Todd Hiivala /recreation OR prison job is choice now given at GBCI
Todd Hiivala 363687
GBCI , PO Box 19033
Green Bay, WI 54307
Inmates forced to choose between recreation and their prison jobs
Greetings to all at Community, along with
appreciation for the time, hard work and continued advocacy on behalf of those of us housed at this and other
Wisconsin correctional institutions.
Below find letters I mailed to the DOC
Secretary, DAI Administrator and Security Chief in Madison, informing them of GBCI officials' most recent action
in forcing those with jobs or in
school to relinquish up to half of their constitutionally protected right to recreation. This blatant act of
retaliation against 1,100 inmates
for the despicable action of a single inmate who assaulted a staff member with hot water is unprecedented. As I pointed out
to DCC officials, I've done over a
quarter century in a dozen prisons across three states and have never witnessed
anything--any assault on the fundamental rights of inmates--as flagrant as
this! I firmly believe they are
attempting to push this prison over the edge, so to speak, to justify "locking it down" long-term
and turning it into the State's next Supermax.
The inmate complaint process here being
ineffectual (useless, really), I invoked Wisconsin Statute 301.29(3), asking that the Secretary conduct an
internal investigation into this
radical departure by GECI officials from DCC rules. Yet the fact the Deputy Warden here has just (8/17)
issued an official memo confirming that inmate workers and students will be forced to forego their recreation
periods seems indicative of
non-action by, or the indifference of, Madison officials. Apparently only the courts will be able to reign-in these
rogue prison officials and force them to
follow the law, the rules of the department, and observe the constitutional rights of inmates at this facility.
As the "what happens at GBCI stays at
GBCI" philosophy has over the 15+ years I've been here allowed prison administrators to take
uncounted inhumane and unconstitutional
actions against inmates, I just wanted someone on the outside to know what is now being done to the hard workers
and dedicated students at this facility.
Dozens of workers and students have already quit their jobs and school, and if something isn't done to hold officials here
accountable I fear the taxpayers will
end-up footing the bill for the salaries and benefits of dozens & dozens of
civilian workers needed to do the jobs abandoned by inmate workers who were
forced to quit in order to receive
their proper amount of recreation. The notion that inmate who refuse to work, go to school or be
productive are receiving more recreation
than hard-working inmates is counter-intuitive, counter-rehabilitative, against public policy and expectations, and
contrary to the DOC's so-called "Mission Statement."
Thanks
again for the investment of your time and resources in pursuit and advocacy of our fundamental human rights and humane treatment.
Your work is more appreciated than
you may realize.
Sincerely yours, Todd
Hiivala 63687,
GBCI, P.O. Box 19033,Green Bay
54307
He sends us the statute ON LEISURE TIME/will be looking for rules on recreation
Wis. Adm. Code DOC 309.36
WISCONSIN ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
* This document is current through Wis. Admn. Register No. 725, May 2016 *
WISCONSIN ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
* This document is current through Wis. Admn. Register No. 725, May 2016 *
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
CHAPTER DOC 309 RESOURCES
FOR INMATES
Wis. Adm. Code DOC 309.36
(2016)
DOC 309.36 Leisure time
activities
(1) The department shall
provide as much leisure time activity, as possible for inmates, consistent with
available resources and scheduled programs and work. Leisure time activity is free time outside the cell
or room during which the inmate may be involved in activities such as recreational reading,
sports, film and television viewing, and handicrafts.
(2) Each institution shall permit inmates to
participate in leisure time activities for at least 4 hours per week. Institutions with the facilities to permit more leisure
time activity should do so.
HISTORY: Cr. Register,
October, 1981, No. 310, eff. 11-1-81.
Letter to Secretary Litcher on word followed by letters to three DOC Heads in PDF form:
Todd
B. Hiivala 3636S7 Green Bay Corr'l Institution P.O.
Box 19033
Green Bay, WI 54307-9033
Jon
B. Litscher, Secretary Department of Corrections 3099
E. Washington Ave. P.O. Box 7925
Madison,
WI 53707-7925
Re:
Request for investigation (Wis. Stat. § 301.29(3))
11
August 2016
Dear
Secretary Litscher,
Sir, I am writing to inform you of the decision of GECI officials to deny
inmate workers and
students their required amount of recreation, and to request that pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 301.29(3), you conduct an internal
investigation into this blatant and willful violation of inmate rights as well as DOC admin.
code.
As the prison lockdown winds down, GBCI officials have recently posted a
revised recreation
schedule. This schedule designates rec. times by tiers, whereas the longstanding schedule accounted for work and school.
Inmates are being told that beginning Monday, August 15, 2016, if they work or go to school they
will have to forego and
not be allowed to attend recreation if/when the times of the revised schedule conflict with their work or school assignments.
In effect, that they will be denied recreation because they work or go to school. This is
outrageous!
• The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has recognized that exercise is a
necessary requirement
for the physical and mental well-being of inmates; and, that denying inmates opportunities for out-of-cell exercise violates
the U.S. Constitution's Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel & unusual punishment.
See Delaney v. Detella, 256 F.3d 679 (7th Cir. 2001). The court further held that
inmates are entitled to
at least five (5) hours of recreation per week. Administrative Code § DOC 309.36(2) mandates (through the use of the word
"shall") that inmates be given a minimum of four (4) hours per week recreation.* Neither
federal case law nor department rules or policies allow for exclusion of workers or students
from the constitutionally
and administratively required amount of recreation. Thus the actions of GBCI officials are arbitrary, capricious, and
a violation of both the constitutional rights of inmates and the rules of the department.
What is disturbing
to me--someone who's spent 26 years in prison--is that prison officials, in any modern prison, would be so indifferent
towards the law, the rights of inmates and the rules of the department as to, in effect, punish
inmates for working or
going to school--two "rehabilitative goals" expected by the public.
The notion that because I (myself a maintenance worker) perform an essential
function necessary to the
operation of the institution, or another inmate seeks education that it is hoped will prevent recidivism, can & are
being forced to relinquish their right to something deemed medically necessary to their well-being, is
shocking to the adult conscience and a complete regression in penal philosophy.
I, for one (as I assume is also true of others), will quit my job and be unassigned
before I
relinquish my right to recreation.
But the question here, really, is: What's the point; what
are GECI officials attempting
to do or accomplish by such unsanctioned and illegal (indeed, despotic!) actions?
I both feel and fear that by & through such oppressive and extremist actions
officials here are attempting to provoke some type of disruption; or at the very
least, a flurry of unnecessary litigation that is sure to cost the department and
taxpayers many thousands of dollars. This is just my opinion, or observation, but it's based upon a
thorough knowledge of the law and a quarter century of incarceration in a dozen prisons across three states.
I'm asking, Secretary Litscher, in the interests of
maintaining order, and respect for the rights and well-being of
inmates under your care and supervision, that pursuant to Wis. Stat. §
301.20(3), you immediately investigate this radical departure by GBCI officials from the administrative rules of the
department and constitutional rights
of inmates at this facility. And, that you take steps to ensure ALL GECI inmates--workers, students &
otherwise--receive the minimum and same amount of recreation mandated by Admin. Code § DOC 309.36(2).
Thank you for your valuable time, and your prompt action in this matter
would be greatly
appreciated.
Respectfully
Todd E. Hiivala
cc: Peggy Swan, Community Activist File
Todd Hivala to DAI AdministratorTodd Hiivala to DAI Administrator: https://ffupstuff.files.wordpress.com/2016/11/t-hiivala-to-dai-adm-11-4-16all.pdf
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