Understaffing’s Effect on Recreation

Understaffing is a huge problem in corrections that affects not just the inmates, but their families and correctional officers. The impact, however, upon inmates is by far the one most felt, and most ignored.

I have seen understaffing prevent inmates from getting recreation. For long periods of time, I have seen inmate populations forced to stay indoors simply because a facility doesn’t have enough officers to supervise inmates on the rec yard. This, of course, denies inmates the opportunity to properly exercise. It denies them the opportunity to get clean, fresh air and sunshine. These denials, then, help lead to an unhealthy inmate population. Sedentary inmates develop a plethora of physical ailments. They have high blood pressure, heart problems, prostate issues, hemorrhoids, and many other diseases. They also develop many psychological issues. Depression is a huge problem amongst inmates. These psychological issues, then, lead to suicide, drug abuse, and assaults on other inmates, correctional officers, and staff members. Oh, and don’t forget, taxpayers are the ones who ultimately fit the bill for all of this. Their tax money goes to pay for correctional officers who transport inmates to and from doctor visits. Their tax money goes to pay for the gas needed to transport inmates. And their tax money goes to pay for the medical staff that is necessary to care for an unhealthy inmate population.

I have seen understaffing cause other inmates to have to provide emergency medical care for other inmates. On two separate occasions, I have seen an inmate suffer a grand mal seizure and other inmates have had to provide emergency medical care until staff could be summoned to help. On one occasion, the inmate suffering the seizure had actually stopped breathing and was in serious danger of death. I have also seen inmates denied medical care from the Medical Department because of understaffing. Recently, I saw an inmate denied an EKG because there wasn’t enough medical staff to administer it. However, I have also seen inmates denied sick call and other services due to understaffing as well.

I have seen understaffing lead to a lack of supervision in housing units. Due to the lack of sufficient staffing, I have seen inmates locked in cells where they have no way to contact staff for hours at a time. During these times, quite often, no staff members have been able to make security rounds to check on the safety and security of inmates. This leaves inmates in serious jeopardy should an emergency occur. It also leaves inmates to fend for themselves in the event of an attack from another inmate. Now I know most of the time, if not all, security rounds are logged in the logbook at facilities. However, a simple check of the camera footage will clearly show that security rounds are not made the way policy dictates.

Finally, I have seen how understaffing affects the overall condition of a prison. There are some very good staff members at most facilities. These are men and women who truly seek to do their jobs well. However, most of these people find themselves being overworked and burnout in time. At that point, they simply quit and make the understaffing problem worse, or they give up and start behaving like most of the other staff members who could care less about the inmate population.

I understand understaffing is a major problem for many institutions. I also understand that certain steps must be taken when dealing with understaffing. However, placing your inmate population at risk or punishing your inmate population should never be acceptable. What rehabilitative message do you send your inmate population when you punish them for something that is not their fault? What rehabilitative message do you send your inmate population when you fail to provide for their overall safety and security due to your failure to properly man your institution?

Travis Sorrells, #1095956
Haynesville Correctional Center

An Idea for MORE Earned Credits

For a decade, I have been incarcerated. During that time I have greatly sought to become a better person. I have led church services and ministered to other inmates. I have taken college classes through International Christian College and Seminary. I have worked the various jobs I have been given and maintained employment during this time. I have taken rehabilitation classes as they have been made available to me. In fact, I have even taken “Thinking For A Change” multiple times because I volunteered to retake the class so the class would have enough people in it. I have taken no drugs or drank any mash. I have received no institutional infractions and have sought to be polite to staff, officers, administrators, and other inmates. And I have written a book that is in the process of being published. I do not write all of this to toot my own horn. I write this as a matter of fact, to prove my point.

Despite my being an example of a model inmate, I am in no way rewarded by the Commonwealth of Virginia for my good behavior and rehabilitative endeavors. I, like every other inmate in Virginia convicted of what the Commonwealth calls a violent crime, must spend 85% of my sentence in prison. So the question that has to be asked is, why should any inmate in a Virginia prison try to do things to better themselves? I mean, what is the point of doing something that has no reward associated with it? Think of it this way. If your boss told you tomorrow that he wanted you to start staying after work for an hour each day for a year so you could take a class to be a better employee, would you do it? And what if your boss told you there is no extra pay for taking the class or guarantee of a promotion? In addition, how would you feel about the class if you found out that other employees who aren’t taking the class aren’t suffering any consequences for not taking the class? Would you take the class to become a better employee for your employer if there was no reward for doing so? I seriously doubt it.

Anyone who has ever raised a child or a pet knows that punishment for wrongdoing and rewards for doing right must be doled out in appropriate proportion to one another. Let’s say you have a young dog that you want to train to be a good dog. And let’s say you begin by shocking the dog every time the dog does something wrong. You may cause the dog to stop some bad behaviors, but you will struggle to get the dog to behave correctly if you don’t reward the dog. So what do you do? You reward the dog for doing right and shock the dog for doing wrong. By doing this you show the dog that there are good consequences for acting appropriately and bad consequences for acting inappropriately. This seems like common sense, right? Then why don’t our state officials get it? Despite all of the right things I have done, I have to spend the same amount of time in prison as most violent offenders. And no matter how many right things I do, this fact won’t change. It is this fact that accounts for a great deal of the violence, chaos, drug use, and wrongdoing that is so prevalent in Virginia jails and prisons today. Why should inmates even seek to act in appropriate ways when they receive the same treatment as those who act inappropriately? Now someone may counter that by saying that inmates who act inappropriately won’t be released after doing only 85% of their time. That may sound good, but I see firsthand that it isn’t true. Everyday inmates who act inappropriately are released after doing 85% of their sentence. The Commonwealth’s system is severely flawed and in desperate need of an overhaul. Men and women who are incarcerated desperately need to be rewarded and punished proportionately in accordance to their behavior.

I have a suggestion that I believe, if made legislation, could greatly benefit inmates, the Department of Corrections, the Commonwealth, and all of society. I have suggested this to a couple of our legislators, but apparently it fell on deaf ears. Anyway, my suggestion is simple and provides incentives for inmates in Virginia to better themselves during their incarceration. It also holds Virginia inmates accountable for their right or wrong behaviors. Following the current sentencing guidelines, my suggestion is as follows: Inmates who obtain a degree, diploma, or vocational certification during their incarceration receive a 10% enhanced good time credit for each degree, diploma, or vocational certification they obtain. Nonviolent inmates may receive these enhanced good time credits up to the point of receiving 50% enhanced earned sentencing credits. Violent inmates may receive these enhanced good time credits up to the point of receiving 70% enhanced earned sentencing credits. However, these enhanced earned good time credits will only be made available to those inmates who remain free of institutional infractions, pass random drug tests, maintain employment, complete all required rehabilitative programs, and conduct themselves as model inmates. In this way inmates will be rewarded for appropriate conduct and disciplined for inappropriate conduct. Also inmates who work exceptionally hard to better themselves will be rewarded significantly for their hard work. In addition, the Department of Corrections will have fewer problems and the Commonwealth and society will reap the benefits of having men and women who leave prison smarter and better. These men and women will be more employable, more ready to start their own businesses, better equipped to integrate back into society, better equipped to become good parents, and much better equipped to become productive members of society. Isn’t that what we all want? Shouldn’t that be the goal of our criminal justice system, from start to finish? And shouldn’t our laws regarding sentencing reflect that?

Travis Sorrells, #1095956
Haynesville Correctional Center

COMMANDS FOR MORALITY AND ETHICAL LIVING

My name is Travis Sorrells, #1095956. I am incarcerated at Haynesville Correctional Center. I would like to comment on mental health both in prison and in our world today. I see many problems with mental health here in prison, especially around the holidays. I believe a large amount of these mental health problems are exacerbated by the way our society has devalued human life. I also believe this devaluing of human life has led to a drastic decline in ethics and morality that can be seen throughout our world.

To attempt to curb this decline in ethics and morality, I have come up with a set of moral and ethical commands that I believe could be displayed in schools and other public places with little complaint. Below I will list the commands and then provide a defense for them. Please read through them, meditate on them, and share your thoughts on them. I believe they could help to stem the tide of the devaluing of human life and help alleviate some of the mental health problems we see in our world today.

COMMANDS FOR MORALITY AND ETHICAL LIVING

1) Love one another.

2) Do to others what you would want them to do to you.

3) Be kind to each other and forgive one another; do good works.

4) Constantly think about ways to move others to do good and love one another.

5) Honor and obey your parents and guardians.

6) Do not commit murder.

7) Do not engage in sex outside of the bonds of marriage.

8) Do not steal, cheat, or defraud another.

9) Do not lie or deceive others.

10) Do not strongly desire to have anything that belongs to another.

My defense of these commands:

First and foremost, let me stress, and make it abundantly clear, that I am not trying to replace the Ten Commandments. Nor am I trying to change or secularize the Ten Commandments. I have absolutely no authority, power, or desire to do that. I am merely trying to present to society a list of commands, that if obeyed, could lead to a life of good ethical and moral character and decency. Good ethics and morals, of course, being a necessity for any civilized society to thrive, prosper, and exist.

As a Christian, I wholeheartedly agree with promoting the Ten Commandments as found in God’s Holy Word. As an American, I fully support the Constitution of the United States of America. The right to freedom of religion is a staple in our great nation. It is also a staple of the Bible. God gives us a free will and choices. We can choose God or we can reject Him. We can believe God’s Word or we can doubt it. God doesn’t force us to do anything. Therefore, as believers and as a nation, we have no right to force our beliefs upon anyone.

The “Commands For Morality And Ethical Living” are a combination of biblical teachings and six of the Ten Commandments. They have been written in such a way as to be modernized, easily understood, and universally accepted. Christians, without doubt, will notice no mention of God is made. However, they will easily see God behind each command. Non-Christians will likely view the commands simply as a list of moral and ethical principles. Thus making them applicable to persons of all ethnicities, races, genders, and faiths.

Today our world stands at an ethical and moral crossroads. The direction we take largely depends upon our future generations. These generations need a moral compass, an ethical barometer by which they can gauge thoughts, words, and deeds. “Commands For Morality And Ethical Living” can be that gauge. It can be displayed, taught, and recited in any setting, public or private, without fear of easily offending others. Seated within all humans is a knowledge of what is right and wrong. This knowledge leads to our understanding of what is ethical and moral, and what is not. These commands, especially being applied at an early age, can reinforce one’s knowledge of right and wrong and help establish one’s parameters for living a moral, ethical, and decent life. Thus contributing to the drastic betterment of our society, our nation, and our world.

Thanks for reading my post. I hope you like it or at least found it thought provoking. As I said earlier, please take some time to meditate upon these things and share your thoughts on them.

Travis Sorreals

My American Citizenship

I want to touch on voting and on enhanced earned sentence reductions. The right to vote is fundamental to any civilized nation. As is the right to liberty, justice, and the pursuit of happiness. Should I, as an inmate and convicted felon, lose these things? No. It is true that I have lost a portion of my freedom, but only a portion. I am still covered by the Bill of Rights and the Constitutions of the United States of America and the Commonwealth of Virginia. I did not lose my American citizenship when I was convicted of my crime. I did not cease to be a resident in the Commonwealth of Virginia. So why should I, as an American citizen and a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, lose my right to vote just because I was convicted of a felony? The answer is simple, because it is a way to further punish me and because most Republicans believe allowing me to vote will cost them elections. Now that’s not how Conservatives will frame their argument against my right to vote of course. They will claim, with a very staunch look, that removing a convicted felon’s right to vote is a deterrent to crime. Honestly, though, have you ever heard anyone say they aren’t going to commit a felony because they will lose their right to vote? Nobody has. So here is the crux of my position on convicted felons, incarcerated or not, voting. If it is constitutional to take away the right to vote from an American citizen and a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia because he or she committed a felony, then who is next? What’s to stop the government from taking away the right to vote from people who are pro choice? What’s to stop the government from taking away the right to vote from people who are Muslim? Now you are probably saying the Constitution stops them. Well, it didn’t stop them from taking away the right to vote from felons who are covered by the same Constitution of which you are speaking. Let me be fair though. I have been on both sides of the criminal justice system. I do fully understand stripping some rights away from convicted felons. I understand stripping a convicted felon of his or her right to bear arms. I understand stripping a convicted felon of some of his or her protections against searches and seizures. These things are done for the protection of society at large. But how is anyone protected by denying convicted felons the right to vote? They aren’t. That takes us back to my earlier point, denying convicted felons the right to vote is nothing more than further punishment. It is a Conservative stance to show that they are tough on crime and a product of their fear that allowing convicted felons to vote will cost them elections. However, I don’t think anyone believes it is constitutional to deny someone the right to vote just because they won’t vote the way you want them to. Yet that is what is happening to convicted felons each time we have an election.

Now to my second point, enhanced earned sentence reductions. These reductions make good sense on a number of levels. First, they make prisons safer for inmates, officers, and staff. The more an inmate has to lose, the more that inmate will think before doing something wrong. The less an inmate has to lose, the less that inmate will care about doing wrong. Second, giving an inmate the chance to earn credits toward a sentence reduction gives an inmate hope and something to work for. Hope and purpose are essential to anyone’s mental and physical wellbeing, especially an inmate’s. Now I realize that Departments of Correction do a great job of talking about rehabilitation, but that is basically all smoke and mirrors. The reality is that they do the absolute bare minimum to even try and rehabilitate anyone. That leaves rehabilitation in the hands of the inmate. He or she must take the initiative to better themselves. However, for most inmates that seems pointless. What is the point in trying to better yourself when you are not rewarded for it? Therefore, I have an idea I would like to see implemented in Virginia and other states as well. As the federal government makes pell grants more available, I believe this idea will become more and more implementable. Many inmates leaving prison are behind the eight ball educationally when they seek employment. I propose that states enact legislation that allows an inmate to earn enhanced sentence reductions for every degree the inmate receives while incarcerated. States could provide an inmate with a five percent reduction in their sentence for each degree they earn, on top of their good behavior reduction. This would make for smarter and more knowledgeable inmates. It would make for more qualified and employable men and women looking to join the workplace following prison. It would improve the mental and physical wellbeing of inmates. It would allow inmates a quicker transition back into society. It would allow inmates the opportunity to do something that would bring themselves, their families, and their loved ones a sense of pride and accomplishment. And it would keep inmates busy, leaving them less time to get into trouble. I firmly believe this program would benefit the States, the inmates, inmates’ families, employers, society, and our nation as a whole.

Travis Sorrells, Haynesville Correctional Center

BIO: Currently, I am about nine years into a fifteen year sentence. I am also seeking a Theological Degree through International Christian College and Seminary. My goal during this time is to make myself as ready as possible to reenter society in a way that allows me to be both productive and contributive.