Treatment prisoners of US

1. Treatment prisoners of US From trial to detention 2010-2013

2. 2 main sub questions • 1: death penalty: main issues • 2: The treatment of prisoners • Problem: are human rights violated in any way.

3. Death penalty Three methods currently used:

4. Death penalty • Unfair and arbitrary • Claims innocent lives • Racially biased • Mental illnesses are disregarded • Badly executed sentences

5. Unfair

6. Unfair and arbitrary: geographically • Since 1976: 80% of executions in the South • 33% in Texas alone • Not every state imposes (Democratic  Republican) • Only death penalty for murder ! 1 exception: Texas: death penalty for homicide

7. Unfair and arbitrary: money • There is a jury: guilty or innocent • Three judges: sentence • Almost all of the death row inmates could not afford a decent attorney.

8. Claims innocent lives • Since 1973: 140 innocent people on death row released • In 2013 3,108 inmates executed

9. Racially based • Since 1977, 77% of all death row inmates executed for killing white murder victims • Afro-Americans make up at least half of all homicide victims.

10. Mental illnesses are disregarded • Constitutional law forbids execution mentally insane • Does not include all mental illnesses nor brain damage • Not every inmate can afford a psychiatric

11. Badly executed sentences • How are they executed? • Compounding pharmacies • What can go wrong? • Examples

12. How are they executed • Most frequently used method: lethal injection • Two ways: • One-drug combination: a lethal dose of anesthetics • Three-drug combination: an anesthetic, a paralytic agent, potassium chloride (stops the heart, causes death)

13. Compounding pharmacies • What? Drug manufacturers, copy drugs, not controlled, only approved by government • Meningitis caused by drugs, killed 64 people • Drugs often tested for the first time on death row inmates

14. What can go wrong? • In case of lethal injections: • Anesthetics don’t work  inmate feels every thing, but is paralyzed • Can’t find a vein • Human errors • Electrocution: • inmate caught on fire • Time lost establish death • In case of lethal gas: • Violent reaction to the gas

15. Example: William Happ Executed in Florida on the 16th of October Untested drug, took 14 minutes for him to die (double usual time) Opened his eyes, blinked repeatedly and shook his head back and forth At 2 minutes before his death, his jaw dropped open

16. Justin Lee May. Lethal Injection. May had an unusually violent reaction to the lethal drugs. According to one reporter who witnessed the execution, May "gasped, coughed and reared against his heavy leather restraints, coughing once again before his body froze ..."[29] Associated Press reporter Michael Graczyk wrote, "Compared to other recent executions in Texas, May's reaction was more violent. He went into a coughing spasm, groaned and gasped, lifted his head from the death chamber gurney and would have arched his back if he had not been belted down. After he stopped breathing, his eyes and mouth remained open."[30](source: Death Penalty Information Centre)

17. How do prisoners get treated • Case study: Guantanomo Bay • Background information; where, under which laws, detainees • Closing policy • Situation today

18. Guantanamo Bay Cuba part of Spain US helped liberating, kept control over Cuba, placed military base in Guantanamo Bay After Cuba became completely independenr, US kept his military base. Guantanamo is a no-man's-land: not from the US not from Cuba

19. Why was it built? • After 911, hate and fear towards terrorists • Government needed a prison to ‘interrogate’ terrorists • Prison needed to be outside borders US where federal laws didn’t apply • Men on suspicion of terrorism held prison, all detainees are Muslims

20. Situation Guantanamo after 9/11/2001 • People got tortured, beaten up, abused physically and sexually • Torture consisted of burning, beating and a form of waterboarding • No trial, no sentence • They were treated as war prisoners but as they were in no-man's-land, they didn’t have to be treated humanly • Many of them completely innocent, also minors, elderly and mentally ill were held prisoners and were tortured

21. Example: Omar Deghayes • Held prisoner for 8 years • Lost his eyesight in his right eye • Nose broken, fingers broken, permanent damage to his rib • Tortured and nearly suffocated • Mistaken identity

22. Closing Guantanamo Bay prison • 2009: Obama promises to close Guantanamo prison • Failed for 2 main reasons: • Lots of protests • No prison in the US nor in the native country wants to take prisoners • Obama did forbid any torture, detainees had to be treated humanely

23. Situation today • 172 detainees remain, without prospects of a trial or release • Military squad team, E.R.F. (extreme reaction force) control the inmates • Restraining methods: beating, pepper spray.. • Inmates can be locked up in cell for 22h a day • 120 of the 172 detainees are on hunger strike • They are fed by force by a tube as big as 2 uncooked spaghettis

24. Fed by Force • Yesiin Bey aka MosDef, fed by force as experiment • Very painful procedure • Inmate tied to a chair • Tube without anesthetics pushed trough the nose to the back of the throat • Yesiin couldn’t take it, too painful • In Guantanamo, 44 people fed by force • Twice a day, procedure takes 2 hours • Feeding is around the clock

25. Apart from Guantanamo • Situation in almost every prison of U.S.: • Prison guards have every power • They have liberty to beat, humiliate and torture inmates • Detainees beaten to death • Prison guards almost every time got away with it

26. Conclusion • Death penalty: • Racially based • Unfair and arbitrary, no equal chances • Innocent lives are lost • Disregard of mental state • Poorly executed sentences

27. Guantamo Bay: • Innocent people locked up • No trial, no sentence • Torture, beating, inhumane treatment

28. Sources • DeathPenalty Information Centre • Amnesty International • The Guardian • Documentary: closingGuantanamo Bay by Michael Portillo