L.A. County Jail Still Plagued by Deputies Who Abuse and Retaliate Against Inmates

Amplify’d from www.aclu.org

The ACLU of Southern California and the ACLU National Prison Project today released a disturbing new report on the Los Angeles County Jail that documents numerous, serious allegations of physical abuse and retaliation at the hands of sheriff’s deputies. As part of its official, court-appointed monitoring role in the jails, the ACLU has received more than 70 complaints over a five-month period in 2010 from prisoners who describe a climate of fear and brutality.

One prisoner reported being attacked by a group of about 10 deputies, unprovoked, on the way back to his cell from church. The deputies punched and kicked him so hard he sustained several broken ribs, a swollen artery in the brain, and a fractured nose. Another prisoner reported being severely beaten up by a group of deputies for having his shirt untucked and asking for a new pair of shoes. Yet another prisoner, a disabled man suffering from a torn ligament in his knee, reported being attacked by three deputies after he had asking to be assigned to a bottom bunk, at his doctor's recommendation.

The report also documents repeated instances in which deputies retaliated against inmates merely for speaking to the ACLU. The retaliation included threats and intimidation, denying detainees access to phones, showers or television, repeated cell searches in which they destroyed personal photos and property, as well as physical abuse. These acts of overt retaliation intimidate prisoners from speaking openly and honestly with ACLU jail monitors and create a significant obstacle to the organization’s carrying out its court-appointed role as monitor of the jail.

Did these prisoners do anything to provoke the beatings? Are the accusations unsubstantiated, intended to mar the reputation of the sheriff’s deputies? Undoubtedly, prisoners sometimes contribute to deputies’ use of force by becoming physically combative or by verbally threatening jail staff. But what is striking about the ACLU report is the similarity among the reports of abuse — prisoners telling the same story of abuse, with only variations of time and location. This cannot be ascribed to mere coincidence, but instead points to a disturbing pattern of abuse. Moreover, many of the statements by prisoners who report being beaten by deputies are corroborated by statements by one or more witnesses. Read more at www.aclu.org

 

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