Question Time

Jake wrote:

Dear Shaun,

It would seem a good place to start by saying I really enjoyed your talk when you visited us a Brighton College last week. I found it genuinely inspiring to see how you managed to survive such a place as Arpaio’s jail. I was so fascinated, I immediately started reading your book, and I wasn't able to put it down as I found it so enthralling and unbelievable at the same time. It was almost like a fiction book in the sense that some parts seem so unbelievable from such a scene we are in day to day. On reflection of the book I have some questions which of you have time I would love to know the answers to but I appreciate you are a busy man so no worries about getting back to me. 

1.   Did you ever re-visit any of the prisons or jails such as Towers?

2. Did you ever get reacquainted with any of your cell mates such as the members of Little Italy? Or Joe? Or Troll?

3. Do you think Arpaio is likely to ever be stopped from committing arguably the same, if not worse crimes he is supposed to be preventing by running the jails?

I haven't managed to finish the book yet due to a busy school timetable (trivial I know) so apologies if any of these are answered at the end but I couldn't resist asking. I may potentially have some more questions that I come up with but a response to those would be much appreciated if possible but once again I understand you are busy so no hurry. 

Thank you once again for visiting and I look forward to your reply.

Yours sincerely,

Jake Sayer - U6th, Abraham House, Brighton College.

 

My reply:

Thanks for the questions, Jake. I hope you enjoy the rest of Hard Time. Here are my answers:

1. As I’m banned from America for life by the Department of Homeland Security, I’m unable to visit any of the jails I was at. In 2008, I visited a female inmate at HMP Peterborough who was writing for Jon’s Jail Journal. I’ve also spoke twice to female prisoners at HMP Holloway in London. 

2. Yes, some of them, but not all of them. I haven’t spoken to any members of Little Italy. Troll is in California. He was released months ago, and is suffering from paranoia and PTSD (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder). He was very distressed on the phone, which is unsurprising after serving over 10 years. Joe is in Phoenix. He sounded happy, and is launching a real-estate business. I’m mostly in touch with Wild Man, who is married and living in my hometown. There’s lots more Wild Man to come in my next book, Party Time, which is being published in April 2013:

http://shaunattwood.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=120&Itemid=119 

3. He will only be stopped if he loses the election in November. Paul Penzone looks like he has a good chance according to the latest poll: 

http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/bastard/2012/09/joe_arpaio_on_the_run_from_pau.php 

Paul Penzone on Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/#!/penzone2012?fref=ts 

The maximum security Madison St jail was shut down 2 years after I started the blog, but Sheriff Joe just opened a new high tech house of horrors down the street, and he is the boss of 6 jails in his system, so this stuff is still going on.

If you want to see how real this is here's a video of an Aryan Brother murdering Robert Cotton (on remand for a petty crime) who refused to beat someone up for the gang: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba_vGzkcdHQ

Here's videos of guards murdering Marty Atencio (a Latino war hero on remand for allegedly kicking a door) at the jail: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=K9PJE2wx2tA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzraGcUO5O4&feature=relmfu 

Click here for the previous Question Time: http://jonsjailjournal.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/question-time.html 

Shaun Attwood