European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 14, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 4 the stars and stripes monday november 14,1994 time from Page 1 these Days since one inmate Dwight Loving an army private is on his last Appeal and could soon have an execution Date others Nave told their family member that they expect to follow soon. Mai a Thomas of Florida said her son Joe convicted of killing his wife in 1987, spends his time writing let ters Reading and listening to the radio. Joseph , a sergeant who was stationed at Eltoro Marine corps air station calif., used to take Colleg classes by correspondence. Mary Thomas and her husband Ray say they know their son did t kill his wife. They have stood by him through the years one of the few families keeping in regular Contact with their death Row inmate. But the elder Thomases Are in their 80s, so they have made the trip from Florida to Kansas Only four times to see him. When they visited they talked with their son inside Cage in the basement of the prison with an armed guard keeping an Eye on us Mary Thomas said. But they did take the hand and foot shackles off him once he got inside the Cage. I guess they figured he could to anywhere then. It s hard for him seeing the same people and thing Day after Day she said. But Joe s a Christian and he handles it that Way. He tries hot to complain because that just gets him into trouble. But the conditions there Are pretty from the time they come onto the Row the in mates world shrinks to a series of single cells facing onto a hallway that is 100 feet Long by 20 feet wide. They can t have a computer typewriter or television but they Are allowed a Walkman Type radio. Inmates leave their cells for a few hours a Day to Shower Wal the hallway watch the Community television or use the limited fitness equipment in the the summer they Are taken outside a couple of times a week in shackles for an hour or so. The rest of the time they see the outside through windows that Areat ground level to the inmate exercise Yard but they rarely feel the Sun or the rain or hear the Kansas wind blow. A / ,. Prisoners can listen to a radio tape player at All times with headphones. There also is an inmate run closed circuit radio which brings various local stations with different formats in on one Loop. The formats Are switched throughout the Day. Broadcast reception is poor however because the Castle the disciplinary Barracks main building is made of thick Limestone and Metal. Various to stations Are piped into the prison Andare changed throughout the Day. This is a change from the late 1980s, when no sensory stimulation was allowed. Other than religious texts the Only books that in mates can read Are ones they get from a Small revolving collection maintained on death Row they also hav Access to an extensive Legal Library. Death Row cells Are furnished with the same items Ashe other cells at fort Leavenworth bunk open toilet Small sink locker chair folding desk and trash cell has a window. Like regular cells death Row cells have floor to ceiling Only people the death Row inmates generally see other than the guards chaplain or mental health staff Are each other. A surrounded by Only bars they look at cacti other 24hours a Day seven Days a week and some have existed this Way for More than seven , because of a medical emergency an inmate does leave the Row he goes in hand and foot shackles and the rest of the prison is locked Down until the transfers Complete. We consider be the highest escape risk Trent said. I know if i were there i d be spending a awful lot of my time figuring out How to get but few disciplinary problems occur and there has been an escape from death Row in recent memory. Some think we d have a lot of disciplinary prob lems because these Guys Don t have anything to lose but since they have so few privileges losing just one Hasa tremendous Impact Trent said. He said there s no need to involve the men in any a jew kind of work activities or train .�l2 ing because they Are never " going to leave Here. There s no rehabilitation for someone with a death on death Row it s just the inmates and time. Time is their enemy and also their Friend. They know each Day brings them closer to death yet each Day is a reprieve. Is Cindy Wilton sign at the military prison cemetery at fort Leavenworth kan., explains who is buried there. She not Only will have to Deal with her own feelings but also will have to stay in tune with the remaining in mates reactions since the tight knit balance of the Row will be shaken by the absence of the inmate. It s not really affection she feels for the inmates Mcgill said. It s More of a understand them and they understand me she said -.,. They talk to her she Saidi think a bit More openly since i am a woman. There s not that Macho thing some of them display for the male they talk about everything she said sports news of the Day religion and sometimes their feelings. I try to keep in touch with what s going on with them she said. When they get quiet arid withdrawn i la Start prying to see if the problem is with another inmate something prison population. Female enlisted female officers male enlisted male officer total 10 0 850 24 884air Force 1 1 276 17 295 Navy 1 0 67 9 77 marines 0 0 115 0 115 total 12. 1 1308 50 1,371 is Ngo keeps guard of inmates feelings by Cindy Killion Washington Bureau Washington army staff sol. Bridget Mcgill has gotten to know the Guys on death Row at for Leavenworth kan., pretty Well in the two years she has worked there As a guard. And even though there has t been a military execution since 1961, Mcgill in t taking any chances. She Al ready has asked not to be involved in the preparation for or actual execution of an inmate. I be thought about it and decided that i would t Beable to handle it very Well she said. I Don t want to be there if it an execution does her request will be honoured prison officials . Col. Neal Trent chief of the prison mental health department said everyone involved in an execution will be a Volunteer but also will have an intense mental health screening before being accepted for the duty. The commandant in t like a civilian Warden he said. The commandant is responsible for the execution to be carried out but he s also responsible for the health and welfare of his in the civilian world he said the execution staff is paid an additional salary and has the option to quit. But we the military can t work like that he will carefully choose who will be involved. If we ask for volunteers and some Guy starts jumping up an Down with his hand up saying choose me we Proba Bly wont because that Guy does t have the mental maturity to handle Mcgill who has been in the army 13 years said that even though she won t be involved in an execution she still will have the Opportunity to get some kind of coun seling if an execution does occur. Their lawyer said or if they be had bad news from Home. And then i la try to get them to talk about conceded that it s unusual for a woman to be in charge of the All male death Row but her rank an experience put her there. Death Row is in what we Call 7 base she base also houses the women which is where i she said she was simply moved up a step to supervise the guards and inmates of the entire floor instead of just staying in one Section. A w j Hen i first got this Job i was scared Mcgill recalled. I did t know what the Guys would be like. I did t know what would be expected of me. And then there s the term death sentence just dealing with that now it s no big Deal she said. These Guys Are just regular prison term length Range of Presori terms army less than 3 years 21 3 years 6-10 10-20 20-30 30-50 54-75 79-100 use death a 256 185 193 73 53 7 10 64 3 Mombi air orc 13 59 80 76 35 7 1 5 11 1 Navy. 2 23 24 19 4 4 0 0 1 0 s r marines total 0 36 14 30 34 11 10 2 3 it 2 352 319 322 123 74 10 18 85 6 is
