Prison ConditionsPRISON CONDITIONS--PRISON EDUCATION BASICS 101
Congress has legislated that the Bureau of Prisons, under the direction of the Attorney General, provide
for the instruction of all persons charged with or convicted of offenses against the United States, to
include establishing prerelease planning procedures that help prisoners apply for Federal and State
benefits upon release and reentry planning procedures that include providing Federal prisoners with
information in health and nutrition, employment, literacy and education, personal finance and
consumer skills, community resources, personal growth and development, and release requirements
and procedures.
Pursuant to this mandate, the Bureau of Prisons has provided that all its institutions must provide
General Educational Development ("GED"), English as a Second Language ("ESL"), adult continuing
education ("ACE"), library services, parenting, and recreational programs. Additionally, all institutions
except satellite prison camps, detention centers, and metropolitan correctional centers are mandated to
have a Full Educational Program ("FEP").
A satellite prison camp is a minimum security camp adjacent to, and servicing, a larger federal
institution. It may also provide Inmate workers for other off-site locations. Currently, satellite camps
are adjacent to 63 institutions, being: ALICEVILLE, ASHLAND, ATLANTA, ATWATER, BASTROP,
BEAUMONT, BECKLEY, BENNETTSVILLE, BERLIN, BIG SANDY, BIG SPRING, BUTNER, CANAAN, CARSWELL,
COLEMAN, CUMBERLAND, DANBURY, DEVENS, DUBLIN, EDGEFIELD, EL RENO, ENGLEWOOD, ESTILL,
FAIRTON, FLORENCE, FORREST CITY, FORT DIX, GILMER, GREENVILLE, HAZELTON, HERLONG, JESUP, LA
TUNA, LEAVENWORTH, LEE, LEWISBURG, LEXINGTON, LOMPOC, LORETTO, MANCHESTER, MARIANNA,
MARION, MCCREARY, MCDOWELL, MCKEAN, MENDOTA, MIAMI, OAKDALE, OTISVILLE, OXFORD, PEKIN,
PETERSBURG, PHOENIX, POLLOCK, SCHUYLKILL, SEAGOVILLE, SHERIDAN, TALLADEGA, TERRE HAUTE,
TEXARKANA, THREE RIVERS, TUCSON, VICTORVILLE, WILLIAMSBURG, and YAZOO. There is always an
exception which proves the rule. FCI Memphis has a "non-adjacent" satellite camp that serves similar
needs to those of adjacent camps. At February month end there were 18,446 Inmates in these camps.
They are being deprived of FEP. The BOP excuse for this deprivation may be that satellite Inmates can
benefit from FEP at their base institution. Although that is contrary to what I know based on OXFORD,
my information may be anecdotal and outdated. Therefore, I would encourage comments from those of
our Readers' who are at the satellite camps. The results as to each camp will be published, and, if the
response volume warrants, also the aggregate conclusion.
There are six non-satellite camps that have FEP. They are ALDERSON, BRYAN, DULUTH, MONTGOMERY,
PENNSACOLA, and YANKTON. This information may be valuable to undesignated defendants who
qualify for camp and may want to influence their location based on whether FEP is available.
The detention centers are for (1) the housing of pre-trial inmates—Honolulu, Houston, Miami, Oakdale,
Philadelphia, SeaTac, Brooklyn, Guaynabo,Los Angeles,[housing 9,985 @2/28, 10,507 @4/11/2013, a 5%
increase] and the mccs—chicago, new york and san diego [housing 2,484 @ 2/28, 2,506 @4/11/2013, an
insignificant increase]; (2) the treatment of inmates with serious or chronic medical problems—Butner,
Carswell, Devens, Lexington, Rochester, Springfield [housing 7,161@ 2/28, 8,102 @4/11/2013, a 13%
increase]--or (3) the containment of extremely dangerous, violent, or escape-prone inmates—FLORENCE
ADMAX USP. Sampling of USP A&O Manuals indicates that USPs categorically have no FEP. However,
the most restrictive FLORENCE ADMAX has facility for in-cell educational programming, which can
facilitate one college correspondence course per semester.
There is one other facility—the Federal Transfer Center, Oklahoma City Oklahoma—which provides
temporary holding for those [1,443 @ 2/28 1,491 @ 4/11/2013, a 3% increase] subjected to diesel
therapy, which provides no educational programming, justifiably so, presumably, as it would be entirely
transitory, except for an unfortunate Inmate work cadre.
Back of the class, there are 39,519 Inmates who do not have access to FEP. That's more than 18% of the
total Federal Inmate Population. © George Clive Hook 2013.
Castro Escapes from Prison—Should anyone care?
Ariel Castro's suicide—did he do it because life in prison without hope of release is a fate worse than
death? Just one instance, but does it suggest there are instances, at least, when the death penalty is
appropriate? There will be an investigation to determine whether Castro's death was really suicide and
whether someone may be complicit in aiding Castro. For this the Prison Administration cannot be
faulted, but it does raise some interesting questions. Is it murder to override the petit jury's sentence to
life in prison without possibility of parole? Would your answer be any different if that jury had
sentenced Castro to death, as permitted under Ohio law for his crimes and a guard did the execution
rather than the official executioner?
Assisted suicides were treated as crimes in the Kevorkian case, but those suicides were terminally ill,
their deaths ordained by their own bodies and their own consent based on their wish to avoid a horrible
existence and a more horrible death than the gentle one Kevorkian provided. Only four States currently
allow assisted suicides. However, the assister must be a physician. Otherwise, all that can be done
legally is to let one die pursuant to a Do Not Resuscitate Authorization obtained by the patient while still
competent, or, after that the patient's next of kin.
Assume the prison investigation rules out murder and assisted suicide. Ruling out the suicide itself as
Castro's crime, other crimes may be chargeable. Failing to put Castro on suicide watch, guards not
making their rounds as specified so to prevent his hanging, and providing bed sheets so Castro could
hang himself may each constitute a form of homicide. The exercise of prosecutorial discretion would
prevent such prosecutions presumably, even though that did not stop Kevorkian's prosecution,
conviction and sentencing.
The larger question is whether anyone has a duty to prevent a suicide. That implicates the larger
question still. Does a person have an inalienable right to commit suicide? If the suicide is successful,
there can be no penalty imposable. Immolation or disrespectful treatment of the dead body or
excommunication of the soul might be deemed sufficient in some circles. Perhaps, that potential might
deter those who value decent burial or eternal life after death. But after the suicide, these could be
nothing other than additional torture of caring innocents left behind. If the suicide is unsuccessful,
commitment to an insane asylum might be rational, other punishment, especially hanging, not.
California has demonstrated over the past few months that it does not recognize a right to suicide. It
went to court to get permission to force feed inmate hunger strikers. There is no indication how many,
if any, are lifers. So the comparison to Castro may be flawed. Also, that strike ended 9/5/2013 upon the
promise of legislators to revisit prison isolation policies. So that general strike had purpose other than
suicide, even though the eventual consequence of not eating is death.
Guantanamo provides a more exact parallel. The inmates have no idea how long they will be there
because they have not been accused, let alone tried and sentenced. Because of this outrageous
circumstance, we cannot discern whether the strikers seek escape by death as Castro did or whether
they are merely seeking release by edict of Evil Empire that put them there. According to Gitmo
releases, the strike is about faux allegations of religious abuse and mistreatment instead. Is there any
justification for force feeding hunger strikers, or preventing suicide? In my view, this is a denial of
individual choice about oneself. There is no valid justification. Food for thought. What are your
thoughts? What would you do if sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole? What if you
were innocent? Would you endure, as many must, sustained solely by a sliver of hope that DNA analysis
or other basis for reversal will eventually open your prison doors? © George Clive Hook 2013.