Previous: First Amend This! An IDOC Newsletter, May ’23
Welcome to the June issue of First Amend This!
This publication provides an insider look at issues affecting the Idaho Department of Correction community. If you wish to assist this effort, share the link, copy and paste, or print and send this issue to another.
Loved ones are encouraged to join the Idaho Inmate Family Support Group (IIFSG) on Facebook or contact the group’s admins at idahoinmate@gmail.com.
Looking to help improve Idaho’s criminal justice system? We ask that you contact Erica Marshall with the Idaho Justice Project. The Idaho Justice Project works to bring the voices of people impacted by the criminal justice system to the legislative table to work on solutions.
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EDITOR’S NOTE
Shame on you, NY doccs…
Let’s First Amend This!
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ICI-O OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Kaylee Brewster of the Lewiston Morning Tribune last month shone her light on the Idaho Correctional Institution-Orofino, offering the 580-bed men’s facility as an example of the how the culture of corrections in Idaho is changing.
Brewster’s informative article provides a unique glimpse of the role community partnerships play in Idaho prisons.
View Brewster’s article, A Place of Change, here.
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WEEK ONE, DAY SIX BREAKFAST (MAINLINE)
Men/Women
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Oatmeal 1.5 cups / .75 cup
Pancakes 4 each / 2 each
Sugar pkts 2 / 1
Milk 8 oz / 8 oz
Syrup 2 oz/ 1oz
Margarine pkts 2 / 2
Banana 1 / 1
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AMMO MAKER OFFERS TO SPONSOR UPCOMING EXECUTIONS
In an article published by guns.com, Chris Eger writes that the Florida-based ammo maker Liberty Ammunition has reached out to the Department with an offer to sponsor future executions by supplying its firing squad with free ammunition.
Eger reports that the ammo maker is simply looking to do its part “in a time of budget constraints and increased violence in our nation.”
Idaho Legislators earlier this year overwhelmingly approved House Bill (HB) 186, making the firing squad a legal option for executions as the state continues struggling to find pharmaceutical suppliers willing to sell the chemicals required to put prisoners to death. An evolved moral standing and the threat of public backlash have been cited as reasons for their refusal to make the sale.
The law takes effect July 1st, making Idaho one of five states–along with Mississippi, Oklahoma, Utah, South Carolina–to implement the death penalty as a viable option for executions, according to information provided by the Death Penalty Information Center.
Public records requests for all communications between the IDOC and Liberty ammunition have yet to be processed, leaving it unclear as to whether Idaho has an official firing squad sponsor.
Source: Chris Eger, “Ammo Maker Offers Donation for Idaho Firing Squads,” Guns.com.
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WEEK ONE, DAY SIX LUNCH W/SNACK (MAINLINE)
Men/Women
______________________________
Deli meat 3 oz. / 3 oz.
Bread 4 oz. / 2 oz.
Mayo/mustard 1 each / 1 each
Tortilla chips 1 oz / 1 oz
Cookie 2 oz / 2 oz
Fresh fruit 1 / 1
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FORMER IDOC HEALTHCARE PROVIDER CHANGES ITS NAME AND FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY
On February 15, 2023, IDOC’s former healthcare provider, Corizon Health, which has since changed its name to Tehum Care Services, Inc., filed for bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, according to an article published by Prison Legal News.
The company included in the list of creditors and debts filed with the court the $2,631,593 attorney fees awarded earlier this year to the legal team of former IDOC resident Adree Edmo, who for five years fought the IDOC and its private healthcare contractor to be treated for gender dysphoria with gender-confirming surgery.
The 19 attorneys involved in representing Edmo petitioned the court to be reimbursed for the total of 5,968.30 billable hours they spent on the case. According to Eike Blohm, MD, author of the PLN article, the court ruled in their favor but reduced the number of billable hours to 5,691.5. Following the adjustment in hours, Blohm writes, the court also “awarded an adjusting factor of 2.0 to almost every billable item, since the PLRA limitation of $232.50 per hour significantly underestimated the true market value of the services provided by the attorneys involved.”
PLRA is an acronym for the 1996 Prison Litigation Reform Act that was put in place to impede prisoners’ ability to file civil cases through the courts.
Roxanne Barnes writes in an article published in partnership between Truthout and the Washington, D.C.-based watchdog organization Solitary Watch, “[A]fter passage of the PLRA, federal civil lawsuits from people in prison fell 43 percent by 2001, despite a 23 percent increase in the prison population, according to Human Rights Watch report. The PLRA also reduced the rate of successful prison lawsuits, acting as an obstacle to anyone seeking to confront unlivable conditions in prisons and jails.”
Sources: Eike Blohm, MD, “Transgender Idaho Prisoner Who Won Gender Conforming Surgery Awarded Over $2.6 Million in Legal Fees, Prison Legal News Mar. ’23. Roxanne Barnes, “Jailhouse Lawyers Are Often Punished with Solitary Confinement,” Solitary Watch.
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WEEK ONE, DAY SIX DINNER (MAINLINE)
Men/Women
______________________________
Pizza slices 1 lg. / 1 lg.
Tossed salad 1 cup / 1 cup
Vinaigrette 1 tsp / 1 tsp
Fruit 1/2 cup / 1/2 cup
Cookie or brownie 1 slice/ 1 slice
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IDOC INVESTIGATING DEATH OF ISCC RESIDENT AS SUICIDE
According to the IDOC website, the May 8 death of a resident at the Idaho State Correction Center is being investigated as a suicide.
The Department reports that paramedics and Ada County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a distress call from the facility early that morning, after correctional workers discovered the resident in peril in an unspecified housing unit.
The unidentified resident was pronounced dead at 7:42 am.
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HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Shared here from the IDOC website under protections provided by the Idaho Public Records Act.
People who are emotionally well, experts say, have fewer negative emotions and are able to bounce back from difficulties faster. This quality is called resistance. Learning healthy ways to cope and how to draw from resources in your community can help you build resilience.
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- Develop healthy physical habits–healthy eating, exercise, and good night’s sleep can improve your physical and mental health.
- Take time for yourself each day. Notice the good moments. Do something you enjoy.
- Look at problems from different angles. Think of challenging situations as growth opportunities.
- Practice gratitude. Take time to be thankful each day.
- Explore your beliefs about the meaning and purpose of life. Guide your life by the principles important to you.
- Tap into social connections and community. Surround yourself with positive, healthy people. Ask for help when you need it.
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“THE ‘UNAVOIDABLE’ TRAUMA OF PRISON” AS DESCRIBED BY AN ANXIETY AND TRAUMA DISORDER SPECIALIST FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
It is unfortunate that I was unable to reach our good friends at Open Campus for permission to share an excerpt from the April 26 issue of of College Inside, in which a Q&A session between reporter Charlotte West and clinical psychologist Napoleon Wells helps to explain the factors that contribute to prison suicide rates.
Please take the time to click over, this shit is pretty important.
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INCREASE IN STARTING WAGES FOR PROBATION AND PAROLE OFFICERS
The starting wages for probation and parole officers is now $25 per hour. That’s a 32% increase from the starting wages earned in 2019, when new arrivals started at $19 per hour.
Source: Idaho Department of Correction on Facebook
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NEW IDOC PODCAST
Residents of ICI-O have launched a new podcast. Fittingly called the CONtrast, episodes can be found here.
Source: Kaylee Brewster, “A Place of Change,” Lewiston Tribune.
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RENICK ON THE RADIO
With six years of episodes available for streaming, Mark Renick hosts Victory Over Sin on Boise’s KBXL 94.1FM, Saturdays at 12:30 pm. The program, funded by an advocacy arm of https://www.svdpid.org, shares what it’s like to live incarcerated in Idaho and then come out of incarceration to live on parole.
5.6.23. Returning citizen and Free2Succeed mentor Osa McDonald discusses the importance of making the most of every day in prison and digging deep to examine one’s life and faults.
5.20.23. As the recovery program manager for Interfaith Sanctuary, Terrence Sharrer’s passion for helping others is deeply rooted in his own experiences. Here he discusses his work and how the Interfaith Sanctuary is now widening its umbrella.
5.27.23. Renick’s longtime friend and former cellie Mark Chaney reflects on the role programs and encouragement play in the prison setting, and the importance of establishing a relationship with your parole officer upon release.
Contact Mr. Renick at 208-477-1006 or visit https://www.svdpid.org for more information on reentry resources in Southern Idaho.
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RECENTLY ACKNOWLEDGED
Statewide — Ofc. Leo Ferro for graduating Post Academy Session 35 with Top of Class and Tactical Edge awards; a total of 68 IDOC and Idaho Correctional Industries Staff with promotions during a ceremony at the Statehouse.
Central Office — Policy Coordinator Jack Fraser and Chief Investigator Nicole Fraser for 25 years of service; Project Manager Whitney Ascuena-Bolt as Employee of the Quarter.
ISCC — Ofc. Ethan Walcom and Ofc. Janet Marques-Zamrano for five years of service.
Source: Idaho Department Of Correction on Facebook
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RESIDENT AUDITING 101
This month, instead of using this space to show which public records requests I, the Resident Auditing Committee, currently have in the hopper, I would like to offer my appreciation to the Transparency Department and IDOC Spokesperson Jeff Ray for doing their best to meet the demands of their jobs and for continuing to entertain my ambitions as journalist.
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RESOURCES FOR THE INCARCERATED
College Inside, a newsletter about prison education, is produced by Open Campus, a national nonprofit newsroom that covers college-in-prison programs, Pell Grants for incarcerated students, career and technical education, and education in juvenile justice facilities.
Open Campus Media
2460 17th Avenue #1015
Santa Cruz, CA 96062
www.opencampusmedia.org
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INMATE SERVICES AT WORK
Date: 5.18.23
To: Idaho Nonprofit Center CEO Kevin Bailey
Re: Network request/ media introduction
[This email forwarded from a resident of the Idaho Maximum Security Institution]
Hi Kevin,
I’m Patrick Irving, an advocate for responsible corrections, contributor to Prison Journalism Project and member of the [PEN America’s] Incarcerated Writers Bureau. I’m covering the current demand of behavioral health and trauma treatment services in Idaho, as well as in Idaho prisons.
I’m curious if you have in your network any nonprofit advocate organizations or behavioral health services that might relate to my story.
Please respond through [this email] when able.
Many thanks,
Patrick Irving
IMSI
PO Box 51
Boise, ID 83707
bookofirving82431.com
direct messaging via JPay.com
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SUGGESTION BOX
I suggest that we all think for a minute on something we might like about someone we might not.
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Shout out to Shy Boy at the Yard!
“Cream (Lp Version w/o Rap Monologue)”
— Prince & the New Power Generation