I would like to start off by saying that I really appreciate the newspaper that I've been receiving from y'all over the last couple of years. They have really been an inspiration to me.
As far as conditions here on this unit, I would put it at zero on a scale of 1 to 10. This unit is the most racial and brutal in the system, and it's not from prisoners but from guards abusing their authority and nobody seems to do nothing about it.
Just recently there was a use of force and the prisoner had his thumb broken. I myself have had bruised ribs, hand-cuff marks on my wrists and shackles left on my ankles. Going trough the grievance procedure doesn't resolve anything - it only escalates into bigger problems.
This unit is racial and prejudiced towards prisoners, mostly if you're Spanish and Black -- especially if you contribute to any litigation in court. I'm literate in court and I assist other prisoners. I get retaliated against by being denied access to court, denied legal material and indigent supplies most of the time, denied legal visits to prisoners that seek legal help. They also refuse to feed me for no justification and use excessive force, (for example) kicking my ribs with heavy shoes on and twisting my leg trying to get it to snap. And the lieutenant and sergeant stood around and allowed the guards to proceed with the excessive force and all the time they claim that I'm resisting.
These people only use the rules to benefit themselves. If we have a right to something then they claim there is no such rule, and if we harp on it or file a grievance about it then later on we receive a disciplinary infraction for something else. Even with a lawsuit pressed against it and court orders, this unit still doesn't even acknowledge anything.
--A Texas Prisoner, November 2003