Inmates at a maximum security prison in Wisconsin claim they have been in a ‘nightmare’ confinement in feces and blood-spattered cells for more than four months.
The Waupun Correctional Institution (WCP) — the state’s oldest prison — has been accused of inhumane treatment of its inmates as it struggles to fill nearly 300 vacancies — more than half of the prison’s staff positions.
Inmates have been unable to go to the law library, receive visitors, or obtain basic necessities such as toilet paper since prison guards released in March, according to an investigation by The New York Times and Wisconsin Watch.
During the lockdown, prisoners have been forced to eat their meals in their squalid cells, where birds have apparently moved in.
More than 20 inmates at the prison told The New York Times that their food is often filled with bird droppings, as are the ice packs given out to keep them cool.
The Waupun Correctional Institution (WCP) – the state’s oldest prison – has been accused of inhumane treatment of its inmates as it struggles to fill nearly 300 vacancies
Since prison guards began the lockdown in March, inmates have been unable to enter the law library, receive visitors, or meet basic needs such as toilet paper.
They say they missed court deadlines and their appeals have been jeopardized because they cannot access the law library. In addition, inmate jobs and in-person college classes have been suspended.
The policy requiring inmates to shower twice a week and four hours of outdoor recreation has been suspended during the lockdown.
While the prison is designed to house 882 inmates, that number has grown to 999, according to the Department of Correction’s August report.
Prisoners have claimed that some cut or threaten to self-harm just to get medical attention, which has been delayed during the lockdown. Even then, help came too late or not at all.
“People threaten suicide every day, and there is no treatment here,” inmate Jayvon Flemming told the NYT.
“You have to hurt yourself or threaten suicide to get the attention of the staff. I’m in a nightmare.’
The investigation found that prisoners did not receive optical and psychological treatment during the lockdown.
Flemming and other inmates have filed a civil lawsuit against the state, claiming their human rights are being violated at the facility, where poisoners are convicted of crimes ranging from drug possession to murder.
Kevin Hoffman, deputy director of communications for the Department of Corrections, told Wisconsin Watch the closure was due to security concerns following “multiple threats of disruption and offensive behavior toward personnel or other individuals.”
“People threaten suicide every day, and there is no treatment here,” said inmate Jayvon Flemming
However, Hoffman added that “there wasn’t one specific incident that prompted the facility to go into modified motion.”
When asked about the self-harm cases, he said, “We have not received any indication that this is the case.”
But others point to severe staff shortages and overcrowding as reasons behind the brutal lockdown.
The research shows that overcrowding is a problem in US prisons; two of Wisconsin’s four maximum security prisons are currently over capacity.
Green Bay, a maximum security prison 80 miles northeast of WCP, has been incarcerated since June. The prison has a staff vacancy rate of 40 percent.
WSP’s 53 percent vacancy rate makes it the most short-staffed facility in the nation’s prison system.
In addition, all nine medium-sized security institutions in the state are overcrowded.
Former wardens, correctional officers and members of the Waupun Prison community board said NYT’s staff shortage has compromised the prison’s security protocols.
“If I were the warden right now, I’d lock down that facility too,” says Mike Thurmer, who used to run the prison and now serves on the community relations council.
“You can’t have 40 or 50 percent vacancy and not at least a custom lockdown.”
There are several reasons why the vacancies are difficult to fill, including low wages and safety concerns.
There have been 440 attacks on staff at the prison since 2012; at least 95 of those took place this year.
Former prison staff cited dangerous conditions, forced overtime and lack of time off as reasons for the shortages.
Mike Thomas, who worked at WSP for seven years, said he once worked 75 days straight, many of them working double shifts.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Wisconsin Watch and the Department of Corrections for comment on this story.