Why Doesn’t the State of Tennessee Take Responsibility for its Prisoners Seriously?

COULD BLACK MOLD HAVE THE SAME EFFECT AS EXPOSURE TO ASBESTOS AND LEAD?

March 2, 2011

Dear Editor:

This is a follow up to my original letter. I did not feel that TCI or the Governor’s office, for that matter, fully grasp the magnitude and far-reaching effects on the state of Tennessee from the tyranny going on in Monroe County. Responding to letters of this nature is an admission of guilt, so they are never answered. However, there is always a chance that action will be taken and the folks will see the effect.

March 3, 2011

Peggy Sawyer, Asst. Dir.
Tennessee Corrections Institute
500 Deaderick St. 8th Flr
Nashville, Tennessee 37243

MS Sawyer;

I am writing to you to clarify statements that were made in my letter dated February 28, 2011.

In the process of finding contact information for the previous letter I ended up with who I think was one of your inspectors; his name may have been Suttle.

My original comments concerned statements from several past inmates of the Monroe County jail who have reported black mold in the HVAC ducting. This would indicate that there is either no filtration system or that it is broken. Black mold is a known cause of respiratory infections.

The point that I did not stress was that this situation could lead to class action wrongful death suits, something that Tennessee or any other State does not need in the present economy.

What struck me as odd in the conversation with the inspector was his indifference to the state’s responsibility. He referred me to the Sheriff! The Sheriff was the one who allegedly retaliated against the individual I wrote about causing him to be beaten and placed under $56,000 bail. The retaliation was for this individual’s circulation of flyers, in the community, enumerating the Sheriff’s illegal activities. Lodging complaints against Sheriff Bivens “enterprises” in Monroe County can result in something much worse than a respiratory infection.

When I pointed this out to the inspector he informed me that I could go hire a lawyer. Why would I ever? Hiring lawyers in Monroe County is also an exercise in futility. A recent trial in Monroe County courts exemplified that when a defendant ended up pro se when his attorney bailed on him at the last minute, allegedly for having his parents threatened by the Sheriff’s Department. The trial was quite a sight in the national media for Monroe County! I am sure the vision of a retired Navy Lt. Commander representing himself at trial standing in leg irons and filthy prison stripes was not good PR for East Tennessee tourism.

There are many reasons for addressing the issues in Monroe County, not the least of which is the citizen’s constitutional rights to a republican form of government rather than the tyranny of the shadow government that has been created there.

Sincerely,

M. J. Blanchard

cc:
Gov. Haslam
AG Cooper