Lauren Canario arrested in New London

[Dave Ridley]

 
I finally called the warden's office today and talked to a nice lady named Nina.  I told her who I was and that I was from NHfree.com, a pro liberty group headquarted in NH.   I said I was trying to find out if Lauren was shackled or being subjected to sensory deprevation. 

She didn't remember who Lauren was, she said there are 1400 people held there.  She said she would need a release form signed by lauren to give me that info.   I told her a little about what lauren had done and why they shouldn't be holding her.  She said "is she the one who's not talking?"  So they remember that.

She says it (york, I assume) is not the punishment place, more of a holding place.  I laughed at that because it sounds like punishment to me.   She said they don't make the decisions.   I said anyone at bergen-belsen could have said that.

I told her a little about the theory of bad bureacracy, the idea that each part of the bureaucracy is so separate from the others that it allows people to say "i'm just a floor sweeper" when in fact they are a person who sweeps the floor at a concentration camp or something.   She started to get it.

She said they might put her in shackles while moving her but probably not while in the cell.  She said they might put her in a special place to keep her safe.   I said the best way to keep her safe would be to let her go.   She said so you think we should just let people go?  I said in this case yes.

She said so you are a very powerful person  (tho i assume what she must have meant is I would have to be powerful to make that sort of thing happen).

But almost immediately after the call she apparently went and checked with lauren and asked her to sign the form; so she could give me info on lauren's condition.  lauren according to her refused.  Then she called me 20 minutes later to inform me of this by voice mail.

More details on this conversation later.

[Russell Kanning]

That is some good info. Sounds like she treated you like a real person.

[Dave Ridley]

I also told her Jim was having trouble getting to see her and that they stopped me at the gate when I tried to walk in

[Russell Kanning]

Yea .... trouble seeing her .... as in ..... noone has seen or heard from her.

[Lloyd Danforth]

It would be interesting where all the idiots running for the senate in CT stand on Eminent Domain.

[Kat Kanning]

I did approach IJ and they told me to shove off.

Are the Catholic Sisters of Mercy more radical than Catholic Worker groups?     I'll try and locate them.  Thanks.

[FrankChodorov]

I did approach IJ and they told me to shove off.

Are the Catholic Sisters of Mercy more radical than Catholic Worker groups?     I'll try and locate them.  Thanks.

there are 8 CSW houses in CT.

Catholic Sisters of Mercy are not one of them...

http://www.catholicworker.org/communities/commastate.cfm

[Russell Kanning]

It would be interesting where all the idiots running for the senate in CT stand on Eminent Domain.

I bet they are all against it. ....... but if necessary they will support it.

[John]

. . . tight US Senate race-- offer Joe Lieberman the chance to get Lauren out of jail---or hand it off to his opponent---Lieberman has the advantage of the power of incumbancy bearing pressure on his CT thugs.

If my memory is correct, Lieberman's wife is [or at least was at the "right" time] a huge lobbyist for the pharmaceutical industry.  Can we say Pfizer? I'll say that again (with caps):
IF MY MEMORY IS CORRECT, LIEBERMAN'S WIFE IS A HUGE LOBBYIST FOR THE PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY!  CAN WE SAY PFIZER?

I have always thought there is a real posibility that "the advantage of the power of incumbancy bearing pressure on his CT thugs" is somthing that was already done.

[Dave Ridley]

thanks for writing her, and contacting the liebermeisters, freedom

[mgd]

On 10/13/2006, just after 9AM EST, I called the York Correctional Institution [Information: (860) 691-6700; 201 West Main St., Niantic, CT 06357; http://www.ct.gov/doc/cwp/view.asp?a=1499&q=265454 ; http://perljam.net/google-satellite-maps/id/6931/United_States/Connecticut/Niantic/York_Correctional_Institution] to ask some questions geared towards discovering how to free Lauren.

My premise was, someone wanted Lauren in York, and there is a procedure to release every inmate - probably involving either getting the charges dropped, or satisfying the accuser(s).  Not knowing crap about this, I decided to ask some questions - so I called.

= DARRYL ON THE INFORMATION LINE =

I first spoke with Darryl Friedman, who was super helpful even though we were interrupted a few times as he helped to correct a power (electrical) problem.

He confirmed that Lauren Canario is currently being held at the York Correctional Institution.  I asked him who, in essence, asked for Lauren to be detained.  He told me "the judge", but he did not know who - he doesn't have those records.  (But this community can probably find out, or already knows, who the judge was that ordered Lauren to be detained at York, and what his court order said, right?)

Darryl punched up Lauren's inmate record and said Lauren was first seen by a nurse, then a social worker, then a psychiatrist.  He said her physical health is being seen to, and that their facility has 4 nurses and 2 psychiatrists.

He said today, Lauren "got recreation", which means she was allowed to walk around inside the facility for an amount of time, but not outside (psych ward inmates don't get to go outside).  He says he doesn't know how often she gets recreation - his records do not show her schedule - but that inmates get one phone call, if they choose to make one, every time they get recreation.

Darryl also said every inmate has the option to write out a Visitors List, and that her counselor advises her of that right and provides the form, but cannot pressure her to make that list.  Until Lauren puts your name on a list, and you pass a criminal background check, you are not allowed to visit her.  Every visitor to York has to first pass a criminal background check.

I then asked Darryl how the chain of inmate release events works - how does someone get released?  Darryl responded:

1) Their Records Department checks to see why she continues to be detained.  It could be because a bail or bond was imposed and needs to be paid, for example.  If it is because there is a court order (a.k.a. "minimus") to not release her, then that court order would have to either be overturned or its conditions for release met.

2) If there is a bond set, a person wishing to free Lauren can contact a Bail Bondsman (from the yellow pages if you like; York also has a big book of Bail Bondsmen).  The Bail Bondsman negotiates a fee with you (typically 7% to 10% of the bond amount).  He will fill out the necessary paperwork, and York (or some agency in Connecticut) will then perform a criminal background check on Lauren to see if she has any outstanding warrants in Connecticut.  If she does, then York has to release her to whatever police department has the outstanding warrant, *if* that police department wants her.  (It is not clear to me exactly when you pay the bondsman his fee - before or after the background check - but the bondsman would know.)

3) If Lauren has no outstanding warrants, the Bail Bondsman will then pay the bond, and Lauren will be released into your custody: "you" could be the payer of the bondsman's fee, a family member, or a friend - anyone willing to take responsibility for Lauren.  At the time of release, Lauren has to agree to make scheduled court appearances.

4) After her release, if Lauren were to miss a scheduled court appearance, a warrant would be issued for her arrest.  That would basically replay the entire incarceration process over again and reset everything to square one.  And any money you paid would not be refunded.  However, if Lauren makes all her appearances, you would get some/all of your money back (depending on the deal you struck with the Bail Bondsman).

Darryl then offered to connect me to York's Records Department, so I could find out why Lauren is being detained.  I thanked Darryl and accepted his offer, and he transferred me.

= DEB IN THE RECORDS DEPARTMENT =

I spoke with Deb in York's Records Department, and she also was super helpful.

Deb told me Lauren Canario's inmate number is 334457, there is a $20,000 bond set, and that appears to be the only thing keeping Lauren at York.  To free Lauren, either you could pay the bond in full, or, hire a Bail Bondsman.

I told her Darryl had outlined the whole process for me.  Deb gave me the tip that a Bail Bondsman will typically quote 10% to begin with, but many can be negotiated down to 7% or better just by haggling a little.

Deb also picked up on my concern for Lauren's health, and she offered to transfer me to Counselor Hage, who has personal contact with Lauren.  I thanked her and agreed to be transferred.  She gave me Counselor Hage's number [(860) 691-6962] in case we got disconnected during the transfer.

= COUNSELOR HAGE =

Deb connected me to Counselor Hage, who cautioned me that he could only share public information with me.

I asked him if, hypothetically, Lauren was mentally incompetent to the effect that she could not make her own Visitors List, could her husband demand to visit her.  He told me Lauren can make clear decisions.  She can pick and choose who to put on her Visitors List.  If she does not put anyone on her list, no one can see her.  A Counselor cannot pressure her to put anyone on her list, because she may have her reasons for not wanting to see a family member, for example.

I asked Counselor Hage if he could tell me if Lauren's Visitors List is blank.  He said he could not tell me, because that would violate Lauren's privacy.

He did say, however, that Lauren can receive and read letters.  I asked him if he knew whether she has been reading letters, or does she throw them away?  He said he does not spend constant time with her, so he does not know if she had received or read any letters.  I asked him if he knew how often inmates receive letters (once a week, once a day, FIFO?).  He said he did not know.  He says York does process a lot of mail every day.

Counselor Hage stated he could answer one more question, but he is very busy and could not spend too much more time on the phone with me.  I told him I couldn't think of any more questions, so I thanked him for his time and we hung up.

= CONCLUSIONS I DRAW, COMMENTS, POSSIBLE NEXT STEPS, WHAT DOES JIM SAY? =

The folks I spoke with were helpful.  Darryl and Deb were very friendly, and Counselor Hage sounded a little exasperated - I think he's been answering a lot of questions about Lauren lately, and it's been taking up a lot of his time.  (Darryl had apparently spoken with Amnesty International recently about Lauren - he asked me if I was with AI.  For the record, I'm not.  I am just a friend of a friend of Lauren's husband.)  I sense Counselor Hage is a good guy who has Lauren's best interests at heart.  He struck me as sincere.  I recommend we NOT piss this guy off, for the same reasons you don't piss off waitstaff before they bring you dinner

I spent 30 minutes on the phone.  In my opinion, it was time well spent.  I think I got a pretty good idea of what it would take to release Lauren.

Since I'm no expert on anything like this, and I believe Lauren's family is in the best position to know what she would want and what would be best, I offer the following *possible* next steps.  Subject to Jim's approval:

A) Try to free Lauren: by either 1) having a judge overturn or rescind the court order that ordered her into the facility and set the $20,000 bond; or, 2) using the Bail Bondsman method to partially pay the bond [probably only a good idea if you're 100% certain Lauren's got no outstanding warrants in CT]; 3) paying the entire $20,000 bond - maybe a charity could be set up, with a website with a PayPal link.

I don't know what would happen after Lauren gets freed.  I mean, would there be a court trial?  Accusers and the accused?  I dunno.  I guess it depends what the court order says.  I think a lawyer would come in handy here, to find out what happened and to predict what's going to happen.

B) Let Lauren remain incarcerated, in the hopes of attracting more attention to the problem of eminent domain and motivating more people to act.

I don't know what happens in this case either.  Can Lauren simply "run out the clock" by remaining in York?  If she is there long enough, do the charges (what are they - what does the court order say?) simply get dropped, and she gets released?  If enough people protest at York, would the governor pardon her, would her accuser(s) drop all charges?  Again, a lawyer would be helpful here.

C) Write postcards or letters to Lauren and provide moral support, and/or ask her to add you to her Visitors List, and/or give her your phone number, and/or provide her news from the outside world, and/or...?

I don't know Lauren personally, and I'm not sure what exactly she wants to happen next, so I have no idea if she wants postcards or letters, and if she does, what kind of content she would appreciate.

D) Send Lauren a stationery kit (paper and envelopes), a pen, and some stamps.  Maybe she doesn't have the right to send letters unless she provides the materials - I dunno, I didn't think to ask.

I'd like to read the family's response to this post.  I think it would be better to get direction from the family, before we individuals go too far down separate paths, drift further and further from what Lauren wants, and harass the people of York that actually want to help her.

Jim?  I hope this info helps you decide what path(s) to take to achieve Lauren's immediate and long-term goals, whatever they are.  Eminent domain is a scary thing.  If you could provide us some guidance, we could focus like a laser beam and really help.

(On a related note: what if the corp. who took over that neighborhood had offered each of the 15 "holdout" families a brand-new, 2000 sq. ft. house, within two miles of their original home site, and paid all their temporary housing expenses while constructing the new homes?  I mean, if that economic development corporation wanted to truly help the citizens of New London, why not just give the holdouts a free house, and let them pay the higher taxes the city wanted, but not saddle them with a mortgage?  I wonder how many homeowners would have gone for that.  I mean, if a corp. says they want to "help the people", maybe they could have helped these specific people in this very direct way.)

Best wishes, tell us what's next,

+ Melanie
(one of Dan's many cousins)

[Kat Kanning]

Wow Melanie, thank you for doing all that and giving us the info.

I think with regard to the stationary - they would give Russell paper and pencil when he was imprisoned, but he basically had to ask for them.  Since she's not talking, she doesn't get them.  That's my guess.  They said she could send two letters per week on their expense if she didn't have any money in her account.  Also they said we couldn't send things to her like books.

We'll see Jim tomorrow and I'll make sure he sees your post.  I'm not sure how often he reads this.

We're visiting the jail on Sunday at 11 am - a rally for Lauren.  We don't expect to be let in to see her, but maybe Jim should try before we have the rally.  Also, Russell was going to try to interview her for the Keene Free Press.

[Jim Johnson]

Let Lauren remain incarcerated, she is attracting more attention to the problem of eminent domain and motivating more people to act.

Please write postcards or letters to Lauren and provide her with moral support.

And just like Melanie, ask questions of anyone who has anything to do with Lauren's arrest and incarceration.

Thank you Melanie, you took a big chunk out of the governmental stone wall.

Jim

[Russell Kanning]

I don't think Lauren would want us to pay the government to bail her out.
Lauren might be having trouble contacting us without giving money to the system or having to ask for things.
It is good to hear that they know very well that Lauren can make decisions and is in her right mind.

[error]

I can send in a bunch of envelopes and stamps, if that would do any good.