Posted inCruel and Unusual?, Justice & Safety, Open records

Wisconsin prison guard fired for harassing inmates

An internal investigation found that DOC Sgt. Thomas J. Lukas engaged in “demeaning and harassing behavior” toward inmates at Fox Lake Correctional Institution, a medium-security prison in Dodge County. This included an email he sent to another guard making a reference to inmate Antron Kent and another inmate that was determined to be “sexual in nature and inappropriate.”

Posted inHealth & Welfare, Justice & Safety, Under the Influence

Treatment eludes many drunken driving offenders

“This time, I’m confident, I’m willing, I’m able and I want the sobriety,” says Andrew MacGillis, currently in Fox Lake Correctional Institution on his seventh drunken driving offense. But treatment may prove elusive for MacGillis, who says he has not been offered rehabilitation programs at Fox Lake. Others face a delay or are found noncompliant with court-ordered interviews that qualify them for treatment.

Posted inCruel and Unusual?, Government, Justice & Safety

Waupun prison guards accused of abusing dozens of inmates

Part 1: The Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism has identified 40 allegations of physical or psychological abuse by correctional officers against inmates in Waupun’s segregation unit since 2011. The allegations, involving 33 inmates, allege extreme mistreatment, including being beaten and stomped on while handcuffed behind their backs.

Posted inGovernment, Justice & Safety

How the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism investigated prison-abuse allegations

The DOC, citing security reasons, denied the Center’s requests to interview inmates and take photographs in the segregation unit at Waupun, or videotape an inmate at another facility. It redacted from the released records references to inmate injuries and the physical or mental health treatment they received. It categorically denied access to formal complaints filed by inmates against guards, although some released records do convey the inmates’ perspective. And it denied access to video recordings to various incidents, saying this would compromise security.