by Brian Mattes
If most people heard that staff turned their backs and allowed a sex offender to be brutally assaulted in prison, they wouldn’t lose any sleep.
Wrong or right, society has painted a picture of what a sex offender is using broad strokes and overgeneralizations. What if you knew that the assaulted individual had a no-contact charge, had never had a contact charge, and was an honorably discharged military veteran? What if you knew that he’d done extensive work with charitable organizations his whole life, even while in prison, and donated four feet of his hair to Locks of Love for Cancer and Leukemia survivors, and arranged for food, clothing, and school supplies to be sent to a small village in Dodoma, Tanzania?
Would it make any difference if you knew he now lived in the Veteran’s Honor Unit, set up to allow veterans to reclaim their honor and hold themselves to a higher standard than other prisoners, and that he was heavily involved in organizing contacts and resources for the veteran community? Even at the time of the assault, he was only there to do a favor for an older disabled gentleman.
In the Autumn of 2023, I was assaulted by an inmate who had been known to have behavioral issues., He admitted during the assault, “They’re making me do this. I have to smash a ‘cho-mo’ to get off the compound.” So, he hunted down a random sex offender to assault, with no regard for his age or health, and attacked him in full view of hundreds of inmates and staff. The guard on duty watched the assault take place. Instead of properly responding, I saw the officer turn their back and enter the building, allowing the attack to continue. I was badly injured and covered in blood, yet I received no medical attention at all.
Even two months later, medical staff have ignored my requests. Staff has also neglected to pursue the assault as a hate crime, even though this is a textbook case and the assailant bragged that he “got off light” because “no one cares about cho-mos.” This behavior only ensures that more assaults like this will take place.
The next day, the same guard unlocked my locker, allowing several inmates to steal anything of value, instead of cataloging it, securing it, and forwarding my property to the Property Officer. I remained in the Special Housing Unit from September 7th to the 20th, and, in all that time, none of my property turned up. It was all gone. Among the missing items was a dental prosthetic (partial plate), legal materials, manuscript materials, artwork, and personal letters from family and friends who have passed away. Many inmates witnessed this and knew that the officer allowed the assault to happen, and were deeply disturbed.
Several of my close relatives chose to work as corrections officers and were concerned about my reaction. I told them to “just treat the prisoners like people and I will always respect your choice of careers.” There are good staff members who do just that, and they are greatly appreciated. I am a big advocate for giving props where they are due. I am at a low-custody facility, due to be released in 2024, but all of the inmates at a facility like this will be released eventually. So it benefits society as a whole to treat them as if they will be welcomed back to society, not shunned.
The job that these corrections officers chose was to ensure the safety and well-being of ALL inmates, not just the ones with palatable charges. Much like when I wore a military uniform, this job requires guards to set aside emotion, personal bias, and other prejudices while in uniform. If we, as military, were unable to do so, it made us unfit to serve, and the same holds true here. When a guard chooses not to guard, when they sanction or turn a blind eye to an assault they could have stopped, they are no better than the assailant. Lowering themself to the level of a common criminal, they have not only disgraced their uniform, but their chosen profession, their union, and their co-workers. Any guard who cannot be counted on to guard those given to his or her care is unfit to wear the uniform and a liability to the facility and the profession.
