After 22 Years Of 'Psychologil Torture' In Solary Confement, Anthony Gay Fights For State Law Rtrictg Its Use - CBS Chigo

Contents:

• ANTHONY GAY’S S SOLARY NFEMENT LED TO SELF-MUTILATN. NOW A PROPOSED LAW TO LIM PRISONER ISOLATN ILLOIS IS NAMED HIS HONOR.
• AFTER 22 YEARS OF 'PSYCHOLOGIL TORTURE' IN SOLARY CONFEMENT, ANTHONY GAY FIGHTS FOR STATE LAW RTRICTG ITS USE
• ANTHONY GAY APPEALS FOR HELP OM FERAL PRISON
• SUPPORTERS RALLY BEHD ANTHONY GAY AT FERAL URTHOE PEORIA
• STATE DEPARTMENT'S 1ST OPENLY GAY SPOKPERSON SENDS SIGNAL TO THE WORLD, ADVOT SAY
• JTICE FOR ANTHONY GAY
• 22 YEARS IN SOLARY CONFEMENT: LOOKG AT THE LIFE OF FORMER INMATE ANTHONY GAY
• ANTHONY GAY AWAS FED SENTENCG WHILE PLANNG ANTI-SOLARY NFEMENT EVENT

ANTHONY GAY’S S SOLARY NFEMENT LED TO SELF-MUTILATN. NOW A PROPOSED LAW TO LIM PRISONER ISOLATN ILLOIS IS NAMED HIS HONOR.

Spurred by a Chigo Tribune vtigatn volvg a man who spent two s isolatn after beg nvicted of stealg a hat and a sgle dollar bill, a proposed state law would lim how long an Illois prisoner n stay solary Anthony Gay Isolated Confement Rtrictn Act would bar the Illois Department of Correctns om placg an mate isolatn for more than 10 days a six-month perd.

”The bill is named for Anthony Gay, a Rock Island native who entered prison 1994 as a young man, nvicted of robbery after brawlg wh another teen who told police that Gay took his hat and stole $1.

Once, he packed a fan motor si a gapg leg wound; another time he cut open his scrotum and serted a are visible on Anthony Gay's arm while he worships at the Church of Peace Rock Island 2018. (Brian Cassella / Chigo Tribune)As his md began to terrate, Gay beme antagonistic toward his guards and ocsnally threw ure or fec at them, unlawful acts of fiance that stretched his origal sentence to more than two s behd Livgston County, where Pontiac Correctnal Center is suated, the state’s attorney’s office lodged a seri of 21 dictments agast Gay between 2000 and 2004 for the many tim he threw his own bodily fluids at guards.

AFTER 22 YEARS OF 'PSYCHOLOGIL TORTURE' IN SOLARY CONFEMENT, ANTHONY GAY FIGHTS FOR STATE LAW RTRICTG ITS USE

The Illois Department of Correctns would later intify Gay urt filgs as one of a few dozen mat whose mental illns were so acute and dangero that they required full patient re. But a Tribune vtigatn found his psychiatric treatment often nsisted of a therapist shoutg qutns to him through a he reunted how his mental health erod isolatn, the normally stoic Gay broke down tears Tuday durg a news nference promotg the proposed legislatn.

While Illois has signifintly rced the number of days juvenile offenrs spend isolatn and no longer segregatn as a punishment for young people as part of a nsent cree between the partment and the Amerin Civil Liberti Unn of Illois, those polici do not extend to the adult has phed unsuccsfully for solary nfement reforms for nearly four years, but he believ the bill has s strongt chanc of passg durg the current legislative ssn given Gay’s volvement. Anthony Gay said he was “tortured for s” by his isolatn for up to 24 hours a day a ld, ty cell he likened to a dungeon, and was nied accs to necsary mental health efforts sce his 2018 release to outlaw the procre as a punive measure is reflected a bill that bears his name now makg s way through the Illois legislature.

”The Anthony Gay Isolated Confement Rtrictn Act would lim such extreme nfement for any dividual to no more than 10 nsecutive days any 180-day perd, and pel the Illois partment of rrectns to produce quarterly reports showg the e of the practice.

ANTHONY GAY APPEALS FOR HELP OM FERAL PRISON

"It wasn't somethg that I wanted to do, but beme a survival mechanism for me, " Gay said, "bee psychologilly, I uldn't stand – so the physil pa would alleviate the psychologil pa. It beme a vic cycle – until 2018, when Gay got out and began fightg for a law pendg Sprgfield that would lim a prisoner's time solary to 10 days every six months.

Frank Chapman of the Chigo Alliance Agast Racist and Polil Reprsn, who attend a pre-trial hearg for Gay on May 9 Peoria, said, “I’ve never heard of somebody reprentg themselv and gettg a hung jury a feral trial. Once aga behd bars he lls “prsive” for yet another crime he says he did not m, activist Anthony Gay is now a North Carola feral prison awag a mental health evaluatn before his September 20 sentencg. He was released om prison 2019 and had been engaged social jtice issu, such as promotg his Illois SB 3564 Anthony Gay Isolated Confement Rtrictn Act which passed the Hoe but is stuck the Senate.

He was found guilty on May 19, 2022, by an all-whe jury and was sent to the Peoria County Jail before Judge Jam Shadid who nied the motn to move Gay to electronic monorg. Now, on Tuday, the State Department's new openly gay spokperson will hold his first daily prs the voice of the Bin admistratn on the world stage, whose words will be analyzed foreign pals and provi directn for U.

SUPPORTERS RALLY BEHD ANTHONY GAY AT FERAL URTHOE PEORIA

Diplomats overseas, will be a gay man is unremarkable, which is self a remarkable also sends a potent msage to foreign LGBTQ activists, pecially those fightg untri where same-sex relatnships are still crimalized. "It's credibly important for queer people untri where homosexualy and queerns is a ath sentence, " said Innanoshe Richard Akon, a Nigerian LGBT rights activist and wrer.

"It really seems like forever ago, and the untry has changed so many ways and even large swaths of the world have changed, " said Michael Gut, a reer diplomat who beme the first openly gay ambassador nfirmed by the Senate, ls than three years after Hormel's appotment. Probably won't even know necsarily that someone that posn is gay bee our untry has e a long way regnizg that is one factor many how a person is ma up, " said Gut, who worked on the Bin transn.

STATE DEPARTMENT'S 1ST OPENLY GAY SPOKPERSON SENDS SIGNAL TO THE WORLD, ADVOT SAY

2018 after sufferg a homophobic attack his hometown central Nigeria, agreed, tellg ABC News, "Hopefully this will be the begng of a more humane and kr approach to LGBTQ people om all around the world who are sperate for refuge.

Members of the Chigo Alliance Agast Racist and Polil Reprsn led the group chantg, “Free, ee Anthony Gay” and “The people uned will never be feated” before enterg the urthoe for Anthony’s sentencg hearg.

JTICE FOR ANTHONY GAY

Durg this legislative battle 2020 Gay was arrted a ame-up by the Rock Island Police Department for posssn of a firearm and ammunn, which he was barred om bee of a felony on his rerd.

Anthony’s fense lawyer, Jennifer Soble, later noted that his five months at FCC-Butner, Gay spent 90 days on suici watch, engaged self-harm 20 tim, and unrwent 12 surgeri. At one pot, Gay was transferred to the medil si of the plex, FMC-Butner, where his treatment plan clud beg nied soap and boxers when he exhibed symptoms of his mental illns, and where he ntued to be placed on suici watch.

22 YEARS IN SOLARY CONFEMENT: LOOKG AT THE LIFE OF FORMER INMATE ANTHONY GAY

On the send day of the hearg, the prosecutn claimed that Gay’s mental illns should be taken as an “aggravatg factor” the sentencg, meang a reason to lengthen his sentence. The fense poted out that the majory of the charg were aggravated battery charg brought agast Anthony durg his rceratn, when Gay was equently punished for exhibg symptoms of his mental illns. But spe the judge that se agreeg to make Anthony’s sentence ncurrent, those charg are still clud the lculatn of Gay’s crimal history, which was the basis of the prosecutn’s arguments.

ANTHONY GAY AWAS FED SENTENCG WHILE PLANNG ANTI-SOLARY NFEMENT EVENT

She argued that Gay’s mental illns should be taken as a migatg and not an aggravatg factor, and that g his illns to jtify a lengthier sentence may be a vlatn of the Amerins wh Disabili act.

After a brief recs, Judge Jam Shadid returned to the bench, and opened his remarks sayg that Anthony’s mental illns is “both an aggravatg and a migatg factor, ” but that he agre wh the prosecutn that Gay is a danger to his muny.

WBEZ reporter Shannon Heffernan brgs the story of Anthony Gay, who was sentenced to seven years prison on a parole vlatn but end up wh 97 years add to his sentence.