The Fall Out of Proposition 9 Within the Prison System
Considering the Case of Hugo Pinell
By Charlie Hinton
May 30,2009

Hugo Pinell and his late wife

With torture and taxes in the headlines, I ask California taxpayers to consider the case of Hugo (Yogi) Pinell, an inmate at Pelican Bay State Prison. Incarcerated at 19 for assault on a woman, which he acknowledges was a crime, Mr. Pinell became politicized in the 1960's, and in 1971 became one of the San Quentin 6, the famous case that grew out of the deaths of George Jackson, 3 guards and 2 other prisoners. Found guilty of assault on a guard (not murder,) Mr. Pinell is the only one of the 6 still in prison, kept in solitary confinement at least 23 hours a day, although he has not had a disciplinary write-up since 1985. He has not touched another human being since the state took away contact visits in December, 1970.

He writes, 'If I could touch my Mom, it would be soo great." Californians, have a heart. What do we gain by paying more than $50,000 a year to keep Yogi locked up in these cruel and inhumane conditions? In January the State Parole Board denied him a parole hearing for the next 15 years, sanctioned by the recently approved Proposition 9. This means we will pay almost $1 million for his incarceration until he next comes up for parole in 2024, when he will be 2 month shy of 80 years old.

Hugo in 1982 at Folsom State Prison

Proposition 9 is a trap to funnel tax money into increased spending on prisons, while we starve our schools and social services. Prisons produce no value added for the dollar spent, and prisoners do not leave with the skills to become productive, law abiding, taxpaying citizens -- a lose/lose proposition. We need to undo the damage of Proposition 9 immediately, change our entire thinking around prisons and punishment, and to start, release those who have served their time and rehabilitated themselves, like Hugo Pinell.

Hugo in 2001 at Pelican Bay Prison