Suicide on the Rise

From the beginning of April up until now, there have been three suicides and two suicide attempts at the East Arkansas Regional Unit in our Max Facility. I myself have not yet been sent to the hole so I cannot give a hands-on experience on how people are treated, but I can attest to how people look once they come out after a period of time. One of my Muslims is the most buffed up person in this unit, but after a month and half of being confined he looks as if he hasn’t eaten or exercised in months, and he’s NOT the only individual that looks this way. Others come out looking sick and malnourished. Brothers are saying some days they go without showers, are left in their pads with the heat up especially around this time of year where temperatures are steadily rising, and their grievances are naturally being ignored. This led many to act out by flooding their cells with their own feces and urine. For others in what has in the past been worst cases, but now in the last month; brothers are taking the suicide route.

What’s both sad and suspicious about these suicides is that the individuals attempting, and/or committing suicide are NOT lifers, however individuals who are seen bound to go home. At this time rumors are surfacing that were maybe officers involved with these sudden deaths. Whether true, or not brothers are dying. This has caused the officers to finally start doing their routine security checks which they’ve not done regularly until these events started taking place. It’s sad brothers have to die just so staff can finally start doing their jobs correctly .