The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.

Prison Abuse

Sun, 01/24/2010 - 11:58

This is a story of a staggering atrocity that a woman seeking help, wrote to me at my website.

Here is her story:

"My 24 year old son began having grand mal seizures about nine years ago. Until 5 and a half years ago they were very far apart, and his doctor's recommended not to medicate him, explaining that the seizures may disappear completely as he ages as mysteriously as they began.

Then something horrible happened. He was charged with a crime he did not commit (which although his attorney compiled evidence clearing him, he was frightened into taking a plea bargain for 10 years in prison the night before he was to enter the not guilty plea).

The problem with his epilepsy was that on the actual night of his arrest, the officers interrogating him (who did not like his answers because they did not fit their theory of the crime) forced him to stand up for 12 hours straight without food or water in hopes of 'cracking' him.

The result of this was that he fell into a grand mal seizure in which he did not breathe for 10 minutes, and received a concussion. Instead of getting medical help, he was tossed in a cell and left to recover on his own.

This was to change the severity and frequency of his seizures permanantly. It is also probably related to the prosecutor's ability to maniputate him into a plea bargain months later which would never have stood if the case had been heard by a judge or jury.

My son has already served over half of his sentence, and has been brought back to life dozens of times by prison EMTs. He has been on lethal doses of Tegretol, Dilantin, and now Dilantin and Lamictal (300 mg & 400 mg per day each, respectively). I never know if my phone conversations with him will be my last.

My question is this, when the current dosage levels of these drugs quit working, and they will, is there any other medication being tested now that would be worth the risks, and have they found any effective substances for epileptics that do not cause Steven's-Johnson Syndrome?

Right now my son's seizures come in 3's, and always deprive him of oxygen and often cause injuries that in themselves are life threatening. Can you give me info on where I can find out about cutting-edge research on S-J syndrome and medications, including human studies being conducted? Is there anything known that might help keep him from getting Steven's-Johnson?"

I gave her several links, a list of anti epilepsy drugs (anti-epileptic drugs) with their possible side-effects: http://www.webmd.com/epilepsy/medica...treat-seizures

I also included a site that helps give information for prisoners who suffer from epilepsy:
http://www.epilepsy.org.uk/sites/epi..._prisoners.pdf

And another website with a table of epilepsy drugs, brand names, average dose, treatment and possible side effects: http://www.epilepsysociety.org.uk/Ab...gsusedinadults

I also urged her to call her local State Representative and Congressman. Do you think she has any other recourse?

 

phylisfeinerjohnson

www.epilepsytalk.com 

Comments

Re: Prison Abuse

Submitted by 3Hours2Live on Wed, 2010-01-27 - 03:09
Hi jonah, I'm sorry that you find everything as a bizarre subject in relation to epilepsy, but epilepsy doesn't show purposeful preference itself across the human population and human practices. I live in the USA and I have dealt with plenty of Federal agencies and courts over the issues involving epilepsy. The State of California became involved with the administration of Medicaid and the State Vocational Rehabilitation Department. Very bizarre and inhuman things occur in this great country. Elsewhere, this country calls such things crimes against humanity. People with epilepsy experience these atrocities at a much higher frequency because they are regarded as having something "wrong" with them that results from levels of prejudice over epilepsy. In most states, having a seizure is technically illegal, and while prosecutions are not many, they do happen. When prosecutions do happen, many states only allow the insanity defense, which strongly implies that the government itself regards epilepsy as a form of mental illness, in addition to the prejudiced public. If you have access to google, and know how to use a search engine, you should google "Sheriff Joe" and see if you can find any clues beyond already knowing everything, or having to have everything spelled-out in such extreme simplicity that infinity isn't long enough. I wish you were with me when I met the Ombudsman for the IRS. The Ombudsman was the one in the same person as the person who was the Special Investigator for Discrimination complaints under the Rehabilitation Act involving the hiring practices of the IRS. Before the Investigator could start the investigation, both myself and the Ombudsman had to me present. Since the Investigator and Ombudsman was the same person, a person who could only perform the official duties of her asignment when she was officially functioning as that person, the ternary meeting was impossible. Therefore, I had to get a federal order just to "exhaust administrative remedies" past the "Gestapo-boot-in-the face" level. I did get advance warning from an IRS Revenue Officer that I was dealing with the American Gestapo, so I should have expected as much. This might be difficult to explain to any person who has to call information to get the number for 911. If the book "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller is too difficult, maybe you can watch the movie "Catch-22." The ICE part is reference to many legal cases in newspapers over the years about peoply being deported, despite their being citizens, because they're neurologically impaired enough to be unable to immediately prove their citizenship. And yes, many epileptic people in the USA are imprisoned, and their improper epileptic behavior around seizures result in additional punishments, including severe aversive conditioning so the prisoner will "choose" not to have improper seizures, which has often resulted in death. One case in Arizona involved an epileptic who was punished by being falsely labeled a child molester and then "inadvertently" left alone with known violent prisoners while the sheriff conveniently was looking the other way, but forgot his own video camera was still operating. The New York Times also has plenty of articles about prisoners with health problems similar to, and including epilepsy, that have been left to die despite repeated warnings. Many articles about epileptics being shipped to foreign countries because they're too expensive for the hospitals' budgets have also been reported. Then, one Federal Judge threw my legal case out because a seizure interrupted my speech in responding to his questions. And the case was about required accommodations for people with epilepsy!!! Of course he could always blame it on medication levels. Epileptics are convenient to take the blame for everything that goes wrong, besides none of them can remember anything anyways is a popular prejudice, so why not blame them instead of taking your own universal medicine??? Tadzio

Re: Prison Abuse

Submitted by zealot on Sat, 2010-10-23 - 10:01

Jonah,

If you do not understand, perhaps you should ask before you criticise.

Baruch Hashem and I'm writing on Shabbos.  I've been having a lot of seizures so I'm hypergraphic and I am isolated and alone and the internet is a poor substitute for human companionship, but it's all I've got.

Hoshia na.

Devorah Zealot Soodak http://psychout.typepad.com/ the zealot needs help!

Jonah,

If you do not understand, perhaps you should ask before you criticise.

Baruch Hashem and I'm writing on Shabbos.  I've been having a lot of seizures so I'm hypergraphic and I am isolated and alone and the internet is a poor substitute for human companionship, but it's all I've got.

Hoshia na.

Devorah Zealot Soodak http://psychout.typepad.com/ the zealot needs help!

Re: Prison Abuse

Submitted by 3Hours2Live on Thu, 2010-01-28 - 06:27
Hi Phylis, Has anyone elsewhere found any other recourse with these horrendous problems? Tadzio

Sign Up for Emails

Stay up to date with the latest epilepsy news, stories from the community, and more.