Illustrated Daily; A Change is Gonna Come; Back Wards

Tonight, a look at criminal rehabilitation programs in New Mexico at a time when controversy over the state's criminal justice system abounds. Though it may not be apparent beneath the headlines, rehabilitation is on the penal systems troubled agenda. What follows is a rare video look at an imaginative effort underway at the Los Luna's medium security facility. It's called Prison-Tay Otro Prison Theater, combined with the beginnings of rehabilitation ventures at the troubled prison near Santa Fe. Ricardo Firillo has produced his report. It's not exactly what it is, but that's what it's supposed to be, that's what we're trying to make it.

I'm not sure within our present way of dealing with law offenders, how else one can be rehabilitated if it's not in a penitentiary. So I think this is what we have to work with and try to do the best job we can. I guess my principal criticisms would be that I don't feel that there's any rehabilitative efforts as far as the administration putting out that effort. Rehabilitation comes where an individual wants it and they go for what they can. But when the sources are limited, there's very few things that they can go for. It's just like this revolve, I've been running ever since, it's been too long, too long

time to come in, but I know that she's going to come. Nobody knows better than the person in South if he's going to rehabilitate himself. I can only rehabilitate myself. There's no program in life that can tell me what we're going to break down your character and rebuild you, because I'm okay the way I am, I know my problems, I know what I have to do. In 1944's first time I ever came to prison and it was literal hell in the early 40's. Now, if what you're trying to ask me if I can see a change from back then to now, slightly

not a hell of a law, I would like the people who make those criticisms to look at other penitentiaries around the country and see how extensive their rehabilitation and treatment and educational programs are and then come back and look at New Mexico and I think they will be amazed at what an elaborate program we have and what an extensive program we have. What they've received in here has been only role-playing or artificial at best in helping them adjust to the many difficulties that civilian life creates. Let me have two sneakers and three two must-go-tears, I said I want three three must-go-tears and two sneakers and three two must-go-tears, three three must-go-tears and two sneakers,

three two must-go-tears, three two must-go-tears and two sneakers and two sneakers. If you're going to give a man specific amount of time, give him the tools to work with. If he's confined in here, let's say, for six years, okay, after two and a half years, put him on a farm, let him have work with us, regardless of his crime. If you're going to go by that, there's no sense to send him around. He's going to come back, because he can't prepare himself for the streets after getting kicked out of here, directly out of here. I don't know what it is. I guess it's the cloud that hangs over this penitenti for after that riot.

The name of this farm is it has no name, and it goes like this. Let me tell you a story that happened to me while I was doing time in the penitentiary. Everything was quiet to one certain point then some dude yelled out, we're taking over this joint. Before I could realize what was happening here, I said, say dear Lord, my time is getting near. I looked all around and everybody's gone and said to myself, say man, something's wrong. Where's the money coming from from the prison industries to better jobs and rehabilitation. And this institution, there isn't any. They're putting the goddamn money in their pockets. While everybody started taking over the place, everybody else was covering up their face. So nobody would recognize who they might be

for later on there was blood running free. Everybody running around like wild men for some of them people, it was close to the end. A lot of them died with pipes and knives while some of them even took their own lives. What I saw there, you wouldn't want to see. And I thank the dear Lord that they didn't kill me. My life was in danger every second of the day, but all I could do was kneel down and pray. Well, it's all over with 33 dead and I try not to let it get to my head. So that's the worst riot that I'll ever see in the New Mexico State Penitentiary.

Thank you. My name is Carlos Rema and I'm doing two years flat. We're all looking for the future. My name is Joe Barros and I'm doing 150 years. It's on the way to 50 years. It's on the way to 50 years. It's on the way to 50 years. Although no, I'm doing a hunt on 94 years. Brother Rodriguez, going to night flat. Ken Cranford doing life.

Tell the people out there to help. We need help. We need support. We need help. We're trying from here, but we need some help from out there too. Well, criminal rehabilitation under the best of circumstances is an uncertain venture, pursuing that goal in a system still recovering from one of the nation's worst prison riots in history only complicates the problem still more. The State Hospital's story is a complicated one involving issues of administrative policy and clinical procedures and Ricardo Trujillo has this report. Many years ago when I went to school, the school by which I was run spoke of one state

spoke of one statement. Whatever you do into the least of my brethren, you do unto me. And if this is what the State of New Mexico has chosen to do unto the least of their brethren, God help us. There is no health facility, no inpatient health facility in the Southwest better than the one that the taxpayers of the state have so well funded. And we are prepared to back up that statement. From my observation, since Dr. David Fisher has been hired at State Hospital, there has been a downhill trend

in the actual direct patient care that has occurred. We're also a business, a business in this way that I want to be held accountable like a business. You know, we get a budget of almost $14 million and I think the state has the right to know, what are they getting that for that $14 million? In my opinion, the State of New Mexico is not getting their money's worth for $14 million. I once overheard a person in management saying, well, what do these people expect? This is State Hospital. These people, our patients deserve the very best we are capable of giving and I do not feel that we are performing at that level. Well, what I think what we're doing is getting pages now to speak up, to say where they've been, and tell others how they've been treated. So when they feel like they need help, they can come here without fear or anxiety. Scared? Well, I'm going to tell you how well I got scared. There was just one guy that tried to bug her me here, you know, in the shower.

When I was about five years ago, I guess, I was younger. He was from the state penitentiary, and he came down here for therapy, and he tried that on me and it didn't work. But I, you know, I got to learn what this place was bought and sold. That was the first time that that scooped me. And I'm going to the house upon the hill, the place where they give you pills. The rooms are always chill. They're never closing. When they give you three suits on you, and it's the response time of all of the beer, when Easter times are bad for the ground. He's always smiling. Here's the old lady sitting by the garden. There he is, patient abuse.

That's a hospital. It's very difficult to prove. It's very difficult to document, because a lot of people are very fearful to come forward and report it. Cases that have been reported at frequent times have, there has been nothing done by administration to correct the situations. I saw a male attendant actually punch a girl, and there's anyway, these people are crazy who's going to believe what they say. They're not going to believe them, but I saw him. And this girl was bleeding. Then all they did was come and put her in the seclusion room. It's really scary. As you don't know what these people are going to do, if the person gets out of hand or can't control themselves, the attendants get pretty rough with them. It's almost as if the attitude is that anybody who goes to a state hospital with a serious disturbance or problem is basically not curable.

When our clients do return from the state hospital, or we get new clients from the state hospital, it seems as if when the client is discharged, they're given a prescription or prescriptions for their medication at the same dosage levels that they were taking in the hospital with no explanation as to what they're to do for follow-up care. How they arrive here sometimes is a mystery to me, how they find us. We're saying we have a $14 million budget to do a job here, and we're beginning to do it. The dam will resent that the effort and work we put into a patient doesn't get followed up and supported in the community. The message that I hear coming from administration is do as I tell you, ask no questions. Don't talk to anyone outside of the hospital, because if you do, your troubles will have only begun. I fear for myself having talked to you tonight.

It's a very difficult situation at state hospital. And although I fear for myself on a larger concern is the actual patient care that is not occurring at state hospital. Approximately three years ago, in an attempt to improve clinical procedures, Dr. David Fisher was appointed to the post of state hospital clinical director. Dr. Michael Durekter and Dr. check out other things, such as cell porn,

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