Bought by the state for a dollar, Fort Lyon is rich in history, asbestos, sick inmates — and trouble.
Although it's going to take some time for his leg to heal, Swift is relieved to be in Denver and headed for a halfway house. Even before the spiders got him, he didn't feel well at Fort Lyon. The water, the air — something seemed wrong from day one.
"Something about the place made me feel sick, fatigued, a little loopy," he says now. "Seems like I've been sick since I got there."
Mark Manger
Mark Manger
Ask the dust: Officials say the asbestos at Fort Lyon is in places inmates aren't allowed, including crawl spaces and mechanical rooms, but prisoners claim more widespread exposure.
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To read Alan Prendergast 's previous prison coverage, go to the Crime & Punishment archive .
Alan Prendergast 06/12/2010 1:55:00 AM
Ms. Kelley,
I wish I had more substantial recommendations. A four-week compliance hearing is going on right now in federal court in Denver regarding the DOC's ongoing failure to address the needs of disabled and sick inmates. This case has been going on for years, and the current hearing concerns standards they were supposed to start meeting seven years ago. Fort Lyon figures prominently in the problem, of course. I received a private email from a member of your family and will suggest some follow-up with the attorneys involved.
Margie Kelley 06/11/2010 7:29:00 PM
Please accept my sincere thanks and appreciation for your articles. My son has been transferred to Ft. Lyons from Territorial. He suffered a severe stroke in Sterling on July 4th of 2009. He arrived in Ft. Lyons approximately a month ago. He was placed in a filthy cell with a broken toilet and a mentally handicapped cell mate. The cell mate chose to use the broken toilet and left feces and urin in and around the toilet. The smell was unbearable. I requested that my son be moved, which he was and put in a cell with only a broken bed for furniture. He was assigned to a Nurses Aid who was acting as a Therapist. She did not have an inkling as to what she was doing. My son declined further treatment until a licensed therapist could work with him. He depends solely on a wheel chair for support for his left leg which was paralyzed. The wheel chair was taken away. He is confined to a cell with two sex offenders. One weighs about 300 pounds and lays on his cot stark naked, uncovered and exposed all of the time. This morning, my son was called to medical. He was seen by a doctor who took all of his medications away and upheld the refusal of a wheel chair. His blood pressure medicine has been a must, to prevent another stroke. He has been threatened with the hole if he complains. He has never previously had any type of a write up, is minimum low risk classification. He is doing a 4 year sentence for a non-violent crime and has previously gotten along great with staff, guards and other inmates. Ft. Lyons medical treats him like dirt and is very rude and uncaring. Your articles fit exactly what I have learned about Ft. Lyons. Can you help us to get my son out of that hell hole? Please respond. Thank you for all you have done to let the public know about this place.
stefanie 08/19/2008 7:09:00 AM
I am very concerned!!! I have a loved one there and before I could even write and tell him about the history of this place, he wrote and told me about all of the problems he and other inmates are having. It does pertain to the water and some concern over the asbestos. How do we get someone to help these men? They're prisoners not animals and they do have some rights.
stefanie 08/19/2008 7:08:00 AM
I am very concerned!!! I have a loved one there and before I could even write and tell him about the history of this place, he wrote and told me about all of the problems he and other inmates are having. It does pertain to the water and some concern over the asbestos. How do we get someone to help these men? They're prisoners not animals and they do have some rights.
Sandy 12/12/2007 11:35:00 PM
Very interesting article seeing how my brother is incarcerated there. He has asked me to try and look into the water issue and the asbestos issue due to the fact that he is having skin problems (as well as others)and the guards still bring there own water and someone comes to test the water 2 times a week but only from the exact same locations every time. No one will answer their questions regarding the water either. The asbestos seems to still be a concern among the inmates as well. I'm wondering what I can do the help answer some of there questions/concerns - Thank you for your time
Holly 11/15/2007 5:32:00 PM
Good article. I liked the history of the Sand Creek Massacre. I will have my 14 year old son read it. I am 1/2 Cheyenne River Sioux from Eagle Butte SD and 1/2 Florida Seminole.
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