This is an archive of the former website of the Maoist Internationalist Movement, which was run by the now defunct Maoist Internationalist Party - Amerika. The MIM now consists of many independent cells, many of which have their own indendendent organs both online and off. MIM(Prisons) serves these documents as a service to and reference for the anti-imperialist movement worldwide.
Class Action lawsuit in California

A quick update on the developments here and to second the sentiments of the comrade from NPPAC who correctly points out that we have an obligation to not diminish these few pages into mere complaint columns!

While it is important for individuals to have a sense of what's going on around the nation. But it's equally important to know what action is being taken to remedy the complaints put forth. Because words without action are empty. This note is to update rads on the progress to development here and to put forth specific actions that can be taken to advance this particular task.

I arrived at Corcoran SHU in August of 2000. After spending over 10 years in Pelican Bay's control unit. After speaking to a lot of prisoners here I was able to determine that the conditions were ripe to attempt to pull together a multi-racial/multi-national coalition to perhaps begin to bring some challenge to the inhuman conditions that many of today's prisoners believe they are powerless to change. But in reality it is quite the opposite, prisoners can be quite powerful in affecting change to the conditions of which they are forced to live/dwell under.

Certainly prisoners must do more in terms of coming to grips with dynamic history of the prison movement of the 60s and 70s, and how the state was so effective in its efforts to squash that movement and isolate its influence oppression of this sort only advances via our default, so to the extent we as a prisoner class cease our demands for fair and equitable treatment under the law, we open the door to invite in state repression.

However, we must not cease with mere demands or empty actions, we must as a class continue to evolve and expand our consciousness, and understand that struggle evolves from one stage to the next with ever increasing consciousness of the wicked machination of the state.

Prisoners being the lowest class in the capitalist social strata - they are easy to manipulate and exploit due to their low level of consciousness and social reasoning.

In 2002 our multi-national coalition attempted to file a "class action" law suit bringing challenge to every aspect of life inside the SHU at Corcoran.

We immediately met resistance and hostility from the court: dismissing the "class action," magistrate Judge Snyder ordered the class to file their own individual actions because she said prisoners could not represent the interest of the entire class, and she declined to appoint counsel, sensing the difficulty she knows prisoners will have trying to prosecute individual claims.

However we were determined to move forward in 2002. We filed our first amended complaint individualizing the claims.

Judge Snyder claimed she could not understand the nature of the proceedings and holding the complaint was to lengthy and directing me to file a second amended complaint, which was done in September 2002. This time Judge Snyder permitted us to proceed on some issues and attempted to dismiss what we believe are the most vital issues. We chose to file a third amended complaint, which addresses the following issues:

(a) Constant illumination - alleging the policy of keeping the cell lights on 24 hours a day is nothing but a form of torture.
(b) Outdoor exercise - the policy of permitting prisoners less than 10 hours per week violates the constitutions 8th amendment.
(c) Lack of adequate outdoor clothing - The practice of forcing prisoners to attend yard in the coldest months of the year with nothing more than a thin jumpsuit and a jacket that must be shared by 98 other prisoners, is cruel and unusual punishment.
(d) The lack of clean sanitary clothing - The practice of providing dirty, torn and unsanitary laundry violates the constitution.
(e) The lack of clean sanitary conditions in the SHU - The practice of not cleaning the housing units are inhumane and cruel and unusual.
(f) Hygiene - The practice of providing no cleaning supplies, toothpowder and other essentials violates the constitution.
(g) Deprivation of property - The practice of arbitrary cell searches taking personal property without class violates the constitution.
(h) Medical care - The practice of continued deliberate indifference to serious medical needs violates the constitutions.
(i) Lack of adequate appeals process - The practice of not responding to prisoner appeals violates right of access to the courts.
(j) Due Process - The policy of not providing due process when validating prisoners as so-called gang affiliates violates the constitution.
(k) Equal protection - The practice of equating historical and cultural literature with so-called gang activity is discriminatory by nature.
(l) False and fabricated information - The practice of using false and fabricated information to validate prisoners as so-called gang affiliates violates the constitution.

Prisoners should also write to Judge Snyder urging her to certify this case as a class action because the issues here do not only affect the Plaintiff but the entire population here in the SHU.

MIM supporters on the outside can also flood Judge Snyder with requests to certify this case as a class action and to have the courage to look deeper into the corruption at Corcoran state prison.

It is obvious from many of the rulings that Judge Snyder has issued in this case that the u.s. District Court for the Eastern District of California at Fresno sits in protection of the Human Rights abuses that have gone on here since its opening in 1988 and it openly discourages prisoners from bringing challenge to these violations.

If Judge Snyder is persistent in her denial to give us class certification we are asking that prisoners flood the court here with the same issues presented in A-P in complaints of their own, until our issues are taken seriously.

Again, we recognize that prisoners must do more to secure fair and just treatment from their captors. And I submit that with the efforts of USW and NPPAC we are well on our way towards steps of unified action, the key is persistence, creativity and endurance. Staying focused on the task at hand and doing what we can do to advance the cause.

We are also asking that supporters aid us with donations of paper, envelopes and updated case law. The prison's library is not equipped with recent case law. Stay tuned to ULK for updates as we press this case forward.

Write to:
Sandra Snyder
Magistrate Judge U.S. District Court Eastern District of California
1130 O Street Rm 5000
Fresno, CA 93721-2201

-- a California prisoner, December 2003