DEPTHS - America's New Safety Net: Prison

FROM: Mark Crispin Miller

America's New Safety Net: Prison

by Barry Scott Sussman

2012-10-24 11:06:25

The U.S. prides itself as being “number one” in a general, meaningless sense, but routinely ranks towards the bottom of developed nations in social services provided.  Indeed, the U.S. currently ranks 34^th in infant mortality, 12^th among developed nations in college graduation, 37^th in access to health care, and 28^th in life expectancy.  As a result of these and other glaring deficiencies, Americans with nowhere else to turn are in growing numbers opting for prison.  Incarceration is the one category in which America is without question the undisputed world leader in both number and percentage of people imprisoned.  Dwight Eisenhower once quipped, “If all that Americans want is security, they can go to prison.  They’ll have enough to eat, a bed and a roof over their heads.”  Today many Americans are making prison a choice not because of a desire for security, but rather in a desperate search for the basic amenities cited by Eisenhower. 

President Dwight Eisenhower half-jokingly cited prison as a potential source of security, but could never have imagined that it would become a viable option for those in need

This past May, Lance Brown of Columbus, Georgia was out of options.  Hungry, homeless and facing another night on the street, he took matters into his own hands by hurling a brick through a glass door at a Columbus courthouse in a deliberate effort to be arrested.  Brown had previously served time in prison and was still on probation for a prior offense.  Before deciding to throw the brick, he asked his probation what he could do to be arrested again.  The probation officer gave Brown the number for an assistance program, but no immediate help was forthcoming.  Having no immediate alternative, Brown opted to be taken into custody.  Upon his arrest, Brown said he was hungry and thought that if he threw the brick through a glass door, it would cause him to spend a few hours where he might be offered “a sandwich and drink.” 

Lance Brown’s only available option for food was a trip to prison    

Brown, however, may have gotten more than he bargained for.  U.S. Attorney Michael Moore claimed to have little choice other than to charge Brown with malicious mischief against government property.  “The unfortunate circumstances in which Mr. Brown found himself cannot be justification for destroying property of the United States,” Moore said.  Moore, conscious of how the charges were playing in the media, was quick to add, “And while I am personally saddened by Mr. Brown’s plight, I regret that he chose to violate the law instead of taking help form those who offered it.” 

U.S. Attorney Michael Moore is happy to pad his resume with slam-dunk convictions of the hungry and homeless

Despite Moore’s aforementioned false dichotomy and professed concern for the broken glass door, he certainly possessed the discretionary power to forego Mr. Brown’s prosecution.  What kind of message is being sent when a federal case is made of a hungry man who throws a brick through glass in a desperate attempt to secure food and shelter?  If only the social system in America were as efficient as its federal prosecutors, incidents like this would be unheard of.  Brown’s quest for food and shelter ultimately earned him 10 months in prison.          

National homeless advocate Robert Marbut says that Brown’s sentence is unusual for this type of case.  He claims that homeless offenders openly trying to be arrested for food and shelter typically spend only a night or two in jail where they can receive nutrition and hygienic care.  He advocates that there be alternate programs for these types of offenders.  “That shows you how wacky things have gotten when we don’t have as a society an intermediate program.” 

Homeless advocate Robert Marbut has seen an uptick in the number of homeless opting for prison       

This was not Brown’s first attempt to be deliberately arrested.  He had previously gone to the same courthouse and declared that he was going to kill President Obama.  Brown’s earlier attempt to

secure food and shelter was not successful as court officers did not find his threat to be credible. 

Banks have also become popular targets for those in need of social services.  In Gaston County, North Carolina, 59 year old Richard Verone attempted to rob a bank for one dollar in an effort to gain access to health care.  Verone, a former 17 year Coca Cola delivery driver, suffers from an undiagnosed growth in his chest, two ruptured disks in his back, arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome and a problem with his foot.  He claims to have no savings or health care coverage and is physically unable to work.  His claim for disability was previously denied by the federal government.  Verone told reporters that he was hoping for a three year prison sentence during which time he could receive medical care for his various ailments and then be released in time for his Social Security benefits to commence at age 62. 

Richard Verone’s need for basic health care drove him to deliberately opt for prison    

Verone had been actively seeking work, but was limited by his health issues.  He was jobless and living off of food stamps and his near-depleted savings at the time of the robbery.  Verone claims to have tolerated the foot and back pain, but when he noticed the lump on his chest, he knew he had to act.  “The pain was beyond the tolerance I could accept,” he told reporters.  “I kind of hit a brick wall with everything.”

Verone says that he “exercised all the alternatives” before formulating his one dollar robbery plan.  As the day of the robbery approached, Verone paid his last month’s rent, donated his furniture and moved into a Hampton Inn.  On the morning of the robbery, he mailed a letter to his local paper.

“When you receive this a bank robbery will have been committed by me.  This robbery is being committed by me for one dollar,” he wrote.  Verone wanted people to understand that the motive for his crime was a need for medical attention.  The note continued, “I am of sound mind but not so much sound body.”

Contrary to his wishes, Verone was charged with a relatively minor larceny charge instead of bank robbery.  Officials say that the charge is unlikely to keep him behind bars for more than 12 months.  Verone promises to commit more “crimes” if he is released too early.

In May of 2012 in Freemont, Nebraska, 51 year old Bryan Henricksen walked into a bank and did not even bother with a robbery attempt.  Instead, he simply told the staff to call the police because he wanted to be arrested.  Henricksen told police officers who responded to the scene that he wanted to go to jail because he had no job or money. 

With a dwindling number of social programs that are critically overburdened, America’s homeless turn to prison as their last option

The local police were initially sympathetic to Henricksen’s plight and offered to help him find assistance, but none was readily available.  With no other feasible option at hand, Henricksen returned to the bank and announced his intention to rob it.  He was finally arrested for criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace.  Although the charges were relatively minor, he finally did receive his desired stay in jail.

On October 9, 2012, 50 year old Jeffrey McMullen walked into his local AmeriServ Bank in Cambria County, PA and handed two notes to a bank teller.  The first note stated “Federal bank robbery.  Please hand over $1.00.”  The second read “FBI custody.  Preferbly (sic) Loretto Pa.  No press.  Seal all files.”  (Loretto is a federal prison located near McMullen’s home.)  The teller, recognizing McMullen as a customer and believing it was a joke, passed him to a second teller.  The second teller thought McMullen just needed a dollar and gave him one from her own purse. 

 

Jeffrey McMullen robbed a bank for one dollar in order to earn himself a stay in prison                  

McMullen finally spoke with the new accounts manager and repeated that he was robbing the bank for one dollar.  Sensing that the demand was serious, bank employees called the police and McMullen was arrested.  A Cambria County judge ordered that he undergo a mental evaluation and post a $50,000 bond before he is released.  It remains unclear if McMullen will comply with the order or opt to remain in jail.  Sources report that McMullen’s robbery attempt was the result of his dire financial situation and lack of other options. 

Loretto Federal Correctional Institution was McMullen’s requested destination

McMullen’s one dollar robbery occurred just days after a similar event in Renton, Washington where a 23 year old woman walked into the Key Bank and demanded money from a teller.  After the teller complied with her request, the still unnamed woman told bank employees that she would wait outside for the police.  Officers responding to the scene found her waiting with the branch manager outside and she was taken into custody without a struggle.  She later told detectives that she robbed the bank with the intention of going to jail.   

The suspect was known to local police because of prior contacts and believed to have mental health issues.  While the police did not specify a reason for her desire to go to jail, local media reported that she was seeking treatment for her mental illness and wanted a “better environment.”  She was arrested for investigation of robbery and her case sent to the King County Prosecuting Attorney who will decide on the appropriate charges. 

Is the federal Bureau of Prisons now a social welfare agency?

Predictably, there are those who cite these events as evidence of the “desirability” of America’s prison.  They assert that if people are willingly trying to gain access, prison must be rather nice.  There is an oft-quoted canard that “the degree of a nation’s civility can be seen in the way it treats its prisoners.”  This is routinely repeated by apologists for the prison-industrial complex as they try to spin the notion that people locked into America’s prison salmagundi are reaping some level of state sponsored beneficence.  In reality, the degree of a nation’s civility is better measured by the percentage of its population under lock and key.  The dearth of services for those in need, measured against the abundant resources thrown at incarceration, speaks volumes of America’s priorities.      

Events such as these highlight the dire state of social services in America, accentuating the growing disparity between rich and poor.   It is almost unthinkable that people would willingly sacrifice their freedom in return for knowing where their next meal was coming from, but desperate times call for desperate measures.  Lackeys of the System will try to mischaracterize these tragic occurrences and spin them as further evidence of the coddling of criminals.  The truth is that as times grow more dire and people increasingly desperate, prison will become the only option for a burgeoning number of those who find themselves disadvantaged in America.  Sadly, for many a stay in prison is the closest thing to assistance that the State sees fit to offer.