It is obscene to blame the women for the horrible rash that has now spread throughout the women's prison. Jacobsen said It is the fault of the Michigan Department of Corrections.
Jacobsen said she and others have complained for years that the prison was unsafe, toxic and filthy with feces on the walls and urine in the vents. When the department removed men from the facility in 2009, she said female inmates have begged for proper cleaning materials, but been refused and unhealthy black mold has spread throughout the prison.
The Free Press has reported on a history of leaking roofs at the prison, confirmed by inmates , correctional officers , and prison officials, and prison officials. Prisoners brought a class -action suit , alleging inhumane conditions, in 2016 but a federal judge in Detroit declined to certify the suit this year.
Gaulz denied there is black mold at the prison. He said what have happened at the prison. He said what might have happened at the prison a decade ago couldn't possibly have a causal relationship with rashes happening today. Gautz providing the Free Press with copies of recent inspections by Corrections Department employees that say the institution continues to be maintained in excellent sanitary condition.
But Machelle Pearson 52, who served more than 30 years behind bars, after her conviction for a 1983 homicide when she was a juvenile, said she saw black mold in the Galdwin unit, where the rash began , when she worked as a porter who cleaned the restrooms prior to her August parole.
In the shower area , an entire corner of the tile ceiling was eaten away by mold , and because of lack of a ventilation, condensation would drip on the prisoners and their clothes while they showered , Pearson said.
The prison stopped allowing the porters to use bleach to clean, and instead provided diluted cleaning agents that don't clean properly , she said
During the brief period early this year, when the Galdwin housing unit was under quarantine because of the rash, inmate were to directed paint over the black mold with white paint. Pearson told Free Press.
Pearson said she contracted the rash and still has scars around her ankles and feet, which she said an outside doctor told her , after her release , was because of exposure to fungus and mold.
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