Florida prisons fire guards after being given scrutiny over several inmate deaths across the state in recent years, according to a report from the Miami Herald newspaper. According to the report, exactly 32 prison guards have been fired by the secretary of Florida's prison system on Friday. The decision of Florida prisons fire guards came as part of an investigation into the deaths of inmates at four state prisons, reports the Associated Press.
In a report by the Miami Herald reported on Saturday, all of the fired guards have been accused of criminal wrongdoing or misconduct in connection with the inmate deaths. Apparently, the deaths dated from 2010 through April.
Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Michael Crews dismissed 32 guards on Friday, according to the newspaper. Florida prisons fire guards, and all 32 of them have been accused of criminal misconduct or wrongdoing which stemmed from inmate deaths at four different prisons, said the report.
According to Crews in a statement released on Friday, his agency has zero-tolerance policy for abuse or corruption. He added that the decision of Florida prisons to fire guards were part of that policy.
He said in the statement, "We continue to root out any and all bad actors who do not live up to our expectations."
According to the AP, a union representing the guards named Teamsters Union said the security personnel were stripped of their jobs without due process. The union added the guards were only following protocols established by their bosses. These bosses have reportedly not been held accountable for the deaths.
Teamsters spokesman Bill Curtis said as Florida prisons fire guards, "The procedure they were following in Charlotte was well known and condoned by the warden."
He added, "Essentially they promoted the people most responsible and liable for the incident and fired everybody else down the chain."
A 27-year-old inmate named Randall Jordan-Aparo died at Franklin Correctional in September 2010.
According to the AP, records were unearthed revealing that a guard, who is amongst the fired as Florida prisons fire guards, ordered Jordan-Aparo gassed even as the inmate pleaded to be taken to the hospital for a blood disorder that had flared up. The inmate later died in the night.
In June 2012, a mentally ill inmate at Dade Correctional also lost his life.
According to Reuters, it is only with this inmate's death that the Florida prison system's operations were put on the spotlight. The system reportedly came under increasing scrutiny after mentally-ill prisoner Darren Rainey died in a most brutal fashion.
The Florida prisons fire guards incident came after a June letter penned by the American Civil Liberties Union to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder.
According to Reuters, the letter called for a federal investigation into Rainey's death, since there are speculations that the state attempted to "cover up" the death.
Rainey, being mentally ill, defecated in his cell and refused to clean it up, reports the AP. Because of this, the inmate had been locked up inside a closet-like shower by a guard.
According to the letter, Rainey was showered with scalding hot water as a punishment at the state's Dade Correctional Institution in Miami. Corrections officers also allegedly taunted the prisoner, who begged to be let out. He was left by guards in the hot chamber for almost two hours, after which he was found dead with his skin separated from his body.
Upon investigation of the deaths, Florida prisons fire guards and the letter which prompted the investigation also pointed out how according to court records, the water blasted at Rainey measured 180 degrees (82 Celsius).
In August 2012, another inmate named Rudolf Rowe died at Union Correctional. Five of the guards involved with the Florida prisons fire guards incident have reportedly been accused of using excessive force in his death.
Howard Simon, executive director of the ACLU of Florida said, "These revelations that are coming out are not about incompetence. They're about guards killing people and public officials working feverishly to cover it up."
According to Reuters, in a memo earlier this month, Crews said the department had not been consistent in holding staff accountable for committing crimes.
Simon said, "The lack of consistent consequences for the same crime has the potential of undermining the culture of professionalism that is necessary for running institutions with integrity."
Florida prisons fire guards, and the Florida Department of Corrections was not immediately available for comment, according to Al Jazeera America.
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