Two deaths! Many questions!

 "Every death in prison is a story left untold, a life unfulfilled." Angela Davis 

I was conversing with Heidi Washington, newly appointed Director of the Michigan Department of Corrections. After words of congratulations, I expressed my concern about the way our state treats incarcerated women. She agreed and assured me that there would be improvement. 

That was ten years ago. I still haven’t seen it. 

There’s only one prison for women. Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility is located in Ypsilanti.

My opinion on the way women are treated there was NOT based on hearsay. 

1.  I had published an expose by a former MDOC plumber who said he quit because he saw, first hand, how the state treated these women and he couldn’t take it any longer!

2.- I had shared a group of messages scribbled to us by WHV whistleblowers on napkins and little scraps of paper with the ACLU. That led to an in-prison investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice!

3.  One WHV warden, upset with my involvement in these matters actually refused to allow me on the campus anymore!

The population of women residing in Michigan prisons is only 6%. Yet, these 2,000 ladies have had a special part in my heart, and in the heart of HUMANITY FOR PRISONERS, dating back to our formation 25 years ago!.

I bring up these memories today because of two recent deaths. It’s so difficult to get facts. Statements from the MDOC and accusations from residents behind bars are far apart! Even if there’s a middle ground, it’s just not acceptable. 

MAY 13: Khaira Howard, 28, was just days away from being paroled when she died. The MDOC: “Life saving measures were initiated by onsite staff.” An HFP whistle-blower: “The nurse took over 4 minutes to get to her cell after the POA reported her unconscious. She took an additional 5 minutes to bring the defib. NOBODY did chest compressions!” 

MAY 17: Rebecca Fackler, 57, an HFP client, died. According to our records she had documented physical and cognitive challenges. Her friends behind bars say she was a “love.” No cause of death has been given by the department. Her friends are in mourning. 

We are pleased to report that State Rep. Laurie Pohutsky is demanding answers! She’s a member of the House Oversight Committee which has been investigating conditions at the women's prison. Quoting Paul Egan, from the Detroit Free Press: “Pohutsky said...it is time for MDOC Director Heidi Washington, who has headed the department since 2015, to go. She also said she'd like to see a broader investigation of conditions at the women's prison and recent deaths, possibly conducted by the Attorney General's Office, with ‘an appropriate level of skepticism’ given to MDOC claims that there are no major issues.” 

Reaction from a woman who had served time in WHV: “I know so many of us are hurting. Angry. Numb. Triggered. Heartbroken. Exhausted from watching women continue to die inside those walls.” 

“We must ask ourselves: how many more lives will be lost before change occurs?” Barack Obama