Under Lock & Key

I am a prisoner in the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) who is requesting your petition to remedy problems with the grievance procedure. I have blood markers of cancer that prison facilities never informed me about. They tried to prevent me from finding out about this by transferring me to a different prison whenever I would file a grievance demanding to be informed of the results to lab. At Calhoun State Prison on June 29, 2015 the grievance coordinator, who is also the deputy warden of care and treatment, Ms. Christine Cross, informed me my grievance was rejected because I'd forgot to sign it. The counselor I'd turned it in to has an obligation, according to prison operating procedure, to check the grievance for this type of technical compliance when I turned it in to him. I told Christine Cross he could have asked me to sign when I turned it in to him. It wasn't like I'd did it on purpose. I told Ms. Cross I would appeal the rejection to Department headquarters in Atlanta. Later this same day I was transferred to Dooly State Prison (DSP).

I turned in the appeal to grievance staff at DSP. Several months later I was being interviewed by the grievance coordinator, Ms. McClairen, when I thought to ask about this appeal. McClairen replied it seems there is no record that one was ever forwarded to GDC main office.

McClairen said this in a passing sort of fashion. The procedure requires appeals be submitted to our present facility's staff, and those staff will forward it to the main office in Atlanta. Apparently this doesn't work out in many cases. I am wanting to join your campaign. I will attempt to organize some of the others having this problem. Please send me the petition, with any other information I must know.