STOP THE MISTREATMENT OF FEDERAL INMATES AT BECKLEY FCI
I'm hoping this petition will not only shed light on the federal prison system, and the mistreatment of human life at the federal Correction institute of West Virginia, known as Beckley FCI, but it will awaken change and bring justice for our families, loved ones, and children. This petition is to address the oversight at FCI Beckley, also to bring awareness to the endless number of violations that are currently taking place at this facility daily. When placed in a system that is rampant with violence and abuse, inmates are paying far more than what they’ve been found guilty of, this repayment goes far beyond there sentencing and even their crimes. The Eighth Amendment protects Americans from enduring cruel and unusual punishment, not at Beckley it does not. In the last year the Eighth Amendment violations have been endless: physical abuse, verbal abuse, lack of access to medical treatment and care, food deprivation, solitary confinement, unsanitary conditions, religious rights violation, mail tampering, shower deprivation, zero access to law library and the list goes on. Tampering with mail is a federal offense and is punishable by law. Why are the correctional officers at this prison allowed to be employed, why is BOP not investigating? The Equal Protection clause protects prisoners from any form of discrimination, such as race, sex, or religion — unless doing so would clearly violate their safety. The 14th Amendment reiterates that this applies to all people born or naturalized in the U.S. and states that no one will be denied equal protection under the law. But not at FCI Beckley, these rights do not apply. From the fear of further abuse and confinement to loss of privileges, many abused inmates have felt justice is unattainable and speaking out is a risk they’re unwilling to take. But for all those silenced, the near-constant stream of lawsuits and exposés show America’s prison system has been broken for years. Employee misconduct is at the top of the list. When violent correctional officers are not held accountable, a dangerous culture of impunity flourishes Being demeaned, insulted, and threatened with violence, loss of privileges and solitary confinement takes a significant toll on inmates’ mental health. To then treat them inadequately for their illnesses creates more problems. The everyday violence, food and medical deprivation, demeaning treatment, and excessive solitary confinement have exposed many civil rights violations. Where is the accountability for employee misconduct, and the disciplinary action taken? Why are these employees not criminally prosecuted, why are these employees still employees, and why are we paying them with our federal dollars? Criminal activity should be held to the same standard as it does in or outside of that prison regardless of title. Under federal law, people in prison who accuse guards of mistreatment must go through an internal grievance process before they can sue. Even if someone was able to submit a grievance, a recent federal audit found the Bureau of Prisons is too understaffed to adequately investigate. So how are these grievances being handled? What is being done to protect our men? What action is being taken was a complaint is filed? If the prison is so understaffed why on 07/24/24 are the prisoners on lockdown for "staff appreciation day" I was told the prison has been short staffed hence the tremendous number of lockdowns. Why are these correctional officers on the clock being paid to eat and drink while our men are locked down? I concluded that FCI Beckley does not operate under BOP guidelines they operate whichever way benefits them. The amount of time the inmates have been on lock down outweighs the amount of time they are not. Why is it when solitary confinement is full and other inmates are awaiting to be placed in solitary confinement do, they have the right to lock all the inmates down? Why is it fair to the other inmates? Why are they paying for something someone else did? They are already serving their time. Inmates in solitary confinement are not being able to make phone calls at all and are being held there for over 150 days, this results in unconstitutional conditions of confinement. Why is it so difficult to have human injustice that many civilians face on a day-to-day basis, unethical procedures unethical actions. Why is Beckley not being held accountable and why is the federal govt and prison allowing this? Please an investigation needs to be opened immediately, and myself as well as others will continue to seek justice. Lastly, I would like to address visitation. Why are we treated like a burden when we call or visit our loved ones? Calling Beckley is a joke, they lie and say visits are cancelled. They do not provide correct information, most times they do not answer the phone. If they do, they are rude and hang up in your face. Every person you speak to you tells you something different. Most families are driving and flying 8 plus hours it's very frustrating to be misinformed of which side has visits. Visits themselves are horrendous. They tell you out there mouth they do not want to be there; they show you and they make you feel like you are an inconvenience to them from start to finish. If you are unable to pass the medical detector upon entry you are denied entry until you can pass without the alarm sounding. I was denied and the only metal I had on my person was a button on my jeans, the officer also stated that I could not keep trying to go through after removing different items of clothing. On the BOP website it states. "(a) Visitors are required to clear a walk-through metal detector before being allowed to visit. If the visitor fails to clear a walk-through detector, he or she will be screened with a hand-held metal detector." Beckley states they will not wand any individual. The visiting room is filled with ants, the tables have been removed. The vending machines are empty, broken, and out of order, the change machine is broken. On multiple occasions they said no one would be allowed retrieve anything from the machines. People had children. How can people sit in a visiting room for 6 plus hours without water and children without food? For the past for weeks while visiting we now must step into a taped off box and kiss and hug our loved ones before and after a visit begins with the correction officer shorter than an arm's length away, very degrading and uncomfortable. Visiting a loved one at Beckley causes anxiety, emotional and mental damage, as well as frustration. Why are inmates being designated more than 500 miles from their families? In closing, please share this information, please help us to advocate and please let’s put a stop to the mistreatment of federal inmates everywhere not just at Beckley. We must be the voice for our men. Ask yourself what would you do if this was your son, your brother, your husband, your relative? The prison is still on lockdown at this current time, and our loved ones are still being violated. The time to act is now!