5/12 Watch Court Hearing in Ashker v Gov! Stop Solitary Confinement

No more doublespeak by CDCr. We are in court to reject solitary by another name! #StopSolitary

PLEASE TUNE IN TUESDAY, MAY 12, 2020 @9AM PST AND LET CDCr KNOW WE ARE WATCHING!
Link to the livestream available here:
https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/media/live_oral_arguments.php

Men in Solitary Confinement in CA Take Their Case Before 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. CDCR Continues to Violate Settlement Agreement: Men Held Alone in Cells 23 Hours a Day

**See more below about the livestream court arguments, the online after-discussion, and a social media toolkit! **

STOP SOLITARY CONFINEMENT: Tune in to watch oral arguments in Ashker v. Governor of California 

Join the Center for Constitutional Rights on Tuesday, May 12, 2020 as arguments are heard in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal on whether the state of California violated the settlement in our case, Ashker v. Governor, a federal class-action lawsuit on behalf of prisoners held in the Security Housing Unit (SHU) at California’s Pelican Bay State Prison who have spent a decade or more in solitary confinement.

Attorneys with the Center for Constitutional Rights will urge the court to uphold a ruling that California prisons have violated a landmark settlement agreement intended to end indefinite solitary confinement. The district court held that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) violated the 2015 settlement by maintaining prisoners in levels of isolation equal to or even more severe than the isolation they experienced in the Security Housing Units (SHU).

Tune in at 9:00am PST on May 12 to watch first hand and JOIN OUR TWEETSTORM, as we reject #solitarybyanothername.

Feel free to use visuals and sample messaging from our our social media toolkit,

Arguments will likely start between 9:00 and 9:30 am PST, depending on the length and order of arguments. You will find the link to the livestream on the court’s website.

STAY TUNED AFTER THE HEARING FOR A COMMUNITY-CENTERED ONLINE BRIEFING!

Following oral argument in Ashker, join us at 11:30am PST for a community-centered online briefing with attorneys Jules Lobel and Samuel Miller. The legal team will share their thoughts about how the hearing went, you will get the opportunity to ask questions, and we will highlight action items to move forward.

For more information and to receive the Zoom link and passwork, please RSVP on Eventbrite

For questions, contact Dolores Canales, CFASC: (714) 290-9077, dol1canales@gmail.com

Online briefing hosted by California Families Against Solitary Confinement (CFASC) and Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR).

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PHSS Parole Subcommittee Request for Information

Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity Coalition:
Parole Subcommittee Request for Information

The PHSS Parole Subcommittee is focusing on parole issues specific to prisoners who have been released from indeterminate SHU, both before and after the Ashker settlement. We are particularly interested in seeing language from transcripts of parole hearings and psych evaluations that contain references to unsuitability for parole based on:

1. Failure to debrief

2. Participation in the hunger strike

3. Factors related to long-term indeterminate SHU, such as inadequate programming.

We are reaching out to prisoners, family members, friends and penpals, including all those who may be familiar with prisoners for whom these issues have been raised in psych evaluations in preparation for parole, or in denials for parole.

We are asking for language from documents, both psych evaluations and BPH transcripts, in order to try to determine patterns and the extent to which these issues are stated as factors indicating unsuitability for parole.

Please provide the following information: Quoted language from documents, prisoner’s name and CDC number, and length of time in SHU. It would also help to have the date of the parole hearing. This information will be used by the committee in connection with its advocacy and may be shared with advocacy groups, as well as with CDCR, Board of Parole Hearings, and other state officials.

Send by mail to: PHSS Parole Committee, PO Box 5586, Lancaster, CA 93539