A Plead for Help In The Wisconsin Department of Corrections
To Whom It May Concern,
l am writing this letter to let people know about just some of the issues in our broken
judicial system in Wisconsin and plead for help. This letter has been sent to every single news
outlet including TV and radio in the state of Wisconsin and some national. Along with 18
senators and representatives, the DOC itself and the Governor's office.
This letter is so people know and understand some of the things that go on in the
Department Of Corrections. Treatment and rehabilitation should be number one priority, along
with safety of inmates in the DOC. So many people, almost 5,000 from my research, are in
prison for crimeless revocations. Which makes no sense. We broke violations mostly for drug
use. Treatment worthy violations. Not prison worthy. Especially since in March 2024 the DOC
stated they are 4,700 inmates over capacity. Release us and let us do in patient or outpatient
drug treatment on the streets, especially us with no violence and already at minimum custody.
Let us be in the community and take care of our children and be with the support of our
families.
In this letter I am going to go through just some of the things from each institution I have
been to.
My name is Joel Anthony Lee Phillips or Inmate #492150 in the Department of
Corrections (DOC). I will start by telling you about myself and how I came to be in the DOC. I am
now 38 years old with 5 biological children and 3 stepchildren. My wife and I have been married
coming up on 14 years and we own a business. I sadly regret to say I have been a functioning
drug addict since middle school. I have never been to any kind of treatment in the past. When I
was 33 years old, I went through a bad mental health episode and found myself stuck in a drug
induced psychosis and wrecked my truck and woke up in someone's garage with no recollection
of how I got there. I was guilty of using drugs but that night I got charged with possession of
methamphetamine and burglary. I did not break in-nor steal anything. I was offered a plea for 18
months in prison with ERP and CIP. The judge even told me at the time he said he didn't want to
send me to prison but Covid 19 did now allow a treatment facility to take me. So, he offered me
18 months. Me, not knowing the system, I took the plea thinking that I would finally get
treatment. That did not happen. What did happen though I will tell inn the best order I can
starting with county jail.
was in the very small county of Jackson, in Black River Falls, WI. This county is very
small and holds about 78 people. No access to really anything, a 13-inch TV and a couple metal
tables. They have 2-man cells, 6 man cells and 8 man cells. You are in these small areas with no
access to fresh air or even natural light. There were multiple fights and one suicide. The man
was in his 40's and slept all day every day, it was obvious he was stuck in a depression. Yet no
staff did anything. Onsite PSU failed him. One night he hung himself. Guards do not check cells
often enough and no cameras or this death could have been prevented. Innocent till proven
guilty my ass. Guilty till proven innocent is more like it.
I was then sent to Dodge prison for classification. For 5 months I was in Unit 17 "The
Dungeon" as inmates call it. Due to the fact it is halfway underground in the old side of the
prison, it is cold in the winter, hot and wet in the summer and very very dirty and dark. We were
locked in our cells 24 hours a day. Eat, sleep and shit. During this time, we only came out of our
cells twice a week, once for a 15 minute call and once for a five minute cold shower. Then right
back to the cells with no recreation of any kind, no library, no rec., no nothing. These cells are
meant for two inmates but were re-set up to hold three inmates. They are approximately 6 feet
wide by maybe 12 feet long. With a sink and toilet in the cell. I had a cellmate thaat had two
seizures, once in the cell, my other cellrnate and I put him on his side and held him till it -
stopped. Guards did nothing. The second time was during the time they gave out medication.
He hit the ground and 6 guards' hand-cuffed him with his hands behind his back during his
seizure. Two nurses came in and literally did nothing, just watched him seize.
I then went to Jackson County prison. Other than still no treatment. It was ok. I was
released in August 2021. I was sober for a short time which is 100% my fault. I was on what is
called extended supervision. My probation officer was Bradley Schlostein out of the Green Bay
downtown office. He did not think I needed treatment and never drug tested me. About a year
and a half later he revoked me with no charges only allegations. Yet again no treatment nor any
treatment options. Again, I admitted to using, thinking some type of treatment, but nope. I was
sentenced to 3 1/2 years with ERP and CIP. And once again I find myself back at Dodge for
classification.
I was, this time, sent to Oshkosh Correctional Institution. Things at this prison are weird
to say the least. I have a reasonably short sentence compared to most inmates here. Sit and
wait is the plan here. Since I have been here, I have found out that even though Oshkosh is a
medium security prison, it is almost worse than Dodge. Visits are far stricter. There is outside
seating and a playground for your children that has never been used. If we have to use the
restroom during our visit, we are either forced to hold it, which is not good for anyone's health,
or terminate our visits with our loved ones. We have had multiple lock downs with no showers,
no recreation or phone calls. When we are already locked down daily from 10:45 am to 1:00
pm, 3:45 pm to 6:45 pm then from 9:00 pm to 8:00 am. So, in total each day we are locked
down almost 16.5 hours daily as it is. The showers in the first unit I was in, were cold for almost
a month. Sewer flies, bugs and mold were all over. We even had mice from time to time running
around the unit. Multiple situations where legal mail was being opened by unauthorized staff
without the inmate present, which is not legal. Along with emails such as the previous version
of this letter that mysteriously would not get sent out. Multiple issues with PSU, one leading to
a guy jumping off a top tier in an attempt to commit suicide, even though he asked for help for
weeks. Another incident with a guy using a shaver to repeatedly cut his arms and throat, which
could have been prevented.
The issue with HSU comes down to we are wards of the state, all our medical big or
small should be taken care of immediately and properly. But instead, what they do is try
everything not to actually treat you. Also, they charge a $7.50 co-pay to get treated. Which I
know doesn't sound like much but many of us get up to 80% of our money taken. So, if you
need anything, a lot of times your just sit out of luck.
Office hours for the so-called social workers are limited to 6hours per week for 200 plus
inmates. Granted they say you can knock anytime, but in my experience that never goes well.
This is prison, so obviously there is drugs, violence and even worse. But it could very
Easily be minimized-by-first-not putting-long-term-violent inmates with short-term-nonviolent
inmates with short term nonviolent inmates. That would be a start putting our safety in sight.
We get punished for drugs being here. Look at the situations at Waupun. The same thing
happens here, drugs come in through CO's. And sold back and forth through things like cash
app. It's not hard to see unless you just don't want to see it. Think about this, during Covid 19
there were no visits, no actual mail and yet still drugs, cellphones and overdoses constantly.
Well, how does that happen. Doesn't take a genius to figure out. We have one hell of a broken
system.
I'm not going to talk about the situation I wrote the warden about, and she did nothing
about. The only reason I'm not going to go into that at the moment is because it is still being
dealt with by an outside agency. Hopefully....
Rehabilitation should be priority here and it is not. Give people a fighting chance. I will
say the new way of classifying people, the IFCC is far better than Compass. Classifying us
approximately from the start to get us treatment and keep us sane is definitely an improvement.
Give us the skills we need and do not wait, get us treatment as soon as possible. Prevent repeat
offenders. Someone like me who wants treatment, who wants to be better. Help us do that. So,
we can-get-back to our wives and kids.---I--have no violence, no conduct reports-help us, help-me
get back to providing for my loved ones.
UPDATED
My previous version of this letter was read in public at St. Norbert's College in DePere,
WI on March 7th by Sara Williams from JOSHUA at a rally protesting the need for reform in the
DOC.
After fighting for the last 9 months to get reclassified, it finally worked. I am finally
getting the treatment I need and want. I am now at the Drug Abuse Correctional Center (DACC).
I cannot say anything bad about this facility. Other than there are so many empty group rooms
due to staff shortages, I am assuming. The DOC needs to remedy this as soon as possible. Get
peoople like me with CRIMELESS REVOCATIONS and that have never been to treatment before,
wither out of here to do treatment on the streets so we can also provide for our loved ones or
moved up or moved up for treatment before these people that have been through it 3, 4 and 5
times. This would not only help reduce the prison system faster like 3 years ago Tony Evers and
Kevin Carr said they would do. Yet they haven't done, not even a little. We are still 4,700
inmates above capacity.
I am not going to pretend to know how the DOC should remedy this problem, but there
is a way. I have one family member that worked at GBCI for over 30 years and another that
worked there for 3 years. Both are now involved in fighting against the DOC for change. I also
have family in the drug treatment field at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. —
Maybe the DOC needs to stop trying to find facilitators that will stay and start utilizing
the colleges in Wisconsin. Maybe do apprenticeship programs for students in this field in the
last years of college. Do a program or two and move on. Use the DOC as a steppingstone.
Instead of a long-term careen Since that doesn't seem to work. It would give students real life
experience and reduce the prison population faster. And help us continue our lives and move
Thank you for reading.
Joel Anthony Lee Phillips #492150
Drug Abuse Correctional Center
P.O. Box 189
Phoenix, MD 21131
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