Another prisoner driven to
death
Massachusetts Prison Voice |
November-December 2006
My words here may not be 100% accurate,
but I assure whoever reads my words will not forget this tragic matter
all too soon. Here is 95% of my own personal knowledge of watching,
listening to and baring my own soul as a man was completely broken down
by a corruptional officer of the Mass State Prison called OCCC in
Bridgewater, Ma.
Inmate Steven Koumaris entered the HSU
hospital unit on his own on October 5th or 6th,
2006 for injuries to his leg and possible other injuries sustained from
2 separate inmates of the MPU unit. The first issue was a good 3 1/3
weeks ago and the second one, I’m not sure but close to his entering the
HSU. On October 5, 2006, Steven was placed on the HSU ward with 4 other
prisoners. This is an open ward with 8-10 beds.
Steven ended up being sexually assaulted
by 2 of these prisoners, one of which was placed inside the HSU because
of a fight. He is now in isolation for one of the two incidents or
perhaps both. Steven had banged on the door as Lt. Steven Bisailion
walked by and told him through the door, according to another prisoner
in the ward, that he had been raped by the two men. The Lt. left him
there to go get Sgt. Joe Almeida, the worst of the worst of
corruptional officers. Sgt. Almeida arrives and now bangs on the
door for Steven with “What’s your problem?” The door opens and closes.
Steven tells the Sgt., not 10 feet from my cell, how the 2 men had just
raped him and he needed to be seen by a doctor or the Captain and that
he was not going back in there with these men.
The Sgt. now cuts him off and tells him
that he doesn’t have time to be making out any fucking faggot reports,
for Steven to either go back in there and be the bitch, suck a dick or
fight... Steven refused to enter and the Sgt. opens the door and Steven
asks again for a doctor or the Captain. He is told no. Request for
doctor or Captain is denied. Steven requests to go to mental health. A
call is placed to mental health and Steven is cuffed only to be walked
to his cell #5, 25 feet away. Mental health came and he explained what
had happened to them. The results: the Sgt. and crew took all of
Steven’s clothes and he was left on a suicide watch, to be checked every
15 minutes by a c/o and logged in the chart. Steven, I knew, was not at
all strong enough to last on any 15 minute suicide watch with nothing
but 3 meals a day and whatever for medications. The guards here don’t
even give you toilet paper while on watch. One could eat a roll and
perhaps choke. Steven made no loud noises at all. He knocked yet he was
not heard as far as the ward. When I would knock, bang or yell, it’s
heard over in the next unit. Point, Steven was not at all strong; no
voice, no strength, not a loud person at all. Steven’s attempts with
every c/o passing, every round by c/o or Sgt., he would ask to see the
doctor or a Captain. When denied, he’d ask “Why not?”
On or about October 8th,
Steven flooded his toilet by either keeping his foot inside the bowl or
maybe a plastic cop saved. He thought this would get a Captain down here
to the HSU, but none ever came. Steven was taken out and water cleaned,
2 or 3 times this went on.
Sgt. Joseph Almeida would parade Steven
all the way down to the insulin cage of the HSU. where several medical
staff and prisoners coming and going were visible. Sgt. Joe Almeida had
done it to me on Sept 29th, 2006. I was using the bathroom
and Sgt. J A Hole Almeida would stand at the door making endless
immature comments. I would put strips of toilet paper on the window and
this got the LT. and crew to escort me nude and handcuffed to the
insulin cage.
Sgt. J A Hole Almeida tore into Steven
and threatened him with every verbal humiliating comment possible. The
verbal abuse is as bad as the physical and don’t think it’s not.
Sgt. J A Hole Almeida tore into Steven
and threatened him with insane jokes and taunts, daring him to kill
himself. This animal in a Mass. DOC uniform making anywhere from $30.00
- $35.00 an hour, offered this human being, totally lost with no help, a
sheet to hang himself with. Unbelievable nature for any human being to
even attempt to exploit one’s vulnerabilities such as Steven’s
conditions.
This Sgt. would be held responsible if
Steven ever hanged himself, because there are no sheets allowed to
anyone on mental health watches unless mental health allows a smock or
mental health security blanket.
Steven was pulled out and paraded nude. I
would look into his eyes and nod with a “Just hang in there” look.
Tuesday, Oct. 10th, a cell was
needed ASAP and the isolation unit was full. I was eligible to go back
to isolation #2, #4 was eligible and #3 was eyeballed 24-7 for 17 days.
#5 was Steven, also on suicide watch and not at all stable. What does
this fine Dept. of Corruption do? They take the weakest person in this
asylum called a prison and they clothe him and send him out to his MPU
in population and tell him he’s gonna be kept locked up on AA status.
5:30 AM – 6:00 AM, Oct. 12th, Steven’s body was found in a
pool of blood in his cell. He had cut his femoral artery twice and his
throat once with a razor.
By 8:50 AM – 9:00 AM, a nurse from the
third shift, who had to respond to the code 99 MPU and pronounce Steven
dead, was walking by my cell a bit stunned. She told me that Steven had
taken his life early that morning and how she had to stay half the day
to answer questions from different prison investigators. The next c/o to
go by my cell was asked about Steven and I was told, as though I had
asked about the weather, he cut his inner thigh and throat and he’s all
wrapped up. Like he didn’t have to finish his sentence.
Steven had over 30 years inside these
prison walls and he’d been through a lot. How is it that when a man asks
for help with medical problems, not remotely close to fatal, he ends up
dead???
Let’s try to help our source out with
getting her some needed reports and please, if you’re inside or outside,
let’s not forget about Steven’s death or any other prisoners' death
before Steven’s!
TM
Last Updated on
Wednesday August 29, 2007.