Today, Cinco de Mayo, 2020, the Orange County Board of Supervisors have approved the $280 million contract to expand the James A Musick expansion project.
This unnecessary project, billed as a “mental health jail” intended to incarcerate the most vulnerable in our community, misappropriates needed resources at a terrible time, a time that makes obvious the need to prioritize de-centralized community-based care over harmful and woefully ineffective law-enforcement and jails. Jails should not be de facto mental healthcare facilities.
Please, email, call, tweet, share. Please do whatever you can to tell Orange County leadership that we want care, not cages. That no one can ever get well in a cell.
Here are resources to help you reach out. A sample email, sample tweets, addresses and contact information are all included in this document. Please, make yourself heard. Your voice matters. We all matter.
Join TJOC to discuss conditions in the OC jails, how covid is affecting people incarcerated, how Sheriff Barnes, DA Todd Spitzer, and OC officials are responding, and how we are responding.
Join us Thursday May 7th from 6-7:30pm for a virtual Community Briefing.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department has a history of negligence. Numerous unnecessary in-custody deaths, a scandalous disregard for the public, and a fear-mongering stranglehold over county politics expose a culture of violence and inhumane care. OCSD cannot be trusted with the lives and health of our community.
Opinion from Voice of OC by TJOC founding member Gianni Castellanos provides perspective on the danger #COVID19 poses for our community, a danger that could be avoided with OC Sheriff Don Barnes’ help.
El Sheriff tiene antecedentes de negligencia. Numerosas muertes innecesarias en custodia, un escandalosos desprecio por el público y un estrangulamiento temerario sobre la política del condado ponen de alto una cultura de violencia y cuidados inhumanos. No se puede confiar en la OCSD con la vida y la salud de nuestra comunidad.
La opinión de Voice of OC del miembro fundador de TJOC, Gianni Castellanos, proporciona una perspectiva sobre el peligro que #COVID19 representa para nuestra comunidad, un peligro que podría evitarse con la ayuda del Sheriff Don Barnes.
CAR ACTION to demand release and care for people under county custody.
Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes has the power to save lives and STOP the spread of COVID19 in our community. He must follow legal guidelines and heed the demands of health experts and community organizations to release incarcerated people NOW! If Sheriff Barnes acts, he may lose political power, but if he doesn’t, those in our community may lose their lives. People’s health is in danger. Their lives are at stake.
Join TJOC and community partners for a CAR ACTION! We will circle the Sheriff’s office and Central Jail Complex, including the Intake Release Center and both central jails, displaying bold signs demanding release, and making noise to attract the attention of officials and send a message to those inside that we are with them.
For those who are unable to join, please help us AMPLIFY by posting and sharing on social media and by engaging with the sheriff via phone and email!
The Sheriff received TJOC’s COVID-19 Advocacy letter to OCSD. He replied, stating an unwillingness to help further protect the safety and health of OC residents.
Please sign this petition and send a message that includes our advocacy letter to the OC Sheriff’s Department to tell them you support saving the lives of those in our community.
FOR THE PROTEST:
Decorate your car, hang or tape banners and signs, write on the windows. Make sure your message is visible, bold, and easy to read from a distance. Your voice matters!
To prevent arrests and impounded cars, we will NOT be a blockade. Drive slowly, headlights on. Keep your distance from cars in front of you, mindful to avoid collisions.
11am – Arrive and Line up at Ace Janitorial (1055 W. 1st Street) 11:45am – Start protest 12:30pm – Conclude protest and leave the area
ROUTE: <Information removed after action>
We will be in digital contact throughout the event.
CONTACT INFORMATION: Video call for protest updates, news, music will be live: <Information removed after action>
COVID-19 SAFETY DIRECTIONS:
Only carpool with people you already live with to comply with COVID19 safety protocols. Wear a mask or bandana. It is also suggested to wear glasses or eye protection. If you have access to it, bring hand sanitizer and disinfectant. Use regularly after touching different surfaces.
Disposable gloves can also help, but they may cause cross-contamination. If you wear gloves, be sure to remove them and then sanitize your hands before touching your face or food.
Please stay in your car, and maintain at least 6 feet of social distancing at all times. Please don’t come on foot, bicycle, or skateboard. Motorcycles are acceptable, but not recommended.
LEGAL SAFETY INFORMATION:
This action poses a risk to participants. The nature of this action demonstrates the very real fear of novel coronavirus infection, especially for those experiencing incarceration. There is a real risk of interaction with law enforcement and arrest. We wish to do everything we can to mitigate this risk, but feel it necessary to be as transparent as possible in this dangerous time.
You can find information regarding Knowing your Rights and Safety instructionshere. We suggest printing this information for yourselves, and as something to show officers, if necessary.
Please don’t talk to law enforcement if possible. We will have a team designated for law enforcement interaction on site. Please use the digital contact information provided to request help, if necessary.
Make sure you have a licensed driver, current registration, and proof of insurance for the driver with you.
We will be complying with all traffic laws, including yielding to pedestrians, signaling all turns, and stopping fully at red lights (even if it separates cars from the group). Please observe all posted signage.
Pay attention to what is happening around you. Please avoid collisions by maintaining enough distance between you and the car in front of you.
Drive with your low-beam headlights/daytime running lights on. Drive at a slow but steady speed (5-10 miles an hour), and stay in line.
Horns and emergency flashers are great ways to draw attention to the cause, and to send a message to those inside that we are advocating for them. Horns are protected by free speech, however, horns and flashers draw the attention of law enforcement and we cannot openly recommend their usage. Please do what you feel is most comfortable for you.
During the action, IF YOU HAVE A PASSENGER, post photos and videos
Please Tag or DM us via Twitter (@xformjusticeoc), Instagram (@transformingjusticeoc), or Facebook (@transformingjusticeoc)
Use and look for Hashtags:
#LETTHEMGO
#CLEMENCYNOW
#CARENOTCAGES
#CANTGETWELLINACELL
#NOMOREJAILDEATHS
#FREETHEMNOW
County Officials to Tweet At: @OCSheriffBarnes @OCSheriff
OC Sheriff Don Barnes has the power to save lives and stop the spread of #COVID19. Take the time to sign this petition and letter to the sheriff. This form will send an email DIRECTLY to the sheriff supporting your commitment to the health and safety of our entire community.
Send a message telling OC Sheriff Don Barnes to release people from jail NOW! There have already been too many deaths inside, even before #COVID19.
Jail is no place to receive health care. Going to jail shouldn’t be a death sentence.
Please sign this petition to keep our incarcerated neighbors and Orange County community safe and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in OC jails.
The number of infected people is growing quickly, and five more detained people have already tested positive since this petition was drafted. In total, ten people have tested positive in Orange County’s jails and two have died since the pandemic was declared. The Central Jails in Santa Ana are on full quarantine, with incarcerated individuals essentially confined to their cells.
