NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on TDCJ Penwell Bus Crash, Damaged Guard Rail Possibly at Fault

January 29, 2015

By Staff Reporter
Penwell, Texas

According to a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report released today a displaced guard rail and icy conditions maybe to blame for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice bus accident in Penwell, Texas that left 10 people dead.  The report states:

"Early on the morning of January 14, three additional crashes, attributed to icy road conditions, occurred, with the last crash taking place about 7:35 a.m.  In two of these crashes, an eastbound vehicle went out of control, crossed the center median, and traveled through the area of the previously damaged guardrail—possibly displacing it partially into the left traffic lane.  A witness in a vehicle traveling forward of the bus reported that moments before the bus reached the overpass the guardrail wreckage was about 2 feet into the travel lane."

"The bus struck the guardrail, veered to the left, and overrode the guardrail wreckage in the median. The bus traveled about 22 feet across the earthen median into an opening between the eastbound and westbound traffic lanes of I-20. The bus encountered a 21-foot embankment and became airborne. The bus struck the base of the embankment and continued forward toward the railroad tracks, where it impacted the fifty-fourth rail car and side of a piggy-back trailer of the UP train."

The sole surviving officer from the accident, Jason Self, was released from University Medical Center in Lubbock yesterday and was moved to a rehabilitation center.  Officer Self received a fractured second vertebrae in his neck and a broken arm as a result of the accident. 

Officer Christopher Davis, age 53 and Officer Eligio Garcia, age 45, were killed in the accident.  Eight prisoners were also killed in the accident 22-year-old Kaleb Wise, 25-year-old Michael Stewart, 34-year-old Byron Wilson, 29-year-old Tyler Townsend, 44-year-old Jesus Reyna, 35-year-old Jeremiah Rodriguez , 31-year-old Angel Vasquez and 32-year-old Adolfo Ruiz .

A more detailed report will be released once the investigation is completed by the NTSB.

See Copy of NTSB's Preliminary Report

United Nations Committee Against Torture Issues Statement on TDCJ & US Prison Heat Deaths

November 29, 2014

GENEVA -  The United Nations 53rd Committee Against Torture (CAT) concluded their review of human rights complaints from their session that began on November 3rd and ended on November 28th.  During their session the committee heard evidence of several deaths occurring in Texas prisons, including a report from the University of Texas Law School's Human Rights Clinic. 

In their report the UN Committee cited the following concerns:

The Committee urges the State party to investigate promptly, thoroughly and impartially all deaths of detainees, assessing the health care received by inmates as well as any possible liability of prison personnel, and provide, where appropriate, adequate compensation to the families of the victims.

The State party should adopt urgent measures to remedy any deficiencies concerning the temperature, insufficient ventilation and humidity levels in prison cells, including death row facilities.

At this time several lawsuits are currently awaiting trial, including a heat litigation injunction case which is under appeal in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans which may determine the outcome of other heat cases seeking injunctive relief. 

 

The UN Committee expressed further concern over states not certifying as being compliant with the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA).  In their report the UN Panel stated:

The Committee is seriously concerned at the widespread prevalence of sexual violence, including rape, in prisons, jails and other places of detention by staff and by other inmates. It also notes with concern the disproportionally high rates of sexual violence faced by children in adult facilities, as well as the higher rates of sexual victimization reported by inmates with a history of mental health problems and LGBTI individuals. While welcoming the promulgation in 2012 of the National Standards to Prevent, Detect, and Respond to Prison Rape under the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), the Committee is concerned by reports that their implementation at the state level continues to be a substantial challenge.  In this context, the Committee notes with concern that six states have not certified that they are in full compliance with PREA standards, and several agencies operating federal confinement facilities are still in the process of issuing their own PREA regulations.

 The panel cited the following recommendations be implemented:

The State party to increase its efforts to prevent and combat violence in prisons and places of detention, including sexual violence by law enforcement and penitentiary personnel and by other inmates. In particular, the State party should:  

(a) Ensure that PREA standards or similar standards are adopted and implemented by all states, and that all federal agencies and departments operating confinement facilities propose and publish regulations that apply PREA standards to all detention facilities under their jurisdiction;  

(b) Promote effective and independent mechanisms for receiving and handling complaints of prison violence, including sexual violence;  

(c) Ensure that any and all reports of prison violence, including sexual violence, are investigated promptly and impartially and that the alleged perpetrators are prosecuted;  

(d) Ensure the use of same-sex guards in contexts where the detainee is vulnerable to attack, in scenarios that involve close personal contact or that involve the privacy of the detainee;  

(e) Provide specialized training to prison staff on prevention of sexual violence; 11  

(g) Develop strategies for reducing violence among inmates. Monitor and document incidents of violence in prisons with a view to revealing the root causes and designing appropriate prevention strategies;  

(h) Authorize monitoring activities by non-governmental organizations;  

(i) Amend sections 1997 e(a) and (e) of the Prison Litigation Reform Act;  

(j) Revise the practice of shackling of incarcerated pregnant women, bearing in mind that the regime of the prison shall be flexible enough to respond to the needs of pregnant women, nursing mothers and women with children (see the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules, as adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 65/229 of 21 December 2010, Rule 42.2).

Only 6 states have refused to comply to certifying as PREA compliant, these states are Texas, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, and Utah.  Their failure to certify has brought on international pressures and scrutiny. 

The United Nations expressed concerns about the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) impacting a prisoners right to bring lawsuits.  The Federal tort reform law was passed in 1997 after several states, including Texas lobbied for the bill. 

The Prison Litigation Reform Act was designed to limit Federal court oversight such as in the case of Ruiz v Estelle where Federal Court Judge William Wayne Justice placed the Texas Department of Criminal Justice under Federal court oversight. 

 

 

See Report by University of Texas Human Rights Clinic

See Report by the United Nations Committee Against Torture

See the 5TH Circuit Amicus Brief filed by AFSCME Local 3807

See New York Times Article November 29, 2014. Section A5

United Nations Committee Documents





 

Corruption Beyond Correcting - The Fall of the American Correctional Association President

 (Photo Courtesy of the Mississippi Department of Corrections)

 

By Lance Lowry

Jackson, MS - This summer in a quiet room of a Federal court house in Jackson, Mississippi a grand jury deliberated on a 49 count indictment of public corruption, bribery, money laundering, and conspiracy that may bring the heart of the private prison industrial complex down.

Under grand jury investigation were Christopher Epps, a national director for the Correctional Peace Officers Foundation (CPOF), president of the American Correctional Association (ACA), and the longest serving commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC).  Another co-conspirator Cecil McCrory, a former Mississippi state representative, former justice board judge, and Rankin County School Board chairman was also being investigated.  McCrory worked as a paid consultant for many well known private prison groups such as The Geo Group, Cornell Corrections Inc, Management & Training Corporation (MTC), and Wexford Health Services.

Christopher Epps and Cecil McCrory were arraigned on November 6^th before U.S. Magistrate Judge F. Keith Ball on a 49-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in August. Christopher Epps was accused of receiving almost a million dollars in kickbacks from Cecil McCrory since 2007 by awarding almost a billion dollars worth of no bid contracts to McCrory and his private prison corporation clients.   McCrory is alleged to have made payments on Epps home, gave Epps numerous cashier checks under $10,000, and made payments on Epps condominium in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Donald Alway, special agent in charge of the Jackson FBI office, speaking about the Epps indictment stated during a press conference, “the investigation of corruption by public officials is extremely difficult due to its sensitive nature.  The FBI's role as a criminal investigative agency places public corruption as its number one priority in criminal enforcement. Public corruption is often the result of whispered conversations sealed with handshake deals, so therefore its very hard to prove.”  Agent Alway encouraged people with knowledge of public corruption to step forward with information.

While Epps and McCrory received almost a million dollars a piece from this contract scheme, the real benefactors are large private prison management groups such as Management Training Corporation (MTC) who received almost a billion dollars in benefits from these contracts. In a statement released to the media, Management Training Corporation (MTC) stated, “We deeply regret that in this case we didn't have any idea that improprieties may have taken place, especially in light of the significant allegations in the indictment.”

Mississippi State Auditor Stacey Pickering said, “It is a very sad day in Mississippi when two men with a history of public service are charged with blatantly committing crimes to increase their personal fortunes.  They are accused of deliberately violating public trust while serving in positions of leadership.”
 

 

Resources:

 

Copy of the Christopher Epps / Cecil McCrory Federal Indictment

 

Copy of FBI Press Release

 

US Justice Department Press Briefing

 

 

 

 

FULL STATEMENT FROM MTC:

We're saddened, surprised and disappointed by the allegations against former Commissioner Chris Epps. MTC was hired in 2012 to operate three prisons for the state after a competitive procurement process where multiple companies were invited to tour facilities and submit bids. MTC was brought in with the primary objective of improving the overall operations of these facilities. In 2013, we submitted a proposal to operate a fourth prison for the state during an open and competitive procurement (RFP 13-005) with the same mission.

MTC worked very closely with Mr. Epps over the last two years in implementing changes to these facilities that would improve security and the treatment of offenders. He was very involved in the management of our four contracts. He knew of the challenges we faced and was working closely with us to overcome them. In partnership with the state and with their support, MTC has made significant improvements at all four facilities and continues to make great strides.

Soon after being awarded the contracts in 2012, Mr. Epps recommended MTC work with Cecil McCrory to provide services within the state of Mississippi. Mr. Epps also made us aware of the fee McCrory had charged in the past to other contractors. MTC hired Mr. McCrory as a consultant because of his many years of experience working in the state. Mr. McCrory had been working with the previous prison contractor and other vendors so MTC felt his services would be beneficial given his knowledge and experience. MTC paid Mr. McCrory $12,000 per month for his work, after Mr. Epps told us that is what others had been paying him. MTC hires consultants in every state where we provide services to the state. Mr. McCrory's services included working with counties to explore possible business opportunities, coordinating with local and state officials to strengthen MTC's relationship within the state, and networking at various industry conferences. He worked at length to investigate a potential bid for a federal corrections contract in Mississippi. At no time did Mr. Epps instruct or mandate MTC to hire Mr. McCrory. In light of the indictment, MTC cancelled its contract with Mr. McCrory last week.

Each month, MTC received an invoice from Mr. McCrory and paid it in full just as we would any other invoice. MTC was not aware of any alleged inappropriate relationships between Mr. Epps and Mr. McCrory or that Mr. Epps was allegedly a participant in any way in the contract with McCrory.

We fully support the government's investigation to learn what happened and to take appropriate action. We also believe the state of Mississippi made the right decision in reviewing all current corrections contracts including suspending the procurement process for the four private prison contracts which we hold. The integrity of contracting is of paramount importance to the state as well as to MTC. All MTC employees are required to take ethics training and are held to the highest standards of ethical conduct. We deeply regret that in this case we didn't have any idea that improprieties may have taken place, especially in light of the significant allegations in the indictment.








 

Lubbock Avalanche Investigates In Custody Deaths in Underfunded Prisons

October 15, 2014

Lubbock, Texas  - Today the Lubbock Avalanche News released a report showing a high number of in custody deaths in Lubbock County and at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice's Montford Unit. 

 

According to the news report, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) had over 61 inmate deaths between 2005 and October 2014 in Lubbock County alone.  The Montford Unit is the only TDCJ prison facility located in Lubbock County and is a psychiatric treatment facility for TDCJ inmates. 

 

Since 2005 the Texas Department of Criminal Justice had over 1,821 in custody deaths according to a report from the Texas Attorney Generals Office.  For a complete listing of all TDCJ inmate deaths from January 1, 2005 to October 14, 2014 CLICK HERE.

 

According to the Lubbock Avalanche News more than 3,700 inmates died in Texas jails and prisons since 2005.  There are growing concerns about proper prison funding and training of staff when it comes to caring for the mentally disabled.  AFSCME Texas Correctional Employees is pushing for increased pre-service training of correctional staff to include over 40 hours of mental health training. 

Currently Texas correctional officers receive 200 hours of pre-service training and only 1 hour 45 minutes of that training is for managing the mentally disabled.  In 2012 the Texas Department of Criminal Justice had over 36 reported suicides according to a report from TDCJ's Emergency Action Center. 

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice correctional officers are lacking proper training according to a  new study completed by AFSCME Texas Correctional Employees, which shows TDCJ officers receive 73 hours less training compared to the national average for state correctional officers. 

With the current mental health trends and the agency lacking proper mental health training, Federal litigation is expected to be brought against the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.   

 

 

 

Van Catches Fire on the Hilltop Prison Unit

 

Watch this Video on YouTube Click Here!!!!

October 15, 2014

Gatesville - A Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) van caught fire today around 1:30 PM at the Hilltop prison unit in Gatesville.  A passerby captured the incident on video.  At the time of the fire, no inmates were on board the vehicle.  No injuries are being reported at this time.  The van was a total loss as flames quickly spread throughout the vehicle. 

 

With an aging vehicle fleet, the State of Texas continues to prolong the replacement of equipment and facilities, even though its more costly to maintain in the long run.  State budget writers mostly plan for two year budgets where the least amount of money is spent, even though replacement of aging vehicles would be more cost efficient for taxpayers in the long run. 

 

Currently the Texas Department of Criminal Justice vehicle fleet consist of approximately 2,200 vehicles.  The vehicle replacement budget requested for the 2016-2017 fiscal year was reduced to $6,906,785 from $11,040,894 in 2014.  (See Legislative Appropriation Request LAR 2016-2017)

The agency's conservative replacement criteria for vehicles include:

 

-Diesel truck tractors 10 yr / 500,000 miles

-Diesel buses 10 yr / 300,000 miles

-Passenger vans/vehicles 5 yr / 100,000 miles

This replacement criteria is hardly ever used and state employees are subjected to driving dangerous vehicles that have hundreds of thousands of miles on them. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Texas Parole Commissioner Indicted for Falsifying Records

by Terri Langford, The Texas Tribune
October 3, 2014

A Texas parole commissioner has been indicted for tampering with a government record after at least five inmates were denied release from prison because she wrote in their files they had refused to be interviewed.

 

Pamela D. Freeman, one of 14 Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles commissioners who interview inmates being considered for release, was indicted on the single count in Huntsville on Wednesday. If convicted, she could face up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

 

"Based on the investigation and the subsequent indictment, Ms. Freeman will not be allowed to return to work at this time," Raymond Estrada, spokesman for the board said in a statement. "Her continued employment will be determined in accordance with established policies, procedures and/or the resulting disposition of the charge."

 

The case began last June when San Antonio lawyer Kevin Stouwie complained to state Sen. John Whitmire, chair of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, and Texas Department of Criminal Justice Inspector General Bruce Toney.

 

"It always concerns you that you have people entrusted with such huge responsibilities allegedly violating the trust and responsibilites to do the right thing," Whitmire said. "We have zero tolerance if we know about it."

 

A copy of Stouwie's complaint, obtained by The Texas Tribune, stated that on April 30, at least five inmates on the Wynne Unit in Huntsville were called into an area to be interviewed by Freeman.

The inmates and other prison workers saw Freeman at the prison that day, but said she did not interview any of the five. The men's files included Freeman's remarks that they had refused to be interviewed by her. All five were denied parole.

 

Contacted late Friday, Stouwie said he found out about the incident from the inmates' attorneys and is considering representing them in a civil action against the parole board.

 

"It's not clear to me whether they are going to reconsider those cases," said Kevin Stouwie. "They may and if they do, that could have a bearing of what happens."

Pardons and Parole Board Chair Rissie Owens said in a statement that the incident does not reflect the actions of the rest of the board's employees.

 

"While this incident is unfortunate and certainly impermissible if true, it is by no means representative of our agency, which is comprised of dedicated, honorable and hard-working staff who take pride in the work they do to represent the board,” Owens said.

 

This investigation is not the first time attorneys have complained about Freeman's actions, according to Bill Habern, a lawyer in Huntsville who handles parole cases and who filed a grievance against her with the board a year ago.  

 

"She's had a long and troubled history with lawyers who do parole work," he said. "Most board members I deal with, including those on the current board, seem to be sincere, dedicated people who try to do the right thing."

 

Freeman was charged with interviewing inmates who who had served at least 20 years of their sentences and had never been interviewed by a parole commissioner. She was one of two commissioners based in Huntsville and has been in that post since 2004. 

 

A call to her home for comment on the indictment was not immediately returned.
 

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at http://www.texastribune.org/2014/10/03/parole-commissioner-indicted-falsifying-inmate-rec/.

New National Study Shows Texas Correctional Officers are behind on Training

Austin -  A new national study on correctional officer training released by AFSCME Texas Correctional Employees during testimony before the Texas Legislature and Governor's Budget Board Tuesday revealing Texas is behind the national curve when it comes to training their correctional officers. 

 

During testimony in Austin, Lance Lowry, President of the Huntsville Local testified the national average for correctional officer pre-service training is 273 hour, while Texas Department of Criminal Justice pre-service training is only 200 hours. 

 

The correctional employees union recommended the state increase pay compensation that would allow the agency to reduce officer turnover rates and focus training needs on producing quality correctional officers that exemplify training levels nationally, instead of quantity. 

 

See State by State data

Copy of Testimony by AFSCME Texas Correctional Employees