Disability in U.S. Prisons

For the last few months, Garry researched and wrote about prisons and prison reform. His work shows what a serious problem it has become. It made me wonder about disabled people in prisons. The number of prison inmates with disabilities is not readily available. Disability statistics are available as census data (20% of our population is disabled), but stats are not captured on the number of disabled prisoners. There is some dated information, however, on mental and learning disabilities. From the Bureau of Justice Statistics: federal and state prisons were surveyed in 2004 for mental disabilities. Shockingly, 61% of women and 44% of men in federal prisons have mental health problems, and only 1 in 4 have received treatment. There are no available statistics concerning physically disabled prisoners. Anecdotal incidents emphasize, however, that the problem of caring for disabled prisoners is increasing and serious.

 

• There was the young woman who was diagnosed with osteosarcoma while in prison, and is facing amputation because of negligent care.
• Inmate Tony Goodman complained that he spent his time in a cell too small to maneuver his wheelchair.

 

There are many other stories about people who enter prisons with obvious disabilities. They are not properly cared for and often become worse. What can be assured from statistics is the U.S. prison population is overcrowded and growing even more rapidly than our aging populace. One other thing certain is that some of these incidents qualify as "cruel and unusual punishment," prohibited by the United States Constitution in the eighth amendment of our Bill of Rights:

 

In many prisons, policy says prisoners with disabilities, both physical and mental, deserve the same provisions as every other prisoner. However, policy and practice in prison, just as in the rest of the world, are not always working in tandem. Disabled inmates have the right to visit the gym, but the gym may not be accessible to wheelers. And what about the showers and bathrooms? Exercise, hygeine and nutrition are basic concerns that must be addressed. Funds for reconstruction to correct these problems are seldom available, as are the means of staffing to assist with special needs.

 

One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted; and a community is infinitely more brutalized by the habitual employment of punishment than it is by the occasional occurrence of crime.

Oscar Wilde, 1854-1900

 

The ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), meant to make life more accessible, is currently under reconstruction (Americans with Disabilities Restoration Act) to strengthen it. But is it applicable in prison? The Supreme Court gives a resounding "Yes" in response to Goodman's case. The Supreme Court unanimously agreed the ADA applies, even in prison. Legal Rights of Disabled Prisoners, updated in 2005, guides inmates with complaints when trying to apply the ADA. In January, a new prison opened in Oklahoma dubbed the ADA Facility because of its compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Inmates from other state prisons were moved into this facility, specifically adapted for inmates in wheelchairs, with impaired sight , dementia, cancer, etc. Sounds like a good start.

 

 

 

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