Read Pacific News Service dated June 23, 2004. Excellent Reporter

Going to look that up right now....Thnxs Kittie. Eric's homegirl

Hey Everybody if you are searching for answers about San Quentin you need, and I
mean really need to read this article on San Quentin and the past Warden...It will
give you a clearer picture of the problems that are plaging San Quentin, and why
you can't get the answers that you are searching for. I sent a response, comment to
this reporter and some of the issues that happened to Eric when he was a inmate at
San Quentin. Issues of the Staph Infection that has plagued SQ for quite sometime,
and the rules that San Quentin breaks when our prison systems aren't suppose to be
"breaking the law", or "their own rules and regulations, and laws"...I am sure that this
reporter that did this story would love to hear your complaints about San Quentin, maybe, just maybe it might make Jeanne Woodford the New Director of CDC take some
notice that we the people of California aren't gonna stand for anymore chit that she
thinks she can hand out. My thoughts however on Jeanne Woodford, is "GOD HELP US ALL." SUZI

Yes, the reporter who wrote this article regarding San Quentin did an excellent job. The only people that really know's what takes place within the prison system is the inmates, the employees and the inmate's loved ones.


Hey Everybody if you are searching for answers about San Quentin you need, and I
mean really need to read this article on San Quentin and the past Warden...It will
give you a clearer picture of the problems that are plaging San Quentin, and why
you can't get the answers that you are searching for. I sent a response, comment to
this reporter and some of the issues that happened to Eric when he was a inmate at
San Quentin. Issues of the Staph Infection that has plagued SQ for quite sometime,
and the rules that San Quentin breaks when our prison systems aren't suppose to be
"breaking the law", or "their own rules and regulations, and laws"...I am sure that this
reporter that did this story would love to hear your complaints about San Quentin, maybe, just maybe it might make Jeanne Woodford the New Director of CDC take some
notice that we the people of California aren't gonna stand for anymore chit that she
thinks she can hand out. My thoughts however on Jeanne Woodford, is "GOD HELP US ALL." SUZI

Here ya go...

State's New Top Jailer Must Answer Old Questions
Commentary, Julia Reynolds,
Pacific News Service, Jun 23, 2004

Editor's Note: The reputation of former San Quentin warden Jeanne Woodford, newly appointed to head the California Department of Corrections and seen as a reformer, is marred by recent prison staff complaints.

SAN FRANCISCO--She's been called "The Good Jailer" by the New York Times and hailed as a reformer.

Jeanne Woodford, the former San Quentin warden, was appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in February to run the California Department of Corrections (CDC) the nation's largest -- and possibly most troubled -- prison system.

"I look forward to working with [the governor] to re-establish public confidence in California's prison system through real reform," she is quoted as saying on a Schwarzenegger Web site.

During 25 years at San Quentin State Prison, Woodford emphasized rehabilitating prisoners, not just warehousing them.

But all is not perfect in Woodford's old fiefdom.

Behind the iron gate of picturesque San Quentin, which from outside has the appearance of a Camelot-by-the-Sea, quiet testimony has been taking place since April, in hearings stemming from a 2002 lawsuit alleging whistleblower retaliation against inmate case analyst Kathy DeoCampo. Testimony from San Quentin staff members is providing a look inside an administration plagued by problems.

While Woodford was warden in 2002, there was a tremendous backlog of incoming inmates. Staff counselors and analysts have testified that some processing steps required by the department manual were bypassed in order to speed inmate transfers into the "mainline" of the prison -- with potentially dangerous results.

According to staff testimony, high-security prisoners were accidentally mixed with lower security inmates in San Quentin's reception center, putting the safety of prisoners and staff at risk. Inmates were also processed into San Quentin's lower-security H unit without seeing a counselor or receiving a security level classification.

A counselor described a riot that took place in a gym in 2003, and some staff believe it was caused by the improper mixing of inmates of different levels. Another "mini-riot" took place in April 2002. Staff say they tried to warn supervisors that the situation could be dangerous, but were told the problem had been taken care of.

Medical and psychological records were often missing from files, delaying inmates' classification and transfer to appropriate facilities.

Two counselors testified that they received instruction from supervisors to process prisoners without certain required paperwork. One said he had done "hundreds" of cases that way.

Some San Quentin staff members testified that skipping the paperwork was an appropriate response to an emergency backlog that was rampant throughout the system, and that inmate and community safety were never compromised.

Outside of the hearings, warden's assistant Eric Messick said that Woodford allowed counselors to bypass certain paperwork called "intake audits" because placing inmates in regular prison cells was preferable to crowding hallways and gyms, even if it went against normal procedures.

"It was the lesser of two evils," Messick says. He insists that safety and security were never at risk.

Early in the hearings, a prison official testified that the problem of unclassified inmates turning up in San Quentin's "mainline" had been quickly identified and resolved in 2002.

But others say it's still going on.

As if to prove the point, on June 10 a counselor testified that during the previous day's hearing she learned that one of her as-yet-unprocessed inmates was found in San Quentin's H unit.

At best, the DeoCampo hearing testimony points to a system in disarray. At worst, it may be exposing serious mismanagement and violation of regulations.

The contradictory testimony certainly invites deeper investigation from outside the prison walls.

If allegations by staff prove true, "this is very serious," says Richard Steffen, an aide and investigator for Sen. Jackie Speier. He has spent the year digging into problems of the state's prison system for the Senate's government oversight committee.

Steffen says his office has received reports of other San Quentin processing problems, including inmates being released after their legal date, in violation of state law, because of misplaced paperwork from files.

Woodford has been subpoenaed to testify in the San Quentin hearings, but according to the state's attorney in the case, she couldn't appear in June due to a heavy schedule before her June 23 state senate confirmation. She has declined repeated requests for interviews on this subject.

That's too bad. When institutions such as the CDC become accustomed to functioning behind closed doors, officials tend to fumble and panic when outside scrutiny finally comes along. The allegations in the San Quentin hearings have the classic signs of a system suffering from a deadly lack of oversight.

Woodford, on the other hand, has proposed to shine light into some of the department's darkest corners. Enjoying the support of both liberals and conservatives, she has a real opportunity to set a new course for a department weighed down by decades of mismanagement, secrecy and cronyism.

Now is her chance to send a signal that she is serious about reform.

Why not set the tone by publicly investigating the claims made by her former staff at San Quentin?

PNS contributor Julia Reynolds is a California-based investigative reporter specializing in criminal justice.

This should probably be posted in the news section too...don't you think?
It is news...how many know of the hearings? And if they do, do they know what the testimony was????

Three cheers for the original whistleblower and for all those who were willing to testify and tell what really was/is happening.

Thank you for posting the article. Never thought about putting it under the news section. Your right it is news. Whistleblower's really do pay a price.


This should probably be posted in the news section too...don't you think?
It is news...how many know of the hearings? And if they do, do they know what the testimony was????

Three cheers for the original whistleblower and for all those who were willing to testify and tell what really was/is happening.

I would say this to any employee everywhere...if a supervisor wants something done that is outside the rules get something in writing. Happens everywhere and you know who will be responsible for doing things incorrectly and who will not admit they gave directions to do it a certain way. Yet another reason why a union is a good thing. I realize this post is about whistleblowers but if everybody did things correctly there would be no whistle to blow.

Document, Document, Document.....as soon as possible. Put down witnesses and get signed statements because a couple of years later when things start to surface memories ("Code of Silence") fade away.

I would say this to any employee everywhere...if a supervisor wants something done that is outside the rules get something in writing. Happens everywhere and you know who will be responsible for doing things incorrectly and who will not admit they gave directions to do it a certain way. Yet another reason why a union is a good thing. I realize this post is about whistleblowers but if everybody did things correctly there would be no whistle to blow.

Yes,Cheers to the Whistleblower'(s).....