A prisoner who has been rotting inside a sweltering Texas prison for the past 16 years fears he “won’t make it out alive” after being left unconscious from the scorching heat
A prisoner trapped in a sweltering jail feared he “wouldn’t make it out alive” as he claims inmates “organs and body parts are being cooked”.
Texas has grappled with severe heatwaves in recent years with temperatures soaring above 37.8C (100F), causing prisoners to faint and remain without medical aid for hours after being made to work in the blistering conditions. The relentless Texan sun has not only led to fatalities among inmates but also prompted resignations from prison staff and cost the state millions in legal settlements over wrongful deaths and human rights violations.
Despite the Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s silence on any heat-related prisoner deaths since 2012, a recent investigation suggests that up to 13% of inmate deaths during warmer months may be due to the intense heat.
Research by the Texas A&M University Hazard Reduction and Recovery Centre, alongside Texas Prisons Community Advocates, highlights that Texas is among thirteen states lacking comprehensive air conditioning in their prisons, reports the Mirror US.
Joseph Matrie, who has been incarcerated for 16 years at Estelle Unit Texas Prison on a burglary charge, was recently released on parole. In an exclusive chat with the Mirror US from his cell, he shared his daily dread, confessing he wakes up unsure if he’ll survive the day.
Joseph revealed the dire conditions that have him living in fear for his life after experiencing severe sweating, confiding: “I was granted parole on a 20-year sentence but I wasn’t sure I would make it out with all my recent heat-related issues.
“There are days where I don’t know if I’ll make it through alive because I wake up covered in sweat as it is so difficult to breathe. All of this is due to overheating and exhaustion.
“The prison is one of the most terrifying places to be as a human when you’re having emergency health issues and you have no one with the authority or ability to help you as you lose consciousness.”
Describing a recent ordeal which occurred on June 6, 2023, Joseph recounted his struggle requesting relief from the oppressive heat after being confined for hours in his scorching cell.
He continued: “From around 12.30pm until 5pm, myself and others were requesting respite but we were told nothing and told to wait by officers.
“More than one of us was complaining of dizziness, headaches, and seeing spots of blackness in my vision.
“As time ticked on and my pleas for assistance were dismissed, I grew more anxious, fearing I might faint or experience something even graver while struggling to draw breath and parched with an intense thirst.
“After losing consciousness, I hadn’t been given any additional water or ice for over five hours.
“I woke up to someone pushing fingers into my eye and saying ‘he’s ok’. I couldn’t stand unassisted to get on a stretcher and had to wait in line behind two other inmates who had also lost consciousness after me.”
He disclosed that during the ordeal, one inmate began convulsing and required urgent 911 attention, while another was rushed off for emergency medical care.
“I was put in a wheelchair by officers and brought to the Emergency Rest room where I was extremely grateful to be alive thanks to the nurses and doctors”, he expressed.
Joseph, crammed into a cell with a single cellmate, endures the heat with only a puny 8-inch fan purportedly there to cool them around the clock.
Describing the dire conditions, he said: “We have a small jail, which contains one other cellmate, and we can’t get out of it unless an officer or medic visits. We have to rely on inmates who may or may not care if you have multiple health issues.”
Recounting the less-than-adequate measures for relief, Joseph explained: “Staff will put you in an air-conditioned barber shop along with 17 other inmates but it doesn’t have a bathroom, there’s no cold water, and it’s not big enough for us all.”
In grim detail, he recounted his experiences in the make-shift cooling station: “I’ve passed out and lost consciousness in there, I’ve seen two people pass out and be left there for three to four hours. Some inmates have to urinate in a bottle and pour it down the sink.
“The prison is so short of staff, there is no let to us out for hours. There’ll be one office working the whole wing that is responsible for around 126 inmates and you’ll be luck if you get any help or assistance.
“For the past 16 years, I’ve had to rely on officers inside the prison to be willing to help me if I’m having any heat-related issues. I’m met more often than not with indifference when I’ve tried to get help.
“I take multiple medications after having a heart attack, some of which cause my body trouble staying in cool temperatures.
“I have lost consciousness due to overheating, seized up, could not stand, walk and talk coherently.”
Prisoners are not being paid to work but can face minor or major disciplinary actions for refusing to work in the intense heat.
A minor disciplinary would see inmates not being allowed in the dayroom, items can be taken out of the cell and can just be left with basic hygiene and writing supplies.
However, a major disciplinary would see inmates have phone and visiting restrictions placed upon them – although it does not affect any parole appeals.
Kat Undone, Joseph’s wife, revealed the blistering heat in Texas prisons has affected him so much was moved to a different unit after he was found unconscious for two and a half hours.
She revealed, “officers didn’t pay attention to him, he was just found in time, and since the incident, he has excessive heat sensitivity.”
She stated: “The prisons are hotter than anything in the free world has to endure as the heat in the concrete pushes it forward. When does it stop being a prison and starts being inhumane?”.
Kat has expressed dissatisfaction with the response of Texas prison authorities when a heat-related death is reported in the prison, as she suspects it is being covered up.
“If the measures in place work moderately then they would work but they have policies in place which are unable to be followed because the prison is so short-staffed.
“One officer will have to deal with three floors of inmates, who will then have to open doors, work control pickets, open doors, put handcuffs on, and escort them.
“The staff are in thick clothing, in the heat like the inmates, being harassed while hot and aggravated. If the prisons were air-conditioned, they would have more employees.”
Kat thinks “animals are treated better than human beings” since Texas has laws governing the temperatures required for animal shelters.
“Texas jails have laws governing the temperatures that should be maintained in animal shelters, which are strict and comprehensive,” she said.
“Animals are treated better than human beings, and the staff are in the same condition, where they don’t want to do anything for the inmates who are still people.”
Amite Dominick, of the Texas Prisons Community Advocates, believes prisons are “greatly endangering” the lives of inmates. She slammed the prison conditions in an interview with The Mirror US, saying: “The prisons are greatly endangering the lives of the individuals incarcerated by refusing to install air conditioning.
“The human body is not meant to take those types of temperatures and we’re essentially cooking the incarcerated organs’ and body parts.
“People dying in the heat is simply slave labour, to have people working out in the conditions and to not be following the work guidelines. It is legalised slavery.
“We’ve had 51 deaths in the prison system for June alone and over 24 deaths for July.
“That’s more than a death a day. Not all of these deaths can be attributed to the heat but I believe there’s a very strong correlation between these deaths and extreme temperatures.”
Despite the alarming death tolls reported, with 51 fatalities in the month of June and July in 2023, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has denied any recent deaths due to soaring temperatures.
From 2000 to 2012, there were 17 recorded deaths linked to heat within the prison system, with 2011 alone accounting for 10, coinciding with a record-breaking heatwave, as per TDCJ records.
A study in November by scholars from Brown, Boston and Harvard universities found heat may have been a factor in 13%, or 271, of the fatalities occurring during warm months across Texan prisons without universal air conditioning from 2001 to 2019.
Amanda Hernandez, Communications Chief for Texas Department of Criminal Justice, insists facilities are actively working to mitigate the sweltering heat’s impact on inmates.
She stated: “We take numerous precautions to lessen the effects of hot temperatures for those incarcerated within our facilities.
“The agency recognises that some inmates are potentially at a heightened risk of heat-related illnesses because of their age, health conditions, or medications.
“These individuals are identified through an automated heat sensitivity score that uses information from the inmate’s electronic health record. Individuals who have a heat sensitivity score receive priority placement in a housing area that is air-conditioned.
“Each summer we continue to refine and improve our practices. What has not changed is our commitment to do all that we can to keep staff and inmates safe.”
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