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Judges Junk Jailcam
theodp writes "With one dissenting opinion, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that an AZ sheriff's use of Webcams to broadcast prisoners being booked and held in cells constituted a profoundly undesirable level of humiliation, rejecting the sheriff's argument that the Webcasts deterred crime and showed the public how jails work." The Village Voice has a good article from a few years ago detailing how the jailcams work.
Joe Arpaio has made a career of mistreating people that are being held for crimes they are not yet even found guilty of. He's been in trouble before for various activities of his before, including feeding those under his charge food that has been known to be bad - such as moldy bologna sandwiches.
That's right, all you have to do to enter Arpaio's 'House of Cruelty and Being Treated as an Animal' is be arrested for a crime. The police could be wrong, which is not uncommon, but you've already been treated as if you were guilty by that bastard.
Not only have I wished Arpaio would lose the office, but I've wished that he would be arrested and found guilty of thousands of counts of cruelty.
"You know your god is man-made when he hates all the same people you do."
His jailhouse tactics have cost the county millions in legal fees and settlements...
An article in Harper's from April, 2001, says: "So far, the total bill for jury awards and settlements is approximately $15 million."
The article notes:
However, Arpaio has a high approval rating, is regularly re-elected and his endorsement is sought by nearly all politicians.
Just in case you're interested on what the aforementioned sheriff is up to THESE days, take a look at the latest New Times.
-72
-Those who dance are considered insane by those who can't hear the music.
But some of the images are more invasive: strip searches, female prisoners in various stages of undress, and, up until late April, a constant, unobstructed view of the women's toilet and the women using it.
Seriously?!? No wonder he lost the case. Way to hand your detainees tons of county cash, bozo. This type of guy in elected office is why we need strong anti-abuse laws on the books, and stricter supervision of prison operations. More interestingly, why isn't this bigger nationwide news? It would seem to have all of the makings of a major story, and yet I've only heard of it on /.
Of course, though the article states the toilet-cam as fact, the last line in the article has some hapless spokesdrone denying that charge... anyone know if they're just lying to cover up? From the attitude of the sheriff ( and much of law enforcement ), I'm guessing there really was a clear view of the women's toilet...
In 1997 Arpaio entered a plea agreement with the DOJ to improve conditions, yet in the last 7 years he has failed to do so.
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Unfortunately it isn't exactly news when someone falls ill to heat exhaustion in jail.
I know of two people personally who suffered heat related issues while being housed for minor offenses.
Here is a list from the person running against him in the election that lists quite a few issues the jail has had throughout the years.
http://www.sabanforsheriff.com/news/sonorannews
Please keep in mind that most of these people are there for a few days to a year or so. These aren't rapists or murderers. These are people who have been arrested for minor offenses, probation violation, or are awaiting trial.
Gailin
I wish there was a fscking blue pill
Check out "Top Ten Reasons NOT to vote for Joe".
"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity but they've always worked for me" - HST
Q: In addition to the Web cam, what are some other things that are unique about your jail?
A: When I took office, I decided to put tents up, so we have almost 1,500 [inmates housed] in tents in the desert. I've gone down from three meals a day to two meals a day -- I call it brunch. And we have the cheapest meals, probably, in the country: 20 cents a meal.
I'm cracking down on animal cruelty, and when I make an arrest [for that], I have to seize [the animal involved]. I decided to put the dogs in cell blocks [in an unused jail]. I took some heat because that's the only jail we have that's air-conditioned. Also, it costs $1.15 a day to feed the dogs and only 40 cents a day to feed the inmates, but that's the way it goes around here.
I took away [inmates'] coffee; took away their smoking; took away their movies. The only TV they get is the Weather Channel, and they have to hear me do bedtime stories. I introduce the story, and [then play an] audio book. They can go to the library and get a regular copy, but this helps them learn how to read.
I put them in pink underwear. I decided to do that six years ago. I put them in striped uniforms several years ago, and I have male and female chain gangs. We do things different here since I became the sheriff. I just got reelected to a third term, and now everybody thinks I'm running for governor. All the polls show me leading for governor, but I haven't decided whether I'm running next year.
Q: It's been reported that you've had at least 800 lawsuits filed against you.
A: It doesn't mean nothing. It's how many you lose. Everybody sues me for the cockroaches, the food.
Q: Have you had to change some of your policies as a result?
A: I haven't changed anything.
Hello,
Amnesty International takes a somewhat dim view of this Sheriff's methods, and note that there was at least one suspicious death in custody among other things.
innocent ... Until convicted, like when arrested, booked and held, people are innocent of the crime of which they are accused.
Actually, they are to be TREATED as innocent until proven guilty.
It isn't that they ARE innocent. It is that the government is NOT AUTHORIZED to apply PENALTIES unless and until their guilt has been PROVEN.
There is the PERPETRATOR, the person who committed the crime.
There is the SUBJECT of an investigation, somebody the cops think MIGHT be the perpetrator.
There is the SUSPECT, someone the cops think is sufficiently LIKELY to be the perpetrator that it's a good idea to hang onto him until a case can be presented and tried.
There is the CONVICT, someone whose guilt has been proven and is now subject to punishment.
The process of convicting someone consists of converting him from a SUSPECT to a CONVICT, by proving within the appropriate legal standards (beyond reasonable doubt) that there really was a PERPETRATOR of a real crime, and he is it.
Any treatment of them other than obtaining their presence in the justice system, which could prove their guilt, is unacceptable, and threatens us all.
Dead on!
People being booked are SUSPECTS (or maybe even SUBJECTS or material witnesses). They are NOT proven guilty and thus are NOT subject to punishment. The jailing is JUST to insure they can be brought to trial. Nothing more than the minimum inconvenience necessary for the smooth functioning of the system is appropriate.
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way