Criminal Justice Reform in DC: A Petition to Close Central Cell Block
By: Caroline Lester
Community members and organizations around the District of Columbia have created a national coalition to close Central Cell Block (CCB). Central Cell Block is an entity separate from the D.C. jail. This cell block detains arrested individuals for up to 24 hours before they appear in Superior Court where they will be charged or released. Who Speaks For Me, a 501c3 organization dedicated to interrupting the trauma to prison pipeline in women and LGBTQ+ individuals, has worked as the mouthpiece of individuals who have experienced inhumane conditions in this facility.
The national coalition, Close Central Cell Block, constructed a petition addressed to Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Mayor Muriel Bower, and a variety of council members from various wards around D.C. The petition states various reasons for closing down the detention center: roach infestations, lack of dietary restrictions, scarcity of hygiene supplies, physical injury due to faulty temperature control, and lack of privacy. The incentives to close down this facility come from various firsthand experiences.
Paterson, Baker, and Enfield (three women who were detained for protesting) speak about their 30 hour detainment in CCB; their accounts detail a cell covered in blood and feces in 90 degree heat. The women were denied menstrual products and one of them was sexually assaulted by a guard. During their incarceration, they wore chains and leg irons. Beyond the report of these three women, a D.C. pastor and 8 ministers have affirmed the pest and roach infestation. The group, after being held in Central Cell Block, created a community gathering to protest the inhumane conditions they suffered.
Furthermore, in May of 2022, detainees reported a lack of air conditioning. Suffering the 90 degree weather, the facility only reported the cooling issue on Monday, two days after the AC had stopped properly functioning. While the Metropolitan Police Department held arrested individuals at district headquarters, around 30 people remained in the facility with a lack of water. The facility has around 100 physical issues that combine to create a revolting environment.
The Corrections Information Council, a monitoring system established by Congress, has admitted to the roach infestation and various plumbing issues. They criticize the facility for the vermin and additionally suggest that CCB employ a mental health professional. There is concern that the Corrections Information Council is not inspecting the facility on a consistent basis.
The national coalition (Close CCB) asserts that taxpayer dollars could be attributed to something greater than an inhuman facility such as CCB. The leaders of the petition argue that the best alternative would be to house arrestees at various headquarters until they are brought to court. While there is no direct solution subscribed to on the petition, the necessity of addressing these conditions is apparent. The Eighth Amendment states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” The conditions in which non-prosecuted individuals undergo in this facility can be categorized into “cruel and unusual punishment.” Many of the individuals held in this facility are released without charge; while there may be no lingering legal consequences of their time at CCB, the trauma inflicted by their detainment may remain.
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