NOVEMBER 3

Another batch of escapes occurred in the past two days; 5 men in one instance, and two in another. That brings the total to 20 escapes around Arkansas in the past 30 days, and it indicates that the ADC is not the only crew beleaguered with incompetence of its staff. Six of the 20 are still at large. Larry Norris, ADC Director, pointed out that "people are the most critical component of any security system." I wonder how that speaks to the reason for the 20 escapes? Nope, I think that in the ADC his appeal that "people are the most critical component" translates to officials' hopes that very few prisoners have rabbit blood in their genes as the operative principle for ADC security.

NOVEMBER 4

The ADC has initiated its own official employee newsletter called the Advocate. In an article titled "What is being done to reduce turnover among Correctional Officers?" written by Kevin Murphy, the DOC's Human Resource Administrator, it is pointed out that the ADC had an employee turnover of 38.4X in 1998, while the national average was 157. As part of the effort to recruit and retain competent correctional officers the ADC plans to administer a "written exam" and a physical agility test to prospective employees. It also wants to add "a recruitment and employment department that is preparing to launch a new recruitment poster campaign featuring children in ADC uniform," the article states.

I guess that the new exams will in fact reduce turnover in a back door approach, simply because well over half of the people the ADC hires now couldn't pass a written exam - of any kind - and if agility requires more than transporting a spoon from plate to mouth, that will eliminate many more. If they are never hired they can never quit, so the employee turnover rate should in fact decrease. Also, I thought that the ADC had all along been taking pictures of kids wearing ADC uniforms; i.e. for guards' I.D. cards. Then again, I am beginning to think that George Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair) was actually writing prophetically about the ADC when he published the books Animal Farm, and 1984. A majority of the current guards fall into two basic species - pigs and party animals - and putting kids into ADC uniforms sure smacks of Big Brother and the Hitler Juden, doesn’t it? What a great career to wish upon one's children. In fact, that's a big part of what's wrong with this place as it is now; the kids of those who were born and raised here themselves coming to work here. From this, I conclude that the ADC doesn't need better employee recruitment; it needs a better breeding policy.

NOVEMBER 6

Arkansas has achieved yet another badge of distinction. U.S. truckers voted Arkansas roads, particularly Interstate 30 (north/south) and Interstate 40 (east/west), the worst in the entire nation. Making the sign of the cross from head to heart and from left to right is apparently what all travelers had better do before slipping onto those Interstates. On October 5 Arkansas had already ranked last in "transportation planning." The major complaints about Arkansas roadways are traffic congestion, potholes, cracks, washboard roadbeds, poor pavement markings, constant construction, lack of rest areas, dangerous on and off ramps, local drivers and narrow lanes. On the plus side, there is a hidden benefit to Arkansas' economy from dilapidated roadways, though. As long as the roads stay bad for tourists, income from minor auto repairs, flat tires, wheel alignments and fender-benders is probably highest in the nation as well.

The Arkansas State Police has determined that escaped murderer Kenneth Williams "probably" had help from a trustee tractor driver who "most assuredly knew" that he was transporting something besides kitchen scraps. They said that the day after Williams escaped he told them that he had climbed over the fence, but they felt that he was lying so as to be able to escape by the slop wagon again later. Ex-guards questioned these conclusions saying that the South perimeter tower should have observed Williams getting into the slop wagon, but Dina Tyler said that the tower guard would have needed to be a contortionist to have seen it. No other inmates may have been involved, although "several" had told police that they had seen Williams milling about by the slop wagon.

The police also stated that it appeared that Williams had surprised Cecil Boren in his home at about 10:00 a.m. and then shot him several times as he tried to flee his attacker. They refuse to say how many times Mr. Boren was shot.

This self-serving propaganda is interesting in several respects. First, although the police state that Williams was "probably" assisted by a trustee, they then affirmatively conclude that the trustee most certainly knew Williams was on board. If they are not positive about the first premise, how can they be positive about the second? Dina Tyler's statement that the South Tower guard would not likely have observed the slop wagon is true - but that is not because it could not see the wagon. The reality is that that tower must oversee a 18O degree area with several buildings and inmate activities much closer to the fence than the slop wagon area. No guard would pay much attention to the constant traffic of inmates in the area of the slop wagon, and rightly so. Hundreds of prisoners pass immediately into that area constantly. It is about 150 yards distant from the tower and there are much more immediate and critical areas to keep a watch over - like the rear of 19 Barracks, vinyl bindery, the Garment Factory and other work sites, as well as the inmates in the recreation yard.

However, I find it curious that no one has mentioned the 360 degree view camera that is less than 50 feet from the slop wagon, which supposedly RECORDS images in 24-hour segments. Even if by some fluke the camera could not capture Williams getting into the wagon per se because the wall of the Boiler Room partially obstructing the view, it most assuredly, would have captured Williams milling around. He could not have accessed the slop wagon area without being visible to that camera unless he was invisible. Also, although no official retraction by the ADC has come, the police affirm that Williams could not possibly have been seen still on the unit at 10:20 a.m., as Dina Tyler had so insistently avowed all along. He was already at the Boren residence at 10:00 a.m.

I also find it most curious that such obvious care is being shown to constantly call the contents of the slop wagon "kitchen scraps", instead of SLOP. There is no way, in my opinion, that so many different people would all use the exact same term - kitchen scraps - when this is farming country and people know what slop is. Believe me, there is a marked difference between the image conveyed by "kitchen scraps" and the SLOP that goes into that wagon. I think this coordinated sensitivity is due to the fact that the Boren family stated that Williams' clothing neither looked nor smelled like it had been in slop - and this threatens to expose the b.s. cover story that was agreed upon. Dina Tyler explained away the Borens' observation as being due to the fact that the wagon contained nothing but vegetables and a little water; kitchen scraps. This is such an outright falsehood that it remains one of the most implicating factors of all.

I believe that Williams told the truth when he said he climbed over the fence - only he was not talking about the perimeter fence. He was talking about the Chapel decorator fence - which separates the Chapel area from access to the front main gate.

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE

State Representative Nick Wilson and one of his many cronies, Murrey Grider, were convicted in federal court of two counts of income tax evasion, and one count of conspiracy to that same end. Wilson now faces 133 addition accounts in a trial to begin in February. His former good ol' boy buddies in the General Assembly are now barking loudly trying to get the heat off. They asked him to resign his seat, and he refused.

By the way, not another word has been said about the U.S. Treasury check counterfeiting and forgery ring discovered at Cummins Unit in early August. I suppose that maybe the Secret Service is s-t-i-l-l investigating and that there are still no arrests? Another good ol’ boy crime sucked into the media void. How convenient.

NOVEMBER 7

The Pine Bluff Commercial announced in an Associate Press article that the Varner Unit, about a mile away, is being investigated for inmates' beatings from staff, including a high-ranking guard. The investigation began after the complaints from Gwenda Brassfield indicated that her 18-year-old son, Preston, along with six others, had been beaten the night before for allegedly throwing toilet paper at a guard. The youths were given a choice of getting doses of pepper spray, or a beating with a heavy-duty belt. Clementine Tyson, the mother of 16-year-old McKinley Benton. said that her son also had been beaten by a black guard in September because he associated too much with white prisoners. All the inmates were threatened by several guards to say that their injuries came from horseplay and not to make complaints against any guards.

The ADC's version of the first incident is that the seven prisoners were called out of the barracks after ignoring orders to stop playing around near lights out. They were taken out into the hallway and into the captain's office "to be counseled," which, Spokeswoman Dina Tyler said "can include receiving an oral warning, being written up or disciplined.” Several of the prisoners bore red marks and bruises, "but those could have come from horseplaying," others said.

NOVEMBER 9

Two inmates at the East Arkansas Unit at Brickeys were seriously burned yesterday. Russel Sanders sustained first and second-degree burns to his face, neck, chest, arms, and hands. Daniel Conaway suffered burns only to his hands. Prison Spokeswoman, Dina Tyler said only that, "we don't know what went wrong." Both men are now in the Diagnostic Unit Infirmary, which doesn't have any meaningful burn trauma capabilities nor competent or even compassionate medical staff.

NOVEMBER 10

Two more prisoners escaped today, bringing the number to 22 since October 1. Do the communities outside think they are safe in entrusting their lives and property to the administrators and staff of the ADC? If so, they need to re-think their sense of security.

NOVEMBER 16

They did it yet again! Arkansas ranks 49th in the nation in the general health of their citizens, and by implication in the healthcare provided to its citizens.
(See the articles regarding the Arkansas State Medical Board

Last year Arkansas ranked 50th,so it seems that there was a slight improvement. Not so. Only three states in the nation actually FURTHER declined in overall health against last years findings; Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

NOVEMBER 17

Senator Nick Wilson has decided not to force his fellow lawmakers to initiate impeachment proceedings because of his refusal to resign after recent felony convictions, while he still faces 133 additional counts in February. However, although his fellow legislators publically spouted “righteous indignation” over Wilson’s criminality, they also decided not to introduce the bill to eliminate pensions for lawmakers who are convicted of crimes while in office, so that Wilson could still receive a nice retirement check from the Arkansas tax payers. Well, they have to watch out for their OWN pensions should they ever be caught in the same predicament, don’t they? After all, who knows when their own chickens might come home to roost. Who says crime doesn’t pay? For Arkansas Good ol’ Boys it generally proves quite lucrative. One even managed to become President of the United States. Go figure. THIS kind of crap keeps the Good ol’ Boy system in fluid motion.

The Arkansas Democrat Gazette announced today that MCI WorldCom had been improperly billing prisoners' out-of-state phone calls, apparently since 1996, and that a settlement had been attained whereby MCI would reimburse 24 states some $55,000 each. When consumers inquired about the extra tax, MCI informed them that it was a charge required by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), but that turned out to be a deliberate false misrepresentation. The FCC denied requiring any such tax. As an additional part of the settlement, MCI has promised not to be a "bad boy" like that again.

It amazes me that the public continues to allow this kind of corruption to take place and, even when bullies like MCI get caught with a hand in the cookie jar, the states themselves let them off the hook. For a slice of the pie, of course. Why is MCI paying the several STATES involved $55,000, instead of the consumers that were illegally billed?DDeliberate misrepresentations like this are typically called fraud, and there is no question that MCI committed felony fraud in this case. More, the total sum paid to the states was only $1,320,000. Why will no one file suit and allow a jury to impose some punitive damages against these crooks?

NOVEMBER 19

Governor Mike Huckabee expressed some anger over the fact that recently-convicted state Senator Nick Wilson is delaying his resignation until late December. The Governor believes that it is being delayed so that the crook can take advantage of pension increases to become effective by then. It was noted that several Arkansas politicians who were convicted of crimes in the past few years all collect hefty pensions, including Steve Clark, ex-AG; Jim Guy Tucker, ex-Governor; and Bill McCuen, ex-Secretary of State. They apparently get paid for having done such a fine job of defrauding the taxpayers for however long they had gotten away with it.

NOVEMBER 20

It's been a satisfying day, in part because it held the first evidence of a long-overdue change brought about as a result of our effort on the internet. The crack has finally appeared in the ADC armor after several months of hard work for Linda, and for all of you who have given your support and encouragement to the effort. The boulder is finally rolling, and now that it is in motion it will tend to stay in motion, and perhaps it will gain momentum and accomplish all else that is hoped. Warden Marshall Dale Reed issued a directive that the laundry cart, a/k/a The Undertaker, will no longer be used to transport laundry into and out of the building. As detailed in a separate article on this hundreds of the prisoners of the Cummins Unit have been injured across the past two decades because of the laundry cart, some fatally. It is over, at least in terms of the Undertaker..
READ MORE ABOUT THE UNDERTAKER

NOVEMBER 29

There was another escape attempt early this morning, and one that emphasizes why, despite the unfathomable incompetence of ADC staff, the public must be endlessly thankful for the widespread ignorance and natures of many ADC inmates. If this were a real prison or a prison that housed the kind of prisoner typical to other prison systems, local citizens would have some very bad days.

For the past two days, various crews have been working all over the compound making last-minute renovations for the major inspection to take place soon. The Cummins Unit is hoping to be officially accredited early next month.

One of the supervisors in charge of a crew that was working on the inside fences yesterday left his tool box unlocked - with the lock hanging in the hasp on the box - and then walked off. Inmates who had noted this carelessness eased over to the toolbox and removed a pair of heavv duty channel-lock pliers, then slipped the open lock back into the hasp. When the supervisor returned and noted that he left the box unlocked, he just snapped the lock shut without inspecting the contents and then eventually stored it at the close of the work day.

At breakfast this morning - which begins while it is still dark outside - Inmates Oliver Flowers and Paul Moss decided to be home for Christmas. Instead of proceeding to chow, they began cutting their way through several cyclone fences leading into the west part of the compound - to the yard, then to school, then to between the gym and school. During that period, they were in sight of at least three remote cameras, and visible to scores of prisoners who were traveling between the Laundry and 19 Barracks, and the main building.

After they had cut through four main fences, they then decided to attempt to cut through the two perimeter fences directly beneath the West Tower. An alert officer, Lorraine Moten, saw Moss milling about where he should not be and eventually held them at bay at gunpoint until Security arrived.

To amplify why the public should be thankful about the general breed of prisoners here, Inmate Moss was actually a 1-B trustee who could have waited until daylight to be allowed outside the compound with permission - from whence he could simply have walked away without the need to cut any fences. Also, the duo could have chosen to go either to go either to the south, east, or north fences - to which they also had ready access- and they would have had from three to four fences LESS to cut through than on the route they took! And, of course, with much more distance between themselves and any watchful tower guard, and much more time to cut only two fences (north, or east), or three fences (south) - COUNTING THE MAIN PERIMETER FENCES!

The public indeed has a guardian angel. Of course, there was not a word about the close call on the local news. The officer involved is on administrative leave, while Ms. Moten is being commended for her watchful eye and quick response.

ARKANSAS JOURNAL DECEMBER 1999