Anthony Gay’s s solary nfement led to self-mutilatn. Now a proposed law to lim prisoner isolatn Illois is named his honor.

Contents:

• ANTHONY GAY’S S SOLARY NFEMENT LED TO SELF-MUTILATN. NOW A PROPOSED LAW TO LIM PRISONER ISOLATN ILLOIS IS NAMED HIS HONOR.
• THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985
• KEV SPACEY DEFENDS COMG OUT AS GAY AFTER BEG ACCED OF SEXUAL MISNDUCT: ‘I WAS UNR A LOT OF PRSURE’

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

Both pani are alg wh fallout om those mpaigns, which have clud hostile and homophobic cricisms and lls om LGBTQ+ activists not to ve to the, who was booed by Toronto fans his two home appearanc sce the apology, spoke to a group of media before Thursday’s w over Hoton, sayg he stood by his “personal beliefs. 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.

Anthony Gay be emotnal while speakg March 10, 2020, about his years solary nfement. ”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.

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

Gay expected to serve as ltle as 3½ years.

Instead, a fight wh a fellow mate led to Gay’s first stt segregatn, phg him to a downward spiral that rulted 22 years solary nfement. Shortly after the isolatn started, Gay began self-mutilatg and attemptg for 23 hours a day and starved for human ntact, Gay took extreme steps to get attentn.

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. Gay cut himself repeatedly durg his s solary nfement. (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.

KEV SPACEY DEFENDS COMG OUT AS GAY AFTER BEG ACCED OF SEXUAL MISNDUCT: ‘I WAS UNR A LOT OF PRSURE’

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. If the state had followed through wh s plans, Gay would have spent the rt of his life alone si a cell the size of a parkg space.

”On his darkt days, Gay clung to the ia that he would fd a way to end IDOC’s isolatn polici.