Privatization at its finest

[eauclaireliberal]

Suit: Inmates forced to eat tainted food

BY KELLI KENNEDY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ORLANDO -- Four former inmates of the Citrus County Detention Facility filed a federal lawsuit against the private company that runs the jail, alleging two former officers put human waste in their food and drinks.

The inmates were subject to cruel punishment, torture and battery in 2004, when they were forced to eat the food contaminated with urine and feces, according to the lawsuit filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Tampa.

A spokesman for Tennessee-based Corrections Corporation of America said the company took immediate action once it heard about the incident.

"Management immediately investigated and terminated three employees right there and then," company spokesman Steve Owen said Saturday. "The company does have a zero-tolerance policy for conduct of that nature."

Owen said the company had not been served with the lawsuit, which accuses them of negligent hiring.

Former inmates Javon Walker, Jeffrey Young, Larry Robbins and Greg Platt had been held in the jail's segregation unit. The segregation unit is reserved for inmates who are considered a safety risk at the Lecanto jail.

The inmates complained the food had a foul odor and didn't taste right, but were forced to eat the food or go hungry, the lawsuit said. After eating the food, they suffered from "vomiting, stomach cramps and nausea," the lawsuit claims.

The incidents occurred several times between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31, 2004, according to the lawsuit.***MORE AT LINK