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| Federal officials investigating inmate complaints |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 04/16/2004 |
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Federal authorities say they are investigating allegations that workers at a detention center have mistreated inmates. Inmate complaints at the Rolling Plain Regional Jail and Detention Center in Haskell, Texas, range from not getting enough soap and lotion to a lack of proper medical treatment, said Patricia Mancha, spokeswoman for the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A special assessment team dispatched from Washington to investigate is expected to issue a report in a few weeks, Mancha said. The 551-bed private jail contracts with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in Dallas. Judy Morrell, a corrections officer for two years, said she quit recently over "inhumane" treatment of inmates. She alerted federal officials about the conditions weeks ago. "Animals were treated better than the inmates," Morrell, who lives in Seymour, told the Wichita Falls Times Record News in a Thursday story. "I refuse to be a part of it anymore." Because of overcrowding, some inmates were forced to sleep on the floor and given rations that were substandard and irregular, she said. Jail administrators deny the allegations, which warden Rudy Sanchez called the unfair manipulations of disgruntled employees. Officials are trying to boost jail services to receive accreditation from the American Correctional Association, and the efforts have compounded work hours among staff, he said. Rolling Plains has passed state and federal guidelines for jail standards, Sanchez said. Terry Julian, executive director the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, said the jail recently passed an inspection. But Dallas real estate investor Ralph Isenberg whose wife was in the jail, said a change of management is needed. During visits to see his wife, jail staff confirmed his suspicions that detainees were being denied treatment for diarrhea, migraine headaches and other ailments, Isenberg said. |
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