The Injustice of Permanent Punishment

By BitcoDavid In 1996 – under Clinton, by the way – the U.S. decreed that people convicted of drug related criminal offenses would never be eligible for Food Stamps or other government assistance. Up until 2011, almost a full quarter of states disenfranchised their ex-felon population, even after those individuals had served their sentences and

You Have the Right to an Attorney… FAIL!

By BitcoDavid Back in 1963, the SCOTUS ruled that you have a right to an attorney regardless of your ability to pay for one. The ruling was unanimous – one of the few unanimous rulings in the history of the Court. That’s how important the Justices viewed this particular Constitutional right. A half a century

When Will They Ever Learn…

By Jean F. Andrews In their popular 1960’s folk song, Peter, Paul and Mary sing the ballad, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.” In the ballad, is the echoing refrain, “When Will They Ever Learn,” that points a firm finger at a society engaged in the Viet Nam War, wondering sadly, Where have all the

Colorado to Big Pharma: Got Any Pentothal?

By BitcoDavid In the good ol’ days before she was a state, executions in Colorado required only a hangman and a tree. The hangman got 5 bucks, but he was expected to provide his own rope. Later, when Edison and Tesla went to war over AC/DC, Colorado sided with Tesla – who after all, lived

Deaf Suspect Gets Settlement

By Jean F. Andrews Englewood, Co. On August 13, 2011, William Lawrence was arrested for an outstanding warrant. Lawrence has been Deaf since birth and had diminished English capability. He was handcuffed and questioned with no interpreter present. Lawrence went several days, unable to communicate with anyone, and didn’t receive an interpreter until he was

The Things We Take for Granted

By Pat Bliss   I get many letters from prisoners that just say they had to go to see a doctor or to medical for some reason. But in this one instance, a deaf prisoner in one of Florida’s prisons gave me an in-depth look as to what a prisoner goes through just to be there for a

CCA and Others Use Politics as Strategy

By BitcoDavid In January of last year, the Sentencing Project released a 25 page report entitled, Too Good to be True – Private Prisons in America, by Cody Mason. In the first decade of this century, the number of state inmates in private prisons increased by 80%, but the number of Federal inmates, saw gains

March 13th Digest Post

By BitcoDavid I promised I’d keep you updated on this story. Well, the Cannibal Cop has been found guilty. According to the NYT, Gilberto Valle has been found guilty and fired from the department. Sentencing will take place on June 19th, and he could face life. His lawyer called the verdict devastating, and said that

My 1st incounter with l.a.’z finest

By Moorbey [ Editor’s Note: Moorbey’z Blog has been an asset and a help to DeafInPrison.com. He has graciously offered to provide us with this Supporter Contribution post. I have left it in his own unique writing style, and have added only some images. I see his writing style as the literary equivalent of what

Follow Up Letter in NYT About “Drug Courts”

By BitcoDavid On March 2nd, we published a post about Federal judges working to institute Drug Court programs in several states. The Times recently published a follow up letter from an attorney for the Drug Policy Alliance. Here’s that letter as it appeared in the NYT, on March 10th. “Outside Box, U.S. Judges Offer Addicts New