Author: Breeze Richardson (on behalf of the Peace Resources Committee)
There is now a petition circulating regarding the inhumane use of solitary confinement in a Super Maximum Security prison in Tamms, a small town in Southern Illinois. The petition supports proposed state legislation, HB 2633, which calls for guidelines for the use of solitary confinement and has been endorsed by AFSC-Chicago and AFSC -Michigan (Criminal Justice Program) along with 26+ other organizations. Blue River Quarterly Meeting has encouraged other individuals and Meetings to endorse this as well.
The petition reads as follows:
At Tamms supermax prison over 250 men are being held in permanent solitary confinement, year after year, with no communal activity or human contact of any kind. The Department of Corrections has refused to consider policies of due process safeguards. This form of extreme punishment is beyond the bounds of basic human decency.
We ask that you support HB 2633 to bring this prison back in line with its original intent. This legislation will prohibit seriously mentally ill prisoners from supermax incarceration, establish clear procedures for how men are transferred to one-year, unless doing so would pose a risk to guards or other inmates.
There will be a prayer vigil held today, April 10th, at the prison to call attention to the inhumane treatment of prisoners at Tamms. Organizers will also be calling attention to the fact that Illinois still has a Death Penalty, and that currently there are individuals sitting on IL’s Death Row. New Mexico just abolished the Death Penalty, it is the hope of many to see Illinois be next to do so.
Yes, Tamms has strayed far from its original intended use. I would also like to see a review of the use of segregation cells in the maximum security prisons as some of the same abuses exist there.
Thanks so much for posting this.
Please sign the petition to support efforts to end human rights abuses at Tamms: http://www.juliehamos.org/tamms
Readers may also be interested in a New Yorker article that focuses on Tamms and Amnesty International’s recent statment about the prison.
I’d like to see Illinois Yearly Meeting of Friends added to the list of faith communities supporting this initiative (see the Julie Hamos website). Perhaps PRC could draft something up for review at Yearly Meeting in June? Meanwhile, thanks Breeze and Nadya for making it so easy to sign the petition and for bringing Tamms into this blog’s discussion.
NEWSFLASH (sent out May 14):
This action just went from code orange to code red in terms of importance. Why? Because today the governor announced that he is appointing a new IDOC Director on Thursday to investigate Tamms. Thus, our timing is perfect.
Quinn needs to hear a clear mandate from a huge number of people that Tamms must be reformed. This will give him the protection and motivation to do the right thing. Unfortunately, the Tribune just printed a lame editorial against the Tamms reform legislation.
Here we are at a critical moment in this fight. If you have ever thought of doing something, do it now! Make your voice heard on behalf of someone who can’t. It takes ONE MINUTE per person, and together we can tie up the phones.
Call Governor Quinn today on Weds, May 13 or Thurs, May 14 and tell him to either: “Reform Tamms Supermax or Cut Its Funding.”
–Taxpayer money should not be spent on torture or on policies that violate international human rights standards.
–Long-term isolation induces or worsens mental illness, and increases recidivism. Mental health treatment works, Tamms doesn’t.
–Prisoners do not have to be kept in long-term solitary confinement to be kept secure. Isolation is not a solution!
–Tamms is the most expensive prison per capita in the state of Illinois–between $60,000 and $90,000 per year. That is 3-5 times the cost at other prisons. Ask Governor Quinn what he thinks Illinois taxpayers are getting for our money.
Finally, ask Governor Quinn to sponsor HB 2633, sponsored by Rep. Julie Hamos, which will prohibit seriously mentally ill men from being housed in Tamms, and will establish clear criteria for transfers to and from the supermax.
Office of the Governor in Springfield: 217-782-0244
Office of the Governor in Chicago: 312-814-2121
Dear Friends,
A copy of the letter clerk Tom Paxson wrote to the Governor at the Yearly Meeting’s request, and a copy of the reply the Yearly Meeting received to that letter, can now be seen on the ILYM website.
And earlier this week, ILYM Friend Dawn Amos shared:
It’s encouraging that the Belleville News Democrat ran an extensive article on Tamms and also a good editorial. [sic] The first in a two-part series about Tamms supermax prison began today:
Lead story
Sidebar on Joseph Herman
Belleville News Democrat editorial
Sidebar on a day in the life
Sidebar on Ozzie Picket
Interview with Randle about reform
Register with the site and post a comment. Please help us turn the tide of the vicious responses. We need some comments from citizens who oppose these misguided and inhumane policies. Applaud the Belleville News Democrat for its commitment to real journalism. This press is the result of something all but extinct in America: investigative reporting. As you all know, the IDOC makes it nearly impossible for anyone to obtain any information about the supermax, but that did not stop these reporters who worked for many months
on the story.
Do state sites that give inmate location let you know when the inmate may be released or if they have been transferred? Are transfers part of criminal records?
Wyatt – According to Illinois criminal defense attorney Stephen L. Richards, Esq. (private correspondence with me), “some [websites] do, some don’t.” And I’m not sure at this point in my research whether transfers are “part of criminal records.” However, often if you call (telephone that is) the prison where a person you know is being held, and ask whether the person has been transferred and where, you can get that information from the administrators. Hope that helps.
You need to write more you do a good job
Thanks, Gary! we’re working on a re-tool of this blog…please keep watching.