MOSCOW, July 28 (RIA Novosti) – High temperatures at some correctional facilities in the United States might make them life-threatening environments for the aging inmate population, WUIS, University of Illinois at Springfield’s radio station, reported.
“When you closed the ... doors, they had just little dots in them, which provided any ventilation from the outside. Even after five minutes ... it was absolutely stifling — it was inconceivable to live there 23 hours a day, day after day,” Dr. Susi Vassallo, an expert on heat-related illnesses, was quoted as saying by the station.
According to Vassallo, high-temperature conditions may be very uncomfortable and even dangerous, especially for those with health conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes, and for those taking medications.
For such prisoners, exposure to heat may result in long-term health problems or even death.
Mercedes Montagnes, a prisoners’ rights lawyer, said that unlike other people, prisoners cannot escape the heat because of their confinement.
Prison guards also say that prisoners are harder to manage in the heat, as there are more fights and psychiatric emergencies.
Despite the concern for the inmates’ health, some say that it is important for prisoners to remember that prison is not a hotel but a correctional facility.
“You know, they don't get to go get a cheeseburger whenever they want to, either. So, I mean, you know there's a certain amount of things that you give up when you become incarcerated,” former Texas warden Keith Price said.
Earlier in February, Jerome Murdough at Rikers Island in New York died in his cell. The investigation is still underway, but the temperature was at least 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the cell when he was found.
This issue may also be a matter of concern for Russia, as Roman Seleznev, a 30-year-old Russian citizen accused by the US authorities of stealing credit card data, was arrested on July 5 and taken to a US prison in Guam.
Prisons in Guam, a US island in the Pacific, are currently overcrowded and understaffed. The inmate population is known to get into frequent fights. Additional temperature-related issues may lead to horrific consequences.
