Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 4-10-18

Local
Woman Wants To Draw Attention To Prison Deaths
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Kevin Thomas was 47 years old when he died. He had spent more than half in life behind bars.
Thomas was 22 years old when he was sentenced to life in prison for a series of crimes that included armed burglary and sexual battery. However, his girl- friend, Ms. Kathy Con- way, said Thomas was slated to appear in court within the next year and his sentence may have been re- duced.
She said at the time of his arrest, DNA evidence was admitted in his case. “He was with 3 others when
the rape was committed. But, when they checked the DNA, they found the DNA of the others, but not his. He was there when the burglary took place, but he didn’t commit sexual battery.”
However, he never had the opportunity to seek a re- duction because he died on December 26, 2017 at Hardee Correctional Institu- tion. Ms. Conway said he suffered a heart attack.
She said after his deaths, three inmates reached out to her to tell her what hap- pened. “They told me that he was on the basketball court when he passed out. And, none of the guards tried to help him. They called for the Medics and it
KEVIN THOMAS 3/10/1970 —- 12/26/2017
took them about 30 minutes to arrive. By that time, he was dead.”
Ms. Conway said she realizes that nothing will bring Thomas back. But, she said this type of thing
happens more than people realize. “I did some re- search. There was an article in the Miami Herald that said 428 inmates died in prisons in 2017. That’s al- most twice as many as the year before.
“When an inmate goes down, they call for Medics, but they don’t try to help the person even though there are instructions in their handbook about what they could do to help save some- one’s life. And they won’t allow the inmates to help them. If an inmate tries to help he will get maced.
“People just don’t realize how many people are dying during an emergency be- cause no one will help
them.”
She further said that al-
though Thomas had served 25 years in prison, he was optimistic. “He was always happy, always talking about God and encouraging oth- ers. Everyone loved him.”
Ms. Conway feels that there needs to be a change in the way prisoners are treated. “The guards need to use the standard procedures in their handbook. They need to be trained how to help the inmates when one is down.
“They must render some type of aid during an emer- gency. The inmates are in prison, but they are still someone’s child and some- one loves them.”
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