EF Utah State Prison, Draper, Utah

"While I have been [in this control unit] I have suffered assault by inmates, [been] forced to live with inmates who have assaulted me, handcuffed and shackled and strapped to a metal four point."

AH, Security Management Unit (SMU), Gunnison, Utah

"... I am a state prisoner that is mentally ill. ... I just wanted you to see for yourself the torture that prisoners go through. Th[ese] picture[s are] living proof of the torture. [Prisoner is shown strapped to table in two separate photos] There is a lot more torture that goes on besides this: psychological warfare and excessive force constantly by SWAT teams of 12 or more guards with gear and weapons.

JHE, Wallens Ridge State Prison, Big Stone Gap, Virginia

"[In September] 1999 I was strapped down to [four] point restraint - ... I've never in my life been strapped to a bed - it's terrible ... being strapped down and under circumstances of helplessness and officers coming in the cell while I'm strapped down displaying their racism - saying, 'We hate niggers. If it was up to us you['d] be hung.' To say the least I was ... scared. I would have preferred the beat-down - instead of the mental torture I was put through."

RESTRAINT CHAIR

(prisoner is strapped to the chair by wrists, ankles and across the chest).

"In Utah there are no release provisions, Inmates confined to the chair remain strapped down until they are calm. The chair is designed to allow them to urinate and defecate while sitting ... As a result, Utah inmates have been strapped into the chair for up to four days without a break, according to prison officials. Prolonged immobilization in a sitting position can cause blood clot formation in the extremities which can block major arteries and cause death. ... Valant ... was a diagnosed schizophrenic who heard voices. He had refused his medication for about two weeks, prison officials said. When released from the chair after 16 hours, Valant was led to the shower where he collapsed. He was pronounced dead about two hours later ..." [Salt Lake Tribune, Salt lake City, Utah 3/26/97]

SLY, Utah State Prison, Drapa, Utah

"[The prisoner] was directed to leave the strip cell and a urine soaked pillow case was placed over his head ... He was then walked [-] shackled and hooded to a different cell where he was placed in a device called the 'chair.' The chair is a restraint device designed for mentally ill persons who pose a significant danger of harming themselves or others. The inmate is stripped nude, placed in the chair, with [his] buttocks several inches below his knees. The arms and legs are then cuffed or shackled to the legs of the chair to prevent the inmate from moving. The design of the chair forces the inmate back against the chair. Mobility is almost non-existent.

"The inmate cannot relieve himself without soiling himself. He is left uncovered and unprotected in pain and shackled. [The prisoner] was kept in the chair for over thirty hours. This resulted in extreme physical and emotional suffering."

LM, El Dorado Correctional Facility, El Dorado, Kansas

"... I have been subject[ed] to the [restraint] chair many times. The first few times I was made to set in it 48 hours straight and had to use a bed pan so I could urinate. Then I was told that they have to let me out every three hours for five minutes for a range of motion and toilet break. I have been placed in the chair for many reasons, such as: tearing things up, a screw out of my light, blocking my window and not answering count. Nobody knows how to put the restraints on correct[ly], ... I have never been in that I haven't got out. The last time ... I was placed in it with leather cuffs. They had to put two of them together and I have scars where they pinched me. I ask[ed] that photos be taken at the time and was told 'photos are taken only to cover the institution'. ... I have also tipped the chair over many times so they put a plate on it. ... Officers have poked me with their knives in my sides when they cut the tape off the restraints."

EF, Utah State Prison, Draper, Utah

"When I was put on the four point an inmate a cell away from me tried to get out of a restraint chair ... The handcuffs, leg shackles and leather straps cut his wrists, ankles and one shoulder. He cannot use his left hand anymore because of what the doctors told him is now a 'limp wrist.' After this incident another inmate lost his life from blood clots that were caused [by] the restraint chair he had been in."

3. STUN TECHNOLOGY

"Harry Landis, a 58 year old Texas prison guard collapsed after being shackled by an electrified riot shield during a training session. Guards were being trained in the use of the 'electronic capture shield' designed to subdue prisoners. The device delivers a shock of 40,000 to 50,000 volts ... Use of the shields ... was suspended until an investigation into the guard's death is complete." [Prison Legal News, April 1996]