In New York state, the mentally retarded cannot face the death penalty
Inside a special cellblock for mentally retarded inmates
The Times Hearld-Record - Monday March 29, 1999
By Kristen Schweizer Staff Writer
Sitting at a table inside Sullivan Correctional facility, Douglas Kendrick quietly performs piecework along-side fellow inmates.
His forhead is moist with perspiration. It requires much of the 37-year-old inmate's concentration as he slowly assembles lashway clamps for an out-side company.
"This isn't that easy, but it passes time and lets us move around," Kendrick said, tossing a finished clamp into a pile. Kendrick and the others are the inmates of E-South a special 64-cell block inside Sullivan that houses developmentally disabled inmates. It is one of three such units statewide.
But E-South is no typical cell block. It's commurnty of inmates living with mental retardation, learning disabilities and having trouble with such daily activities as taking a shower, making a bed and dressing.
On the surface, many of the inmates are quiet, seemingly gentle. Yet behind many of the childlike demeanors stand some of the worst crimes in the prison: murder, rape and arson.
Inmates are placed in E-South because they are unable to function among the general population they easily could be manipulated and oftentimes victimized.
"E-South is special," echo many of its residents.
Even the correction officers assigned to E-South consider themselves more than prison keepers. Tom Klein jokingly refers to himself as a "den father" to the inmates. He has worked in E-South, also known as the special needs unit, for 3½ years. He's been a correction officer for 14 years.
“I like working in here better than in the general, population. he said. "You don't have job satisfaction there. Here we are encouraged to interact with inmates.
"This block is like a community therapy”
Counselors who work in E-South say they don’t judge the inmates by their crimes. rather, they help them cope and learn. These inmates, like most, one day will return into the community.
“People here are aware of their criminal behavior,” said counsler Bart Krieger. "But do they have the insight to seek help before things got to a point? That's been a question for a long time."
‘We have to treat them differently’
Ernie Hallenbeck, 22, came to E-South last April as a troublemaker He says he was a bully, a tease and very argumentative.
"I thought I had to do that to make myself 1ook bigger and have an image for myself," said Hallenbeck, who has a learning disability.
He says he's changed. The attention he's received in E-South and the variety of programs offered, he believes, have helped him mature.
One goal of counselors here is the eventual placement of E-South inmates into the prison's general population, said Roger Rascoe, a senior counselor at E-South.
Some inmates, however, who are vulnerable and easily manipulated will stay here.
E-South looks like any other cell block at Sullivan. Large steel doors slide open with the switch of a lock, A step inside shows two levels of cells.
One area is designated for inmates in the Adult Daily Living program.
Daily Living is for inmates who do not have basic hygiene skills, Rascoe said. During the morning, instead of attending regular programs with other E-South inmates, the assignment for these inmates is to clean their cell, make their bed, take a shower and clean their clothes.
The inmates are not locked in their cells, but must stay in the cell block learning "these basic life skills," Rascoe said.
Daily Living inmates spend the second half of their morning in special education. Once they learn about hygiene, these inmates graduate into regular programs.
Discipline inside E-South is different than in general population.
For example, an inmate who misbhaves may have "therapeutic time out," rather than being sent to special housing.
“We have to treat (E-South) inmates differently: They may sometimes misbehave to get locked in their cell," said Kevin Hunt, deputy superintendent of programs at the prison.
Another form of discipline may be assigning the inmate to a work crew or have another inmate talk to him, he said.
Three correction officers, two counselors, a special education teacher and one teacher's aide work with E-South inmates.
Several years ago, correction officer Kevin Knack came up with the idea to create the industrial workshop where inmate Kendrick works.
"We needed something to keep them busy," Knack said. Since then, among other things, the inmates have done piecework, built birdhouses and sorted books.
Knack sees the difference between E-South inmates and general-population inmates as this: "(E-South) are more on a needs-basis. Inmates in general population are always looking for a scam, trying to get one over on you."
"A lot of the inmates in (E-South) are here to be protected from general population."
He acknowledges, though, that the work can get frustrating, dealing with inmates with low intelligence and functioning skills every day. "What they want today, they will want tomorrow."
Kendrick, whose IQ is borderline mental retardation, says he prefers E-South to general population. Here he isn't picked on, sworn at or called names like "crybaby," by other inmates.
E-South placement
When an inmate enters the prison system, he is tested on reading and mathematical levels, Rascoe said.
If, through such testing, and the inmate's history; he is identified as lower functioning, an IQ test is given.
Normal IQ is 85 to 115. Mental retardation is an IQ below 70.
An inmate who qualifies for a special needs unit such as E-South is sent to one of three prisons in the state: Sullivan, Wende Correctional facility near Buffalo or Arthur Kill Correctional Facility in Staten Island.
Sullivan and Wende are maximum security, Arthur Kill is medium security.
"We're like the second stop," Rascoe said. "We typically get the inmate who succeeds at Wende and fails at Arthur Kill.”
Sullivan also gets inmates from the reception center and referrals from general populati6n from other prisons.
There is usually no waiting list for E-South, Rascoe said.
"At the most there may be a brief waiting time and it might take us a few weeks to get the inmate in here. But we always have discharges and people going home."
And not all mentally retarded inmates go to a special needs unit.
"We may have an inmate with a 70 IQ that's very good at functioning and may not need a special unit," Rascoe said. "But we may also get someone whose IQ is above 70 but they still need help."
Inmates who qualify for E-South may have difficulty functioning in a social setting, have poor social and hygiene skills and need help coping.
“If we put these inmates in general population they would be taken advantage of,” Rascoe said.
Life in the cell block
Every day at E-South, inmates who live there split their time between several programs, which include: special education, an industrial workshop and training program, janitorial work and discussion groups.
On this day, Jay Jay, 52, spends his afternoon in a small inmate group discussing a variety of issues not often heard in prison.
Drug and alcohol addictions, recidivism, sex, compulsion and family all have been topics of discussion daily inside a discussion group on relationships.
"We deal with problems here," explains Jay Jay, a burly man with a white beard who wears a white and dark blue knitted hat on his head.
"It's everyday living; whatever is on your mind you share it. I was having family problems, I took it to the group." Another inmate said he has discussed his HIV status on this day.
Through discussion groups, inmates can learn how to "do a better bid" or bide their time in prison, said Krieger.
“Living in jail is not easy E-South is special," he said.
Included in today's discussion group are two inmates from general population. They work and live in E-South as inmate program assistants and are paid for their work. There are a total of four such assistants in E-South.
"We don't just take anyone” as an inmate assistant, explains Krieger “We look for special criteria."
Historically, he said, mental retardation is a “burnout field” for people work in it "These (assistants) are doing their regular (prison) bid and also doing this."
Each inmate assistant receives special training on how to work with E-South inmates, said assistant Larry Sieteski, 51.
"Usually in a jail you look out for yourself; here we look out for the others, too,” he said.
Inmate Lincoln Delaney, 42, said he feels safe with people looking out for him in prison.
"There's stabbing and fighting in general population," he said. "Here people like us can cope with our problems. Out there people make fun of us. In here we are safe.”
Snapshot of E-South Inmates at Sullivan Correctional Facility
Source: Sullivan Correctional Facility, New York State Commission on Quality of Care.