Reason: Former Staffers Condemn Cruel Treatment of Inmates at a Texan Prison for Sex Offenders
For many men serving time for committing sex offenses in Texas, their prison term never really ends—even if they complete their sentence. That’s because they’re required to enter a live-in mental health facility before returning to society.
That facility—in Littlefield, Texas—is actually a former maximum security prison in the middle of a dirt field.
“It comes as a surprise,” says Mary Sue Molnar, founder of Texas Voices for Reason and Justice, a nonprofit dedicated to reforming the state’s sex offense laws and registry. “I often get letters from prison saying, ‘Oh my god, they’re going to civil commit me. What should I do?'”
Civil commitment is the practice of keeping people locked up past their release date, on the grounds that they are so dangerous they need therapy—years and years of it—before they can safely return to society.
The therapeutic techniques sound hodge-podge. The inmates “have to admit to all of their offenses and share it with the group,” said one of the founders of Texans Against Civil Commitment (TACC), a former Littlefield therapist who writes under the name ‘Murphy’ and who claims to have been fired for not seeing “eye to eye” with management. “And they have to keep a masturbation log so the therapist knows how often they’re masturbating and what they’re masturbating about. So she knows whether it’s healthy or whether it’s deviant.” The men must also record whether or not they climaxed. These logs are read aloud in group therapy.
he prison also employs polygraphs and penile plethysmography, measuring changes to the circumference or volume of the penis as the men watch and listen to different stimuli.
When an inmate moves up a tier, which can take a year, he can find himself demoted for many reasons, including very small infractions. One man who had been at Littlefield for years and made it through all four tiers was finally about to get his release hearing. But he did something wrong—rumor had it he swore at a guard—and was knocked back down to tier 1, where he would have to start anew, according to Murphy.
He went to his cell and hanged himself.
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The staff call it a “live-in mental health facility”.
I am sure the people sent there think more on the line of a Concentration camp. You cannot leave, you must perform tasks, you must go to therapy, take polygraphs etc. Again, just like many of us on the registry, these Ex post facto “Add ons” were most likely not brought up at sentencing.
And again, also, changing the time line. For example, someone gets 10 years and complete it. But are not really released but sent to become an experiment in a lab.
This is “legal” torture and is sadistic and evil. This ongoing abuse is designed, just as registration in general, to show society at large just what the government can and WILL do to you if you step out of line.
Those labeled as sex offenders are used as a public example. Just as the scarlet letter had been.
There is no place for this inhuman treatment of anyone regardless of what they may or may not have done!
Speaking to the solution mentioned.
First of all one does not see this as selfish or cowardly or any other I’m better than you description those who haven’t been there will undoubtedly ascribe to this act.
Furthermore, This solution should not be used to describe the one being held against their will but should unquestionably be ascribed to those sadistic, cruel, barbarous, sociopathic bastards we so commonly refer to as your honor or the honorable so and and so or whatever gracious and/or respectful titles the consortium of they do not deserve.
I wish I could wave my majic wand and make all this nonsense go away.
My heart breaks a little more every time our system drives someone to escape in the only way they know how.
Ex Communi Periculo 😥
This is barbaric. WTF is wrong with this country?
Has our country gone bat shit crazy because my answer is yes!! Civil commitment is nothing more than modern day mental institutions where experiments are done on people. How does this continue in a free society and “ greatest country in the world.” These practices make me damn ashamed of this country, American citizens, politicians and greed. Enough is enough with violating rights even those you hate.
You are so correct! The experiment that was the United States of America should be officially be declared a failure at this point. Racial inequality, citizens locked up indefinitely…the list of failures goes on and on!
I used to be a proud American but I am no longer as the country I once knew has vanished. Sad
These types of therapy classes are also common in China and Russia , For a number of different reasons. It should be no surprise that it is also. Taking place in the great U.S. of A. Wake up people!!!
DavidM
You are slipping. How could have forgotten North Korea? At least we know a lot of stuff China and Russia are doing. North Korea is so secretive that I do not know if even the top leaders know what is going on behind the scenes.