This article was originally published on January 10, 2025 on IDOCWatch.org.
Being a prison wife is a role no one prepares you for. It’s a reality of sleepless nights, unanswered calls, and silent suffering. But what happens when the person you love, who is already stripped of their freedom, is denied their basic rights and safety? This is the heartbreaking truth my husband and I live with every day.
My husband, incarcerated in a system that often fails to recognize humanity, has been subjected to neglect and abuse. He tested positive for H. pylori, a dangerous bacteria contracted through contaminated food or water. Left untreated, H. pylori causes severe stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhea, and significant weight loss—and it can lead to stomach cancer. For over a year, my husband has endured these symptoms without receiving the proper treatment. The issue remains unresolved despite my constant advocacy, including emails to the superiors in Indiana State Prison Medical. The medical neglect he faces is not just cruel—it’s life-threatening.
Worse still, my efforts to demand accountability have led to retaliation. I organized a protest outside of Indiana State Prison on November 23, at 12 pm Central time and 1 pm Eastern time demanding humane treatment. That’s when retaliation on my husband with a corrections officer began. A corrections officer nicknamed Double-A, targeted my husband. Using excessive force, Double-A told him, “Have your wife protest that,” as though my advocacy justified violence. I reported this incident to the warden secretary, leaving 5 voicemails with no call back on updates regarding the incident and Internal Affairs, yet nothing was done to hold him accountable.
Another incident involved CO Allen, who escalated an already hostile situation. He verbally abused my husband, calling him degrading names like “bitch” and “you’re just another piece of shit that’s locked up behind these walls” before violently walking him to his cell while cuffed. CO Allen yanked my husband’s arms upward, sliding the cuffs along his skin and causing cuts and bruises. Security cameras recorded everything, but rather than de-escalate, Allen retaliated further—ripping down my husband’s curtains, trashing his belongings, and throwing away personal photos, legal documents, and limited clothing. My husband was left in his cell with nothing but a blanket.
When my husband was finally able to call me, I immediately contacted Internal Affairs. On the recorded call, I referenced IDOC’s policy I found on their website requiring CO misconduct, including inmate assaults, to be documented, reported, and investigated. Shockingly, the Internal Affairs representative admitted she had no knowledge of the incident until my call and could not explain why the policy was not followed. Although she sent an email requesting my husband be seen by medical staff as soon as possible alongside documentation of the incident and how my husband sustained his scrapes and bruises, no real action was taken. CO Allen remains on the unit, continuing to harass my husband—refusing him basic rights like showers—and days later, wrote a retaliatory report accusing my husband of resisting, despite the incident being caught on camera.
Other COs who viewed the footage admitted excessive force was used, but they also said they couldn’t document the truth without fear of retaliation themselves. This is the culture inside these walls: abuse, silence, and cover-ups.
These are just some of the injustices my husband has endured. If I listed them all, it would fill a book. The system not only fails incarcerated individuals, but it also actively punishes their families for speaking up. My husband and I are living proof of that.
No one deserves this treatment. Denying medical care, enabling excessive force, and targeting individuals for their families’ advocacy are blatant human rights violations. I refuse to stay silent while my husband suffers behind those walls, and I refuse to accept a system that protects its own instead of pursuing justice.
I am calling on readers, officials, and anyone with a sense of humanity to recognize what is happening. These prisons are not just about punishment—they have become places of unchecked abuse and neglect. Families like mine need your support to demand transparency, accountability, and real reform. My husband deserves to be treated with dignity and care, and I won’t stop fighting until that becomes his reality.
This is more than my fight. It’s a fight for all the voices silenced behind those walls.
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Abuse and mistreatment are the norm in prisons, not the exception. If you or anyone you know has had similar issues while incarcerated in Indiana and you want to share their story—or if you want to get involved with IDOC Watch—please fill out the form below and we will quickly reach out to you.