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U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmates

By Jeralyn, Section Inmates and Prisons
Posted on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 06:13:17 AM EST
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If you thought the U.S. used dogs only to scare detainees in foreign prisons, think again. Five states allow the use of dogs not only to scare, but to bite inmates.

Dogs are allowed to terrify and even bite unruly prisoners who refuse to leave their cells in five U.S. states, a human rights group said on Tuesday, comparing the policy to abuses at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.

U.S.-based Human Rights Watch said it was unaware of any other nation where such a practice exists, describing it as a well-kept secret and drawing similarities to U.S. soldiers terrorizing Iraqi prisoners with dogs.

"At Abu Ghraib, it was not intended for them to bite the prisoner. Here we're using dogs to terrify. If the intimidation by the dog doesn't work, then the dog goes in and bites," said Jamie Fellner, Human Rights Watch director of U.S. programs.

The states are Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, South Dakota and Utah.

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    U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmates | 30 comments (30 topical)
    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#1)
    by jimakaPPJ on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 05:17:51 AM EST
    From the post:
    Dogs are allowed to terrify and even bite unruly prisoners who refuse to leave their cells
    Now let me understand this. The prisioner is unruly and will not obey a command to leave their cell. And I'm supposed to be concerned about them? What is the alternative? Guards going in an taking them out? That is less humane? I don't see how. Violence will be the result. Plus the guards run the risk of injury.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#2)
    by jazzcattg1 on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 05:58:37 AM EST
    I am appalled, but not surprised at the revelations presented here TL, Carefully read the Motion to Dismiss filed for Jose Padilla to get an insight what else is happening to US Citizens and what this nation has become: http://sdfla.blogspot.com/2006/10/update-on-padilla-motion-to-dismiss.html I am even more appalled that sub-humans like JimakaPPJ above support and even cheerlead such actions-

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#5)
    by Che's Lounge on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:04:02 AM EST
    It's no wonder that the Iraqis rejected our way of life. Bravo to them. This kind of person to person brutality that average Jims think is OK is another contradiction of the moral argument for our way of life. The sign of decline. RWNJ's and Jim think that this behaviour in the article is acceptable in our society. This is a betrayal of our founding principles (see The 8th amendment to the Bill of Rights). It is an insult to our social development that this decadent behaviour exists, and even more insulting to me that there are people in this country who actually advocate its use against fellow citizens. These are stone age principles that have no place in an evolved society. Who are the real criminals in our society?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#7)
    by Che's Lounge on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:18:21 AM EST
    Sorry I meant the 8th amendment to the constitution.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#8)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:40:33 AM EST
    Utah on the list? No surprise there, considering it was Lane McCotter and Gary DeLand from the Utah prison system who were so 'instrumental' in 'reforming' Abu Ghraib. These practices did not originate in Abu Ghraib, but in US prisons.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#3)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:46:18 AM EST
    Why get them out, let them stay in the cell if they want to. Just another chance to abuse power.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#4)
    by Jen M on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:46:18 AM EST
    Don't worry Jim No one here expects you to feel any concern.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#6)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:46:18 AM EST
    How do other countries deal with the problem of uncooperative inmates? Canada, UK, France...?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#9)
    by Sailor on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 08:53:26 AM EST
    The prisioner is unruly and will not obey a command to leave their cell.
    so sic dogs on them and let them bite them ... there is no cruel or unusual punishment that ppj will not endorse. I got a solution: shut and lock the door, put a valium in the water. come back later. This isn't about anything except domination of the prisoners to where they have no will or human dignity and says alot about folks like ppj who endorse this crap.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#12)
    by scribe on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 11:32:09 AM EST
    JimakaPPJ: What's up??? Why haven't you stepped up to defend the treatment in the Padilla case - the motion and post went up a day ago. Even his bleeding-heart liberal federal public defenders (who surely made up that business about it-ain't really-torture) didn't go so far as to allege that they used dogs on him in that Navy Brig, run by the Jailer-recently-selected-for-promotion-to-Captain Catherine Hanft. According to Padilla's papers, the worst they did to him was make him sit without a shower for some weeks, then force him to submit to forced grooming (sounds to me like they shaved off his beard and/or hair despite his religious precepts). Oh, yeah. And isolate him from all human contact, sound, environment, sleep and sensory input for days, weeks or even months on end. (read the brief, starting at page two) In an effort to make him more dependent on the torturers. That, and feed him mind-altering drugs, but only to make him talk. You can comment here favoring turning half-wild attack dogs loose to bite prisoners, or at least implying it's OK because the prisoners won't come out of their cells*, but you won't stand up for the glorious forces of the military and CIA hardly ever touching Padilla (and, even then, in a very controlled way)? What's gotten into you? At least CPinVa has the integrity to not comment here, either. Maybe you like the idea of prisoners in cages, set on by dogs? Come on, JimakaPPJ! Get with the program! Torture is In these days! - - - * Would you come out of whatever hole you live in, if there was a slavering, snarling attack dog at the only entrance/exit?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#13)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 12:19:01 PM EST
    How do other countries deal with the problem of uncooperative inmates? Canada, UK, France...?
    From the BBC
    Police dogs are also trained to track and catch criminals, for crowd work, and in prisons...They also learn how to chase and attack, even when they are being threatened with weapons.
    From Kingston, Canada:
    The highlight of these demonstrations comes when the dogs display their apprehension skills and run down a "criminal". The "criminal" wears a protective bite-suit who protects him from the dog's teeth .
    These videos shows some pretty eye-opening police dog training in France. Nothing that specifically addresses getting prisoners out of their cells however...

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#11)
    by HK on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 12:40:38 PM EST
    Can't get used to this new commenting system - didn't mean to post anonymously, the last comment was mine. HK

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#14)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 12:40:38 PM EST
    iraqis rejected our way of life? what exalted way of life have they adopted?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#16)
    by Che's Lounge on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 01:28:20 PM EST
    Suddenly it matters what the Europeans do. How convenient.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#10)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 01:41:14 PM EST
    Jim wrote:
    Now let me understand this. The prisioner is unruly and will not obey a command to leave their cell.
    Jim, from the linked article:
    "In some prisons ... the institutional culture permits cell extractions simply to show inmates 'who's in charge' or to retaliate against defiant inmates, even if there is no real emergency," the report said.
    So the prisoner may not have done anything wrong and may be refusing to obey a command made simply for the sake of it. We are not talking about prisoners who have caused trouble here, we are talking to prisoners who are responding unfavourably to bullying tactics. No wonder these inmates leave prison with no respect for authority and likely to reoffend.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#15)
    by Peaches on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 01:41:14 PM EST
    Guards going in an taking them out? That is less humane? I don't see how. Violence will be the result. Jim, As a man who has held many trades, I can attest to this. For two years I was a correctional officer in a Juvenile Detention Center. We often had to forcibly remove a client from a cell forcibly. It was actually the highlight of my day. You sort of get pumped for it. Kind of like a sporting event. What would happen is someone would cover their window. We would order them to remove it. If they didn't we would gather several JCOs outside the door and barge in in full force and with protective gear. There was a lead guy in a full suit who would pin the client to a wall. Since I was a big guy, this was often me. The others would then each grab an appendage and hold the client down. Then we would remove them to a cell that empty and would withhold privileges. Sometimes a JCO would get hurt. Rarely, if ever, would the clients. When a JCO was hurt it was usually a sprained ankle or a shoulder /back injury. One time a client came down on top of a JCO's arm and the wight of the CLient along with 3-5 other JCO's snapped the arm of the unfortuante JCO who had his arm between a metal bed and the client. His arm snapped like a toothpick. that was the most serious injury. However, we had these forced entries into cells several times a week if not days. Rarely was anyone hurt and especially the juveniles.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#17)
    by sarcastic unnamed one on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 01:49:38 PM EST
    Huh. Rumor has it Che Guevara was a big fan of guard dogs at his prisons like Guanacahibes. But I'm sure the difference is those "delinquents" were actually guilty of something and deserved what they got...

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#18)
    by Peaches on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 03:50:11 PM EST
    Sarc, since when are we using rumors as evidence. Do you have a source for that allegation. I won't take the time to point out the meaningless content of the rumor regardless. We are talking about using dogs to terrorize prisoners. There are better and more humane alternatives. The fact someone else does it doesn't make it acceptable. Dog bites can be extremely harmful and cause irrepairable and lifelong damage. Dogs can be helpful for fighting crime when using their sense of smell to find suspects and to run suspects down. However, the consequences of a dog catching a criminal are often atrocious.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#19)
    by Patrick on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 03:50:11 PM EST
    OK, I gotta respond, and Peaches post is the exact reason dogs are now used. If the dog is hurt, they are expendable resources. An injured JCO costs big $, increased workers comp costs, lost productivity and overtime needed to cover the loss and the medical costs for treatment all add up to significant proportions. In most cases the simple presence of a K-9 garners cooperation, in those cases where a K-9 is used the chances of an unjury requiring more than cleaning and bandaging is probably more rare than the injuries described by Peaches. Back injuries retire many persons from L.E. and Corrections...They are costly. It's simple economics and safety of staff, not some drooling desire to torture or intimidate. Not that anyone here would really understand it anyway, but it needs to be said. Someone scared into compliance is better than someone injured into compliance any day of the week in my book. Sailor, Are you proposing involuntary medication for non-life threatening situations?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#20)
    by Che's Lounge on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 07:00:06 PM EST
    How does a dog remove a man from a cell by biting him?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#21)
    by Che's Lounge on Wed Oct 11, 2006 at 07:11:39 PM EST
    Huh. Rumor has it Che Guevara was a big fan of guard dogs at his prisons like Guanacahibes. That was the camp's commandante and he was fired for it. The camp was closed within a couple years of it's opening. It lasted much less time than Camp X-Ray, or Delta, or whatever it's called this month.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#22)
    by jimakaPPJ on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 06:33:10 AM EST
    Scribe - Sorry, I have been busy putting a new deck on the palatial retirement compound, catfish pond and BBQ stand, fresh vegetables on Wedensday... so my comments have been somewhat limited.. But let me help you out. Based on what I know of the Padilla case I would have convicted him of treason long ago. Peaches - So you think injuries are okay, just as long as they're not caused by a dog. Figures. HK writes:
    we are talking to prisoners who are responding unfavourably to bullying tactics.
    Uh, no. You're talking about it. And what, pray tell, is wrong with telling a prisoner to leave the cell? et al - You guys tickle me. Did you ever think that all the prisoner has to do is obey the command and there will be no problem?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#23)
    by HK on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 10:09:04 AM EST
    Jim, there is nothing wrong with telling a prisoner to leave a cell if there is a good reason for it. There is something wrong with using psychological techniques to continually belittle prisoners for the sake of it. It creates an environment in which prisoners feel victimised and are then more likely to want to level the score when they are released. Using dogs in this way is therefore detrimental to society. The cycle of violence is perpetuated (nothing new in the great American justice system). Peaches did not say that injuries were okay as long as they were not caused by a dog. He was merely saying that in his experience, dogs were unnecessary in such situations and injuries inflicted by (or to) humans were not as serious or frequent as when dogs were used. I don't know why I am bothering to point any of this out. Unless you lack very basic comprehension skills, Jim, you are quite aware of the true meaning of people's words and twist them for your own convenience.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#24)
    by jimakaPPJ on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 02:23:05 PM EST
    HK - Psycho babble aside, we both know that the key is just for the prisoners to follow orders. Ttheir tender egos are damaged? My BS filter immediately jumps up...

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#26)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 03:24:42 PM EST
    Sailor: shut and lock the door, put a valium in the water. come back later. Patrick: Sailor,...Are you proposing involuntary medication for non-life threatening situations? Patrick, are you arguing that a valium is worse that this? : Los Angeles Times May 7, 2004
    SACRAMENTO -- California Youth Authority officials revealed Thursday that they were pushing prosecutors to file criminal assault charges against an officer for allowing his police dog to attack an inmate who was not resisting. The episode marks the second time in four months that video cameras have captured possible misconduct by a guard at a troubled youth prison in Stockton. Those who have seen the still-secret tape said it showed the canine officer letting his German shepherd bite a 20-year-old prisoner on the leg, even though the inmate was following orders and lying on the floor.
    Are you seriously suggesting that what is really happening in the prisons is somehow more humane that what Sailor suggested, and just trying to find a way to justify things like this, or just trying to score a point against Sailor for suggesting what is probably a good, and a more humane, idea? I understand you are a police officer somewhere in CA. Is that right? Funny, when I was a kid my teachers always suggested to me that "the policeman is your friend". Hmmm. ---edger

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#25)
    by Jen M on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 03:31:07 PM EST
    Yeah, Jim only expects the bad guys to behave. Good guys are above such things as moral or ethical behavior.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#30)
    by Sailor on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 04:17:38 PM EST
    Nowonmai, ppj posts here because wrongwing sites don't allow posters. Hmmm, I wonder why?

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#31)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Oct 12, 2006 at 04:38:54 PM EST
    Dog bite images. (caution: very graphic) ---edger

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#33)
    by Peaches on Fri Oct 13, 2006 at 08:39:52 AM EST
    Peaches - So you think injuries are okay, just as long as they're not caused by a dog. Figures.
    Cmon, old man. Read the post, now. I didn't say any such thing.
    gotta respond, and Peaches post is the exact reason dogs are now used. If the dog is hurt, they are expendable resources. An injured JCO costs big $, increased workers comp costs, lost productivity and overtime needed to cover the loss and the medical costs for treatment all add up to significant proportions.
    Patrick, Each Dog comes with a handler. It is extremely costly to train dogs. The point I was making is that injuries to JCO's happened, but they did not happen often and they were usually minor. Almost all injuries can be avoided with proper training. The other point is that using money as the deciding factor in how we treat inmates is completely absurd. We could save millions of dollars if we did not heat prisons, if we fed prisoners sawdust and garbage, and enforced other cost savings measures. Pri9sons for profit often go down these lines. However, a civilized country would treat prisoners humanelty and would expend the resources to do so.

    Re: U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmate (none / 0) (#32)
    by HK on Fri Oct 13, 2006 at 08:48:48 AM EST
    Jim, it's hardly psycho babble. Do you think that using dogs to frighten and attack people will make them feel a) happier and friendlier OR b) withdrawn and hostile? In your own time... When will you and people of your ilk finally comprehend that it is not about nursing the 'tender egos' of these people, it is about the fact that the way they are treated has a knock-on effect on the way they inturn treat society? If that's too much to ask for, then at least go and look 'humanity' up in the dictionary (assuming that GWB hasn't yet had them remove it).

    U.S. Uses Dogs to Scare Domestic Prison Inmates | 30 comments (30 topical)