“this for the Durham Association of Educators”

Dear g______ ________

I’m doing alright thanks for asking, yes we are doing a creative writing class where we get to express ourselves in different kinds of ways.  Rap, poem, drawings, speeches, & a lot more.  Curtis Barnette [another detainee] started the class & we sign up for it.  We start at 12 or when the multi-purpose room ain’t at use & any action book or drawing book is good & a dictionary, too.  I like making great drawings so I’m like more tattoo drawings.

this for the Durham Association of Educators, & the union of public school teacher: thank you for focusing on our Education.  I’m still enrolled in my base school.  I was 17 when I got here, now I’m 18.  I’m up in here for a couple a months now.  The government should focus on building schools & jobs instead of making money for the jail, b/c this jail system is so crooked.  I’m here with no proof of me committing any crime of what they blaming me for – no weapon found, no evidence of any stolen goods, no witnesses.  I’ve been just waiting for my court dates & they cancel my court date every time its been scheduled.  My lawyer just once he came and see be.  I haven’t been to court at all.  The DAs lying on everything, the court appointed lawyers ain’t helping, to be honest.  Fuck Durham County Jail, they want me to feel down & plead guilty so they can make money off me.  You know what they chose the wrong person, b/c I’m staying strong.  I got into the word of God & he helps me to stay strong & for my family & loved ones who support me they can’t even come to visit me.  I only saw my mom 3 times & now they ain’t allowing her to come.  I’m against the video visitation.  So many young teens like my age die in this cells & they just say they committed suicide or natural cause.  It ain’t true.  The COs allow it to happen & if they ain’t do nothing about it that’s how they move up to new positions.  The canteen be ripping us off of our money, they don’t return our money when we order canteen & they don’t bring our canteen, & they act like they don’t know nothing.  Man shyt crazy.  I can’t even trust the law & I never did & never will.  I speak for all my latinos up in here.  I got a friend here & they don’t let him have any visit.  His family want to see him but they don’t allow him to have any visit, & when they feel they loosing our case they put a deportation order on my people with out having proof of anything.  We get crazy rash on our body b/c of the sope & our clothes are being washed with only water & we get rash from it & we get back pain from the bed they give us.  They treat us like a bunch of animals.  They hold us over years & trying to make us commit suicide & if you don’t have money you can’t get no medical attention or get the medication you need to live.  Shyt crazy man.  They block the phone sometimes so we can’t call anyone.  People are still here fighting o live & some lost their life fighting the system.  Thank you IOA for working on protest to help us students & anyone up in jail.  Thank you and god bless y’all.

 

Sincerely,

ghost z:.

‘What a screwed-up system!’

Thanks for your letter. I was surprised and glad to receive it. Please overlook my tardy reply…

I’ve heard some views about bail reform and I hope something positive comes about. These bonds are ridiculously high in Durham County. I just don’t get it. I was very happily surprised last month to hear I had a visitor (I don’t normally get them). I walked into the room and there was IOA member –. He asked me about the court date I had for the week of Feb. 6th, but I did not go. It turned out my lying lawyer again failed to file my motions to dismiss and to suppress in January as promised. Such motions are typically heard during the first full week of the month but must be filed during the previous month at least 5 working days in advance. Continue reading

Jail Talk

  1. 1st week of October, 23:55 in 3D: A detainee was hollering and kicking the door at minutes before midnight. About 10-12 officers rushed the detainee, and he was put in the chair.

2. Fri, 21st of Oct, about 15:00: Maintenance came into 3D and repaired some cell locks. There’s still some that are not working!! I hope they finish the rest of them. I still not notice 5 more cell doors not working! If power goes out–which it does–and there was a fire, or some other emergency, people in these cells would have no way out.

3. Oct 21 was officer Johnson’s last day over the library. She’s now working down in medical with the other sorry asses! Most everyone knows this b-tch. She really is. She doesn’t like men at all, and if you like to read on your 12 hours a day lock down, to get a book you used to have to go through her. No more!

4. on Oct 26, an employee with Aramark named Bull–not just any employee, the one who delivered canteen items–got fired for coming to work on drugs. The saying is the vice president came here and fired him! Interesting that this guy who did what the fuck he wanted for so long all of a sudden gets fired when the bid on the commissary contract is coming.

More Jail Talk…

  1. On Oct. 10, an inmate goes to superior court, where his name is called out and the lawyer’s name as well. The lawyer, Lisa Williams, confronts her client and asks who was he. And what was his charge? Note, the client has had Lisa Williams his entire jail stay, 8 months.

2. Around the 1st of Oct, again Lisa Williams was in court, and while there she went and talked to the judge, then announced to her client that she was no longer going to represent him, because of conflict of interest. What led up to this day was an ongoing conflict between Ms. Williams and the client over an assault charge he was wanting to plead guilty to as quickly as she could get him in front of a judge. Which she continued to avoid for more than two months.

–this is a way to update on what’s going on in a pod…

“Only those Uncle Toms and brown-nosers…”

11-13-16

Hello,

May this missive find you in a state of bliss in all respects. Like always it was a pleasure hearing from and acknowledging your efforts that contribute to the struggle. I really look forward to meeting you and some of the Inside-Outside Alliance comrades soon.

Have you heard that the Neuse C.I. went up in smoke two weeks ago? Yes! A lot of the staff from there have been posted here for work until the Neuse facility is repaired. The inmates burnt the place up, especially the processing part. Heard it’ll take months before they get it back up to par.  Continue reading

‘Police stopped me from praying downtown’

10-14-16

How are you doing? I am doing fine now. I am still in this jail. I don’t know when I am to go to court for my case. I’ve been in here for five months now and I haven’t seen a judge or my lawyer but one time.

Look, my first amendment rights was violated because I’m a Muslim who was praying in Arabic and the Durham police stopped me from praying downtown. And yes, I do have a witness, but the police don’t take his statement.

So, can y’all help me out.

A.C.

‘We got to drink out the sink at night like dogs’

Hello,

How are you? I hope you’re doing good. I know it’s been a little while since the last time I wrote you and I’m sorry about that!! I hope you get this letter as soon as possible.

Lately the food has got better since the new company. The things I don’t like is how they took away our sweet bread and blueberry bread, and how they keep feeding us potatoes. But I believe that now we are eating real food. Aramark is still running canteen, but I think it’s only until the end of the year or January. But before they stopped doing the food, man, the food was bad and to me it seemed like they was cutting costs even more. But you best believe I’m going to hold their feet to the fire on this one. Thank you guys because this couldn’t have happened without y’all help.  Continue reading

‘They always cry it’s a security concern when they don’t want to change for the better’

Hey J & S,

I hope y’all don’t mind me responding to you both in a single letter. I have just completed putting final touches on a petition for Writ of Mandamus to be mailed to Durham District Court in the AM. Trying to level the playing field keeps me wide open in here!

I can hardly wait to get out of this awful place. I am 65 years young. There is much work to do in the realm of jurisprudence for the offenders and the courts to get the playing field leveled and reduce crime.

I am going to seek a Soros Justice Fellowship when I get out to conduct a study in Durham, Wake, Guilford, and Mecklenburg jails and courts to see just how effective their court appointed lawyer system is and how justice is meted out in these courts. I’d like to compare the plea deals offered by those various DAs for similar offenses committed in those 4 counties. If I get a justice fellowship, I could then hire a small staff and have other non-profit agencies help me to extend this study to all 100 counties.

The courts need someone — a serious watchdog — looking over their shoulders, as District Attorneys. Continue reading

‘They didn’t cover my issues…’

EPSON MFP image

“Well, I guess the only thing I didn’t or don’t miss is being locked down all these hours, watching them damn jailers watching TV or playing on the computer instead of watching me!”

Well, I read the paper on the forum. I’m not really sure, it just seems like they didn’t cover my issues, and then the 42 letters, if true, would be like 8% of the inmates. Hell I sent at least 3 on 4 different topics: food, medical & dental, lawyers taking too many clients. You could imagine guys what it’s like in here, not able to defend yourself at all, with lawyers that won’t answer our letters, mail, email, and for those who have loved ones or friends on the outside to aid in communication with your lawyer, they still aren’t able to contact them for months on going! As my case gets weaker, theirs gets stronger! Continue reading

‘God only knows’

Hello. I am well. I did get the books…I have a court date coming up on the 5th and I have no idea what is going to happen that day because I have not seen my lawyer in sometime. I hope all is well, but God only knows. I pray that it will be okay daily, but if you don’t have money to fight them you are at the mercy of the courts. And so I wait.

Thanks again.

H.R.