Prison abuse series
Kudos to the Miami Herald for their investigative reporting on Lowell Women’s Prison.
The deaths and abuses at this institution can be laid directly at the feet of Gov. Rick Scott and the Republican Legislature.
They have approved using a private medical provider, Corizon, which, predictably, operates to make a profit by under treating prisoners.
Many of the women housed at Lowell are there due to mental illness, substance abuse, and other social issues also under treated in our society.
Most of all, they are human beings who are being subjected to cruel and unusual punishments in this and other correctional institutions. Imagine how distressing would be the report if Gov. Scott had his way and succeeded in privatizing the entire prison system. He promoted using a huge budget surplus, not for the improvement of human services or other infrastructure needs in our state, but for generous tax cuts.
The Herald report should bring our so-called state leaders great shame and hopefully a drive to improve prison conditions at Lowell and elsewhere.
Marjorie Abrams, Gainesville
This story was originally published January 3, 2016 at 6:56 PM with the headline "Prison abuse series."