Prisoners Report on Conditions in

Florida Prisons

Got legal skills? Help out with writing letters to appeal censorship of MIM Distributors by prison staff. help out

www.prisoncensorship.info is a media institution run by the Maoist Internationalist Ministry of Prisons. Here we collect and publicize reports of conditions behind the bars in U.$. prisons. Information about these incidents rarely makes it out of the prison, and when it does it is extremely rare that the reports are taken seriously and published. This historical record is important for documenting patterns of abuse, and also for informing people on the streets about what goes on behind the bars.

We hope this information will inspire people to take action and join the fight against the criminal injustice system. While we may not be able to immediately impact this particular instance of abuse, we can work to fundamentally change the system that permits and perpetuates it. The criminal injustice system is intimately tied up with imperialism, and serves as a tool of social control on the homeland, particularly targeting oppressed nations.

[Organizing] [Campaigns] [Florida]
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Support Florida Prisoners Against Keefe Snack Sneak Attacks

We recently created a petition addressed to Governor Scott:

The families and friends of Florida prisoners petition for a state investigation of the Keefe commissary network contract with the FDOC. In this economy and in fairness, the people of Florida deserve a new contract that makes canteen prices more affordable or reasonable. (see www.tampabay.com/news/kickback/155046)

Keefe is one of the biggest if not the biggest prison and jail commissary vendors in the United States. Revenues from canteen operation for fiscal year 2009-2010 were $30,973,262. The prices prisoners are being charged are higher than prices for the same items sold in the free world. There are several vendors who bid for the FDOC contract who would offer a wider variety of available items at almost a 60% decrease of what Keefe presently charges. One has to "wonder" why were these other vendors not given the contract?

Keefe's sneak attack on snacks continue to prey on the families and friends of Florida prisoners who for the most part provides financial support to the prison population to spend on canteen. With the economy in recession it is doubtful prisoners families and friends are going to be able to spend more money.

Keefe, which is based out of St. Louis, MO, latest price increase has lead to more thefts, robberies and violence in Florida's prisons. Governor Scott, you can stop Keefe's price gouging with just one phone call, we urge you to be that champion of the fairness and justice that you promised all Floridians during your campaign by making that call.

The success or failure of this important project depends on genuine community interest and online petition signature support. To support Florida prisoners against Keefe's Snack Sneak Attacks visit: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/229/807/212/support-keefe-sneak-attacts-on-snacks-must-go/


CLASS="no-indent">MIM(Prisons) responds: We printed an article about Keefe back in 2009 with similar complaints from a prisoner in Pennsylvania. We don't hold out much hope that Governor Scott is going to turn his back on the capitalists to help out prisoners and their families, but the exposure of Keefe and education about the corruption in the criminal injustice system and its role in making lots of companies (and their employees) rich, is a valuable educational and organizing tool.

Also at issue here is the right to healthy and adequate food. Vending machine food is always going to more expensive and less nutritional. All pisoners should be provided with adequate, fresh food, so that supplementary snacks are a luxury.

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[Abuse] [Suwanee Correctional Institution] [Florida]
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Guanswaneemo Bay Continues

The following are a list of eye witnessed brutalities by staff against captives (prisoners) on close management (CM) at Guan"Suwannee"mo Bay (Suwannee C.I.) in Florida.

Early November 2012: a prisoner was targeted for being a writ writer. He was jumped on and cut with a razor by another prisoner placed in the cell. The police are paying extra trays to prisoners to jump on other prisoners. Currently one prisoner has been slapped with several fabricated DRs (disciplinary reports) and downgraded in CM status. He might remain on CM until he is broken from his writ writing ways.

Early November 2012: A mentally ill prisoner, after continuous daily harassment by Sgt Green and his crew, was gassed for no reason. He was used as an example to inflict terror in other prisoners.

December 3, 2012, CO McGuire and another CO jumped on a prisoner who was in handcuffs, hands behind his back. After being beaten the prisoner was slapped with a fabricated "battery on a CO" disciplinary report (DR) to justify this brutality. But how can one commit battery on CO with his hands in cuffs behind his back?

June/July 2012: A prisoner was jumped on by COs who sprayed chemical agents into his mouth and throat in the hallway of P-Dormitory at Suwannee Annex.

April 17, 2013: A prisoner was placed on strip because he said something to the recreation coach criticizing him for not announcing rec when he enters the yard, just so he can deny rec to prisoners who he deems not ready. He does this so that he will have fewer prisoners to take out to rec, less work.

April 18, 2013: A prisoner and his cellmate were gassed with chemical agents. The prisoner was given a choice to either be gassed or placed on strip. He chose to be gassed because when prisoners are placed on strip most of their personal property comes up missing. COs either throw the prisoner's personal property away or allow their orderlies to go through the prisoner's personal property.

April 19, 2013: Two prisoners were pepper sprayed by CO Mayo, then placed on strip.

April 21, 2013: Two prisoners were placed on strip. CO Mayo threatened one of the prisoners that he was "going to send him to CM if he's gotta fuck the mayor's daughter to get it done." He also called a prisoner a "pussy ass nigga" repeatedly, loud and clear, after denying this prisoner lunch and dinner by putting empty trays through his flap.

April 21, 2013: CO Mayo can be seen on GI cameras and/or heard on intercom audio recording extorting prisoners, charging prisoners canteen food items if they want to receive their purchase.

Many prisoners are falsely accused of gunning (masturbating) by female staff, just so prisoners can be gassed, placed on strip, and/or beaten and slapped with fabricated DRs, mostly by male COs acting in affinity with these female staff members, or just exerting DOC team spirit and loyalty. These sadist tyrants and their brutalities will not just stop on their own. There is no such thing as altruism towards prisoners in DOC/ Guan"suwannee"mo Bay. Altruism toward prisoners here is considered unamerikkkan and/or unpatriotic.

In October 2012, Taylor CI and Union CI underwent a major purge by higher authorities during which approximately 60 something staff members of all ranks were escorted off institution grounds due to their involvement in these brutalities and tyrant practices. Suwannee CI needs such a purge of sadists and tyrants like Lt. Martin (AKA white widow or misery) and Lt Harrold who are in charge of management wing goons such as Sgt Lynblade, Sgt Harvey, Sgt Patton, Sgt Silver, Sgt Gree, Sgt Kelly, Sgt Fisher, Sgt Linea and their subordinate ruffians like CO Murman, CO Mayo, CO Knowleds (who was involved in the Panama City boot camp murder of 13 year old Martin Lee Anderson, now working on CM here at Guan"Suwannee"Mo Bay and is still at his klansman ways), CO Barton, CO McGuire, CO Lynblade, CO Diaz, CO Landrum, CO Lane and CO Pope (who brags how he pays prisoners in G-dorm extra lunch trays to beat up other prisoners for him.) Also we can't forget their superior officers: captains, majors, colonels and wardens who not only condone, encourage and orchestrate, but participate in these willful and unlawful brutalities. There are also the classification officers, medical and mental health staff who are aware of the brutalities and either help cover them up or approve of them by not reporting them to the proper authorities.

The above mentioned brutalities are only a very few of the many that occur here on CM at Guan"Suwannee"Mo Bay (Suwannee CI) in Florida.


MIM(Prisons) responds: This comrade has done the important work of documenting the ongoing abuse of prisoners at Suwanee CI. In a previous article incidents through most of 2012 are described. Our response to that article is important to repeat here: "The list of people this writer suggests need to be purged from Suwanee demonstrates our point that it is not possible to reform the Amerikan criminal injustice system. This is not a case of just a few bad apples, but rather a system of oppression and violence, in which employees must participate to receive a paycheck. We must expose the brutality, and fight the individual cases to create some livable space for our comrades, but we will only end the violence by dismantling the criminal injustice system entirely."

It is the systemic problem that puts us on the only possible path to liberation, from the criminal injustice system but also from the broader system of imperialism: communist revolution. We need to create a world where no group of people has power over another group.

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[Censorship] [Political Repression] [Gang Validation] [Florida] [ULK Issue 32]
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MIM Investigated as STG in Florida

It has recently been brought to my attention by the Security Threat Group (STG) coordinator at this Correctional Institution that the Maoist Internationalist Movement (MIM) and cells thereof is/are currently pending STG classification in the Florida Department of Corrections. As a result all MIM publications will be subject to censorship as "STG material," the possession of being punishable by disciplinary action/confinement.

I am discontinuing my subscription(s) as well as correspondence due to the coordinator's interview as mentioned above.


MIM(Prisons) responds: We are still gathering information on this situation in Florida. We have seen a complete blackout of our literature to select individuals, but not the overall population.

We have repeatedly addressed similar situations in the past, stressing that the physical safety of both prisoners and staff at facilities where prisoners study Maoism and work with MIM(Prisons) has only improved to date.(1) Meanwhile, according to U.$. law, it is still illegal for the state to censor political speech, affiliation or association because they find it disagreeable.

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[Rhymes/Poetry] [Florida]
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Every Move is a Mission

Hey yo! These pigs don't care about you
You're Black wearing blue
On your own, up against the DOC crew
Department of Conspiracy, I thought you knew
Classification and medical they DOC too
Tallahassee? That's the highest rank in operation
Most folks in Tally got promoted from corrections
The Warden was a CO once upon a time
Promoted to the top, down with organized crime
Organized injustice, denying all grievances
Tallahassee do the same thing, fuck your witnesses
No remedy, show you how they all stick together
Like birds of a feather, for worse or for better
Who can you run to, the whole system is against you
And still trying methods to turn your peeps against you
So you can be totally dependent on them
So they can put down the William Lynch all over again
Every move is a mission, show no submission
If you wanna upgrade your humyn condition
We gotta stick together in this tight situation
If not, we're going back to being a possession

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[Abuse] [Suwanee Correctional Institution] [Florida]
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Guansuwanee Mo Bay Brutalities Continue

October 2012: A captive, B (an old white man), a known writ writer, was placed in G1112 cell with a younger Black captive, R. Lt. Harrold and Sgt Green told R that B is a racist, causing R to beat up B. R was rewarded with the head orderly job in G-Dorm, while B is to never get off close management due to receiving constant fabricated disciplinary reports against him because he is a writ writer. The beating occurred between October 13th and October 31st in G1112 cell.

Early November 2012: another writ writer was beaten and cut with a razor blade by another prisoner placed in G1106 cell working for Sgt Patton. This is not his first time he was set up by the police. Currently he is on CM-1 slapped with numerous fabricated Disciplinary Reports (DRs) and won't get off CM until he is broken.

Early November 2012, prisoner W, a mentally ill prisoner in G1103 cell, after continuous daily harassment, was gassed by Sgt Green and his crew, for no other reason than implementing mass terror and intimidation. He was made an example of via procedural lynching for all to see and fear.

December 3, 2012: CO Maguire and another CO beat up a prisoner in G1209 cell, while the prisoner was handcuffed behind his back. After being beaten the prisoner was slapped with a fabricated assault on a CO DR. How do you assault a CO with your hands cuffed behind your back?

December 5, 2012: two prisoners in G1203 cell were gassed by Sgt Harvey, all in retaliation intended against one of the prisoners due to some incident months prior.

December 9, 2012, A prisoner was taken from G1103 cell in handcuffs, hands behind his back, and jumped on in the hallway by Sgt Green and his crew. Sgt Green had planned and called in the incident moments prior to its actual occurrence.

December 17, 2012: A prisoner in G1210 cell was gassed for simply declaring a psychological emergency. All captives declaring a psychological emergency are gassed and slapped with fabricated DRs to justify and cover up the gassing.

December 30-31st, 2012: Two prisoners in F1213 and two other captives in F1214 cell were placed on strip (72 hour property restriction - no mattress, no bedding, no clothes - left in only boxer shorts) the temperature outside was in the 20s and the heaters were off. They were placed on strip for fabricated reasons by Sgt Fisher.

December 31st, 2012: two prisoners in F1110 cell were gassed and slapped with fabricated DRs because they refused to speak to Sgt Kelly when he approached their cell in his two faced (smile in your face, stab you in the back) manner.

Jan 5, 2012: Sgt Kelly placed two captives beefing with each other on strip together in F2103 cell so they could fight, they're fighting as I write.

These prison guard brutalities are only a few of the many that occur here on Close Management at Suwanee Correctional Institution here in Florida. Many of the identities of the victims are unknown to me, but can be obtained by simply viewing camera/document evidence which can be obtained by anyone via request of public information pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act. Do not just take my word at face value, please request the evidence and speak with the victims mentioned for a more detailed truth of what transpired. (Some may fear staff retaliation and refrain from speaking). We beg that you help by simply calling in or emailing concerning these brutalities.

Just recently in October 2012, Taylor and Union CI underwent a major purge by higher authorities during which approximately 60 officers of all ranks were escorted off institution grounds due to their brutal and tyrannical practice. Suwanee CI needs to experience the same purge of its tyrants like Lt Martin (aka white widow), Lt Harrod, Sgt Harvery, Sgt Patton, Sgt Silver, Sgt Green, Sgt Kelly, Sgt Fisher, CO Barton, CO Maguire, CO Lynblade, CO Diaz, CO Landrum, CO Lane, CO Murman, CO Pope - who brags to captives how he pays captives extra lunch trays to beat up other captives - and all their superiors - captains, majors, colonels, classification officers and warden and secretary of FDOC - who all encourage, condone and even orchestrate these many use of excessive force brutalities and procedural lynchings and fabrication coverup reports.

Many captives are falsely accused of gunning (masturbating) by female COs just so captives can be jumped on, gassed or placed on strip by these male COs. These tyrants and sadists will not stop on their own.


MIM(Prisons) responds: The list of people this writer suggests need to be purged from Suwanee demonstrates our point that it is not possible to reform the Amerikan criminal injustice system. This is not a case of just a few bad apples, but rather a system of oppression and violence, in which employees must participate to receive a paycheck. We must expose the brutality, and fight the individual cases to create some livable space for our comrades, but we will only end the violence by dismantling the criminal injustice system entirely.

This article referenced in:
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[Campaigns] [Download and Print] [Florida] [ULK Issue 29]
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Grievance Campaign Spreads to Florida

Florida Grievance Petition
Click to download PDF
of Florida Petition

The campaign for proper handling of grievances, started in California, keeps spreading! This time it touched down in Florida, where Under Lock & Key is regularly censored across the board.

Mail the petition to your loved ones inside who are experiencing issues with the grievance procedure. Send them extra copies to share! For more info on this campaign, click here.

Prisoners should send a copy of the signed petition to each of the addresses below, which are also on the petition itself. Supporters should send letters of support on behalf of prisoners.

Warden
(specific to your facility)

Office of General Counsel, Secretary FDOC
501 S. Calhoun St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-2500

Inspector General, FDOC
501 S. Calhoun St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-2500

Governor Rick Scott
The Capitol
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001

U.S. Department of Justice - Civil Rights Division
Special Litigation Section
950 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW, PHB, Washington, DC 20530

Office of Inspector General
HOTLINE
PO Box 9778
Arlington, VA 22219

And send MIM(Prisons) copies of any responses you receive!

MIM(Prisons), USW
PO Box 40799
San Francisco, CA 94140


*PDF updated October 2017*
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[Political Repression] [Suwanee Correctional Institution] [Florida]
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Retaliation for Political Organizing in Florida

On August 30, 2012, a day after I mailed a document to the Florida ACLU, Department of Justice, FL Justice Institute, and James Casey of the FBI in Jacksonville FL, concerning pigs beating and slamming captives to the concrete head first while in handcuffs, I was placed under investigation for conspiracy. This was a response to a thesis I penned and distributed amongst the captive population entitled "Guan Suwannee Mo Bay." Somehow the pigs got a copy of Guan Suwannee Mo Bay and I became public enemy focus. I guess their 21 day investigation revealed that I had not in fact violated any laws, but I was not to be allowed back in to general population. So they started hitting me up with fabricated disciplinary reports to keep me in confinement.

On September 18th, they delivered a DR (disciplinary report) for a violation (I-4) disrespect to Official, fabricated by a classification officer Mr. F.P. Freihofer, who claimed that he was conducting a check of the housing unit when I stopped him and said "y'all got me in here on some bogus shit, when are you crackers going to finish this pussy shit?" Then he said, he ordered me to cease my disrespectful behavior to which I replied, "it's just bullshit to be locked up for no reason." Of course you know I didn't say any of this, doing such would have gotten me lynched (gassed) on the spot. This is just the result of a retaliation campaign to keep me in confinement to stop the spread of Guan Suwannee Mo Bay, my publication amongst the captives.

On September 19th, I received another DR, this one charged me with extortion. The classification officer, Miss Rogers, claimed that I attempted to extort $200 and some winter clothes from my cellie, by writing his mother a letter telling her to send her son $200 and order him some winter clothes. I was just helping my cellie write his mother; he is brand new in the system, missing three fingers on his right hand, and can barely write and spell, so he asked me to write the letter explaining to his mother that he had not been in prison 24 hours and he got beaten by the pigs at RMC, the Reception and Medical Center that is right down the street from his house. The pig who beat him is related to the victim in his case. He also asked me to explain to her how to call DOC, how to use the electronic depositing to send him $200, and how to go online to FL packages and order him winter clothes. I explained to her how she must use his DC # in order for him to receive anything, his DC# was on the letter not mine.

Classification claimed that she received a call from my celly's mother concerned that he was being extorted. Did classification refer the case to the inspector for investigation? No. Did she even simply just ask my cellie (whom by then had left my cell for DC confinement) if I was extorting him? No. And even though my cellie issued a statement in writing that I did not extort him and only gave him help that he requested, they still found me guilty and sentenced me to 90 days.

They are planning to bury me on closed management (CM) instead of cleaning up their Mis-justice, they're trying to cover it up. This is all retaliation for political educating and organizing!


MIM(Prisons) adds: Educating prisoners is one of our principal tasks in the fight against the criminal injustice system. But all too often we face repression and retaliation for this entirely legal work. This retaliation comes in the form of direct physical violence and torture for individual prisoners, and broader censorship for MIM(Prisons) mail and publications. All of this is a form of censoring voices speaking out against the injustice system. We must continue to expose these abuses, and fight for our limited right to speech under capitalism until we can establish a system where speech by the oppressed is valued.

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[Organizing] [Cross City Correctional Institution] [Florida]
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Florida Organizations Come Together in Peace for September 9th

Being that today is September 9th and a day of solidarity and peace, all sorts of nations (organizations) got together here in the rec yard and had a jailhouse BBQ and lived in peace just for the day here at Cross City, Florida.

I always enjoy the Under Lock and Key. Hopefully one day some of my articles will be published in them. Allow me to extend in your direction a revolutionary embrace and a warrior's salute. I hope for Florida one day to move forward in our prison system. Little by little with the help of the folks at MIM(Prisons).


MIM(Prisons) adds:There seems to be much support for unity between organizations in Florida. See the previous report of lumpen organizations coming together in Everglades Correctional Institution.

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[United Front] [Organizing] [Everglades Correctional Institution] [Florida]
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Seven LOs, Religious Groups Rep in 9/9 Day of Solidarity

On 9 September 2012 at Everglades Correctional Institution, FLDOC, individual members of The Blood Nation honored the soldiers of Attica by doing one or more of the following: fasting, boycotting the canteen/commissary, accepting chow hall trays and dumping them, and explaining why. Also participating individually were one or more members of the following (in alphabetical order): Black Gangsta Disciples; Crip Nation; Insane Gangsta Disciples; Almighty Latin King Queen Nation; Nation of Islam; Spanish Cobras; Shi'a Muslim Community; Sufi Community. My apologies to anyone I missed. It was a small step at a spot with no history of unity, but even a single drop of water in a dry glass makes it wet. Respect to those who made the sacrifice, those who joined us midday, those who expressed interest the day after. I'm as human as anyone, but let's TRY to remember who the enemy is!

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[Abuse] [Campaigns] [Union Correctional Institution] [Florida] [ULK Issue 28]
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Staff Retaliating Against Prisoners in Florida

I would like to bring something to your attention that's going on here at Union Correctional Institution with staff attacks and starvation tactics. In April I was assaulted by prison staff. Upon grieving the issue at the institutional level, I was immediately retaliated against, choked with security waist chains, placed on strip status butt naked, property taken and destroyed, and placed back into cold cell 40/50 degrees with AC blowing for nine days straight without clothes. I had no sheets, no comfort items, no property, no toothpaste, no toilet tissue, no socks, no mattress, no nothing, just sleeping on a concrete bunk.

I was set up with all kinds of weapons, income tax forms, gang letters, bogus urine test, etc. These staff are out of control. I'm constantly being verbally threatened after I have already been assaulted. Security staff have orderlies empty food trays and pour chemicals and spit in the food after they starve us for 7 or 8 days straight, knowing prisoners will eat anything after not being fed for that long. Medical staff here are covering up for these attacks.


MIM(Prisons) responds: This story of prison staff abuse and retaliation against those who file grievances is unfortunately very common in prisons across the country. The campaign to demand grievances be addressed is spreading to new states quickly as comrades look for ways to fight back against this repression. We don't yet have a petition for the state of Florida so we need someone from that state to look up citations and policies specific to Florida for reference in the petition. If you do this research and send us what needs to be rewritten for your particular state, we will gladly send an edited, accurate copy to other USW and Legal Clinic folks in your state.

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