CRIME:

Lockdown hell

That’s the reputation that isolating dangerous federal inmates for their own protection has earned North Las Vegas jail

Steve Marcus

A building crew leaves the Male Closed Custody Unit at the North Las Vegas Detention Center. Several alleged members of the Aryan Warriors, a violent white supremacist prison gang, are housed at the center.

By Jeff German (contact)

Friday, Sept. 19, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Steve Marcus

Officer Tyrone Bentley unlocks food flaps in cell doors of the North Las Vegas Detention Center, which houses dangerous federal detainees.

Tony Morgan has been in and out of Nevada’s toughest prisons since 1988, but he says none of them treated him worse than his current house of incarceration, the North Las Vegas jail — where he is in protective custody.

For up to four months at a time, Morgan has been spending 23 hours a day alone inside an 8-by-11-foot concrete cell. His only glimpse of daylight comes once a week when he’s allowed to go into a courtyard — in chains. A fluorescent light remains on in his cell through the night, making it hard to sleep.

Morgan has been unable to adequately prepare for his upcoming trial, he and his lawyer allege, because he has no access to a law library and contact with his attorney is restricted.

Sure, Morgan’s no angel; he’s a convicted drug trafficker linked lately to the white supremacist Aryan Warriors prison gang. And time behind bars is not supposed to be a picnic. But Morgan, other North Las Vegas inmates and their lawyers say basic rights that are supposed to be guaranteed to all U.S. citizens are being denied at the jail. And even some judges have taken note of how harsh conditions are for some of the inmates.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada has an eye on the jail because “the Constitution guarantees the same rights to everyone,” notes Gary Peck, the organization’s executive director. “The moment the government decides that constitutional rights don’t apply to people who are accused of crimes or convicted of crimes is the moment when those rights lose their meaning for the rest of us.”

Complaints about rights violations at this particular jail, which is run by the North Las Vegas Police Department, have circulated for a long time. The latest to lodge them are defendants in the Aryan Warriors federal racketeering case. They are among about 250 federal defendants housed in North Las Vegas under an agreement with the U.S. Marshals Service.

Jail officials say they are doing their best to balance the rights of the inmates with the security of the facility, but the presence of the federal prisoners, some of whom are far more dangerous than the inmates the jailers are used to handling, makes everything more difficult.

Federal authorities think unrest in North Las Vegas will ease next year, when Southern Nevada gets the federal detention center marshals and others have long sought. Ground will be broken next month in Pahrump for a 500-bed facility.

But in the meantime, the allegations, some of which have been validated by federal judges, continue to haunt the North Las Vegas Detention Center.

Two years ago, during the sentencing of a drug trafficker, U.S. District Judge Philip Pro criticized North Las Vegas’ treatment of pretrial defendants — people who had not been convicted of the crime for which they were being held at the jail. Pro called it “subpar” and “borderline inhumane.”

And this month, U.S. District Judge Kent Dawson decided to give 44-year-old Kevin Curtin, a convicted sex offender, a lighter sentence after his lawyer, Cal Potter, brought to light the rough treatment Curtain had endured in isolation at the center.

In court papers seeking leniency, Potter said his client headed into trial in “no mental shape to be anything but a spectator.”

“If you weren’t living it, you wouldn’t believe it was happening at this time in our society,” Potter later said in an interview. “It’s draconian.”

Morgan, 39, has been living in isolation ever since jail officials received word that his life was threatened in the jail by Aryan Warrior leaders who, like Morgan, are awaiting trial on federal racketeering charges.

If this is how the detention center treats inmates for their own protection, Morgan said, he wants no part of it. He’d rather take his chances in the general jail population.

“They’re saying my safety outweighs my civil rights,” he said in telephone interviews.

Several other segregated Aryan Warrior defendants have filed federal court papers accusing North Las Vegas Detention Center officials of treating them too harshly. Some complain, for example, that they can’t properly shower because they remain shackled and chained whenever they are briefly let out of their cells.

But it’s not just the Aryan Warriors who are crying foul. Other segregated inmates not tied to the gang have complained about the tough jailhouse. About 100 of its estimated 1,000 inmates are kept in isolation, officials said.

Over the past several years, the ACLU has received an “inordinate” number of complaints from inmates citing a wide range of problems at the detention center, including overcrowding, inadequate medical care and the use of excessive force, Peck said.

Before he was convicted on child pornography charges in federal court last week, Robert Latham described his 11 months in an isolation cell in North Las Vegas as psychological torture.

“There’s no difference between night and day,” Latham said. “I get a newspaper every day, but other than that, I just stare at the walls.”

Roger Bergendorff, who pleaded guilty in August to possessing the deadly poison ricin following a well-publicized federal investigation, said North Las Vegas jailers “just don’t give a damn.”

In court papers, federal prosecutors and lawyers for North Las Vegas contend inmates are being treated reasonably, given some of the security concerns. U.S. Magistrate Peggy Leen, nevertheless, has been listening to the latest accusations raised by the Aryan Warrior defendants. She has had one hearing on the matter.

The Aryan Warrior defendants began seeking legal relief from the near 24-hour-lockdown conditions in June, as their court cases began to heat up.

Ben Durham, the former lawyer for Jason Inman, another alleged Aryan Warrior, said in court papers his client’s stay in isolation had taken a severe physical and mental toll on him, causing him to lose 40 pounds.

“He has not been outside since September 2007, and only then during the middle of the night,” Durham wrote. “On those occasions, he was in full restraints and shackles and required to keep moving the entire time.”

Similar allegations were leveled a month later by attorney Karen Winckler in a more comprehensive motion seeking the court’s aid on behalf of her client, Daniel Egan, 33, the Aryan Warriors’ reputed No. 2 man.

Winckler described the jail conditions as “dire” and “shocking,” adding that the jail authorities’ attitude toward medical treatment borders on “reckless.”

The lockdown conditions were harming her ability to communicate with Egan, who has since pleaded guilty in the racketeering case, she said.

“Visitation is nonexistent or very limited, depending on the mood of the facility,” Winckler wrote. “Egan’s calls (to his lawyer and family) are limited to the half-hour per day during his release time. However, this communication is meaningless because the release occurs in the middle of the night.”

At Egan’s sentencing Wednesday, Winckler said jail conditions are “just horrible” and said Egan, in many years in the Nevada prison system, “has never seen anything like this.”

Defense lawyers say some mistreatment occurs because the detention center was built to house small-time crooks and misdemeanor offenders, including those who haven’t paid parking tickets — not inmates like the Aryan Warriors, who proved hard to handle for even the state prison system.

Case in point is what they did to Guy Almony, reputed to be one of the gang’s own members.

About 11:30 p.m. on Nov. 20, Almony was talking on a phone at the jail when he was stabbed in the neck, allegedly by the gang’s reputed leader, Ronald “Joey” Sellers, who thought Almony was cooperating in the federal racketeering case.

Almony narrowly escaped death, his lawyer, Randall Roske, said.

Sellers was eventually moved to a more secure federal detention center in California, and Almony was moved to a safer prison environment outside Nevada.

“What happened to my client was a tragedy waiting to happen,” Roske said. “This entire facility is absolutely unprepared to handle inmates of this caliber and this level of dangerousness.”

North Las Vegas officials acknowledge the Aryan Warriors have presented challenges for the detention center.

“They have this need for power and to be in control of the jail,” North Las Vegas Police Chief Joe Forti said. “They create a very tense and hostile environment.”

A veteran North Las Vegas corrections officer who asked not to be identified out of fear of retaliation on his family said the Aryan Warriors have “slowed down” the daily operations of the detention center because of the safeguards needed to keep them in check.

“They know how to be disruptive and intimidate other inmates,” the officer said. “We’re constantly monitoring their activities.”

But the officer also insisted jail officials don’t deliberately mistreat any inmates.

“We do not tolerate any cruel and unusual punishment,” the officer said. “We do the best possible job we can in handling these types of people so that everybody can go home at night and be with their families knowing these guys are behind barbed wire and not running through their communities.”

Discussion: 16 comments so far…

By starrynite7

9/19/08 at 7:20 a.m.

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It's hard to feel too sorry for the inmates, after all they are in prison. They should have to deal with some loss of rights because they broke the law. The Aryan Warriors should be split up so other prisoners are safe. Prison is not a picnic.
By mikeg

9/19/08 at 9:37 a.m.

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Very interesting article. It sounds like the system is functioning as well as can be expected.

Perhaps if articles like this were published more frequently it would make young perps think twice about committing a crime.
By Toby

9/19/08 at 1:43 p.m.

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I do not have any sympathy for federal inmates.
By LT2LV

9/19/08 at 3:29 p.m.

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So Tony Morgan has been in and out of prisons for 20 years now, and he's whining about how unpleasant this particular prison is. Well, here's a radical idea: How about NOT committing crimes and living an honest life? That way Mr. Morgan and all others wouldn't be in that mean, nasty prison.
By dalejrbudride

9/19/08 at 4:58 p.m.

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if they keep whining about their plush jail arrangements , send them to joe arrapho in arizona, amazing how living in tents will change ones attitude !!! bologna, and no coffe boys ... see how you like that !!
By sunshower

9/20/08 at 12:12 p.m.

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For God sake what century are we living in?
THEY HAVE NOT BEEN CONVICTED.....If and when they do then all of you can whine about them whining. Does no one have rememberance of constitutional and civil rights, have we not evolved from 17th century mentality? Yeah I see a fair trial in thier future, perhaps we should burn them at the stake.
By R_Linn

9/20/08 at 1:26 p.m.

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Boo-frickin-hoo.
By victoriawarrior

9/20/08 at 5:18 p.m.

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80 year old Irwin Schiff was there for a couple of weeks. He never harmed a living soul. He is Not a violent person. So why was he subjected to the same type of rights violations as the Arians? What's the excuse now? There is none. The judiciary controls what goes on there. The black robed ministers are heavily into making sacrifces from their altars and then making them suffer. Not to mention they extract every dime by forcing the inmates to buy food and toothpaste and paper and postage stamps from the commisary at a premium. (look up the word holocaust)

V
By tooshy

9/22/08 at 6:04 p.m.

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Let me see, a member of a violent gang, a child pornographer and someone who made a terrible poison....each of whom is a danger to the common population. Perhaps those who feel sorry for them can offer to invite them to live in their neighborhood. I think not. Lockdown is meant to either keep violent individuals from causing problems in the jail population or to keep them safe. Sounds like North Las Vegas is doing their job.
By wg4lk

9/22/08 at 7:10 p.m.

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Finally someone is exposing them! Seems like you readers have no regard whatsoever for the concept of innocent until proven guilty, so I will tell you about what it is like to be a visitor. I have been a visitor for over a year. I am not allowed to wear prescription eye glasses. WHY? It's a video visit! The guards make rude and disparaging remarks to me regarding my place of birth! WHY? Telling me that only bad people from the dark side live there! How does my place of birth factor into the video visit? Refusal to allow me to use the ladies room! Why? They took my ID, verified it about 6 times and would not give me the key to the ladies room! This led to an embarrassing accident that left me in tears! Why was I treated like that? They did not laugh at that one. Nope, instead he screamed at me! Inmates are only allowed to shave certain days certain times which by the way is never for visiting hours, so every mother gets to see her child chained like an animal, unable to sit up strait because the cuffs are so tight, and they are unshaven and look frightful. During the video visit, they bring them in when they feel like it and have no respect for how long we have been waiting often locked in a room! While you are trying to talk to your loved one for the 30 minutes, one of them is pacing back and forth like a dog in heat making us afraid of what they will do next! And they laugh about that too! They are worried sick about what sort of barrette I have in my hair for a video visit! When my car broke down, 7 of them passed me and not one offered to help me! One did get out of his car and tell me that I was in an unsafe neighborhood, and then he jumped back in his car and took off... leaving me, stranded and now scared half out of my mind. They are a disgrace to the criminal justice system.I have sat in that waiting room as those awful people refuse to release someone even after bail has been posted. WHY? How can they get away with that? They have zero regard for humanity as evidenced by the treatment of the VISITORS! If a Spanish speaking person asks a question at the window, they reply loudly as if the person were deaf with "Huh", over and over again until I finally stood up and said, "Do you have an interpreter? She is not deaf; she does not speak the language! That was someone's mother being treated that way in the visiting area! No criminal, just a female visitor! They lack basic manners and trust me, no one in the waiting room is a gang member!
That excuse of not being able to handle gang members is pitiful. Fire this sadistic crew and get someone who knows how to do the job without dehumanizing everyone they meet!
By biteme

9/22/08 at 8:39 p.m.

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First off this is city jail. NOT prison!! Big difference.Jail you are awaiting trial. You are NOT guilty,just accused. Prison you may still be innocent but now you are convicted. Everybody says innocent til proven guilty. But when you get arrested you are automatic gulity until you can prove you're innocent. The guards at North town pit the inmates against each other. The guard themselves tell other inmates about other inmates ot cause friction. There are corrupt gaurds in every facility, they've got you by the balls "do as I say when I say or get the crap beat out of you or get told you 're going to die".
Some people think "they are crimanls they deserved to be treated worse than aminals" Just because someone in a city jail does not make them a bad person. Somtimes things are an accident. BUt thse gurads DON'T give a crap.
By family4change

9/23/08 at 2:21 p.m.

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This problem is everyone's problem. Our money is being used to build more prisons in order to house more inmates. The majority of those incarcerated are repeat offenders. Why? Because while incarcerated they are dehumanized, demoralized and every bit of dignity taken from them. They are reminded every minute of every day by the guards and the system that they are losers. Upon release they are expected to pick up their life without any psychological evaluation, work evaluation or jobs waiting for them. They are unable to get a job because they are labeled and discriminated upon. If they do not have a good support group of family, loved ones, friends, clergy and various professionals to help them transition back into society, they fail and end up back in the prison system. Now who really failed - the taxpayers, prison system, society or the incarcerated? My indoctrination into the prison system happened about a year ago when a member of my family was arrested and accused of a non-violent federal white collar crime. Currently, he is awaiting appearance before the judge to plea and if found guilty, be sentenced. He has been in protective custody since he has been in this facility because he feared for his life. He is one of many who are incarcerated waiting a court date for their plea and sentencing. These inmates have not been convicted or sentenced, yet they are treated the same as the convicted violent criminal. I assumed inmates got three balanced meals a day, are allowed to go outside for fresh air and exercise, can get a book from the library, make phone calls or get medical assistance when an emergency arises. Meals are sub-standard and the food is not nutritional. Medical emergencies take about 1 - 2 days before appearance of a physician. Inmates taking medication for existing medical conditions do receive their medication; however, it is not dispensed on a regular daily schedule. Those in protective custody have to share a cell with another inmate when there is a shortage of beds. This year there was a stabbing of an inmate in protective custody. How could this happen when there are always guards in the presence of an inmate? Protective custody inmates are in lock down 23 - 23 1/2 hours a day. They are given about 30 minutes a day, 3:00AM - 4:00AM, to make phone calls to and to shower.
I am a firm believer that if a crime has been committed and a person convicted by the court and/or their peers without a shadow of a doubt, then they must be held accountable. However, everyone has rights and no one should be treated inhumanly. We all should be looking into what is happening in the prison system and the spending of our tax dollars. Those incarcerated should be given the opportunity to successfully succeed when placed back into society. As taxpayers we do have a say. Do we rehabilitate the incarcerated or do we continue with the current system?
By sunshower

9/24/08 at 9 p.m.

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North Las vegas detention center is not responsible for rehabilitation nor should it ever be. yet they should be responsible for their lack of humanity and professionalism. I cant believe we are still hearing about some police entity that acts like power hungry, childish bullies, perhaps some re evaluation of the training agenda would help the situation.... I know its never gonna happen
By mljjaj

9/26/08 at 12:42 p.m.

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I just want to say that sometimes people make mistakes. If any of you who are against inmates are perfect and have NEVER done anything, I would like to know. All of us do something at one time or another. Some of us just never get caught!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By shopper

10/16/08 at 6:22 a.m.

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I have been writing one of the accused for the past 5 years as a penpal. Basically what they are trying to do is to make the inmates suffer enough to take deals whether they are innocent or guilty. Apparently the "justice system" doesn't care to find that out, they just want their convictions at any cost. I have had numerous problems with the detention center. They do keep changing the rules on a whim so that often my mail gets sent back to me even though I follow the same procedures since my penpal was first moved to the facility over a year ago.
By braddonnelly

5/25/09 at 9:49 a.m.

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Don't believe a single word of this propaganda!!!! Nevada needs another prison like you need herpes. Prisoners have complained about their treatment since the beginning of time. All this article does is prepare you to pay more taxes! The prisons aren't prepared for these hardened criminals = what a crock! The Nevada Prison System needs to be completey overhauled. Throwing more money at this corrupt system is insane! They close one prison and build another one and then open the one that they closed EVERY single year!

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