
are caused by the desert climate and his age.
Continued trips to the infirmary at Corcoran will cost the state much
more than if he were cared for with proper treatment and housed in a more
humane way. I ask for your help in seeing that Richard War-Eagle is transferred
to Salinas Valley as has been approved and ordered by the court.
Further, I'd like to suggest another way the state could save more - by
not housing Mr. War-Eagle at all!! He is eligible by virtue of his service
and honorable discharge to go to a Veteran's Hospital or V.A. nursing
home in California. If this decorated veteran were sent to such a facility,
he could live out what little time he has left in dignity and in the peace
he needs to prepare for his Spirit Journey. As a Lakota Indian, he follows
a spiritual path and has done so all his life. He admits to his mistakes
in this life and takes responsibility for this wrong doing. A move to
a V.A. facility would allow his wife to move back to her beloved California
from Florida to help care for him and be with her husband for their last
remaining years.
Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. Sir, WILL YOU PLEASE
HELP?
With Respect,
Cc: Cal Terhune, Director, California Department of Corrections
Derral Adams, Warden - Corcoran II
Rosen, Bein, and Aszaro - Attorneys at law
Posted Date
2004-1-5
"The pardon process, of late, seems to have been drained of its moral force. Pardons are infrequent. A people confident in its laws and institutions should not be ashamed of mercy." Anthony M. Kennedy, U.S. Supreme Court Justice
To all Progressive People, A Call for your Assistance:
This is a urgent request for your assistance in helping my family obtain a compassionate parole release for my brother Eugene Guyton B-88516, who was diagnosed on July 28th with terminal stomach cancer. We have written letters to both Former California Governor Gray Davis and newly elected Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, members of the California State Assembly, as well as the Department of Corrections Board of Pardons.
My brother has been incarcerated for over 28 years. He has no immediate family in California and most if not all of this visitors has been from out of state. He is eligible for parole ans was scheduled for a parole hearing the day after he was given less than a year to live.
In his present condition, he can no longer pose a threat to public safety or a burden to taxpayers, for we (my family) have made arrangements for his medical treatments.
Please write, e-mail, or fax Governor Schwarzenegger on his behalf, as well as others that are in the same situation, stressing that justice must be administered with compassion. That his administration need not be one that is a shame to show mercy.
His contact information is:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Fax (916) 445-4633
e-mail: governor@governor.ca.gov.
On behalf of my family, thank you in advance and please continue to stand for Peace and Justice.
Malik Rahim
Posted Date
2004-1-5
Native
Prisoner in Attica Raises Evidence of Abuses
I am writing on behalf
of Michael Halfmoon 87D0102, who is currently incarcerated in Attica Correctional
Facility NY. Michael has asked me to contact you in order to raise the
awareness of the American public of the Native American Prisoners who
are held as 'Political Prisoners' by the US authorities.
Michael has been classed as a political prisoner for over 30 years and
has been incarcerated in Federal as well as state Facilities. He was instrumental
in setting up a class action against the US to ensure that native Americans
are allowed to practice their religious beliefs in prison. Because of
his actions which have also included a series of hunger strikes he has
suffered the following human rights abuses:
1. Being kept in confinement in the Catacomb cells for 6 months of which
there is photographic evidence.
2. Receiving regular beatings by DOC staff, which has resulted in severe
brain damage, epilepsy and partial sight loss.
3. His personal documents have been lost, his DIN was changed and he is
listed as white on the DOC website, even though he is registered as a
Native American.
4. His personal belongings-personal photographs, flute, paintings and
religious items have been lost or confiscated.
5. He was instrumental in preventing a riot at Albany and was told because
of his actions he would be eligible to special parole conditions (documentary
evidence can be provided)
6. DOC staff refer to him as "dead man walking", due to the
constant death threats he receives on a daily basis.
7. Any of his fellow brothers and sisters who have associated themselves
with Michael's cause have themselves become victims of the DOC abuse
Michael has recently been moved from Elmira to Attica, this has been done
to punish him (Attica is renowned as a punishment move). I have tried
to act on his behalf (I have power of attorney and am his fiancé),
but have been blocked at every attempt to secure his release. He was denied
parole in 2002 and is due another parole hearing in 2004, however it has
become a foregone conclusion that he will be denied. Even his solicitor,
has stated that she has not been given enough time to prepare his case,
and that in any case it has been too difficult to access his records.
It has been claimed by the DOC that he was paroled whilst in Green haven,
Michael has never been paroled. Also on 2/21/92 Michael was convicted
of attempted burglary 2nd-D felony and grand larceny 3rd-D felony by M.A.
Dwyer, Jr, Indictment No C-7304 and his DOB listed as 8-10-57, when on
the DOC website it is listed as 08-10-49, this conviction is strange in
itself as he was received into custody on 10/23/1987. This again seems
to be another tactic by the DOC to prevent his release.
Please make your members aware of Michael's situation, and if possible
please ask them to send letters of support to him at Attica.
Posted Date
2003-12-11
Prisoner in Coma After Months of Medical Neglect
Concerning Mr. Johnny Dunson:
Please write, call, or fax the officials listed below and demand:
1. Recognition of family’s decision to not remove Mr. Dunson from
life support and recognition of their choice of when or whether to do
so.
2. Demand that diagnosis, past records, test results, and treatment options
be furnished to Mr. Dunson’s next of kin.
3. Access to Mr. Dunson by a private (family sponsored) treating physician.
4. Expedited and improved visitation by family members—including
his mother’s husband, two sisters, his aunts, his brothers, and
uncles.
5. Removal of restraints presently on Mr. Dunson that tie him to his hospital
bed.
6. Longer visiting hours to include round the clock visits.
7. Expedited consideration for Mr. Dunson’s compassionate release
should his condition be deemed terminal.
8. The right to observe spiritual practices including being able to, annoint
Mr Dunson with blessing oil, post spiritual cards in his room, read to
him, play music in his room, and the right for the whole family to gather
in his room together, and pray for him.
Corcoran Prison officials denied Johnny Dunson treatment despite three months of high fevers, vomiting and blackouts. Corcoran officials neglected to fill his antibiotic prescription and instead prescribed an ointment that caused Johnny allergic reactions. After dropping from 300-plus pounds to under 150 pounds in two weeks, Johnny was transferred to Mercy Hospital.
During this time Johnny’s mother and wife were not told of his condition or his whereabouts. It was only after hiring an attorney to write a letter, and an appeal to their Senator did they find out where their son/husband was. What Johnny’s mother learned at the hospital was that her son had Meningitis and Valley Fever. She also learned that he had brain damage and had undergone brain surgery and that the prognosis was not good.
Despite the brain damage Johnny had sustained, and despite his poor condition, Mercy doctor Koyotana cleared his transfer back to Corcoran medical center where less expensive and less effective drugs would be used to treat him. There he suffered a stroke.
It has now been disclosed that Johnny is in a coma. Family visits have been limited to an hour and last we heard Johny was still in restraints. Crucially, Johnny’s mother is concerned that Mercy doctors Mui and Shiue are not recognizing her choice of when and whether to keep Johnny on life support; she wishes him to remain on life support.
Alert Contacts:
Officials to write to:
Warden A.K. Scribner
A. K. Scribner, Warden
P.O. Box 8800
Corcoran, CA 93212-8309
(559) 992-8800
Or Anita Hernandez – Warden’s Information Lieutenant
(559) 992-6104 ex.6104
Jennifer Jones
Litigation Coordinator
CSP – Corcoran
4001 King Avenue
Corcoran, California 93212
Fax number: 559-992-7372
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-445-4633
governor@governor.ca.gov
California Department of Corrections
Edward Alameida Jr., Director
P.O. Box 942883
Sacramento, CA 94283
Senator Don Perata
State Capitol, Room 313
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 445-6577
Fax (916) 327-1997
1515 Clay Street #2202
Oakland, CA 94612
(510) 286-1333
Fax (510) 286-3885
senator.perata@sen.ca
Congresswoman Barbara Lee
Oakland District Office
1301 Clay Street
Suite 1000 North
Oakland, CA 94612
Phone: (510) 763-0370
Fax: (510) 763-6538
Barbara.Lee@mail.house.gov
Security Warden Lieutenant Ellis
Mercy Hospital
(661) 632-5000 and ask for Lieutenant Ellis
Sample Letter:
Dear Government Official,
I am writing concerning Johnny Dunson H-23912 an inmate at Corcoran State Prison. It has come to my attention that after months of being denied medical care he is now in a coma. He is now in the ICU at Mercy Hospital in Bakersfield and being held under restraint. His next of kin have not been kept informed of his diagnosis, treatment options, in any way that could be described as timely. They have been denied visits of more than one hour. His mother, brother, and other relatives are concerned that their wishes concerning his care are not being respected. I am writing this letter to support Johnny’s next of kin in their requests for:
1. Recognition of family’s decision to not remove Mr Dunson from
life support and recognition of their choice of when or whether to do
so.
2. Diagnosis, past records, test results, and treatment options be furnished
to Mr. Dunson’s next of kin.
3. Access to Mr. Dunson by a private (family sponsored) treating physician.
4. Expedited and improved visitation by family members—including
his mother’s husband, two sisters, his aunts, his brothers, and
uncles.
5. Removal of restraints presently on Mr. Dunson that tie him to his hospital
bed.
6. Longer visiting hours to include round the clock visits.
7. The right to observe spiritual practices including being able to annoint
Mr Dunson with blessing oil, post spiritual cards in his room, read to
him, play music in his room, and the right for the family to gather in
his room together, and pray for him.
8. Expedited consideration for Mr. Dunson’s compassionate release
should his condition be deemed terminal.
Thank you for your time in this matter.
Sincerely,
Support Viet Mike Ngo's Case Against Racial
Segregation at San Quentin
·The practice of racial segregation, which denies prisoners the choice of cellmate and the freedom from unwarranted group punishment, is more than a violation of prisoners’ constitutional rights. It provides a means for the prison administration to manufacture and manipulate racial conflict and violence between prisoners.
·It also impacts the critical issue of overcrowding or ‘double
bunking’ insofar as incoming
prisoners are not assigned to available space if they cannot be racially
paired off.
·Moreover, the current classification system singles out Jewish
prisoners for particularly cruel and unusual punishment.
It categorizes Jewish prisoners as ‘white,’ often forcing
them into cells with prisoners who hold explicit commitments to or
membership in anti-Semitic, white supremacist organizations. Prisoners
have a right to serve time without being subjected to
degrading racial segregation and racist terror.
Facts about the case
· Viet Mike Ngo (E-21895), a prisoner at San Quentin State Prison
at the time of filing his writ, has petitioned the Marin County Superior
Court for a writ of habeas corpus regarding the administration’s
illegal racial segregation of inmates in
housing and discipline, a violation of the 14th Amendment of the US and
California State Constitutions. The petition has moved
past the preliminary stages of judicial review and has been granted an
evidentiary hearing to show cause at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday February 13
(see below).
· If the court rules in Ngo’s favor, San Quentin State Prison
and the California Department of Corrections (CDC) could be harged and
held liable for the criminal violation of prisoners’ civil rights.
As a result of this petition, the FBI and the US Attorney’s Office
have moved to conduct a federal inquiry into the matter. If successful,
this could mark a major shift in the racial politics of imprisonment in
the US’s largest prison system.
Retaliation Against Our Comrade
· Since filing the writ, and as a result of his legal and internal organizing efforts, Viet Mike Ngo has been subject to brutal threats and retaliation at San Quentin and throughout the CDC.
· Ngo was placed in the Hole at SQ in June 2002 and was illegally transferred as many as four times in a six month period, each time separating him from his legal papers and advocates.
· Currently Ngo is being held at Avenal State Prison, two hundred
miles from his legal representatives. There he has been
denied access to his legal work; twice been subjected to illegal placement
in the Hole; and faced obstruction of his incoming
mail since his arrival in November.
About Viet Mike Ngo
Captive since 1989, Viet Mike Ngo is serving an indeterminate sentence
for gang-related activity he participated in as a youth. Now thirty-two
years old, Ngo became politicized while incarcerated and transformed himself
into a political activist, prison lawyer, published writer and intellectual.
In addition to his legal endeavors, Mike organizes prisoners inside to
challenge the PIC. While still at SQ, Mike and his fellow comrades organized
around the college program, challenging the “paternalistic, dictatorial,
and colonialistic attitudes that permeate [the director’s] usurpation
of this program” and demanding curriculum that offered “examples
of resistance, both violent and non-violent…to demonstrate the cultural
and historical response to oppression…struggles of peoples against
occupation, repression, their own government, or military invaders…”
In the past he has also worked to organize a prison writer’s colony
and collaborated with outside activists and intellectuals to develop the
struggle against the PIC.
What you can do
· Show your support by going to the hearing!
Thursday, February 13 10AM
Court Address:
Marin County Superior Court
Hall of Justice, Dept. J
3501 Civic Center Drive
San Rafael, CA 94903
415-499-6244
· Write to Viet Mike Ngo
Viet Mike Ngo
E-21895
Avenal State Prison
P.O. Box 9
Avenal, CA 93204
· For more information on the case, assistance getting to the
hearing, or to join the new Asian Prisoner Support Committee,
contact the San Quentin Three Solidarity Committee at
SQ3Solidarity@yahoo.com
SUPPORT ALL SISTERS AND BROTHERS IN STRUGGLE!
Last night on their eighth day of hunger strike, 6 detainees at Passaic County Jail decided to suspend their strike in order to give the INS a chance to move them to Hudson County Jail for somewhat better conditions and contact visitations.
The 6 hunger strikers have been visited every day by various INS officials, some of whom have tried to intimidate them and others of whom have made promises of immediate transfer.
Kerry Gill, spokesman for INS Newark District Office, insists on attempts at “cooperation” stating to the NY Times yesterday, "Our position is that they should stop this kind of disruptive behavior in the facility, and then they can say, `Here are our demands about visitation.' " The hunger strikers have responded with a temporary suspension of the strike in order to show that they are open to dialogue, but are still insisting that their demands be met.
The six strikers are united in their general demands, yet each have unique goals and objectives. Farouk Abdel-Muhti has been in detention for 9 months, despite the INS's inability to deport him they continue to hold him against their own rules and Supreme Court decisions. Farouk is demanding his release. Saleh Hamzeh and Mohammed Seif, detained on minor charges for 13 and 5 months respectively cannot even hold their young babies in their arms.
The detainees had not eaten since Tuesday January 14th in a protest against conditions and violations of their constitutional and human rights. Their health was being seriously affected by the strike. One man collapsed on Monday night and had been vomiting blood. Another two had very high blood pressure levels and all of them were losing weight. Prior to the hunger strike, requests from detainees to improve medical care at Passaic went unheard. Medication was administered irregularly and dental care was and is still limited to the pulling of teeth.
"Transfer to Hudson County for its contact visitation is a basic and very simple demand for the INS to follow through on, clearly it is the INS District Director’s office that is displaying “disruptive behavior”," stated Namita Chad of Desis Rising Up and Moving.
Call or Fax INS District Director Andrea Quarantillo and urge her to
meet with the detainees and follow through on their demands.
Phone: (973) 645 4421 Fax: (973) 297-4848
Address: District Director, INS Newark District Office
970 Broad St. Rm. 136 Newark, NJ 07102
For more information, contact Namita Chad at DRUM – Desis Rising
Up and Moving
(718) 205 3036.