Outcry Missing Against Jail’s ‘Rubber Rooms’
Vice President George Bush’s “accusation” that Gov. Michael S. Dukakis is a “card-carrying member of the American Civil Liberties Union” became for me a strong reason to vote for Dukakis after reading in The Times (Oct. 8) that ACLU attorney Dick Herman is suing the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
This suit charges that inmates of the County Jail are sometimes being punished by being thrown naked into “rubber rooms” that are empty except for a hole in the floor for their excrement. The ACLU says that the rooms have no light, heat or bedding and that inmates are forced to sleep on the floor in close proximity to their own waste. Since there are no eating utensils or toilet paper, the suit charges that inmates must clean themselves and eat with their unwashed hands.
I could not pledge allegiance to this system. It is more like the kind of incarceration that existed in the Dark Ages. The ACLU has once again taken action to defend the rights of victims who suffer at the hands of those in power.
My check to become “card-carrying members” of the ACLU for myself and my wife is on its way today.
MAURY ABRAMS
Anaheim
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