ARE YOU IN A HURRY BOY? - CRIMINAL ACTS OF ADC STAFF - Government - http://maxpages.com/darkevilworld/Are_You_In_A_Hurry

On August 22. 1999 at about 6:30 a.m. Clifton Wallace, #102423 was getting off work from the Kitchen where he was assigned, and wanted to get back to his barracks to take a shower and go to sleep. A couple of the officers on duty had apparently had a bad day and felt like harassing the prisoners some by not letting them proceed to and from their barracks in a timely manner. It a favorite "past time" of some of the officers to play "head games" with the prisoners in whatever way they can agitate, belittle, or degrade inmates.

Thinking that the officers had not heard him trying to be allowed out after work, Clifton banged on the door a couple of times as inmates routinely do, in order to get the officers' attention. Thereupon Correctional Officer I Edgerson, got angry with Wallace for his impatience, and he told Wallace to hold on, that he would be right there to let him out the door.

When Edgerton did open the door he immediately and without any justification whatsoever smashed Clifton Wallace in the mouth with his fist while clenching the heavy keys. When Clifton fell to the floor as a result of the vicious blow, Edgerson kicked him in the head with a steel-toed boot and severely lacerated his scalp. He was yelling something about Wallace being in a "big hurry".

Upon seeing Edgerson hitting and kicking Wallace, CO-I T. Robinson also rushed over to "restrain" Clifton and he helped Edgerson drag him out into and across the concrete hall. Both officers then began beating Clifton Wallace. In the process of holding him so that Edgerson could hit him some more, Robinson twisted Clifton's arm behind his back so hard that several tendons, ligaments, and muscles in his shoulder were torn. Wallace was then dragged away into some out- of-the-way place bleeding from the laceration and in great pain because of his injured shoulder. Once Edgerson's and Robinson's malicious beating and kicking had abated, they still made sure that Wallace would continue to hurt a while longer from the way he was handcuffed.

Having witnessed the vicious attack and fearing for Clifton Wallace's safety, Inmates Jessie Whitacker, #87120 and Jim Davis, #88909 both filed "Emergency" grievances in an effort to draw some attention to the incident immediately. CO-I E. Merrill received and processed both grievances as emergencies. Inmate Ronald Bogan, #104523 likewise submitted an affidavit detailing the criminal assault. Under ADC regulations, emergency grievances must in fact be immediately and without delay be transmitted to a supervisory officer, and this effort by Whitacker and Davis probably helped keep Wallace from being abused even more.

As soon as he could, Clifton Wallace also filed an emergency grievance, but the officer to whom he gave it refused to fill in the "emergency" part of the form. (It is a detachable part of the official grievance form intended specifically for IMMEDIATE processing whenever an emergency grievance is filed, and the inmate himself is given a receipt on the spot.)

On August 23, Warden Gaylon Lay, who himself has a long track record of violent abuse of inmates responded to both grievances of Inmates Whitacker and Davis, finding them to be without merit.

On August 24, Clifton Wallace requested to have several affidavits from witnesses officially notarized for evidentiary and other purposes. However, Sergeant King, one of the notaries at the Dermott Unit refused to notarize them, saying that Wallace had to have his lawyer call him and request the affidavits to be notarized - an assertion that is not only false, but contrary to ADC regulations. King is, of course, friends with both Edgerson and Robinson, against whom he was not going to assist Clifton Wallace in securing evidence.

A favorite tactic of ADC officials is to transfer inmates where misconduct of their officers is involved. Tactics like those of Sgt. King often do hamper the prisoners' ability to gather evidence against their keepers, since inmate-to-inmate contact at different units is forbidden and inmates often lose contact with one another altogether.

As a result of the criminal assault Wallace is now required to wear a special body prosthesis to hold his shoulder completely immobile so that further damage might be avoided. He has been told that surgery may be required and that his shoulder may not become 100% functional again even then.

A bogus disciplinary report was also written against him in an attempt to blame him for the incident, although nothing could be contrived upon which to justify the unlawful use of force. There were simply too many witnesses.

Fortunately Wallace has family and friends who care about him and he is now in the process of initiating a lawsuit. The disciplinary report against him was dismissed. Nothing was apparently done to the officers or the administrative staff involved in this criminal act. Apparently, Wallace is to be thankful that a messed up shoulder is all that he got, and that he is not now also in the Hole on trumped up disciplinary charges as well.

Inmates Jessie Wilkerson, Jim Davis and Ronald Bogan should be commended for their courageous and swift action in trying to prevent further harm to a fellow prisoner even knowing that retaliation against them could also be forthcoming.

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