HIV-Positive Gay Man Living Proof of Prison Abuse in Texas
One Man's Plea for Help from His Abusers
The man, Erick Clewis, is a gay man sick with HIV, and has had the disease for 10 years. After a sexual attack by a prison gang, he was placed in protective custody in California. Upon his arrival and transfer to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, he was red-tagged and placed in safe keep for his own safety at the Hughes Unit.
The inmate alleges that on May 5 he was assaulted by officers for verbally cussing at staff. After being handcuffed by officers he was told to face the wall, was spat on by an officer and called a "f------ faggot". He was then struck by an officer and sergeant and knocked out cold. When he awoke he was in another block in lock up.Swollen by being beat, his top right wisdom tooth was chipped. The tooth is not consistent to how the officers wrote up what happened. When asked for medical he was denied and told to remove all his clothes. He was locked in a cell until the swelling went down, and was then sent to the dentist to x-ray his tooth. This was case #20070245158.
He alleges that he was told that the nurse in the medical unit said in her report that he denied that anything was wrong with him. She also noted that he had no injuries, which was a lie. He was then knocked out, beaten and dragged to ii building which is lock up. His only proof is a use of force video which is being denied him for case #20070245158, which will show he was never taken to medical.
He then wrote to his mother who "got on things for me" resulting in further retaliation and cover ups. His HIV meds went from slow to none, and his property was trashed, along with all his photos.Without his medicine for his HIV he is getting sicker. He was then transferred to The Estelle Unit in Texas, which is a high security unit. He thought he would be transferred to the Stiles Unit which is a unit for HIV inmates, but wasn't.
He claims he was no longer in safe keep, but among the hardest gang members and sexual predators. His medicine either don't come, or pills are missing he has open wounds. He asked to see a doctor, and was given a sick call list to fill out, but was never taken to see a doctor. He got so depressed he unsuccessfully tried to hang himself. He is not receiving proper medical attention or diet, and needs to be placed in safe keep. "I fear I may not make it out. I'm asking for someone to please help me. I think the officers want the inmates to hurt me, or that I die from AIDS for getting the officers in hot water. Since I'm not from Texas my treatment by TDCJ has been unjust, and I know my rights are being violated. Please help me before it's too late."
This letter is posted here:
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=174851183&blogID=288222799
Clewis is prisoner #137710 at the Estelle High Security Unit, 624 FM 3478, Huntsville, TX 77320
Update: In another letter dated July 8 sent out on July 13 and received on July 16, the same inmate wrote that since his last letter asking for help, he has been assaulted five times in the presence of guards, and stabbed a single wound. He has lost about 80% sight in his right eye.
His heart has gone bad and he is being treated with nitroglycerin. To cover up what has been done to him, "they're trying to charge me in a conspiracy to kill a guard." He found a note in his cell when he returned from a shower which said "it was how he could continue to live," and no inmate had access to the cell.
He closes with saying "I won't be writing to you again, "I doubt I'll live to see the end of the year because even in transit they've allowed me to be assaulted in cuffs. I have some neurological damage because I jerk now and can't control it. The Government instills more fear in mankind than does Almighty God himself."
Published by Dee
I am a prison activist/advocate writing about prison issues, hoping to make awareness, and bring reform. One out of every thirty-two people in the USA are currently on parole, probation or in prison. I am ow... View profile
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18 Comments
Post a Commenti assume nothing has changed in the texas penal system! the guards are or {the corrections officers} are still abusing the prisoners and the y get away with it. time after time day after day month after month year after year. Then they have the gaul to wonder why they are attacked .!!!
poor poor you! you are a idiot if you think the inmates area fraid of you,not one bit are they. you are no longer a guard{co} because you did not back up your fellow guards in helping to beat a inmate so you are out i mean way way out you will never have that job anywhere in any prison system. TELL THE TRUTH ! IT WILL SET YOU FREE
my brother your brother your sister the future new days your dna your brother your sister will sin ? life must end but a new life with a messiah??? soon not now live good live fruitfull soon not now good warrior ???
Guards are people too and they deserved to be punished for wrong doings just as much as anyone else. No life, person or animal, deserves to be treated like this. It sounds as if these guards are bigots who feel they need to attack a defenseless person in order to feel powerful. WHEN WE SHOW COMPASSION AND KINDNESS TO ALL LIFE HERE ON THIS EARTH, WE ARE SHOWING COMPASSION AND KINDNESS TO GOD.
YEA WELL A CERTAIN GUARD NAMED HIGHTOWER AND HIS EXTRACTION TEAM ALMOST KILLED A INMATE ABOUT 15 YEARS AGO, MY SON WHO IS SERVING LIFE SAID HE SAW _TEX ABOUT 10 YEARS LATER AFTER HIS BEATING AND HE WAS BRAIN DAMAGED AND SIMPLE AND WAS JUST A WALKING RETARDED INMATE WONT TO FIND OUT WHO IT WAS- CHECK OUT THE WRITINGS OF WILLIAM STEED KELLEY ON THE WEB AND YOU WILL FIND OUT WHO IT WAS AND THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THIS INFOR- ALSO LOOK UP BY WILLIAM S. KELLEY -THE SEEDS OF JASPER HATE!!! IT WILL TELL YOU IN DETAIL WHAT HE SAW AND WHAT THE GUARDS DID TO THIS MAN.
YEA WELL MOST OF YOU MAGGOTS ARE ABUSIVE TO THE PRISONERS THAT ARENT AFRAID OF YOU.I KNOW FIRST HAND HOW THE TEXAS GUARD GESTAPO TREAT THERE INMATES AS I HAVE A SON THERE THAT WILL KILL THE FIRST ONE HE CAN GET HIS HANDS ON.THE TEXAS GUARDS ARE TOLD BY HIGHER UPS TO INFLICT PUNISHMENT TO THE INMATES THAT ARE UNRULLY ANDVERBAL TOWARDS THEM. I CAN SAY THAT THE TEXAS PRISON SYSTEM IS THE MOST ABUSIVE IN THE COUNTRY , THE WARDENS REALLY HAVE NO IDEA WHATS GOING ON IN THERE PRISONS AS THE MAJORS AND LIEUTENANTS ECT RUN THE PRISON,ITS TO BAD THAT THE FBI HAS NO GUTS OR BACKBONE TO INVESTGATE AND REPORT THE TRUTH THE REAL TRUTH, AS TD C IS HELL ON EARTH.I WILL REMAIN CONVICED THAT IT WILL NEVER STOP -- AND YOU KNOW WHY??? BECAUSE THERE ARE NOT REALLY ANY ACCOUNTABLITY TO THE GESTAPO GUARDS IN THE TDC.
Mr.Austin Cooper, it really bothers me to hear you refer to all Texas prison guards in this fashion. It is just like any other group of people. There will always be portions of that group who have a negative impact and affect the overall image. I never treated inmates with anything but respect unless they forced me to do otherwise. Most of us risked out lives every day to protect the public and the rest of the unknowing citizens from people who would cause harm and agony on innocent people for no other purpose than to have some sort of gain wheter financially or just for the fun they experience in hurting others. Believe me Mr.Austin if some of these people were not supervised and kept from walking the streets some of them would have no problem hurting you or your family.
As a prison guard I have been spit on, punched,kicked, nearly stabbed, and just about anything else you can imagine. I have witnessed the after affects of inmate on inmate violence such as rape and murder. There are people who do not believe prisons should even exist, or if they should exist that they should not allow solitary confinement. I say to these people that they need to put on a uniform and see the dangers for themselves. There are inmates who would have no problem raping and killing someones daughter. Someone like this, the more Liberal thinking people believe should be rehabilitated. They should be the ones with their children living next door to them.
I am a former prison guard in texas and I know there are situations were there are bad things happening from the guards. I also know that there are many times when the media portrays these inmates as abused when in reality they dont show you the whole story where the inmate was acting like an animal. They are looking for a story and will leave the truth out of it if necessary to make a good story.
Every one has right to be treated humanely. Please people love each other