Two former inmates at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center as well as several advocates walked to Gov. Charlie Baker’s office in the Massachusetts State House this week to demand he support an investigation into conditions at the maximum-security prison in the wake of recent allegations of violence.

Dozens of prisoners at the facility in late January accused members of a tactical team at the Lancaster prison of assaulting them in retaliation for an inmate-led attack on four correction officers on Jan. 10. The allegations have led multiple Massachusetts legislators to visit Souza-Baranowski and sparked a civil lawsuit from three prisoners. The inmates who claimed they were assaulted said they were not involved in the attack on the prison guards.

Some of the lawmakers who traveled to the prison in January and February alleged a lack of oversight and control at the facility. State Sen. James Eldridge and Rep. Chynah Tyler renewed those claims at a briefing Wednesday.

“There have been problems with violence and culture there really since it was built in 1997,” Eldridge said, adding that there is not a lot of accountability at Souza-Baranowski. “It’s very difficult to change the culture unless it comes from the top down."

Many who attended the briefing delivered a letter to Baker’s office afterward that urged U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling to launch an independent investigation into accusations of “brutality and inhumane conditions” at the prison.

The document was written by Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts, an advocacy group that interviewed 90 prisoners after the Jan. 10 attack. PLS Executive Director Elizabeth Matos alleged that 72 inmates have been assaulted or injured by correction staff during a multi-week lockdown of the facility that followed the assault on the officers.

Six inmates have harmed themselves due to mental health crisis, and more than 120 reports of excessive force have been made as well, according to Matos.

“We have documented injuries including broken bones, stitches, punctures wounds from dog bites, taser burns and tears, concussion and ligature burns,” the letter said. “The level of brutality officers are inflicting upon prisoners at SBCC is unprecedented.”

Matos in her letter called on the Massachusetts Department of Correction to preserve all video recordings from cameras in the facility that have captured uses of force. She also asked DOC to remove the tactical team from Souza-Baranowski, resume re-entry programming and restore prisoners’ access to their attorneys and legal materials.

A lawyer representing one of the inmates suing DOC also urged Lelling in a letter to investigate claims of assault and alleged retaliation at Souza-Baranowski. Attorney Patricia DeJuneas accused armed members of the prison’s tactical team of brutally assaulting her client, Robert Silva-Prentice.

Aderonke Liped, a civil rights attorney who spoke during Wednesday’s briefing, proposed the creation of a commission to oversee DOC as well as a liaison between the agency and the state legislature to ensure the department honors “the civil rights of these individuals."

“They can’t just be allowed to do whatever they want to these prisoners,” she said, "so we need to be strategic in the type of legislative reform that’s necessary.”

Darrell Jones, who was recently exonerated from prison after being incarcerated for more than 30 years, spoke at the briefing alongside Liped. Jones served time at Souza-Baranowski on a wrongful murder conviction and said there is a “great war in there.” He claimed staff intentionally house rival inmates together and that internal conflict at the facility leads to violence outside the prison.

“Every beef that happens in there affects out here,” he said.

The former prisoner sat next to Jason Schultz, who was also previously incarcerated at the maximum-security prison. The Hyannis resident was released on Feb. 14 after serving his criminal sentence. Schultz claimed to have been assaulted by tactical team members before leaving Souza-Baranowski. The former inmate alleged he was beaten and had his eyes gouged.

During Wednesday’s discussion, Jones said that the only person who can make sweeping changes at the facility is the governor. Liped added that Baker is the sole official who can monitor how DOC acts and change the agency’s behavior.

“One person in this building, the governor, is the only one who can do something about it,” Jones said, "so why would we keep talking about this when the governor’s here?”

Baker has previously said he has faith in DOC to properly investigate allegations of violence at the facility.

Other panelists during the discussion called on Baker to add a direct line between his office and Souza-Baranowski so the governor can look at footage from video cameras inside the prison.

Tyler, in a February letter to the governor, also urged Baker to have access to a live feed to ensure the safety of both correction officers and prisoners.

“We don’t trust the DOC to police itself, but honestly, I don’t think the governor has the will to do that,” Matos said at the briefing.

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