Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, July 19, 1990 TAG: 9007190636
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-5 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
In a letter sent Wednesday, the National Prison Project asked Virginia Department of Corrections Director Edward Murray to end the "lock down" restriction that keeps inmates in their cells for 22 hours a day.
David Fathi, a project lawyer who toured the penitentiary July 10, said the prison reform advocacy group is considering legal action against the department if Murray does not take corrective action or "close the place down."
The prison was scheduled to close in June and its 685 inmates were to be transfered to new prisons under construction. Delays have postponed the transfer and the Richmond penitentiary is expected to remain open until November.
Project officials said their inspection found filthy and roach-infested cell blocks, individually locked cells that could be a fire hazard and prisoners bunked in cells so small the man in the top bunk could not sit up.
The project, which called the Virginia facility "the most shameful prison in America" requested that the Department of Corrections immediately clean all cells, hire an exterminator and install fans in each cell. It also asked that bedding be cleaned once a week and that inoperable showers and toilets be repaired within 24 hours.
Corrections Department spokesman Wayne Farrar said Murray had not seen the letter. He called the prison "old and dilapidated," and said "that's why we wanted to close it."
He said the lock-down was in place because the locks are frail and cannot withstand frequent openings and closings. "For the safety of the inmates, we feel they should be locked in," Farrar said.
Patricia A Terrangi, deputy warden at the prison, disputed the project's claims. "The information is based on inmate allegations and statements," she said.
by CNB