I would like to speak about my time in D.D.U. (Department Disciplinarian Unit). I was sentenced to D.D.U. for ten (10) years, along with several others, for an incident that took place in general population at M.C.I. Walpole.
The incident that happened it was due to the fact how the prison guards was mistreating us during a previous lock down. They will come into the block and assault us with their nightstick. They will throw away personal items: pictures, books, letters and clothing. So we got fed up with their abusive behavior, so we decided to stand up for our right to be treated like human beings.
Now doing my sentence over in D.D.U. the tormented abuse continued. I had deal with the verbal abuse, the physical abuse, the psychological abuse. For example, whenever they will take me out of the cell, they go in and destroy it. Leave footprints on the bed sheets, clothing thrown on the floor, pictures will be floating in the toilet. Or they will switch cell on you and place you next door to a guy who likes to bang on your wall all day and night, likes to throw feces etc, likes to snatch anything going by his cell on the fishing line.
D.D.U. is not the place for the weak. I seen guys come over there and turn suicidal by cutting up or even trying to hang they self, talking to they self, rubbing feces and blood all over they self.
Some of us don’t even realize the psychological effect D.D.U. have on us. There’s no physical contact unless you are fighting the tactical team just for physical contact. For I experience one time when I was just about to wrap up my D.D.U. sentence, I went to court with one of my comrades and we embrace one another and I had to push him away. Because I haven’t had human contact over and a decade and it felt awkward.
There’s more I could have express but by now you get the idea how D.D.U. can take its total on individuals that goes over there for long period of time or even a short period of time.
Thank you,
Gary Bon
No human being should be denied human contact. No human being should be locked in isolation for weeks, months, years. No human being should be tortured, physically or emotionally. No human being should be abused, physically or emotionally. Every one of us who is free must work for justice and freedom for our sisters and brothers.