Jon's Jail Journal

September 9, 2004 2:44 AM

This is Jon's diary. Jon is in prison on money laundering and drugs charges. "My new co-habitants are enduring the twin evils of a broken swamp-cooler and a cockroach infestation. A neighbouring asthmatic inmate happily described how he inhaled a cockroach that had crept into his nebulizer. He could feel the insect crawling around inside him and promptly vomited his stomach contents. Unfortunately the cockroach was not ejected, as it was lodged in his lung."
posted by urban greeting (13 comments total)

That's fascinating, man. Nice post.
posted by Swandive at 3:30 AM on September 9, 2004

It was via The Guardian, so it wasn't exactly a hidden nugget. Still I figured there would be a bunch of people who may have otherwise missed so it was (hopefully)worth posting. I wholeheartedly recommend reading it from the earliest archive to the present day.
posted by urban greeting at 4:15 AM on September 9, 2004

The Guardian story

A long article from the Phoenix New Times newspaper detailing the crimes and the arrest of English Shaun (aka Jon).

In the comments section of his blog his blog Jon/Shaun wrote the following. The ‘New Times’ article as you rightly suspected was not entirely true. The prosecution leaked news of my arrest to this free newspaper and they used unnamed ‘sources’ to fill out their copy. Subsequently through my attorney I had to ask for a gagging order from the Judge on my case who immediately granted it as the article was prejudicial to any trial that may have occurred. The content of the article is part of the reason that I am were I am and for so long, as the portrait painted of me stretched the truth so far that it was impossible to see any more……..

Apologies for my comment spam - I should really have included these links in the FPP.
posted by urban greeting at 4:31 AM on September 9, 2004

The content of the article is part of the reason that I am were I am and for so long, as the portrait painted of me stretched the truth so far that it was impossible to see any more……

Yeah, ain't no one in prison guilty.
posted by PenDevil at 4:55 AM on September 9, 2004

To add to this fine example, I posted some blog writing about prison about a year ago, only the first link of which by Alon the Felon was an actual blog written from prison. Certainly an interesting perspective. And I highly recommend the fellow MeFite bluishorange links therein as some truly excellent writing.
posted by onlyconnect at 12:58 PM on September 9, 2004

That was one of the few frontpage G2 articles I've bothered to read for a while (as opposed to skim).

It was enlightening. I thought the whole idea of "sufferer of the week" showed the corporate drone side of him has remained unrepressed. The Guardian piece was very well written.
posted by davehat at 1:42 PM on September 9, 2004

Lungtastic.
If only i'd been able to sample these delights myself firsthand...

Perhaps i'll start smuggling 'leather jackets' for 'friends'
Or perhaps not.
posted by isol at 2:32 PM on September 9, 2004

Pen - and ain't no journalist never lied to make a name for himself.

And even if the worst is all true, there's no excuse for the prison system in America. Prison rape shouldn't happen, and people in fucking jail - you know, the people that are still at the presumed innocent point? - shouldn't be sleeping with roaches and god damn near starving.

I hate the "well they're criminals, so they have no rights" mentality.
posted by kavasa at 2:39 PM on September 9, 2004

In any other country it would seem very odd indeed that a guy who's in for drugs and money laundering charges would be housed, even temporarily, in the super maximum unit.

Then again, this is the US, not any other country...
posted by clevershark at 2:40 PM on September 9, 2004

His mum says that he has no access to a computer. Not 'restricted' access. So, he writes in longhand, but who posts to the blog?

Oh, and btw: what disgraceful conditions. No civilised society would treat it's convicts that way.

Shame on the Sherrif.
Shame on Arizona.
Shame on the US.
posted by dash_slot- at 6:26 PM on September 9, 2004

Why is Joe Arpaio still alive?

This is a question I remain utterly befuddled by in this world. We as a species totally devalue human life- so many people go to jail for dehumanization and the violence it leads to, and so many who support prisons like this and run them are as psychopathic as those they house.

So, how is it possible that with this infamous jail being run for as long as it has, an inmate hasn't gotten out, taken a look around, said to himself, "Self, you served a 15-year sentence before, and 2 years in this here jail... fuck it, I got nothing to live for. Sheriff Joe is going down." How many of the convicts in this jail probably got out, and committed a violent crime within 2-3 months? If it's even 5% of all people there...

It just is unfathomable to me that people can succeed in shooting presidents or movie stars or celebrities, that violence is perpetrated against otherwise innocent people all the time- but somehow, a relatively unprotected guy like Sheriff Joe is alive and possessing his genitalia intact.

Can someone explain that?
posted by hincandenza at 7:34 PM on September 9, 2004

Why is Joe Arpaio still alive?

He's not only alive, but iving well. Just won the in the primaries, and I expect him to win the general election.

There is no way, it seems, to speak up on behalf of basic human rights for prisoners without being considered soft on crime.

And when this dipshit tosses people into tent city and puts their lives in jeopardy, and parades around as 'America's toughest sherif," eveyone cheers, because everyone knows that all prisoners are shit. Even the ones not yet gone to trial.
posted by Ayn Marx at 10:24 PM on September 9, 2004

That's just it- how could even one prisoner have not snapped yet, and taken him out? Violence is a regular and sad occurence in our world- many of the people in tent city, for all its inhumanity and gross violation of the 8th amendment, are in there because they are uncontrollably violent. They certainly have no qualms about violence, so why is it Joe Arpaio can walk around without fear that an ex-con he left to rot in a roach-infested, 115-degree tent is going take him out. The reality is if someone wants you dead bad enough, you will be dead. Those extreme right-wing hate groups certainly manage to take out targets they disagree with- why won't violent criminals ever attack cops when they get out, or the police chief, or most especially guys like Joe?

I mean, seriously. From John Lennon to Martin Luther King, the good ones get killed. Why do leaders of Aryan nations or psycho "tough guy" cops live to a ripe old age? I would think Joe's made enough enemies that even as the public cheers on his dehumanization, there is one guy out there taking target practice in his spare time.

I just can't understand why we can collectively exercise so much unbelievable violence and hurt against each other, but you so rarely hear of the violent and hurtful getting attacked.
posted by hincandenza at 1:16 AM on September 10, 2004