Horrors at the Dade Correctional Institute

Riveting and horrifying piece by Eyal Press at The New Yorker about the culture of silence, complicity, and intimidation and the real-world horrors of so-called mental care at the Dade Correctional Institute in Florida.

Here's a sample:

"[A] couple of guards had indeed escorted Rainey to the shower at about eight the previous night. But he hadn’t made it back to his cell. He had collapsed while the water was running. At 10:07 P.M., he was pronounced dead[...]"

"[The] nurses said that Rainey had been locked in a stall whose water supply was delivered through a hose controlled by the guards. The water was a hundred and eighty degrees, hot enough to brew a cup of tea[.]"

As someone who finds the thought of being institutionalized terrifying, I couldn't stop reading this. If you've ever thought it sad the way America treats its mentally ill, read this and you'll realize daily life for patients can go to an even darker place.