NBDA has sent a letter in attention to Georgia Department of Corrections Commissioner condemning discriminatory policies against deaf and hard of hearing inmates in the state of Georgia.
January 22, 2014
Commissioner Brian Owens
Georgia Department of Corrections
300 Patrol Road Forsyth, GA 31029
Dear Commissioner Owens:
Re: Discriminatory policies against deaf and hard of hearing inmates in Georgia
The National Black Deaf Advocates (NBDA) is the official advocacy organization for thousands of Black Deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States. The Mission of the National Black Deaf Advocates is to promote the leadership development, economic and educational opportunities, social equality, and to safeguard the general health and welfare of Black deaf and hard of hearing people.
Our attention has been drawn to a spate of discriminatory policies against deaf and hard of hearing inmates in Georgia. A particularly intriguing case of Inmate #1004825 Ricardo L. Harris, who is currently being housed at the Cobb County Adult Detention Center has given us a legitimate source of concern. We have been informed that Mr. Harris has been detained since January 2, 2013 without trial.
Through your department policies and practices, Georgia Department of Corrections (GADOC) discriminates against deaf and hard of hearing individuals in custody. You have done this by denying deaf and hard of hearing individuals in your custody adequate and equally effective means of communication with individuals outside of prison—including effective communications between the deaf inmates and their loved ones. GADOC have also failed to provide adequate access to other auxiliary aids and services necessary to accommodate deaf and hard of hearing individuals in a variety of settings, including in connection with educational, religious, healthcare, and rehabilitative programs. GADOC also refuse to provide deaf and hard of hearing individuals in custody with adequate notification of important daily events and safety announcements, or to provide adequate interpretative services at disciplinary hearings. Additionally, GADOC have discriminated against inmates who are deaf or hard of hearing in work assignments.
As a result of your discriminatory policies and practices, deaf and hard of hearing individuals in GADOC’s custody and care:
• have been prevented from effectively communicating by telephone with family, friends, and attorneys outside of prison;
• have been unable to receive necessary and adequate medical treatment;
• have missed prison-wide safety announcements, prison counts, and announcements for meals and other important daily activities;
• have been excluded from participation in educational and counseling programs offered by GADOC, including those required under the terms of their sentencing;
• have been unable to and discouraged from attending standard religious services due to inadequate accommodations;
• have been discriminated against in work assignments;
• have been denied the ability to meaningfully participate and defend themselves in disciplinary hearings; and
• have been prevented from learning a trade and receiving educational and industrial credits that could reduce their overall incarceration time.
We are therefore requesting your office to immediately address these issues by ensuring that deaf and hard of hearing inmates are accommodated in all correctional facilities in Georgia. We ask that the case of Inmate #1004825 Ricardo L. Harris be expedited and brought to trial as his continual detention without trials is a violation of his fundamental human right.
Take note; if we do not see any corrective measures from your end within reasonable amount of time, we will have no option than to explore legal option on this very important matter.
Thank you.
Patrick Robinson
President
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