Some Inmates at Pelican Bay Told They’ll Get Early Release Because of the Pandemic, Only to Have the Offer Rescinded

Imagine being told you were going to be released early from prison and be reunited with your family due to the possible spreading of a deadly virus. Then you were told prison officials made a mistake and retracted their decision of your early release. This happened to Darren Barber in the past week. Not just once but twice.

Due to the cramped spaces of California prisons and the fast spreading of COVID-19, California state prison officials announced on March 31 they were releasing 3,500 incarcerated individuals early. A report published in December of 2018 shows that California prisons are still overcrowded at 134.7% capacity and some prisons as high as 160% capacity. These conditions make it impossible to participate in social distancing or self isolation to protect oneself from the coronavirus.

According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation website there are, as of April 8, eight incarcerated persons at California Prison-Los Angeles County, 14 incarcerated persons at California Institution for Men in Chino, one incarcerated person at California Institution for Women in Corona, one incarcerated person North Kern State Prison in Delano and one incarcerated person at Substance Abuse Training Facility in Corcoran who have tested positive for COVID-19. There are currently 62 CDCR/CCHCS employee’s who have tested positive for COVID-19 in 19 incarcerated facilities and hundreds who have called in sick for work.

Barber is currently incarcerated at Pelican Bay State Prison’s level 2 D-yard facility for a nonviolent crime and has less than 60 days left of his sentence. He was told on Wednesday, April 1 he would be released early as part of the state’s order to release 3,500 incarcerated individuals with nonviolent crimes who are due to parole within the next two months. On Friday, April 2 he was called back into the counselor’s office and told he didn’t meet the requirements and he wasn’t being released early. On Monday, April 5 he was then called back into the office and told the prison made another mistake and he was being released early. He said his release paperwork was even signed off by the warden.

“My counselor even showed me the email [from California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation office in Sacramento] that they were sure this time and it even ended with a smiley face,” Barber said. “The email said ‘here you go, his warden checkout order has been signed’.”

But the news was too good to be true. After Barber saw the email saying he actually was being released early, he was then called back into the office later that evening just to be told they made yet another mistake and he wasn’t going home early.

“I thought when they took me back to the office that my mother passed or my father because he’s in hospice, that’s what I instantly thought- that I missed my family,” Barber said. “[My counselor] said ‘I have to tell you something disturbing, you aren’t going home early and the criteria has changed.’ My mom was crying like hell.”

This didn’t just happen to Barber. He said the head counselor of D-yard facility had to inform multiple incarcerated individuals the same bad news he received and the counselor told his step-father over the phone this happened to others. The CDCR website states that release will be effected immediately for “individuals within 60 days of their earliest possible release, who are not serving for a violent offense, a person required to register under PC 290 (sex offenses), a person serving a sentence for a domestic violence conviction, or those who have been granted parole under the jurisdictional review of the Board of Parole Hearings, will be eligible for review for expedited release.” Barber falls under these criteria and said “this is definitely happening to other people where they’re screwing up peoples paperwork.”

“I’m under 60 days and all my crimes are non-violent on this case but because of the underlying charges of my case I am no longer eligible due to the criteria,” Barber said. “but they aren’t telling me what those underlying criteria are. They are messing with people’s emotions and causing my family stress.”

San Francisco based Prisoner Rights Attorney Charles Carbone said prisons are a ticking time bomb for COVID-19. Carbone has been working with incarcerated individuals for over 20 years and his representations include parole hearings for life inmates, appeals for parole denials, visiting concerns, sentencing modifications and civil rights issues. He said we must look at all reasonable and thoughtful options to prevent an explosion.

“Because of overcrowding in California’s prisons, we have thousands of inmates we could safely release without undermining public safety,” Carbone said.

Press Secretary for CDCR Dana Simas stated in an email “any offender who is within 60 days of his/her release has already begun pre-release planning so they would be aware that they are eligible for the expedited release” and “they should already know if they meet expedited release criteria.” But Barber was told twice he met the criteria for his release to be expedited only to be told twice again it wasn’t. He fits the criteria as stated on the CDCR website but him and his family are left in the dark as to why he won’t be released early. We reached back out to the CDCR to ask what underlying criteria would keep Barber, a non-violent offender with less than 60 days, and others ineligible for early release. We also asked what other institutions are making these mistakes but we haven’t received a response.

Simas did state that the CDCR’s top priority is the safety and security of the incarcerated population and they are continuously evaluating and implementing proactive measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. When asked about releasing more 3,500 incarcerated individuals that are 55 years or older or with certain medical conditions Simas said “we are not co-horting them or increasing encounters beyond their need, as that would actually increase their exposure to risk.”

Rick Buckanis, Barber’s stepfather, said he and his wife are outraged with CDCR and Barber’s situation. He remembers telling Darren he hoped this wasn’t some April Fool’s joke when he heard of his early release.

“To me he signed a contract with them, which they initiated, and he signed all the papers they asked of him,” Buckanis said. “It’s unconscionable. If they are that [negligent in] their job then they shouldn’t have it, if they can’t read the requirements they aren’t suitable for that job.”

Buckanis worked in the Department of Defense for over 40 years and said he knows the bureaucracies the prison is dealing with, but when it pertains to someone’s freedom there shouldn’t be any mistakes. Buckanis said he doesn’t feel Darren is safe inside the prison while the coronavirus is spreading throughout the country and believes the prison is in direct violation of Governor Newsom’s issue to let non-violent, short-time incarcerated individuals out early.

“How do you make a mistake like that where you’re messing with somebody’s life,” Buckanis said. “People commit suicide over littler things.”

Buckanis and his wife were told twice their son was coming home early and then told mistakes were made without any explanation. His wife Joann was hoping to get an early birthday present this week because of Barber coming home but that isn’t the case anymore. Buckanis said CDCR should be held accountable for their mistakes but when he tried to file a complaint he got the runaround.

“Yesterday I spent from 8:30 to 2:30 on the phone with multiple people at the prison and got nowhere,” Buckanis said. “They were supposed to call me back today but haven’t and aren’t picking up my phone calls.”

Buckanis was told by a lieutenant at the prison that as a civilian he couldn’t file a complaint because Barber’s situation is an internal problem and Barber has to file the complaint himself. When Buckanis asked the prison’s Supervisor of Records how this mistake could happen to his son, he was told CDCR sent notifications to multiple incarcerated individuals in their computer database about early releases but then refined their list and had to tell certain people they made a mistake. Buckanis said he is tired of not getting answers and still doesn’t understand how this could happen more than once to his son.

“It’s beyond comprehension in my world,” Bucankis said. “I guess anything is possible and this is part of anything is possible situation. I just don’t understand how this many times they can screw up in such a short amount of time. It’s totally incompetent… .”