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D.C. Jail

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Coordinates: 38°53′00″N 76°58′35″W / 38.8834°N 76.9763°W / 38.8834; -76.9763
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District of Columbia Jail
The original jail building circa 1910.
Map
LocationWashington, D.C.
Coordinates38°53′00″N 76°58′35″W / 38.8834°N 76.9763°W / 38.8834; -76.9763
StatusOperational
Capacity2,164[1]
Opened1872[2]
Managed byDistrict of Columbia Department of Corrections Federal Bureau of Prisons

The District of Columbia Jail or the D.C. Central Detention Facility (commonly referred to as the D.C. Jail) is a jail run by the District of Columbia Department of Corrections in Washington, D.C., United States. The Stadium–Armory station serves the D.C. Jail. The majority of male inmates housed in the Central Detention Facility are awaiting adjudication of cases or are sentenced for misdemeanor offenses.[1] Female inmates in the custody of the D.C. Department of Corrections are housed at the adjacent Correctional Treatment Facility. After the National Capital Revitalization and Self-Government Improvement Act of 1997, sentenced felons are transferred to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.[1]

History

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The current building was constructed in 1976. It replaced a jail built in 1872. In turn, this building replaced a federal penitentiary that had been torn down at the US Army Arsenal a few years earlier.[2]

The jail also housed D.C.'s execution chamber and, from 1928 to 1957, hosted over 40 executions by electric chair. Prior to the adoption of electrocution, the jail also hosted the district's hangings. For a time, a far end of the jail's dining hall was the site of executions by both hanging and the electric chair, but later, officials constructed a formal windowless execution chamber on the top floor of the facility.[3][4] Six German spies convicted of sabotage, including Richard Quirin and Herbert Hans Haupt, were tried in a military court, found guilty, and electrocuted here in 1942 less than one week after their convictions, during World War II.[5]

Programs

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As of 2004, a group called the "Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop," came into the jail twice a week, which allowed inmates to read and write.[6] The jail offers "HIV/ AIDS Prevention, Education and Intervention Services; Individual and Group Counseling Services; Hispanic Life Skills; Book Club; Street Law; Literacy Education; Religious Services; Mental Health Adjustment; and Anger Management, among other life skills development and religious services."[1]

Conditions

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In August 1995, the Jail's medical care facility was placed under court-ordered receivership, after the District was held in contempt for repeatedly failing to implement court orders...intended to ensure adequate medical services to jail inmates".[7] The receivership ended in September 2000.[8]

In 2010, a long-time inmate of the D.C. Jail claimed that nine years in the D.C. Jail was equivalent to 20 years in another prison. The inmate told of moldy jail cells, questionable strip searches, broken locks on cell doors, staph infections, rodents and violent assaults. US District Judge Thomas Hogan called the conditions at the jail "a shame."[9]

In 2013, a report noted that 165 people had attempted suicide over roughly a two-year period and four had actually committed suicide during that same time.[10] There were three suicides over the period of two months.[11][12] An HIV-positive deaf man sued the D.C. Jail, claiming he was denied medical care and was retaliated against for complaining about jail conditions.[13][14]

In 2014, there was debate over health care provider services at the jail.[15][16]

In 2015, a report from the Washington Lawyers' Committee called the conditions at the jail "alarming," noting that structures were deteriorating and that drug addicts detained there need additional resources.[17] The report recommended that the facility be replaced.[17] The report criticized anti-suicide initiatives by the department.[1][18][19] Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that the jail would reintroduce face-to-face visits between inmates and their relatives. Face-to-face visits were eliminated in 2012 when the jail made video conferencing the policy.[20][21] The Economist reported that the jail houses people with serious mental illness for minor offenses.[22]

Notable incidents

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In 2001, several middle school students underwent a strip search during a tour of the jail.[23] Warden Patricia Britton was subsequently fired for allegedly allowing the searches.[24]

In 2004, Jonathan Magbie died at the D.C. Jail. Magbie was paralyzed from the neck down after being struck by a drunk driver at the age of four. He was charged with marijuana possession after police found a marijuana cigarette and a loaded gun in the vehicle in which he was stopped.[25] Although he had never been convicted of a criminal offense and although he required private nursing care for as much as 20 hours a day, Magbie was given a ten-day sentence in the D.C. jail in September 2004 by D.C. Superior Court Judge Judith E. Retchin. Lacking a ventilator, he died in city custody four days later. This provoked a series of op-ed pieces in The Washington Post by columnist Colbert I. King.[26] Magbie's mother, with the help of the ACLU, filed a lawsuit accusing the District government and Greater Southeast Community Hospital of failing to give him proper care. The lawsuit was settled out of court.[citation needed]

In 2010, it was reported that there were six stabbings over the course of several months.[27]

In 2012, a man with a history of mental illness hanged himself at the jail.[28]

In 2013, the District of Columbia agreed to pay $6.2 million to settle allegations that the city had a practice of holding inmates at the D.C. Jail past their release date and of wrongfully strip searching inmates who were supposed to be released.[29] In a related case in federal court, a jury found that inmates were unconstitutionally overdetained at the D.C. Jail between 2007 and 2008, but that the government wasn't liable because they didn't find evidence of "deliberate indifference" to the inmates' rights.[30] A corrections officer at the D.C. Jail was arrested for having marijuana in his locker at the jail after a police dog detected the presence of the drug.[31][32]

In 2014, a retired officer at the D.C. Jail sued the department of corrections for the right to carry guns after he reported receiving threats from inmates that he supervised.[33] A former D.C. Jail inmate sued the city for being ordered to clean up a cell after a suicide.[34]

In 2015, the wife of a man who committed a suicide at the jail filed a lawsuit against D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and the D.C. Department of Corrections for wrongful death.[35][36]

Representation

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The D.C. Jail was made part of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) district 7F07 in 2011. However, with felons barred from voting and by extension from running for the seat, it was uncontested until 2020, when D.C. restored felons' voting rights.[37] After being procedurally disqualified in 2020, inmate Joel Castón was elected in 2021, making him the first incarcerated person to win an election in D.C.[38] and marking the first election in U.S. history where both the electorate and winning candidate were incarcerated.[39] The jail was moved into its own carved-out district, 7F08, in 2021.[40] The Department of Corrections has provided Castón and his successors with access to office space, a computer, and a landline telephone, and has provided professional attire for swearings-in.[41][42] Commissioners attend ANC meetings via Zoom.[43][44]

The district's commissioners have advocated for prisoners' rights in matters including slow mail delivery, low-quality and unhealthy food, limits on commissary purchasing that do not adapt to inflation-borne price hikes, hygiene (general and menstrual), healthcare quality, and gender disparities in access to education.[37][42] On two occasions, sudden plans for a commissioner's transfer out of the jail (which would force their removal from office) have led to criticism. When Castón was scheduled for transfer on November 9, 2021, on the eve of planned testimony to the D.C. Council about prison conditions, resulting outcry led to a reversal by the department.[45] In July 2023, 60 ANC members and multiple high-ranking D.C. officials attempted to prevent the transfer of Castón's successor Leonard Bishop, who had recently testified in favor of a proposed law to improve food at the jail, but were unsuccessful.[46][47][48] Bishop was replaced by Shameka Hayes—one of only about 100 women among the district and jail's 1,700 residents—in a special election later that year.[49]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Correctional Facilities". doc.dc.gov. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  2. ^ a b "District of Columbia Jail (91)". Retrieved 2024-03-28.
  3. ^ Pohl, Robert (2018-05-07). "Lost Capitol Hill: Robert Eugene Carter". The Hill Is Home. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
  4. ^ Brunner, Rob (2023-10-25). "The Shocking History of DC's Electric Chair". The Washingtonian. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
  5. ^ "George Dasch & Nazi Saboteurs Executed". 9 February 2012.
  6. ^ Mosby, Phil (2015-04-06). "Reading and Writing as Ticket Out of Solitary Confinement -- and Prison". Huff Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  7. ^ Ekstrand, Laurie E. District of Columbia Receivership: Selected Issues Related to Medical Services at the D.C. Jail. Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine United States General Accounting Office, 30 June 2000. Testimony GAO/T-GGD-00-173.
  8. ^ District of Columbia Jail: Medical Services Generally Met Requirements and Costs Decreased, but Oversight Is Incomplete. United States General Accounting Office, June 2004. Report GAO-04-750.
  9. ^ McElhatton, Jim. "Inmate: 9 years in D.C. Jail like 20 in prison". The Washington Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  10. ^ Hughes, Sarah Anne. "165 People Have Attempted Suicides In D.C. Jail Since 2011". DCist. Archived from the original on 6 November 2017. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  11. ^ Noble, Andrea. "At D.C. Jail, checking inmates' mental health issues 'simply too much'". The Washington Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  12. ^ "Inmate found dead, second apparent suicide in two weeks in D.C. jail". WJLA. 2013-06-30. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  13. ^ Moyer, Justin. "HIV-positive deaf man sues D.C. Department of Corrections". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  14. ^ "DC Jails". Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  15. ^ Noble, Andrea. "D.C. Jail health care contract raises activists' ire". The Washington Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  16. ^ Ollstein, Alice. "Follow The Money: The Murky Ethics In A DC Prison Contract". Think Progress. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  17. ^ a b Noble, Andrea. "D.C. Jail findings 'alarming' with deteriorated structures, poor resources for juveniles, addicts". The Washington Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  18. ^ Hauslohner, Abigail. "Prisoners' rights advocates: D.C. needs a new jail". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  19. ^ Zielinski, Alex (2 July 2015). "Correction Required: The D.C. Jail is Falling Apart. What Should Replace It?". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  20. ^ Hauslohner, Abigail. "D.C. Jail is bringing back intimacy — in a way". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  21. ^ Hermann, Peter. "Visiting a detainee in the D.C. jail now done by video". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  22. ^ "Making cruel unusual". The Economist. 2015-07-09. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  23. ^ "D.C. students underwent strip search on jail tour". USA Today. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  24. ^ "Warden Axed for Alleged Strip-Search of Kids". ABC News. 2006-01-07. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  25. ^ Henri E. Cauvin, "D.C. Jail Stay Ends in Death For Quadriplegic Md. Man", The Washington Post, October 1, 2004. Retrieved January 2, 2009.
  26. ^ Colbert I. King, "For Jonathan Magbie, a Catalogue of Injustice", The Washington Post, December 5, 2008. Retrieved February 15, 2009.
  27. ^ Cherkis, Jason (22 February 2010). "At Least Six Stabbings Inside D.C. Jail Since November". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  28. ^ Klein, Allison. "Man who hanged himself in D.C. jail had history of violence, mental illness". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  29. ^ "D.C. to Pay $6.2M to Settle D.C. Jail Class Action". Legal Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  30. ^ "Jury Finds District of Columbia Not Liable for Overdetentions at D.C. Jail". Legal Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  31. ^ Jagoda, Naomi (2013-02-14). "D.C. corrections officer arrested after dog detects marijuana in jail locker". Washington Examiner. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  32. ^ Sommer, Will (29 March 2013). "In D.C. Jail, "Wizard of Oz" Isn't Just a Movie". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  33. ^ Noble, Andrea. "Retired officers forced to sue D.C. for right to carry guns after receiving threats". The Washington Times. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  34. ^ MacFarlane, Scott (3 October 2014). "Former D.C. Inmate Sues Over Suicide Cleanup Detail". NBC. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  35. ^ MacFarlane, Scott (19 June 2015). "Woman Sues D.C. Dept. of Corrections Over Husband's Suicide in Jail". NBC. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  36. ^ Keith, Alexander. "Accused Labor Dept. lawyer found dead in D.C. jail". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  37. ^ a b Le Dem, Gaspard (30 October 2020). "Advocates Want a D.C. Jail Resident to Run for an ANC Seat That's Never Been Filled". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  38. ^ Lai, Stephanie (July 5, 2021). "D.C. reforms gave inmates a vote. Now an elected official is working from jail". Washington Post. Retrieved 2 November 2021.
  39. ^ Dwyer, Devin; Cruz, Abby; Herndon, Sarah (2021-08-01). "Elected from jail, DC official advances voting rights and racial justice". ABC News (Video and article). Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  40. ^ Gathright, Jenny; Austermuhle, Martin (2022-06-06). "Last-Minute Changes To New ANC Boundaries Draw Pushback And Concern Over Fate Of D.C. Jail Seat". DCist. WAMU. Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  41. ^ Lai, Stephanie (25 July 2021). "D.C. reforms gave inmates a vote. Now an elected official is working from jail". The Washington Post. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  42. ^ a b Collins, Sam P. K. (15 December 2023). "In Special Election, Shameka Hayes Elected as D.C. Jail Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner". The Washington Informer. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  43. ^ Holder, Sarah (2021-12-09). "The Zoom City Council Meeting Is Here to Stay, Insults and All". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2024-01-18.
  44. ^ Ryals, Mitch (9 May 2023). "Leonard Bishop Wants to Give Incarcerated People Access to D.C. Council Hearings and ANC Meetings". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  45. ^ Gathright, Jenny (2021-11-09). "Incarcerated ANC Commissioner Will Not Be Transferred Out Of D.C. Jail". DCist. WAMU. Archived from the original on November 9, 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  46. ^ Opperman, Lia (21 July 2023). "Inside Voices: Jail ANC Transferred Out of D.C. After Council Testimony". Washington City Paper.
  47. ^ Opperman, Lia (21 July 2023). "Inside Voices: Jail ANC Transferred Out of D.C. After Council Testimony". Washington City Paper.
  48. ^ "Incarcerated Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner transferred out of Washington, D.C." The Washington Afro-American. 29 July 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  49. ^ Moyer, Justin Wm (15 December 2023). "A special election inside a D.C. jail results in a first: a female winner". The Washington Post. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
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