Visiting has been cancelled until further notice for all yards...does anyone know what happened?

Yes, I do know what happened at S.V.S.P. Two correctional officers were assaulted yesterday morning. Visits are cancelled :angry: Visiting has been cancelled until further notice for all yards...does anyone know what happened?

Here is an article regarding the incident at SVSP

Posted on Fri, Jul. 15, 2005





Conditions cited in guards' stabbing

Union blames overcrowding, understaffing

By GEORGE B. SANCHEZ

Herald Salinas Bureau


A prison guard union blamed understaffing and overpopulation for Thursday's stabbing of two correctional officers at Salinas Valley State Prison.

One guard was stabbed in the face and neck while breakfast was being served to inmates in C facility at 6:45 a.m. He required surgery, but his wounds were not considered life-threatening. The other guard was stabbed three times in his shoulders and arm. Both guards were treated by prison medical staff and later transported to outside hospitals.

Prison officials did not identify the guards or the inmate, who was injured when he was tackled and subdued by guards. He sustained a possibly dislocated shoulder and was treated for injuries to his scalp, face and knee. He was treated outside the prison at a hospital and then transferred to another prison.

The stabbing weapon was confiscated and the prison remains on lockdown as prison, state and district attorney investigators try to explain what happened.

Prison officials said the inmate is serving a sentence of life without parole for a Kings County first-degree murder conviction.

A union official was quick to assert that chronic understaffing is at least partly to blame. According to the Monterey county civil grand jury, staff turnover at the prison is more than double the state average.

In January, a 16-year veteran prison guard was stabbed to death by an inmate at California Institution for Men in Chino. A state investigation later showed the prison consistently disregarded safety standards and did not issue the guard a stabbing vest, which might have prevented his death. The investigation also showed the inmate had a history of violent behavior, was classified at the highest level security threat and should not have been in a lower-security setting.

"Some of the things we're seeing at Salinas Valley State Prison are startlingly the same conditions that led to Manny Gonzalez's death: understaffing, overpopulation, violent inmates in inappropriate housing," said Lance Corcoran, spokesman for the California Correctional Police Officers Association.

He said he had been told that Thursday's victims were young officers and relatively new to the beat. If so, he said, they should not have been in that housing facility without experienced guards.

Corcoran criticized the state prison administration, which recently made a public event of changing its name to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, for not adequately ensuring the safety of prison guards and prison staff. According to his union, nine prison guards are assaulted each day in California.

A call from Medina said the incident was on C yard and there should be normal visiting on the remaining yards (A,B,D,E) by next weekend, but call still! C yard will probably be on lockdown for awhile. You can never soley rely on what they tell you, so please call before visiting next weekend.

thank you for the article. . .

funny how they dont cite the amount of time they spend lockdown as a reason for some of this behavior. . . .

Here is an article regarding the incident at SVSP

Posted on Fri, Jul. 15, 2005





Conditions cited in guards' stabbing

Union blames overcrowding, understaffing

By GEORGE B. SANCHEZ

Herald Salinas Bureau


A prison guard union blamed understaffing and overpopulation for Thursday's stabbing of two correctional officers at Salinas Valley State Prison.

One guard was stabbed in the face and neck while breakfast was being served to inmates in C facility at 6:45 a.m. He required surgery, but his wounds were not considered life-threatening. The other guard was stabbed three times in his shoulders and arm. Both guards were treated by prison medical staff and later transported to outside hospitals.

Prison officials did not identify the guards or the inmate, who was injured when he was tackled and subdued by guards. He sustained a possibly dislocated shoulder and was treated for injuries to his scalp, face and knee. He was treated outside the prison at a hospital and then transferred to another prison.

The stabbing weapon was confiscated and the prison remains on lockdown as prison, state and district attorney investigators try to explain what happened.

Prison officials said the inmate is serving a sentence of life without parole for a Kings County first-degree murder conviction.

A union official was quick to assert that chronic understaffing is at least partly to blame. According to the Monterey county civil grand jury, staff turnover at the prison is more than double the state average.

In January, a 16-year veteran prison guard was stabbed to death by an inmate at California Institution for Men in Chino. A state investigation later showed the prison consistently disregarded safety standards and did not issue the guard a stabbing vest, which might have prevented his death. The investigation also showed the inmate had a history of violent behavior, was classified at the highest level security threat and should not have been in a lower-security setting.

"Some of the things we're seeing at Salinas Valley State Prison are startlingly the same conditions that led to Manny Gonzalez's death: understaffing, overpopulation, violent inmates in inappropriate housing," said Lance Corcoran, spokesman for the California Correctional Police Officers Association.

He said he had been told that Thursday's victims were young officers and relatively new to the beat. If so, he said, they should not have been in that housing facility without experienced guards.

Corcoran criticized the state prison administration, which recently made a public event of changing its name to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, for not adequately ensuring the safety of prison guards and prison staff. According to his union, nine prison guards are assaulted each day in California.

We were told they will all be on lockdown until 8/15/05

Thank you. At least I know not to rush to send this quarters package out.
I got a letter today from my guy; they haven't been on a full program since about February and he says it looks like it will stay this way until the end of the year. . . argh :angry:



We were told they will all be on lockdown until 8/15/05

We were told they will all be on lockdown until 8/15/05
So all the vendors are being told not to ship packages or anything to SVSP until Aug. 15, 2005???? :eek: Now, let me make sure I have everything clear....

Y'all are being told that they will be on lockdown until 08/15/05 OR are they telling y'all not to ship any packages until 08/15/05??? This so totally is messed up!!!!

Our poor babies, in their starving and wasting away... Being punished for SOMEONE ELSES Wrong doings!!! :angry: DOC just isn't right....

Anyway, thank you for the scoop.

usually, when they are lockdown, we can order the package, but it cant be shipped until the vendor is notified they are off lockdown; even then, depending on where your guy is, they arent always let out to get theirs. Last quarter, mine had his package sit for at least a month before he was able to get it.

The whole concept of lockdown like this is wrong. . . I dont know how all the yards over there are, but no fresh air for 6 months or more? I do not see how they get away with it honestly.

So all the vendors are being told not to ship packages or anything to SVSP until Aug. 15, 2005???? :eek: Now, let me make sure I have everything clear....

Y'all are being told that they will be on lockdown until 08/15/05 OR are they telling y'all not to ship any packages until 08/15/05??? This so totally is messed up!!!!

Our poor babies, in their starving and wasting away... Being punished for SOMEONE ELSES Wrong doings!!! :angry: DOC just isn't right....

Anyway, thank you for the scoop.

The procedure is they have to accept all packages coming in even if they are on lockdown. Once they run out of room we have to hold them here. You could place an order but it won’t be shipped. We were told 8/15/05 or longer. Depends on how long the lockdown is. Also, if after 90 days they are still on lockdown they have to issue the packages. They didn’t tell us when they were getting off lockdown. If by 8/15/05 they are still on lockdown then we have to keep holding packages. They will still count as second quarter packages. At lease this way they don’t lose a quarter.

Thank you very much. . .
Can you tell me the status of the soap . . . i was told last quarter they are only allowed 2 bars of soap, 2 shampoo and 2 body wash each quarter now. . . though it was not through packagesRus so I am wondering if that is the new rule?

Right now they are letting us send 4 soaps, 2 shampoo, 2 conditioner, 2 body wash, and 2 hair products. Basically all hygiene is 2 except for soap. This is a rule now. It might change but we wont know till 4th quarter.

Other changes include cereal, drink mixes, appliances, and other things. If you have a question about something I forgot let me know. There are so many changes I cant think of them all right now.

Thank you! Last quarter I was told by walkenhorst they could only have 2 bars of soap; this will make him happy :) well at least a lil bit. There was something else I was wondering about but I cant remember tonight what it is. . . the problem with it is what i was told was the hygeine is because they can get it at the store; but since they are lockdown so much they dont get to store. . . argh.



Right now they are letting us send 4 soaps, 2 shampoo, 2 conditioner, 2 body wash, and 2 hair products. Basically all hygiene is 2 except for soap. This is a rule now. It might change but we wont know till 4th quarter.

Other changes include cereal, drink mixes, appliances, and other things. If you have a question about something I forgot let me know. There are so many changes I cant think of them all right now.

I was told it was because the are able to hide things that there not suppose to have in the soaps, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and any other hygiene item. It’s also hard to keep track when one inmate has 40-60 soaps. It makes you wonder why.


Thank you! Last quarter I was told by walkenhorst they could only have 2 bars of soap; this will make him happy :) well at least a lil bit. There was something else I was wondering about but I cant remember tonight what it is. . . the problem with it is what i was told was the hygeine is because they can get it at the store; but since they are lockdown so much they dont get to store. . . argh.

Maybe they hoard so much soap because SVSP spends half their life in lockdown. Think about it. This is the only facility that I know of that spends this much time on lockdown. The entire system is understaffed, but other places do not go on lockdown, it seems like every other day. Do the math, if you added up all the days they spend in lockdown at SVSP, it probably works out to more than 50% of the year. And they wonder why??? these things happen.........

no kidding! my guy hasnt been in the fresh air since the beginning of february; and now it looks like they are not going to get out any time soon. . . i honestly do not see how they can keep them on lockdown as long as they do. . . i also do not understand why the common sense factor is not used; you keep them lockdown, mess with the mail (there are weeks that go by where he gets no mail from me and i write daily; the past couple weeks, his letters that usually get to me in 2 days. . . i have only had 2 letters in 3 weeks and they are all post dated from weeks ago); no phone calls, no fresh air/yard time. . . it doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure out these conditions are going to create more animosity and violence not reduce it.

Argh i get so frusterated about this. especially the mail situation. . . the one thing they have to count on is at least getting mail from the ones they love; and i know our letters help keep them sane in there; yet they will hold onto them forever. i stopped sending it regular mail about a year ago because it was taking up to 4-6 weeks for him to get a letter; i now send certified but its taking longer and longer to get to him. i want so badly to find something we can do about it, but i just dont even know where to start.

Maybe they hoard so much soap because SVSP spends half their life in lockdown. Think about it. This is the only facility that I know of that spends this much time on lockdown. The entire system is understaffed, but other places do not go on lockdown, it seems like every other day. Do the math, if you added up all the days they spend in lockdown at SVSP, it probably works out to more than 50% of the year. And they wonder why??? these things happen.........

I've had the same problem with SVSP mail. I also started sending [U]everything[/U certified for the very same reason. My man was thinking that I had stopped writing. It would take up to 7 weeks to get a letter, and some letters never did show up. But then I stopped the certified because it began to take just as long. It seems that no matter what method of delivery we choose, they still SIT on their mail for weeks on end. The usual excuse is that they are understaffed. But that seems to be the excuse for everything. My question is, if the entire system is understaffed, why is it ONLY SVSP that seems to have these kinds of problems. What what I can tell, this is the only institution that has these kinds of mail issues, lockdown issues and extremely poor medical healthcare issues.

I don't know if this will help, but you could write to the warden. I was able to contact the Health Care Services Administrator over SVSP regarding healthcare issues. He is located in Bakersfield, CA and his name is Chris Chrones. His phone number is (661)863-6700 ext. 204. Although he oversees healthcare issues, maybe he can point you in the right direction. When I spoke to him, he asked me to first exhaust all contacts at the actual facility before I lodge a complaint through him. When I called back to SVSP regarding healthcare concerns I had and I mentioned that I had contacted the Central regional office, it seemed to motivate them somewhat, for a short period of time.

Just a thought. Hope it helps. I for one intend to call on Monday because this latest stunt that they are pulling seems way out of line. And even if it does not good at all, I will at least have peace of mind that I tried something!

Previously, if such an incident occurred, only the yard involved was locked down and deprived of outside visitation; not the entire facility. This can only lead to further hostility spreading throughout the institution. And in the end, the inmates will be blamed for everything. No one considers this type of inhumane treatment, no one but those with loved ones inside cares.

The biggest problem our guys face (and that we face because what affects them affects us) is that very fact: that no one cares about any of this unless they have a loved one living in these circumstances.

Are you having the mail issue now also? Since this last incident it has been very bad; but over the course of the last year i have really seen it progress into a horrid state. My guy thinks i have stopped writing also, but eventually they show up. This is the first time though that MY mail has been affected. Never has it taken over a week and a half for one letter from him.

Understaffing does seem to be the answer to all; again my issue with that is when they are lockdown, it takes more of the cops to do the jobs normally the guys could be doing so how does that make sense?

I remember with the water issue, the prison received many phone calls from family and loved ones; the media also picked up on it; though what i dont know is if the issue was resolved faster because of the squeaky wheels, or if it just made our guys suffer more. . . that i guess is the biggest question.

I have been thinking all week about calling up there also about this. Like I said my guy has basically been on lockdown for 6 months; though they started doing a modified program here and there, so they were off offical lockdown status, they werent getting outside and werent getting phone calls. I just get so tired of knowing he is sitting there thinking I forgot about him when really, it seems that all i do is sit over here thinking about him. . . and how this system is run to destroy families and the spirits of our guys in
stead of promote keeping the families together and trying to do something positive while they are in there so they have more success when they finally do come home. :angry:
*ahem. . . i will step off my soapbox now*


I've had the same problem with SVSP mail. I also started sending [U]everything[/U certified for the very same reason. My man was thinking that I had stopped writing. It would take up to 7 weeks to get a letter, and some letters never did show up. But then I stopped the certified because it began to take just as long. It seems that no matter what method of delivery we choose, they still SIT on their mail for weeks on end. The usual excuse is that they are understaffed. But that seems to be the excuse for everything. My question is, if the entire system is understaffed, why is it ONLY SVSP that seems to have these kinds of problems. What what I can tell, this is the only institution that has these kinds of mail issues, lockdown issues and extremely poor medical healthcare issues.

I don't know if this will help, but you could write to the warden. I was able to contact the Health Care Services Administrator over SVSP regarding healthcare issues. He is located in Bakersfield, CA and his name is Chris Chrones. His phone number is (661)863-6700 ext. 204. Although he oversees healthcare issues, maybe he can point you in the right direction. When I spoke to him, he asked me to first exhaust all contacts at the actual facility before I lodge a complaint through him. When I called back to SVSP regarding healthcare concerns I had and I mentioned that I had contacted the Central regional office, it seemed to motivate them somewhat, for a short period of time.

Just a thought. Hope it helps. I for one intend to call on Monday because this latest stunt that they are pulling seems way out of line. And even if it does not good at all, I will at least have peace of mind that I tried something!

Previously, if such an incident occurred, only the yard involved was locked down and deprived of outside visitation; not the entire facility. This can only lead to further hostility spreading throughout the institution. And in the end, the inmates will be blamed for everything. No one considers this type of inhumane treatment, no one but those with loved ones inside cares.

I checked the Visitor's Hotline for SVSP (800-374-8474, press 1, then 2, then 6) at 4:30 PM and the taped message was updated today. Unfortunately, there will NOT be visits this coming weekend, July 30-31. :( :blah:

I hate this and I miss my man... :(

I think we all suffer with our loved ones these days...I am glad for every news you have for us :cool:

can anyone answer some questions for me new to this brother in there and i just want to ask a couple of questions to someone any one please help

go ahead and ask. . . everyone on here is very helpful.

JUst so everyone knows, like you thought it was going to change or something, but there are no visits again this weekend for A,B,C and D yards. I can't wait until this lockdown is over.

i got mail today saying maybe in two weeks they will have them back. . . yeah. maybe.

spoke with muniz and was told that they are positive this weekend but just not all yard I believe C wont but he said to call the 800 to get the formal answer. So call this afternoon and lets pray all is good for this weekend. I already got butterflies

Is that you Kathy??

yes yes

Im sure C will be the very last. . . :( but at least someone will get some visiting so im happy for whoever does. its a start

hey everyone i just checked the 800#. all yards but C have visits this weekend.
yay to everyone on A, B, D & E yards.
:angry: for all of us on C yard. . . maybe next week.