Special Report: Inside look at violence and conditions at Donaldson Correctional Facility

The content and footage in this CBS 42 Special Report may be disturbing to some readers

BESSEMER, Ala. ( WIAT ) — So far this year, nearly two dozen people have died at Donaldson Correctional Facility — raising the question: What’s going on inside the prison? Evening Anchor Carly Laing examines the prison’s rising number of deaths in this CBS 42 Special Report.

Over the last several months, CBS 42 has interviewed families about the conditions and treatment of inmates at Donaldson. Many families of incarcerated people are becoming concerned and scared for their loved one’s lives.

“We had no idea at the time that it was going to turn into a death sentence at the hands of the ADOC,” In the words of the father of an inmate who died inside an Alabama Prison.

Many families believe Alabama prisons are in a state of crisis.

“They are murderers. They’re protecting murderers, they’re protecting drug dealers, they are protecting extortionists,” A mother said during a public meeting at the state capitol.

Families said their concerns about loved ones being killed inside prisons are falling on deaf ears.

“When people commit a crime, they lose their freedom. They don’t lose their humanity, they don’t lose their right as a human being.” Another mother said in tears as she addressed the committee.

It’s not just pleas from families on the outside, it’s a cry for help from the inside. CBS 42 obtained this video from inside Donaldson. It shows one inmate stabbing another.

Families said incidents like this are not uncommon in Alabama prisons, specifically at Donaldson Correctional Facility. It’s a level 5 maximum security prison meant for incarcerating the “most violent and highest classified offenders.”

“When I found out he was at Donaldson, I was very concerned. The reputation of that prison is horrible since I’ve known about it, which has been probably 20 years, and it has not gotten better,” Carla Tennely said.

Tennely’s son Jerry Whitten spent about four years at the prison. He was arrested on drug charges as a repeat offender and was sentenced to life without parole, landing him at Donaldson.

“If you read the papers, you know they have people murdered there regularly,” Tennely said.

Tennely’s son had several health conditions when he was sentenced including Parkinson’s, blindness and balance issues. She said after being beaten several times, he is now confined to a wheelchair. She said over the years, his health has significantly declined.

“They are not able to keep him safe in that environment,” she said. “They had him in the general population and he was beat, I’m told, unrecognizable by other inmates over a food box.”

Eddie Burkhalter is a researcher at Alabama Appleseed , a non-profit, prison reform advocacy group.

“You have prisons where officers are just not in the dorms. If you have dorms where there are no officers present, it’s a recipe for disaster.”

Burkhalter said inmates are literally fighting for their lives.

“Donaldson is going through a severe crisis. They’re in a constant state of crisis and they are only getting worse,” Burkhalter said.

He said Alabama prisons, specifically Donaldson, are seeing an uptick in deaths.

“We’ve seen a rash of deaths there, lots of attacks, it’s clear that ADOC does not have that prison under control. I haven’t seen anything to make me believe that it’s going to get any better anytime soon,” Burkhalter said.

As of Oct. 2024, 23 people have died at Donaldson. That’s compared to the 28 deaths reported last year, which was a record high for the facility.

In 2019, the Department of Justice released a 58-page report detailing its findings from a 2017 investigation into Alabama prisons. The DOJ released a second report in 2020. Those reports state that ADOC correctional officers routinely fail to provide safe conditions, stating “severe” overcrowding and understaffing as contributing factors.

“Alabama Department of Corrections was ordered by a judge to hire 2,000 additional officers. It’s been seven years and there’s been no real, subsistent change,” Burkhalter said. “Folks inside prisons will tell you that the officers don’t operate those prisons. They’re controlled by the people who live there.”

CBS 42 reached out to the Department of Corrections for comment. They declined a sit-down interview with Commissioner John Hamm but our team was invited to attend a correctional officer graduation in Selma and were told we could ask Hamm questions there.

“Overcrowding and staffing issues and violence have been a concern in Alabama prisons,” Carly Laing asked Hamm. “Do you feel the state of prisons, specifically Donaldson is in a state of crisis because of that?”

“No I don’t,” Hamm replied. “As you see today we graduated 55 correctional officers that are going throughout the state where a lot of them are going to Donaldson. So, we’re actually seeing an uptick in our recruiting and hiring. So we feel good about the trajectory we’re going on for hiring and recruiting officers.”

However, families of people incarcerated at Donaldson feel little has been done to correct the violence their loved ones face. One of the findings of the DOJ report states that ADOC routinely fails to protect inmates from prisoner-on-prisoner violence and sexual abuse.

“There’s a lot of gang violence, there’s actually a gang war going on right now,” Latoshia Williams said.

Williams’ son was incarcerated at Donaldson earlier this year. She said she’s experienced extortion from inside the prison, as evidenced by a phone call she had with her son — pleading for her to send money

“I would prevent rape if I could. I just don’t have the money they are asking for,” Williams told her son during the call.

“They said they gone rape me mom. They said they actually gone rape me,” he replied.

“I’ve lost my business and my home. Gone through my grandmother’s and dad’s retirement just trying to pay the extortion,” Williams said.

“They don’t feel their loved ones are protected from sexual violence, physical violence. Many of these families are extorted for thousands of dollars to try and keep their loved ones safe. They feel that there is nowhere to turn,” Burkhalter said.

Williams said her son is almost unrecognizable.

“He’s been stabbed over 60 times. His nose broken, his teeth knocked out, his fingers severed, his ear severed,” she recalled. “There’s been a lot of incidents.”

Those incidents are documented in videos Alabama Appleseed shared with CBS 42 of inmates in dangerous situations.

Although ADOC invited CBS 42 to that graduation to interview Commissioner Hamm about the conditions at Donaldson, he refused to answer our questions about the videos.

“We’ve obtained a video showing some inmate-on-inmate violence, would you mind commenting on that?” Laing asked.

“Ok, no. I’m not going to comment. It’s about graduation today,” Hamm said. “So those questions can be some other time […] Like I said, it’s positive. We’re not going to keep dragging up, we know we have violence but, um, it’s about the graduation.”

It was a packed crowd at the state capitol for this year’s Joint Prison Oversight Committee meeting in July. Family after family detailed heartbreaking stories about the treatment of inmates and the conditions of Alabama prisons.

Representative Chris England is on the Joint Prison Oversight Committee. He’s been working to try to address these issues in the legislature.

“[The conditions are] unconstitutionally inhumane. They need to be closed 100% full on crisis mode,” Rep. England said.

Rep. England said during the 2024 legislative session, a bill was passed to create a liaison for families of incarcerated people but he said more needs to be done.

“It is heartening to see that we passed legislation last session that creates a liaison. But we got so much more to do. The parole system is broken, the criminal justice system itself is fundamentally broken,” England said.

The Joint Prison Oversight Committee was created to give families a chance to voice their concerns directly to lawmakers. It’s a bi-partisan group that meets four times a year to discuss solutions.

Gov. Kay Ivey, Attorney General Steve Marshall and ADOC Commissioner John Hamm also serve on the committee. None of them showed up for the meeting in July. Hamm told CBS 42 that he did not attend the meeting because he had surgery.

“I can tell you since I’ve been here the only thing that’s changed is that it’s gotten worse. So when you’re turning up the heat on the legislature you make sure that you let the executive branch know that we’re not stupid. We know that you’re responsible for this and you can do more,” England said.

The next meeting is set for Oct. 23. England said he plans to sponsor several bills this upcoming session in hopes of making more progress.

After our interview at the graduation, CBS 42 sent additional questions to Commissioner Hamm about contraband, drugs and other concerning activities happening inside prisons. Here are his responses via email:

“There are many factors that affect inmate violence, but these two remain at the top.

Adequate staffing is a challenge faced by the entire country right now and ADOC is no exception. I have made Recruiting and Retention a priority at ADOC, and those efforts are starting to pay off. As you witnessed, 55 correctional officers recently graduated and went directly to work in the state’s facilities. The next class, starting the end of this month, is expected to be much larger. We are confident these numbers will continue to head in the right direction given the amount of effort put forth by the ADOC, Governor Kay Ivey, the Alabama Legislature, and the State Personnel Department.

ADOC is also proud to partner with the Alabama Community College System (ACCS) to launch ACTIVATE, a no-cost college and career readiness program designed to reduce barriers for those seeking a career as correctional officers. The inaugural class of ACTIVATE recently graduated 23 students, who are now eligible to join the ADOC Corrections Academy in September 2024. Based on the success of this program, ADOC plans to expand ACTIVATE to additional ACCS locations, further closing the gap in security staffing shortages.

Another huge factor is the ongoing battle to control the flow of illegal contraband, which is big business in every prison in the country. The transactions, indebtedness, and ultimate drug abuse results in escalated violence among inmates. However, organized criminal activity relies on a constant supply chain. With ADOC continuously disrupting that supply chain, criminal enterprises are disrupted causing competition with other criminal enterprises, resulting in escalated inmate violence.

The ADOC Law Enforcement Services Division, with the assistance of outside agencies, has ramped up its efforts to stem the flow of contraband in and out of the state facilities. Commissioner Hamm said, “The ADOC is committed to enforcing its zero-tolerance policy on contraband, even when it comes to policing our own.”

In June, four people — including inmate DeAndre Roney — died inside Donaldson over three days.

The Jefferson County Coroner ruled Roney’s death a homicide. Autopsy reports state he died from a stab wound to the head. According to Alabama Appleseed, Roney was 150 days away from completing his 20-year sentence. In November, he would have celebrated his 40th birthday as a free man.

The Alabama Department of Corrections sent CBS 42 this statement about Roney’s death.

“On Saturday, June 8, 2024, an inmate-on-inmate assault was reported at Donaldson Correctional Facility. Inmate Deandre Roney was transported to the Health Care Unit with life-threatening injuries. He was airlifted to the UAB Trauma Center, where he was listed in critical condition.

On Sunday, June 9, 2024, inmate Roney succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased by the attending physician. The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office conducted an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

The ADOC Law Enforcement Services Division (LESD) is investigating the case as a homicide based on the autopsy results. A suspect has been identified but no further information is available given that the investigation is still open.

Roney, 39 years old, was serving a 20-year sentence for Robbery I out of Jefferson County.”

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