IBF Head Office in Scotland takes action - 12-05-01
From:- The International Bannister Foundation (Head Office - Scotland, UK)Dear Friends
A call for action is required. Below is the list of events that has happened to Patrick Swiney, most of you may know that Sherry Swiney is the Director of the Patrick Crusade, and she is also one of the General Managers of the IBF, she requires not only the help of the IBF, but from others as well, please read the terms of events carefully and take action (where possible) as per instructed by Sherry within the text.
This is a direct Human Rights Violation of not only Patrick's (Article 25 (1) of the UDHR), but of Patrick's family as well.
Thank you.
In kindness
Tom & Pamela Rodger (Co-founders)
The International Bannister Foundation
P.O. Box: 26170
Dunfermline
Fife
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Scotland
United Kingdom
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IBF Trustees: The Bannister Family
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-----Original Message-----
From: Sherry Swiney taoss@worldnet.att.net
Sent: 05 December 2001 03:22
To: PATRICK LIST
I need everyone's help now... I need a letter campaign to officials and press because this has gone too far!
I've bcc'd most of you to save space, but please consider this an individual letter to you personally. I ask that you pass this on as best you can because we need a big response from everywhere. Your letters and faxes, as concerned citizens will help ensure that Patrick receives the medical care he so desperately needs. Patrick has stood by many people, giving them the inspiration and strength to carry on. He has unselfishly helped many people over the years, and now he need some help.
He doesn't deserve to die because of prison abusers and public apathy.
Last Friday, November 30, 2001, they woke Patrick up early in the morning and told him to pack it up because he was being transferred from Holman Prison [Atmore, Alabama] to Kilby Prison [near Montgomery, Alabama]. No reason was given.
Patrick rushed to the telephone to let me know what had happened, stating that he would be gone in a couple of hours. Since then we have been working feverishly to find out if (1) Patrick is okay, (2) Patrick received his medication, (3) Why he was transferred and what's going to happen to him now.
The process has been tiring to say he least and little information was given to me, his wife, but more information was given to a member of our investigative team.
I've included a summary of the information we did receive through yesterday, and today, I found out that most of what they told us were lies.
I am furious! livid! infuriated! fuming! If I could spit nails, I would and it would be right at all those who have lied to us with knowing indifference, not giving one thought about what we are all suffering.
About the only truth we were told was that Patrick is at Kilby and he is in lockup and will stay there. We still don't know why.
The good news:
Yesterday morning I was very hopeful because Patrick was allowed to
call his mother. He told her he was going to be transferred to West
Jefferson [renamed Donaldson] and he told her he was happy about that because
he had heard they have a good medical facility there and a decent place
for the older folks to stay. He told her he didn't know when this
transfer would take place. After a few minutes they were cut off and he
was taken back to lockup. His 80 year old mother then called the
warden's office at Kilby and said she wanted to visit Patrick. At
Kilby, visiting is only once a month: the first Tuesday of the month from
9 am to 11 am, and prisoners are only allowed one phone call a month.
The woman in the warden's office told Patrick's mother she could visit today. So, his 60 year-old sister took the day off from work to drive their mother to see him. I asked his mother to look at him to "see" how he is doing. She's a retired RN and would know. I asked her to find out if he has received his medication and to tell him what we have been able to find out so far [reference: the summary below]. I asked her to give him a hug from me and to tell him I love him and that I am doing just fine. She said she would do all these things.
The bad news:
When Patrick's mother and sister got to Kilby today, they refused to
let either of them see Patrick. Patrick probably doesn't even know
they came to see him.
The guards at the front desk said that Patrick had not put in his visiting list [how could he know about this requirement, when he had been told all his records, etc., from Holman would be transferred with him???!!!]. They said it could take 6 weeks before his visiting list is approved!
When his mother got home, there was a letter from Patrick waiting for her. He wrote that it was confirmed that Warden Charlie Jones, of Holman Prison, specifically and personally ordered the transfer. He doesn't know why. If you don't know about Warden Charlie Jones, please read all the stuff [abuses and tortures] he's pulled on Patrick over the years at www.patrickcrusade.org and click on "Who Is Patrick?"
And no! Patrick's letter said he did not get his medication back after the transfer took place like they told us [please see summary below]. They even kept the approved over-the-counter meds he purchased at Holman for his arthritis, which is actually theft [he purchased the OTC Advil because Holman refused him medical treatment]. Any idea how painful advanced inflammatory spinal arthritis is - every day 24/7? Any idea how stressful such pain is for a heart patient who has already had 3 heart attacks while in prison? Any idea how exacerbating this is for one who is also suffering with emphysema due to the unsanitary conditions at Holman?
Any idea how painful all this is for me and for his family when we have so much proof that he is 100% innocent, and was methodically framed - when he should be walking as a free man instead of being continuously tortured? And now, on top of this, just about all communications is being cut off from his family and why? They say they don't know.
I know how painful this is for you too, and I hope you will report all of this in your own words, to the press and to any or all officials in the entire state of Alabama. Use your imagination: contact medical agencies, state agencies, human rights advocates, congressmen, senators, newspapers worldwide, radio stations, magazines...as always, copy the Alabama governor so he can never say he did not know.
Patrick doesn't deserve to die because of prison abusers and public apathy.
I am told that Wardens have the authority to reclassify prisoners. I think we all need to request that Patrick be reclassified so that he can go to the Hamilton medical facility where he will receive the medical care he needs. At least then we have a chance of keeping him alive long enough to get some help with his legal case -- to get the merits of his case heard. And, even if he were guilty as the framers say he is, no man deserves the tortures he has received at the hands of these jailers!
Please see below...for the rest of the story. Please help me help Patrick. If you cannot write, or don't want to write, then God bless you, and pray for him to be reclassified.
Love, Sherry
Here is the step-by-step summary of the information [the lies] gathered
prior to today:
Patrick Swiney 154406 gets transferred to Kilby
P.O. Box 150, Mt. Meets, AL 36057.
11/30/01
On Friday November 30, 2001, Patrick called me early in the morning. He said they woke him up, telling him to pack it up, he was being moved to Kilby which is near Montgomery, AL. We have no idea why. Kilby is a transfer station, however there are only two other facilities besides Holman, where LWOP people can go: St. Clair and West Jefferson [renamed Donaldson]. The DOC officials know there's an enemy list in Patrick's file jacket for both places. Inmates attacked him with knives, solely because Patrick was a police officer.
The rules say that DOC cannot send anyone to a place where there are KNOWN enemies. So, we don't know what's going on. My hope is that they are sending him to Hamilton, which is a facility for the old and infirmed. Patrick is a heart patient, has emphysema and suffers the chronic pain of inflammatory spinal arthritis. He's never had medical care at Holman and we've complained in a big way about this over the years. Now there's a lawsuit pending, so maybe that's what this is all about. They are refusing to tell me,- his wife - anything. They won't even tell his mother anything!
They get brain-dead over the weekends, which is why they always wait until Fridays to do something to him. Nobody knows nothing's. I'm surprised they even know their own names, as they have to do some thinking when I ask them what their names are. I record and keep records of all conversations, then confirm in writing to officials of choice and newspapers. They know I do this so you would think by now, that they would be forthright with me for a change so they wouldn't look so bad and uncaring.
I9all feel much better when Patrick is finally allowed a 5-minute phone call. They've got him in lock up --- why? No body knows a thing. I've asked all his friends, family and his legal team to write to him so Kilby knows we are out here caring about him. He already knows, but Kilby doesn't. None of us are sleeping these days, wondering how Patrick is doing. Hope that makes these Alabama goons feel warm and fuzzy inside. They say we have terrorists from overseas threatening us but they need to look in their own backyard to see where the domestic terrorism is coming from. It' not from overseas; it's from within.
Friday evening [11/30/01] at 6:34 PM, I called down there to get an update. No one knew anything. I first contacted the "Chief Commander" on duty. This was Ms. Sgt. William who first said that Patrick would normally go to East Dorm then get his medication when they called pill-call from population. I said that I thought they had placed him in lockup. Then she switched me to West Ward Hospital Area where the people there knew nothing and switched me back to the Lt's office. They called her Lieutenant rather than Sergeant. Ms. William wasn't there, so I spoke to Correctional Officer Mr. Roberts. He at least confirmed that Patrick was there and was in lockup. I asked him to give me the doctor's name and Roberts said he didn't know the doctor's name because the doctor is days and Roberts is nights.
At 7:17 PM, I called again, asking for the West Ward Hospital Area. I spoke to Ms. Vaughn who told me that the doctor's name is Dr. Saddiq and that he would be in Saturday morning sometime, but she didn't know what time. I said, "You mean there's no physician on staff at night?" She said, "That's right."
I told her that Patrick was in lockup and had had his meds taken away while he was in transit from Holman to Kilby, and that it was important that he got his meds back. I told her how worried the entire family was because no one was telling us anything. Ms. Vaughn said, "Oh, I'm sure he's just fine." I said, "Well, I hope so, but you see, the people down at Holman have lied to us many times, so I need confirmation - actual confirmation - that Patrick is okay and that he has received his medication. He's a heart patient, and suffers with emphysema and painful inflammatory spinal arthritis." Ms. Vaughn said, "Well, I can go look at his chart and then if you call me back, I can say 'yes, he got his meds or no' ". I said, "How long should I wait to call you back?" She said, "About 30 minutes."
At 7:30 PM I called Ms. Vaughn back. She said, "I took them to him myself." I said, "You mean his meds?" She said, "Yes." I said, "How did he look?" She said, "He looked fine. He was asleep." I said, "Thank you very much for your help." She said, "Okay." I said, "Bye-bye."
Our friend and member of our investigative team, Honorio Montanez, instructed me [and I have passed this information along to Peggy and Bob] to make sure to contact Paul Sides, Director of I&I [Investigations and Intelligence] for DOC. Montanez said that we needed to verify by phone and confirm by letter, that Patrick has an enemy list in his file jacket. It took until last evening before Montanez was able to give me the telephone number of Paul Sides, and he's not in on Sunday, so I and Peggy will call him tomorrow [Monday]. Montanez says Sides can and will investigate Patrick's situation with regards to (1) why he was transferred, (2) his medical care, and (3) his enemy list. Here are the details for the record:
Paul Sides, Director of I&I, DOC
334-215-6626
Secretary: Shirley Whorley 334-467-2820
Paul Whaley, Director of Classification Division, DOC
334-240-9506
Betty Peague, Director of Central Records, DOC
334-240-9522
Address of the above:
1400 Lloyd Street
Montgomery, AL 36130
Warden's name at Kilby:
Terrance McDonnell
Next, see Peggy Long's write up of the phone calls she made to try
to find out what's happened to Patrick. Peggy is also a member of
Patrick's investigative team.
RONALD PATRICK SWINEY
154406
Kilby Correctional Facility
PO Box 150
Mt. Meets, AL 36057
334-215-6600
Friday, November 30, 2001 he was transferred from Holman Prison to Kilby.
Saturday, December 1, 2001 I called Kilby and spoke to an officer regarding Patrick. He verified that Patrick was indeed there but would not answer any of my questions regarding his placement within the Facility. I asked to be transferred to the West Ward Hospital and talked to Ms. Thompson. I asked for Mrs. Vaughn and she did not know who that was. I asked to speak with Dr. Saddiq and was told that there was no doctor on duty an that the doctor only came to the facility a couple of times a week. She advised me to call back on Monday morning to speak with Warden McDonald or Rita Outlaw, the Director of Nurses.
Monday, December 3, 2001 I called Kilby at 10:30 to speak with Warden McDonald. He was on another call and his office personnel took my name and number and said that she would have him return my call. I explained to her that I was calling in regard to Patrick's transfer from Holman and was apart of Patrick's legal team. I don't expect a return call from Warden McDonald but I will call him back in a few hours.
I called Warden McDonald's office again and talked with Officer Brewer who told me that the Warden was in a meeting. I reminded her that I had called earlier and she told me that she still had my name and number and he would call me back later in the day (which I seriously doubt). She told me that he is usually in his office until approximately 5 PM each day. I will call back later today.
AT 2:30 PM I called Paul Sides' office - his line was busy. I then dialed Shirley Whorley, his secretary, and the phone number that I had (334-467-2820) was a non-working number. I will try to call Paul Sides again later today.
At 2:45 PM I called Paul Whaley's office at DOC and talked to a prison classification specialist. After looking up his AIS number said she has no record of any reclassification. She had no specific information at her disposal (i.e., his record); therefore she did not know why he was being transferred or by what order he was done so. She reflected that since he had severe medical conditions, and because he is life without parole, there are only 3 places he could be incarcerated. (1) Holman (2) St Clair, or (3) West Jefferson (has been renamed to Donaldson). She also said that Donaldson was an improvement as far as his transfer because of his medical conditions. At Donaldson they have expanded medical facilities and more medical staff on duty and available. I also inquired about the Hamilton facility and she told me that because Patrick was life without parole, he could not be considered for transfer to Hamilton.
At 2:56 I called Betty Peague (Pigg), Director of Central Records. The only information that she had at her disposal was that Patrick was presently at Kilby in transit. Her records do not show where he is being transferred or why. (The last update she had in her filed was in 1991) She gave me the name of Ms. Judy Hollaway at Kilby who might be able to give me that information.
At 3:07 I talked with Ms. Judy Hollaway (who was very helpful and informative) and she told me that Patrick is definitely scheduled for transfer to Donaldson. He has not been reclassified. The reason for his transfer is most often at the request of the Warden at the facility he left (Charlie Jones) - and the reason for Warden Request for Transfer is not required to be documented on the paperwork. I asked how long they usually hold inmates who are in transit and she told me that it depends on factors. In Patrick's case, they are waiting for a space to be made available (whatever that means). Patrick CAN receive mail but telephone calls made by him she was unsure of. Patrick is being kept in a "single cell" environment. I asked if it was "the hole" and she said no. Because Patrick is life without parole, he could not be allowed to be placed in general population (and that was because the inmates at Kilby were NOT life without parole). She then transferred me to Head of the Security Detention Section to find out about the telephone calls Patrick is allowed to make and the officer I talked to there confirmed that Patrick is only allowed to make 1 telephone call per month. (If that is so, he has already made several calls since he has been there; therefore, I don't know just how strict they will be with that rule.) I asked him if he was in the area or near the area of where Patrick is, but he said no. I asked him if there was a way to get a message to him from his wife. He said no.
At 3:35 PM I called Paul Sides' office and talked with Leslie (Shirley Whorley no longer works there). She again verified Patrick was going to Donaldson and that because of the information and the enemy list in Patrick's jacket, that when he gets to Donaldson, he will probably be placed in a cell rather than general population because of possible danger. It could be a 1-man or 2-man cell. I told her of the incident when Patrick was attacked and almost killed and about his physical condition. She works at Kilby but in a building just outside the Kilby compound. She asked me the name of the person that attacked Patrick but I did not know. She was going to try to verify the enemy list, find out any additional information, and give me a call back. (I found her to be very helpful). Leslie called me back at 3:43 and told me that the enemy list does not carry much weight. All it does is to flag Patrick when he is reassigned to another facility and that they would probably place him in protective custody (a 1- or 2-man cell assignment). She also gave me a name and number to call (Janet Finley) for additional information. Her name and number is listed at the end of this list. I will call Janet a little later.
At 4:35, I received a telephone call from Warden McDonald (he is VERY nice and helpful as could be under the circumstances). He repeated all the information above that I had found out but I didn't let him know that I had already contacted many people. He did confirm Patrick could only make 1 phone call per month, he did confirm that Patrick is receiving his medication, and he has no idea how long Patrick will be at Kilby. He did reinforce that Patrick's enemy list would be WELL noted and that all precautions will be taken to keep him out of harms way. He also said that the ONLY way we would be able to find out EXACTLY why and who initiated the transfer is to call the Warden at Holman (Charlie Jones). That will get EXACTLY nowhere. However, tomorrow I will try to get through to CHARLIE.
Paul Sides, I&I (Investigations and Intelligence) at Kilby
334-215-6626
Leslie (would not give last name)
Want to verify enemy list in Patrick's jacket
Investigate Medications and possible assignment to Hamilton
Paul Whaley - DOC
Director of Classification Division
334-240-9506
Betty Peague (Pigg)
Director of Central Records
1400 Lloyd Street
Montgomery, AL 36130
334-240-9522
Ms. Judy Holloway
Head of Central Records
Kilby
334-215-6600
West Ward Hospital
Kilby
Rita Outlaw, Director or Nurses
334-215-6600
Terrence McDonald
Warden, Kilby
334-215-6600
Janet Finley
Constituent Services Officer
334-353-3871