Public defenders demand release of all inmates after D.C. Jail flunks inspection

Public defenders are calling for the release of all D.C. Jail inmates after a surprise inspection that uncovered abuse and unsanitary conditions prompted the U.S. Marshals Service to remove nearly 400 prisoners.

The federally-funded Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia lambasted District officials on Wednesday, saying the city has ignored frequent complaints about jail conditions and undertook the inspection “only” after a federal judge requested an investigation into whether staff were mistreating inmates charged in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. 

The legal service said it has been complaining for years about the D.C. Department of Corrections’ “horrific treatment of nearly exclusively Black and Brown people detained at the D.C. Jail.”

“But only when a federal judge was unhappy with the way that January 6 defendants have been treated was any action taken,” the legal service said.

The dayslong inspection began on Oct. 18, five days after U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth asked the Justice Department to probe the jail facilities after ruling that DOC Director Quincy Booth and Warden Wanda Patten must be held in contempt for alleged medical mistreatment of Jan. 6 detainee Chris Worrell.

After finding substandard conditions, the marshals announced this week that the 400 federal inmates under its custody at the D.C. Jail, which houses up to 1,500 inmates, will be transferred to a federal penitentiary in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.

“This sudden epiphany by stakeholders only after White people complained of conditions at the D.C. Jail is a clear example of the historic and systemic racism that plagues the carceral system,” the legal service said.

Despite the impetus for the probe, none of the Jan. 6 detainees are among the 400 that the marshal service plans to transfer because they are housed at a different facility known as the Central Treatment Facility, where conditions were deemed to be adequate.

At the D.C. Jail, however, inspectors found “evidence of systemic failures,” according to a letter sent Monday to Mr. Booth by Lamont Ruffin, acting U.S. marshal for D.C.

“Evidence of drug use was pervasive, and marijuana smoke and odor were widespread,” Mr. Ruffin wrote. “Detainees had observable injuries with no corresponding medical or incident reports available to inspectors,”

Marshals also said they saw many cells in which water “had been shut off for days,” as well as multiple cells with large amounts of human waste in the toilets. Jail staff reportedly confirmed to marshals that water to cells is routinely shut off as punishment.

They also observed staff “antagonizing” inmates and telling them “not to cooperate” with the inspection, including one instance in which a staffer told a detainee to “stop snitching.”

Mr. Ruffin said staff supervisors appeared to be “unaware or uninterested in any of these issues.” He said the revelations may warrant further investigation by the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

The legal service said despite the marshals’ inspection and decision to transfer inmates, “judges callously continue to hold clients under conditions that have been deemed too harsh for people in federal custody.”

“We refuse to stay silent and call on the U.S. Attorney’s Office to stop seeking clients’ detention and the D.C. Superior Court judges to take immediate action and release clients who are facing these unconstitutional and inhumane conditions,” said Avis Buchanan, director of the legal service.

D.C. Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice Christopher Geldart said that while the allegations about conditions at the jail are “deeply concerning,” city officials believe inmates should stay in the District.

“We take seriously the responsibility of caring for justice-involved D.C. residents and believe they should remain in D.C.,” Mr. Geldart said Tuesday. “DOC leadership is evaluating moving inmates within the facility so that issues raised can be addressed efficiently and expeditiously.”

D.C. Council member Charles Allen, Ward 6 Democrat, said that the marshals’ decision to transfer inmates “will have very serious implications” for other inmates, the corrections department and the city.

“Unequivocally, those held in our care and custody must be treated humanely and in accordance with correctional standards, and the executive needs to act with urgency and full transparency in response to today’s news,” Mr. Allen said on Wednesday.

Mr. Allen, who chairs the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, said he plans to schedule a committee oversight hearing to have Mayor Muriel Bowser explain her administration’s response and plan to address the allegations.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican, and Rep. Louie Gohmert, Texas Republican, attempted to visit the D.C. Jail on Wednesday but were turned away by jail staff who said they did not receive the required approval for a tour.

The lawmakers have complained for months about the alleged mistreatment of Jan. 6 detainees and they were also denied access to the jail over the summer.

The Washington Times sent requests for comment to Miss Bowser, the D.C. Department of Corrections and the Justice Department.