Live Cockroaches Crawling On My Face Part 2
Filming a scene from the book Hard Time yesterday.
Link to video at YouTube.
Tags: cockraoches jail prison phoenix arizona sheriff joe arpaio shaun attwood hard time inmate prisoner human rights maricopa county insects cell police cops guards jon's jail journal blog
Live Cockroaches Crawling On My Face Part 1
Filming a scene from the book Hard Time yesterday.
Link to video at YouTube.
Tags: cockraoches jail prison phoenix arizona sheriff joe arpaio shaun attwood hard time inmate prisoner human rights maricopa county insects cell police cops guards jon's jail journal blog
Filming a scene from the book Hard Time yesterday.
Link to video at YouTube.
Tags: cockraoches jail prison phoenix arizona sheriff joe arpaio shaun attwood hard time inmate prisoner human rights maricopa county insects cell police cops guards jon's jail journal blog
Hard Time Internet Banner Number 2
My friend, Stephanie, made this banner, which links to where Amazon.com is selling Hard Time: A Brit in America's Toughest Jail. There are now less cockraches on the book cover, but also a larger more detailed one.
Click here for the code if you want to use this banner at your website.
My friend, Stephanie, made this banner, which links to where Amazon.com is selling Hard Time: A Brit in America's Toughest Jail. There are now less cockraches on the book cover, but also a larger more detailed one.
Click here for the code if you want to use this banner at your website.
Question Time with Polish Avenger
Polish Avenger – A software-engineering undergraduate sentenced to 25 years because his friend was shot dead during a burglary they were committing. In Arizona, if a burglar gets killed, the accomplices can get 25-year sentences.
Leigh asked these questions:
Is there work for everyone who wants to work?
No. Although the policy states, “Every inmate shall work,” the reality is that jobs are quite scarce here. I estimate that around 40% of us are employed. Some of these are “paper jobs” in that they only exist on paper. Most of the guys would love a job, as otherwise they’re cooped up in the dorms all day with all of the other unemployed. All that restless energy and free time translates itself into mischief and noise and discontent. I count myself extremely fortunate to have such a good job! By contrast, I’ve just started a series of posts about my first prison job way back in ’94 about cleaning up blood and feces for a nickel an hour!
What changes have you seen (if any) since the economy has gotten even worse?
They have been steady. First, everyone’s wages went down by a nickel. Then our work hours got rolled back from 80 a week to 60 or less. The most dramatic change will occur this April. They circulated a memo stating that they can no longer afford to feed us dinner. Yes, seriously! Instead, we’ll receive the gut-meat sack meal I described in “A Doomed Sock.” Even more amazing was the gall of the director’s remark in that memo: “The quality of the meals will not change.” C’mon now, that’s just insulting!
***
Now, I hear some of you thinking, “You ungrateful so-and-so! They should only give you bread and water.” Hey, I understand. I really do. Not everyone here has evolved out of deserving to be here. Despite my bias towards prisoners rights, there are a lot of guys here I don’t like, I avoid, and who will undoubtedly come right back. But the reality of it is, every person here is an individual. Lumping us all into a convenient stereotype is just as short-sighted as a racial slur. Yeah, some of us may be incorrigible or dope fiends or whatever. But some of us aren’t. I’ve taken full responsibility for my crimes since I turned myself in back in 1993 and confessed. I expect no sympathy – or hero worship as someone put it! – just a chance to be heard as an individual in 2010, and not forever judged by one mistake 17 years ago.
Thus endeth the sermon!
Click here for Polish Avenger’s previous Question Time.
Our friends inside appreciate your comments.
Post comments and questions for Polish Avenger below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com o post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Polish Avenger – A software-engineering undergraduate sentenced to 25 years because his friend was shot dead during a burglary they were committing. In Arizona, if a burglar gets killed, the accomplices can get 25-year sentences.
Leigh asked these questions:
Is there work for everyone who wants to work?
No. Although the policy states, “Every inmate shall work,” the reality is that jobs are quite scarce here. I estimate that around 40% of us are employed. Some of these are “paper jobs” in that they only exist on paper. Most of the guys would love a job, as otherwise they’re cooped up in the dorms all day with all of the other unemployed. All that restless energy and free time translates itself into mischief and noise and discontent. I count myself extremely fortunate to have such a good job! By contrast, I’ve just started a series of posts about my first prison job way back in ’94 about cleaning up blood and feces for a nickel an hour!
What changes have you seen (if any) since the economy has gotten even worse?
They have been steady. First, everyone’s wages went down by a nickel. Then our work hours got rolled back from 80 a week to 60 or less. The most dramatic change will occur this April. They circulated a memo stating that they can no longer afford to feed us dinner. Yes, seriously! Instead, we’ll receive the gut-meat sack meal I described in “A Doomed Sock.” Even more amazing was the gall of the director’s remark in that memo: “The quality of the meals will not change.” C’mon now, that’s just insulting!
***
Now, I hear some of you thinking, “You ungrateful so-and-so! They should only give you bread and water.” Hey, I understand. I really do. Not everyone here has evolved out of deserving to be here. Despite my bias towards prisoners rights, there are a lot of guys here I don’t like, I avoid, and who will undoubtedly come right back. But the reality of it is, every person here is an individual. Lumping us all into a convenient stereotype is just as short-sighted as a racial slur. Yeah, some of us may be incorrigible or dope fiends or whatever. But some of us aren’t. I’ve taken full responsibility for my crimes since I turned myself in back in 1993 and confessed. I expect no sympathy – or hero worship as someone put it! – just a chance to be heard as an individual in 2010, and not forever judged by one mistake 17 years ago.
Thus endeth the sermon!
Click here for Polish Avenger’s previous Question Time.
Our friends inside appreciate your comments.
Post comments and questions for Polish Avenger below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com o post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Maria is a Cuban refugee who has been volunteering with Latinos in the U.S. for over 30 years and in prisons for 2 years.
I looked out the window of the chow hall as I waited endlessly with the other teachers as the guards had refused to tell our students we'd arrived. It was late afternoon, and I was looking at a dazzling coil of silver outside the window. The angle of the light was such that the coil shone like jewelry—a bracelet, or perhaps a necklace. Regularly, you could see points, like diamonds, decorating the coil, which hung as if weightless above the chain link prison fence. It was exquisite. I could, and I did, write a poem about it. Sparkling like something Marilyn Monroe might wear on her arm. And yet it was razor wire. The entire purpose of its being was to rip flesh.
Pablo’s flesh, of course. And any other inmate that would ever try to cross the border to freedom. In my mind is a question: Repellent, yet in a way, necessary. Has anyone ever been brutalized by razor wire, or its ancestor, barbed wire? Does anyone know what it is like for a human to come into contact with this? Because, I tell you , this coil of sharpened wire was not necessary. If there was a breach in security, the inmate would find a way beyond this instrument of torture. Has anyone experienced this? I believe there are some of you who have encountered this, and I also believe it is important to know what it is like, what it is truly designed to do to a human being.
Click here for Part 2
Click here for a blog I wrote about a pigeon trapped in the razor wire
Post comments for Maria below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Question Time with Polish Avenger
Polish Avenger – A software-engineering undergraduate sentenced to 25 years because his friend was shot dead during a burglary they were committing. In Arizona, if a burglar gets killed, the accomplices can get 25-year sentences.
Leigh asked these questions:
So the toilet has something of a stall but the wall of it is smaller while raised off the ground?
Sort of. It’s sandwiched between two little cinderblock walls, no door. The second thunderpot is 90 degrees to that and behind, so there’s almost no blockage. Some of us rigged up a sheet to hide behind whilst eliminating, and the guards went insane! They rushed in to confiscate it and threatened us with disciplinary action. I wonder what they thought was going on behind there? None of us would do something illegal there because it’s too exposed.
When you say Jack was laid off what do you mean? He lost his previous detail or he lost his detail altogether?
Jack lost both prior position and detail altogether. The job he had does exist here, but someone else was handpicked for it (much less competent fellow, in my view!). Jack’s been unemployed for our time here so far, and not much relief in sight. Work is scarce.
Is 40 cents an hour the standard wage or can it vary?
.40 is near the top of the heap! Most people have to start at .15 or .20 and work their way up. .50 is the theoretical maximum, but due to budget cuts hardly anyone makes that much these days.
Are you able to get a raise after so long on the job?
Usually. It’s supposed to go up by a nickel every six months, but again it’s up to the budget.
Do you have to work or can you decide that you’d rather not?
Well, if they assign you to a job, you’re stuck with it for the most part. If you flat-out refuse, you’ll get disciplinary. The better way is to endure it for the week or so it takes you to either get transferred to a different job or to “unassigned” status.
Click here for Polish Avenger’s previous blog about his job cleaning up excrement.
Our friends inside appreciate your comments.
Post comments and questions for Polish Avenger below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com o post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Polish Avenger – A software-engineering undergraduate sentenced to 25 years because his friend was shot dead during a burglary they were committing. In Arizona, if a burglar gets killed, the accomplices can get 25-year sentences.
Leigh asked these questions:
So the toilet has something of a stall but the wall of it is smaller while raised off the ground?
Sort of. It’s sandwiched between two little cinderblock walls, no door. The second thunderpot is 90 degrees to that and behind, so there’s almost no blockage. Some of us rigged up a sheet to hide behind whilst eliminating, and the guards went insane! They rushed in to confiscate it and threatened us with disciplinary action. I wonder what they thought was going on behind there? None of us would do something illegal there because it’s too exposed.
When you say Jack was laid off what do you mean? He lost his previous detail or he lost his detail altogether?
Jack lost both prior position and detail altogether. The job he had does exist here, but someone else was handpicked for it (much less competent fellow, in my view!). Jack’s been unemployed for our time here so far, and not much relief in sight. Work is scarce.
Is 40 cents an hour the standard wage or can it vary?
.40 is near the top of the heap! Most people have to start at .15 or .20 and work their way up. .50 is the theoretical maximum, but due to budget cuts hardly anyone makes that much these days.
Are you able to get a raise after so long on the job?
Usually. It’s supposed to go up by a nickel every six months, but again it’s up to the budget.
Do you have to work or can you decide that you’d rather not?
Well, if they assign you to a job, you’re stuck with it for the most part. If you flat-out refuse, you’ll get disciplinary. The better way is to endure it for the week or so it takes you to either get transferred to a different job or to “unassigned” status.
Click here for Polish Avenger’s previous blog about his job cleaning up excrement.
Our friends inside appreciate your comments.
Post comments and questions for Polish Avenger below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com o post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Famous jail blogger talks to students on drug dangers (article by Stephen Rodgers for The Week In)
It may have been too soon after breakfast for many Year 12 students at Sir Bernard Lovell School last week when their first session of the day was to listen to harrowing tales of prison violence and barbaric living conditions in cockroach infested cells and dead rats in the food. This was no third world country either but Arizona in the US and the personal experiences were of Englishman Shaun Attwood who fell foul of the criminal justice system there.
Having spent six years in some of the most brutal conditions imaginable, the 41 year old former stockbroker and rave organiser is now touring secondary schools in the country to warn about the dangers of drugs and crime. It all started so well for Shaun. Having left the recession behind in 1991, he moved to Arizona and quickly became a millionaire stockbroker specialising in high tech industries during the dot.com revolution. But he was also a party animal, having been a fan of the burgeoning rave scene in his native Manchester before leaving for the States. He began organising similar style events around Phoenix. His legal and his not so legal life came crashing down in 2002 and with bail set at $750,000 his new residence became the infamous Maricopa County Jail. With the highest death rate among inmates of any prison in America, it has become the focus of a lot of media attention over the years because of the hard line attitudes of the County Sheriff, Joe Arpaio. He makes prisoners wear striped overalls over pink underwear, has reintroduced chain gangs, tented compounds in the Arizona desert and famously claimed that more is spent on feeding the police dogs in Maricopa County than the prisoners. His belligerent stance of ‘if you don’t like it – don’t come back’ has won sheriff Arpaio a lot of support but many of the lesser publicised activities have also brought him into conflict with federal prison authorities, Amnesty International and the US president.
Violence
What Shaun Attwood describes is a life of gang violence ignored by guards, an absence of even basic healthcare and hygiene and a diet of mouldy bread and slops. Sleeping in 100-degree temperatures at night with armies of cockroaches and spiders crawling over his body, and listening to the crack of an inmate’s skull being smashed against the wall of a neighbouring cell was a common nighttime experience while bodies would often lie for several hours before the guards removed them.
During his time in jail, Shaun began smuggling out stories of what life was really like via his American aunt who visited each week. These were then posted online in Jon’s Jail Journal blog, which became a worldwide phenomenon and turned media attention onto the regime of Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Back home, his parents remortgaged their house and cashed in their pensions to be able to pay the solicitor’s fees and, as is frequently the case in America, a plea bargain was agreed. Instead of a possible 200 year sentence if found guilty at trial, Shaun accepted a 9½ year term and because he was not a US citizen and this was a first offence, he was finally released in December 2007.
Book
Since that time, he has been working on his memoir of life in prison and his book ‘Hard Time’ is out in August. In the meantime, he is keen to share his experience with as many teenagers as possible so they don’t make the same mistake. As a successful businessman and drug user, he never saw the problem.
“I considered myself a functional, recreational drug user and that I would never be caught. What I learnt from other inmates who made the same mistake was that as a drug user I was making decisions that I would never have considered. The problem is that you begin to think you are invincible.”
Ironically, it was living so close to a society so dependent on drugs that convinced Shaun that he didn’t need them. “I still hear that howling wolf from time to time that makes me want to party but there are other ways of dealing with it now” he told a very still and silent audience.
Shaun’s book ‘Hard Time’ is published by a division of Random House and is due out on 5th August. It can be pre-ordered now on Amazon.
Click here to read the original article published on Thursday 20th May 2010 on page 5 (it's a PDF file that takes a bit to download)
It may have been too soon after breakfast for many Year 12 students at Sir Bernard Lovell School last week when their first session of the day was to listen to harrowing tales of prison violence and barbaric living conditions in cockroach infested cells and dead rats in the food. This was no third world country either but Arizona in the US and the personal experiences were of Englishman Shaun Attwood who fell foul of the criminal justice system there.
Having spent six years in some of the most brutal conditions imaginable, the 41 year old former stockbroker and rave organiser is now touring secondary schools in the country to warn about the dangers of drugs and crime. It all started so well for Shaun. Having left the recession behind in 1991, he moved to Arizona and quickly became a millionaire stockbroker specialising in high tech industries during the dot.com revolution. But he was also a party animal, having been a fan of the burgeoning rave scene in his native Manchester before leaving for the States. He began organising similar style events around Phoenix. His legal and his not so legal life came crashing down in 2002 and with bail set at $750,000 his new residence became the infamous Maricopa County Jail. With the highest death rate among inmates of any prison in America, it has become the focus of a lot of media attention over the years because of the hard line attitudes of the County Sheriff, Joe Arpaio. He makes prisoners wear striped overalls over pink underwear, has reintroduced chain gangs, tented compounds in the Arizona desert and famously claimed that more is spent on feeding the police dogs in Maricopa County than the prisoners. His belligerent stance of ‘if you don’t like it – don’t come back’ has won sheriff Arpaio a lot of support but many of the lesser publicised activities have also brought him into conflict with federal prison authorities, Amnesty International and the US president.
Violence
What Shaun Attwood describes is a life of gang violence ignored by guards, an absence of even basic healthcare and hygiene and a diet of mouldy bread and slops. Sleeping in 100-degree temperatures at night with armies of cockroaches and spiders crawling over his body, and listening to the crack of an inmate’s skull being smashed against the wall of a neighbouring cell was a common nighttime experience while bodies would often lie for several hours before the guards removed them.
During his time in jail, Shaun began smuggling out stories of what life was really like via his American aunt who visited each week. These were then posted online in Jon’s Jail Journal blog, which became a worldwide phenomenon and turned media attention onto the regime of Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Back home, his parents remortgaged their house and cashed in their pensions to be able to pay the solicitor’s fees and, as is frequently the case in America, a plea bargain was agreed. Instead of a possible 200 year sentence if found guilty at trial, Shaun accepted a 9½ year term and because he was not a US citizen and this was a first offence, he was finally released in December 2007.
Book
Since that time, he has been working on his memoir of life in prison and his book ‘Hard Time’ is out in August. In the meantime, he is keen to share his experience with as many teenagers as possible so they don’t make the same mistake. As a successful businessman and drug user, he never saw the problem.
“I considered myself a functional, recreational drug user and that I would never be caught. What I learnt from other inmates who made the same mistake was that as a drug user I was making decisions that I would never have considered. The problem is that you begin to think you are invincible.”
Ironically, it was living so close to a society so dependent on drugs that convinced Shaun that he didn’t need them. “I still hear that howling wolf from time to time that makes me want to party but there are other ways of dealing with it now” he told a very still and silent audience.
Shaun’s book ‘Hard Time’ is published by a division of Random House and is due out on 5th August. It can be pre-ordered now on Amazon.
Click here to read the original article published on Thursday 20th May 2010 on page 5 (it's a PDF file that takes a bit to download)
The Death of Ms Hawkins (by Lifer Renee)
Renee - She was only a teenager when she received a sixty-year sentence from a judge in Pima County. Fourteen years into her sentence, Renee is writing from Perryville prison in Goodyear, Arizona, providing a rare and unique insight into a women's prison.
I woke up a little early. I made my coffee. My roommate, Jess, was still sleeping. She’s a light sleeper, so I had to move around in slow motion, not making too much noise. I sat on the end of my bunk, watching the news and sipping coffee. I heard my neighbor singing and thought to myself, Just because you have a new roommate that is deaf does not mean that we are. The singing woke Jess up, and she went through her morning routine.
By 7:37am the guards had still not opened our doors. I looked out of the window. The yard was deserted. No one. No officers in sight.
“It looks like we’re locked down. No rec for you,” I said jokingly to Jess. I decided to wash my laundry, hating the manual process of scrubbing everything in the sink with a bar of soap and a military brush.
Then they opened the doors. I stepped outside to see if it was for rec or breakfast.
An officer was screaming, “If you’re going to breakfast, let’s go! We’re under ICS!”
I looked at Jess. “I wonder what the hell’s going on now.”
“Don’t know,” Jess said.
We shut our door. Jess gazed out of the window. I finished my washing. My room looked like a Chinese Laundromat.
They opened our doors again for people returning from breakfast.
Jess, being nosey, went outside and returned a few minutes later. She looked at me, her face in disbelief. “We’re locked down because Ms Hawkins on 26 yard died some time last night. They were trying to work on her, but she died. They found her in her bed with her inhaler clutched in her hand.”
I dropped my head. “How many people are going to die?”
“Ms Mauder is next,” Jess said.
“I know.”
Ms Mauder has terminal lung cancer. She wants to be classified as DNR (Do Not Resuscitate), but DOC policy states that they must revive her.
The next day, I went to my friend Molly’s cell. We came outside, and sat on a curb talking.
“Molly, I need a favor. I need to know how much it costs to be cremated and to create a living will. If I die in here, will you make sure I’m cremated and spread my ashes over the ocean please?”
Molly looked a little shocked.
“I do not have anyone on the streets. I don’t want to be buried in a DOC lot, please?”
“Yes, girl, I will do it. Which ocean?”
“The Atlantic. I don’t really care. Ocean, river, just a large body of water.”
“OK. We’ll set it up.”
Molly and I have been friends for almost 10 years, and now she is on her way out of the door. I trust she’ll do this for me.
Click here for Renee's previous blog
Post comments for Renee below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Renee - She was only a teenager when she received a sixty-year sentence from a judge in Pima County. Fourteen years into her sentence, Renee is writing from Perryville prison in Goodyear, Arizona, providing a rare and unique insight into a women's prison.
I woke up a little early. I made my coffee. My roommate, Jess, was still sleeping. She’s a light sleeper, so I had to move around in slow motion, not making too much noise. I sat on the end of my bunk, watching the news and sipping coffee. I heard my neighbor singing and thought to myself, Just because you have a new roommate that is deaf does not mean that we are. The singing woke Jess up, and she went through her morning routine.
By 7:37am the guards had still not opened our doors. I looked out of the window. The yard was deserted. No one. No officers in sight.
“It looks like we’re locked down. No rec for you,” I said jokingly to Jess. I decided to wash my laundry, hating the manual process of scrubbing everything in the sink with a bar of soap and a military brush.
Then they opened the doors. I stepped outside to see if it was for rec or breakfast.
An officer was screaming, “If you’re going to breakfast, let’s go! We’re under ICS!”
I looked at Jess. “I wonder what the hell’s going on now.”
“Don’t know,” Jess said.
We shut our door. Jess gazed out of the window. I finished my washing. My room looked like a Chinese Laundromat.
They opened our doors again for people returning from breakfast.
Jess, being nosey, went outside and returned a few minutes later. She looked at me, her face in disbelief. “We’re locked down because Ms Hawkins on 26 yard died some time last night. They were trying to work on her, but she died. They found her in her bed with her inhaler clutched in her hand.”
I dropped my head. “How many people are going to die?”
“Ms Mauder is next,” Jess said.
“I know.”
Ms Mauder has terminal lung cancer. She wants to be classified as DNR (Do Not Resuscitate), but DOC policy states that they must revive her.
The next day, I went to my friend Molly’s cell. We came outside, and sat on a curb talking.
“Molly, I need a favor. I need to know how much it costs to be cremated and to create a living will. If I die in here, will you make sure I’m cremated and spread my ashes over the ocean please?”
Molly looked a little shocked.
“I do not have anyone on the streets. I don’t want to be buried in a DOC lot, please?”
“Yes, girl, I will do it. Which ocean?”
“The Atlantic. I don’t really care. Ocean, river, just a large body of water.”
“OK. We’ll set it up.”
Molly and I have been friends for almost 10 years, and now she is on her way out of the door. I trust she’ll do this for me.
Click here for Renee's previous blog
Post comments for Renee below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
The Scary Fun of Prison (Part 3 by Guest Blogger Andrew Donegan)
Andrew Donegan's blog is Wheel of Life at piebald77.blogspot.com
MY DAD, Jacob Michael, who won weightlifting contests in Weyland and Weymott, was in Armley, Leeds, 1982, when Peter Sutcliffe, a.k.a the ‘Yorkshire Ripper’ was brought in. My dad took a bet that the frail figure sat on the edge of his bed could never be one of the most feared killers in recent history. Viewed through the crack of a cell door, it was indeed Sutcliffe, and my dad lost the bet. At around the same time, there was news coverage of a poor old woman in her eighties who had been beaten black and blue to within an inch of her life. My dad and several others were reduced to tears by this sad and shocking story. He was just wiping his eyes when they brought in the man responsible. Back then it was the norm for one inmate to go from cell to cell asking if prisoners wanted tea or water. My dad had this position, and although the granny-basher asked for water, what he got was a face-load of boiling hot tea. My dad’s defence was that he ‘put the bucket down and the guy fell in it’. From then on the screws treated my old man a lot better.
Post comments and questions for Andrew below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Andrew Donegan's blog is Wheel of Life at piebald77.blogspot.com
MY DAD, Jacob Michael, who won weightlifting contests in Weyland and Weymott, was in Armley, Leeds, 1982, when Peter Sutcliffe, a.k.a the ‘Yorkshire Ripper’ was brought in. My dad took a bet that the frail figure sat on the edge of his bed could never be one of the most feared killers in recent history. Viewed through the crack of a cell door, it was indeed Sutcliffe, and my dad lost the bet. At around the same time, there was news coverage of a poor old woman in her eighties who had been beaten black and blue to within an inch of her life. My dad and several others were reduced to tears by this sad and shocking story. He was just wiping his eyes when they brought in the man responsible. Back then it was the norm for one inmate to go from cell to cell asking if prisoners wanted tea or water. My dad had this position, and although the granny-basher asked for water, what he got was a face-load of boiling hot tea. My dad’s defence was that he ‘put the bucket down and the guy fell in it’. From then on the screws treated my old man a lot better.
Post comments and questions for Andrew below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
From Warrior (Letter 8) - Grit's Death
Warrior - Serving fourteen years for kidnapping and aggravated assault. Half Hispanic and Scottish-Irish with family still in Mexico. Brought up by a family steeped in drug commerce. He writes some of the best prison-fight stories on the Internet.
This week’s been totally insane. One of my neighbors, Grit, bit the big one and OD’d on Monday. It took staff about 20 minutes to respond, another 15 to get the paramedics, by the time they came ol’ boy was done. His body was left on display for about 6 hours on the tier before they cleared him out. What a way to go. I don’t think anyone gets used to seeing a dead body, we just learn to tolerate the reality and appreciate life, for me at least. The warden asked the sergeant on duty what their response time was. He said 5 minutes. Word on the yard was that Grit was doing a grip of time. He beat the system, and went out like a straight gangsta. Life’s a trip.
Click here for letter 7 from Warrior
I used to work out with Grit and Iron Man. Click here to read about Grit's crimes and how he got shot.
Our friends inside appreciate your comments.
Post comments and questions for Warrior below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Warrior - Serving fourteen years for kidnapping and aggravated assault. Half Hispanic and Scottish-Irish with family still in Mexico. Brought up by a family steeped in drug commerce. He writes some of the best prison-fight stories on the Internet.
This week’s been totally insane. One of my neighbors, Grit, bit the big one and OD’d on Monday. It took staff about 20 minutes to respond, another 15 to get the paramedics, by the time they came ol’ boy was done. His body was left on display for about 6 hours on the tier before they cleared him out. What a way to go. I don’t think anyone gets used to seeing a dead body, we just learn to tolerate the reality and appreciate life, for me at least. The warden asked the sergeant on duty what their response time was. He said 5 minutes. Word on the yard was that Grit was doing a grip of time. He beat the system, and went out like a straight gangsta. Life’s a trip.
Click here for letter 7 from Warrior
I used to work out with Grit and Iron Man. Click here to read about Grit's crimes and how he got shot.
Our friends inside appreciate your comments.
Post comments and questions for Warrior below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Question Time and Other News
Corrie from Swanmore College of Technology emailed:
What was the worst thing that happened to you when you were in any of the prisons? And, on your card it says your name is Shaun, but then it says Jon’s Jail Journal. Did you change your name when you came out or did you change it on the blog to protect yourself and stuff?
The shock of going in, and all of the violence was scary, but one of the worst parts for me was getting used to sleeping in a cell infested with cockroaches at Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s Madison Street jail. You see these reality shows were people have bugs crawl on them for a few minutes or so. Imagine having to sleep locked in a tiny room with cockroaches crawling everywhere, including on your body, all night long. It takes some getting used to. I ended up getting put on medication, so I could get to sleep. Even after my release, I was seeing cockroaches that weren't there.
Here are some of my early blogs about the cockroaches:
Roach Attack
Easter Eggs
We used the name Jon for the blog because we didn't want the guards to find out I was writing it from the jail. Sheriff Joe Arpaio's guards are notorious for murdering inmates. You can read about some of the inmates they have murdered by clicking here.
Gregory sent this question via Facebook:
Is it your impression that the State of Arizona allows bestial conditions as some form of deterrent or further punishment? Or is the system overloaded and out of control? Or something else entirely?
I'd say the conditions are bestial for a number of reasons. Primarily, Sheriff Joe Arpaio likes to portray himself as being as tough on criminals as possible. Many of his PR stunts emphasize this, and have helped him gain political power. The fact that the majority of his inmates are unsentenced, on remand, and presumed innocent is often overlooked. The legal system in Arizona is a multi-million-dollar industry. It's conveyor-belt justice, whereby trials are rare and cost the state a lot of money. The conditions are designed to terrify people into signing plea bargains just to get out of there. This avoids costly trials for the state, and enables the jail system to transfer a steady stream of prisoners over to Arizona's state prison system, where more millions are made off the backs of the prisoners by contractors for stuff like phone calls, and by politicians by way of political contributions from the contractors. The system is overloaded, overcrowded and extremely dangerous by design. The tax payers foot the bill for the law suits, and the system remains a feeding trough of public money for the parasite professions.
Other News
Amazon UK is presently offering a 30% discount and free shipping on my book Hard Time. Click here for this pre-sale deal.
Amazon USA is now listing Hard Time. You can register to be notified when it becomes available by clicking here. The more people who register, perhaps the sooner they’ll get it in stock.
Here’s the link to a Hard Time Facebook site.
I recently did a talk to students at my high school, Saints Peter and Paul in Widnes. One of the students asked me about my mother’s reaction to my incarceration. As my mother was present, I referred the question to her. She got up, and told the audience about how it had traumatised her. Describing her nervous breakdown, she started shedding tears, and many students and teachers also started crying. It was the most crying I’ve ever seen at one of my talks. The students were really moved, especially by my mother’s impromptu answer, and they stayed behind for a long time asking questions.
The teacher who’d coordinated the talk sent me a nice email afterwards:
Your talk was utterly astounding. After you left so many staff emailed me and stopped me to say how much your testament had moved and shocked them. The way your Mother spoke also was so powerful, so honest and so brave.I have never seen the students as quiet in all my days with them. They were stunned by your story and have been talking about it since. I know that this experience will stay with them for a long time.
Pauline Ronan (Year 12 Progress Leader and Key Stage 5 Co-ordinator for RE)
Click here for the previous Question Time.
Post comments below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Corrie from Swanmore College of Technology emailed:
What was the worst thing that happened to you when you were in any of the prisons? And, on your card it says your name is Shaun, but then it says Jon’s Jail Journal. Did you change your name when you came out or did you change it on the blog to protect yourself and stuff?
The shock of going in, and all of the violence was scary, but one of the worst parts for me was getting used to sleeping in a cell infested with cockroaches at Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s Madison Street jail. You see these reality shows were people have bugs crawl on them for a few minutes or so. Imagine having to sleep locked in a tiny room with cockroaches crawling everywhere, including on your body, all night long. It takes some getting used to. I ended up getting put on medication, so I could get to sleep. Even after my release, I was seeing cockroaches that weren't there.
Here are some of my early blogs about the cockroaches:
Roach Attack
Easter Eggs
We used the name Jon for the blog because we didn't want the guards to find out I was writing it from the jail. Sheriff Joe Arpaio's guards are notorious for murdering inmates. You can read about some of the inmates they have murdered by clicking here.
Gregory sent this question via Facebook:
Is it your impression that the State of Arizona allows bestial conditions as some form of deterrent or further punishment? Or is the system overloaded and out of control? Or something else entirely?
I'd say the conditions are bestial for a number of reasons. Primarily, Sheriff Joe Arpaio likes to portray himself as being as tough on criminals as possible. Many of his PR stunts emphasize this, and have helped him gain political power. The fact that the majority of his inmates are unsentenced, on remand, and presumed innocent is often overlooked. The legal system in Arizona is a multi-million-dollar industry. It's conveyor-belt justice, whereby trials are rare and cost the state a lot of money. The conditions are designed to terrify people into signing plea bargains just to get out of there. This avoids costly trials for the state, and enables the jail system to transfer a steady stream of prisoners over to Arizona's state prison system, where more millions are made off the backs of the prisoners by contractors for stuff like phone calls, and by politicians by way of political contributions from the contractors. The system is overloaded, overcrowded and extremely dangerous by design. The tax payers foot the bill for the law suits, and the system remains a feeding trough of public money for the parasite professions.
Other News
Amazon UK is presently offering a 30% discount and free shipping on my book Hard Time. Click here for this pre-sale deal.
Amazon USA is now listing Hard Time. You can register to be notified when it becomes available by clicking here. The more people who register, perhaps the sooner they’ll get it in stock.
Here’s the link to a Hard Time Facebook site.
I recently did a talk to students at my high school, Saints Peter and Paul in Widnes. One of the students asked me about my mother’s reaction to my incarceration. As my mother was present, I referred the question to her. She got up, and told the audience about how it had traumatised her. Describing her nervous breakdown, she started shedding tears, and many students and teachers also started crying. It was the most crying I’ve ever seen at one of my talks. The students were really moved, especially by my mother’s impromptu answer, and they stayed behind for a long time asking questions.
The teacher who’d coordinated the talk sent me a nice email afterwards:
Your talk was utterly astounding. After you left so many staff emailed me and stopped me to say how much your testament had moved and shocked them. The way your Mother spoke also was so powerful, so honest and so brave.I have never seen the students as quiet in all my days with them. They were stunned by your story and have been talking about it since. I know that this experience will stay with them for a long time.
Pauline Ronan (Year 12 Progress Leader and Key Stage 5 Co-ordinator for RE)
Click here for the previous Question Time.
Post comments below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
From Two Tonys (Letter 15)
Two Tonys - A whacker of men and Mafia associate serving multiple life sentences for murders and violent crimes. Left bodies from Tucson to Alaska, but claims all his victims "had it coming." Diagnosed with liver cancer, and is fighting to prolong his life.
I’m still in the medical complex, but this is all up in the air. What makes me suspicious is they’re treating me too nice. (We’ll see.) They might send me back to a yard or keep me here. I can’t get to the decision maker.
Hey, I’m real proud of you. Not only as a true friend, but also for your achievements. I know you’ll keep it up and the sky’s the limit. Maybe you’ll even make it to the Larry King Show. Pond to pond of course. All I ask is as you struggle on, stop and give me a good thought. Now get your bald ass in there and get on with it.
L&R from over the Atlantic!
Two Tonys
Click here to read Letter 14
Two Tonys is dying, and really appreciates your comments.
Post comments below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com. To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
If you would like to write to Two Tonys or send him a book or a magazine subscription, then please email me for instructions on mailing things to the prison.
Shaun Attwood
Two Tonys - A whacker of men and Mafia associate serving multiple life sentences for murders and violent crimes. Left bodies from Tucson to Alaska, but claims all his victims "had it coming." Diagnosed with liver cancer, and is fighting to prolong his life.
I’m still in the medical complex, but this is all up in the air. What makes me suspicious is they’re treating me too nice. (We’ll see.) They might send me back to a yard or keep me here. I can’t get to the decision maker.
Hey, I’m real proud of you. Not only as a true friend, but also for your achievements. I know you’ll keep it up and the sky’s the limit. Maybe you’ll even make it to the Larry King Show. Pond to pond of course. All I ask is as you struggle on, stop and give me a good thought. Now get your bald ass in there and get on with it.
L&R from over the Atlantic!
Two Tonys
Click here to read Letter 14
Two Tonys is dying, and really appreciates your comments.
Post comments below or email them to writeinside@hotmail.com. To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
If you would like to write to Two Tonys or send him a book or a magazine subscription, then please email me for instructions on mailing things to the prison.
Shaun Attwood
Iron Man’s Freedom (Part 2)
Iron Man - A martial-arts expert and personal trainer whose crimes include smashing someone’s door down: "I didn’t hurt anyone. I just wanted my fuckin’ money." His workouts are brutal. "I’ll have you in the best shape of your life by the time you get out," he told me.
I am working 12 hour days, and making serious money. Air conditioning is a very lucrative trade. I handle sales and service for my company, and I am the top seller in the company. They issued a company vehicle to me my second day on the job.
My reputation in Tucson is already spreading. Just today I got a call from the General Manager of a rival A/C company asking me to come work for him. I declined his offer because I am happy where I am at, and even more importantly, the guy I work for now really went out of his way to help me get set up when I first got out. You know how I am, I am loyal to those who have shown loyalty to me.
Got my own pad now, and I work-out at the YMCA's here in Tucson. There are several of them, so I just hit whichever one I am closest to when I finish my last service call for the day.
Anyway, it is getting late and I have a big day tomorrow.
Take care and know in your heart that it is with love and respect that I remain,
Your Friend and Brother,
Iron Man
Click here to read Iron Man’s previous blog.
Click her for the fight story, Iron Man v Snake Eyes
Our prison friends appreciate your comments.
Email comments for Iron Man to writeinside@hotmail.com or post them below. To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood
Iron Man - A martial-arts expert and personal trainer whose crimes include smashing someone’s door down: "I didn’t hurt anyone. I just wanted my fuckin’ money." His workouts are brutal. "I’ll have you in the best shape of your life by the time you get out," he told me.
I am working 12 hour days, and making serious money. Air conditioning is a very lucrative trade. I handle sales and service for my company, and I am the top seller in the company. They issued a company vehicle to me my second day on the job.
My reputation in Tucson is already spreading. Just today I got a call from the General Manager of a rival A/C company asking me to come work for him. I declined his offer because I am happy where I am at, and even more importantly, the guy I work for now really went out of his way to help me get set up when I first got out. You know how I am, I am loyal to those who have shown loyalty to me.
Got my own pad now, and I work-out at the YMCA's here in Tucson. There are several of them, so I just hit whichever one I am closest to when I finish my last service call for the day.
Anyway, it is getting late and I have a big day tomorrow.
Take care and know in your heart that it is with love and respect that I remain,
Your Friend and Brother,
Iron Man
Click here to read Iron Man’s previous blog.
Click her for the fight story, Iron Man v Snake Eyes
Our prison friends appreciate your comments.
Email comments for Iron Man to writeinside@hotmail.com or post them below. To post a comment if you do not have a Google/Blogger account, just select anonymous for your identity.
Shaun Attwood