Texas Death Row Inmate Begins Early Hunger Strike

As I sit here working on an article called "They'll never change," 6:30 AM, my toilet began to fill with water. The inmate directly over me in cage #66, his toilet is stopped up. When he tried to flush his toilet, it flooded out mine, and both cages above me have the same effect.

I informed officer Anderson of the problem, and called him over to where he was able to see it, and advise him that if anyone in the cages above me were to flush their toilet, my cage will be filled with toilet water. Anderson said he would call someone down to fix the problem.

The inmate above me in cage #66 suffers from a mental disorder and began to argue with his neighbor in cage #65, stating how he will flood out all the cages on one row. Another office Masp went upstairs to investigate this problem, and while he is upstairs, a toilet is flushed, and my cage is now flooded out. Masp returned to see the filthy contaminated water filling my cage as well as coming out the pipes on the run.

This filthy contaminated water smelled so bad I could hardly breath. There was a black substance, that had a stench and flowed through all the flooded water, covering my cage floor. Officer Masp observed fro a minuet and said he would get someone down to fix this problem as he walked away. Between 30 minuet to an hour have passed and no-one has brought me anything to clean the mess up. I banged on my cage door to get the guards attention for help. Sgt. Toll then came over the intercom and asked me what I wanted, as though this was the first he knew of the flooding.

Twenty minuets later Sgt. Toll, Anderson and Masp enter the section, but would not come close to my cage because of the foul odor. Toll wasn't concerned with what I had to say, even though I repeatedly called him. Toll was more concerned with speaking with prisoners who cell was not flooded out. All I wanted was a towel to wipe up the mess from my cage floor. I again explained how both #65 and #66 cages caused my toilet to flush over. No-one would come near my cage because of the smell. The toilets upstairs are continuing to flush and more water is flooding into my cage and the next cage over. As I tried to push the water out, the officers did nothing and seemed amused by this.

Approximately 40 minuets later an inmate came with a mop and bucket and began to clean up the mess. Insulting words were then exchanged between myself and Sgt. Toll after he and other officers refused to assist me with this flooding problem. Their job is to provide inmates with what is necessary.

Days prior to this incident Officer Masp had denied me a shower, and the very next day I refused to come out of the dayroom until the ranks addressed the situation with my being denied a shower. Sgt. Toll was the officer addressing the situation, and to correct the misunderstanding I was given an extra tray when we were fed. Yet it was clear that this exchange was a personal thing and animosity is being exercised to seek their revenge.

I along with several other inmates were placed into the shower to clean ourselves off. Our cages where then cleaned while we were in the shower, yet out of five inmates placed in the shower, my cage was the only one searched, and a few things of unimportance were removed. Simply taken to escalate the former problem. So when I came out of the shower I sat on the run in protest and told them they would have to carry me.

Sgt. Toll suited up a team of officers and lied to the lt. stating that he saw me flooding my cage. My property was now removed from my cage, and I was to be on 24 hour property restriction. As of right now, I don't have anything of mine.

My hunger strike has begun now instead of the first of January. I Daryl Wheatfall will not eat nor give these unprofessional guards my full cooperation. I have no doubt I will suffer, yet it's time that I make a stand.