SHU in Corcoran

Mike · #1 01-09-2003, 10:40 AM

Does anyone know anything about the SHU in Corcoran? My friend in Susanville said he was being transferred to Pelican Bay. But now he wrote and said he is on his way to Corcoran instead.

dmb · #2 01-09-2003, 10:43 AM

The SHU anywhere is bad news. I'm not sure it really matters if it is Corcoran or Pelican Bay.

**Barbara** · #3 01-09-2003, 09:25 PM

Hi Mike, from what I hear Corcoran is the better of the two if you can call thay better. Love Barbara

Mike · #4 01-10-2003, 10:05 AM

Thanks. He has to be there for 4 years.

I am his only pen pal, although in his latest letter he said someone named Beth has written him. I hope she keeps in touch with him. His wife divorced him when he was sentenced, and he has a little girl.
What from I understand,. the SHU's are for violent, dangerous prisoners. Yet in his letters to me this guy seems so gentle and compassionate and caring.
Thanks for your responses.

**Barbara** · #5 01-10-2003, 07:39 PM

Please don’t believe everything you hear from the media it is not always accurate. I think it is the only way they can explain why they keep humans under these kind of conditions. If you kept an animal like this you would be arrested and charged with cruelty to animals. I have a son in the SHU at Pelican Bay and I can tell you he is not a violent and dangerous prisoner. Prisoners do what they have to do to stay alive, that does not mean they go out of their way to hurt people. I personally know 4 inmates at the Bay and I don’t believe this to be true about any of them either. Love Barbara

Mike · #6 01-11-2003, 06:00 PM

Well I do know that he has a life sentence for a murder. He said, "At first they were going to send me to death row. Now I wish they would have." In other letters h'd mention that he was in two knife fights this week, or things like that. I found that hard to believe. But then a few letters later he told me he just "took care of" another prisoner, but not in self-defense. Just because he did not like what this other person was convicted of. That's why they are sending him to the SHU. My feeling is, if "they" feel he is so dangerous and unfit to be part of human society then why don't they just give him the needle and let him fall asleep peacefully. That's what we do to dogs who keep attacking people. We don't continue to keep those dogs alive, in cages. We either rehabiliate them or put them to sleep.

KConnor56 · #7 01-12-2003, 05:45 AM

I was at the SHU at corcoran. What do you need to know. To tell you the truth I find it hard to believe too. Prison guards read all out going mail, you would never write something like that in a letter if it was true.

**Ken** · #8 01-12-2003, 07:24 AM

Sorry, I am not contributing to this thread, I am looking for information...

What does "SHU" stand for? Is this like Super Max? What is a SHU...?

Mike · #9 01-12-2003, 01:47 PM

Yes, it means Security Housing Unit. Like a Supermax. Do an Internet search on Pelican Bay Security Housing Unit or Pelican Bay SHU to read about it. They don't even get to read their own mail; they view it on a monitor. They communicate with the prison staff via intercom.
KConner, this inmate wrote me all this while he was still in Susanville. I wonder why he would tell me this. He didn't seem to be bragging about it though. Maybe he has nothing else to write about. I just don't know. Anyway, what is he allowed to receive? Photographs and post cards? Should I call the prison to find out?

KConnor56 · #10 01-13-2003, 04:36 AM

SHU= Security Houssing unit.
Ad Seg=Administrative Segragation
PHU= Protective housing Unit

When you break the rules in prison they have only certain ways they can punish you. They can't give you more time unless they file a street case & take you to court. So, all they can do is take away your privledges, &/or restrict your freedom even more so than it already is. Generally it works like this (There are exceptions, this is only a general explanation), for minor infractions like smoking in your cell, failure to folow an order, getting tattoos, possesing a tattoo gun, etc. they will take away priv. like phone calls, visits, restrict you to your cell (you only come out for meals & work), day room priv. etc. For major write ups they send you to ad seg or the SHU. These are like fights, drug possesion, testing dirty, being under the influencee, etc. they will send you to the ad seg (the hole). in ad seg your locked down for the whole day. you get a shower about 2-3 times a week, & you will have some days they will let you out for an hour to execise. You are fed in your cell. Most ad seg sentences are less than thirty days. You go before a classification committee & they look at your charges, listen to your side, & then they tell you how long you will do. If you get a seriuos major write up like assault on staff, attacking a prisoner with a weapon, belonging to a prison gang, extortion, intimidation,etc. the classification committee will sentence you to a SHU term. They have a list of terms you will serve acording to whaat you did. There is a list of SHU terms in the title 15. The worst term is indefinate SHU term. They can then keep you in the SHU for your whole sentece. If you parole from the SHU, & you come back, you will go back to the SHU t0 finish your sentence. In many cases you will pick up a street case along with a SHU term. You can be found not guilty on a street case & still get a a SHU term.

I hope this helps

Knife fights at Susanville? Now I'm not saaying it didn't happen, but I haavee met many, many prisoners who have done time at susanville, & none of them haave ever mentioned knife fights. Susaanville, & the fire camp are pretty mellow places to do time.

As for what he caan receive, when I was there you could get your normal mai, & pictures. (No polaroids) I would thouggh to be sure call the prison. -------------Ken

Mike · #11 01-13-2003, 09:08 AM

Ken, Thanks. Maybe this guy is a story teller. He started out serving a Life sentence at Susanville, but he was in some kind of Seg or PHU. (I'm familiar with Seg, from other pen pals in other states.) But he was alone in this 2-man cell, locked down 23/7, showers 2 or 3 times a week. Then he told me about all these fights and things. Then they put another man in with him, whom he "took care of". So now he is in the Corcoran SHU for 4 years.
Obviously he is not telling me the whole story.

PixieQueen · #12 02-20-2003, 01:40 AM

Isn't Charles Manson in the SHU at Corcoran?

lulu · #13 02-20-2003, 09:28 AM

Ken,
I have had many inmates write me details of what happen. That is nothing un common. I do know the ones that I have, well, it is true. They write all kinds of stuff in the mail. Ihave one that wont cause he is still in court. Other wise those that are done, they feel they have nothing to lose. They have no one esle to trust.
Mike my heart goes out to your pen pal

lulu · #14 02-20-2003, 09:31 AM

PixieQueen
No, I thought charles manson was in Tx. lol Maybe I am wrong?

KConnor56 · #15 02-21-2003, 10:27 PM

Charlie was at corcoran SHU, & corcoran mainline. Last I heard is he got caught with dope while on the mainline & picked up a SHU term at Pelican Bay. Charlie is a state prisoner here in Calif.

As far as admitting things in letters to people, I don't know of anyone who does it, that was acctually involved. Letters are evidence. A letter admiting to attacking another prisoner is enough to get you charged with a street case, or at a minimum a SHU term. CO's see people writing stuff to people all the time, but they know it BS, so they don't do anything about it. It's just plain stupid to admit something like that in a letter.---------Ken