Man says he was mistreated while serving prison term

A man who recently spent six months at the Belle Isle Correctional Facility claims that he was severely mistreated while serving his sentence and is making a call for prison officers to do their job fairly and professionally.

He also wants prisoners to behave in the right way and to try their best not to return to prison when they leave.{{more}}

Kingstown Park resident Keon ‘My Youth’ Phillips said that on July 6 this year, he was punched, kicked and beaten in his head with a baton by a prison guard after an argument with a cellmate. Phillips said that as a result of the lash to his head, he bled through his nose, vomited blood, suffered immense pain in his stomach and ribs and had vision problems.

Despite this, he claims he was denied medical attention and says the alleged beating irritated a pre-existing hernia.

According to Phillips, he was only taken to the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) for treatment when an article appeared in the SEARCHLIGHT Newspaper on Tuesday, July 19.

Phillips’ mother, Grocita Phillips, had turned up at the SEARCHLIGHT’s office in tears on Wednesday, July 13 and in an interview alleged that her son was beaten by a prison warden and was not being given medical attention.

“…that same day when they read it, they stopped me from working and took me hospital,” said Phillips, who is of the opinion that if his mother had not come to the newspaper, he would not have received medical attention.

“When I was taken to the Chief, he tell me satisfy with the licks as my punishment. If I did something wrong I make up my mind to take any punishment. I did nothing wrong and I did not fight back…,” said Phillips who thinks that prisoners are not accorded human rights.

He said that when he went to the hospital on the day the article was published, the doctor who examined him told him that the lash to the back of his head had damaged his nerves, which is why he was experiencing problems with his vision.

Phillips said that to compound his issue, he left prison on September 10 and when he asked for his medical records, he was told that he could not get them.

The former inmate who was imprisoned on a charge of wounding said that there are many problems in prison, but one of the more serious issues is that prisoners complain of medical problems and are not taken seriously until they faint or fall very ill.

“There are some things that happening in prison that you get no justice for. They beating people in prison. Giving you a bread and butter diet,” he alleged.

“I would like to see justice and every prisoner get fair justice because we only go there to do a time because we fall for a while. I would like to tell the officers when you doing your job, do it wise and honest because everybody is a son and any man could be a father and in life nobody don’t like to be hurt. I want justice and human rights,” said the irate man.

He said that life is unpredictable and anybody can end up in prison.

Giving advice to prisoners and would be offenders, Phillips said, “If you come out, try not to go back; it’s not a nice place and I am not only speaking on my behalf, but on the behalf of all convicts and former convicts who get abused. I’m not the first person they beat like that for no reason.”

When contacted on Monday, Superintendent of Prisons Brendon Charles said that he was on his way to Belle Isle and he would meet with SEARCHLIGHT on Thursday to talk about some of the issues highlighted by Phillips. (LC)