ACLU report tells of prison terrors

At least two miscarriages for inmates who didn't get medical help. A sheriff's deputy who lost a toe because of an untreated injury. Frequent volleys of rubber bullets and bean bags fired at inmates by overwhelmed deputies. Exaggerations by Orleans Criminal Sheriff Marlin Gusman about his preparations and performance as Hurricane Katrina swamped the 6,400-inmate lockup.

Those are some of the findings and allegations by the American Civil Liberties Union in a 140-page report on the chaotic evacuation of Orleans Parish Prison after Katrina. The report, released Thursday, repeats many previously reported findings about the emptying of the flooded prison complex, but offers a new level of detail through dozens of first-hand accounts from deputies and inmates.

The prison, made up of 10 separate lockups, lost electricity and backup generators when it was inundated by floodwater. Stuck without food or water, inmates broke windows, burned blankets and rammed holes in buildings. Thirteen escaped before the State Department of Corrections sent guards to restore order and assist in a challenging three-day evacuation in which the prisoners were fished out by boat.

from the Times Picayune

read the full ACLU report