Lawyers Furious, Trying to ‘Raise Hell’ as MCC Lockdown Enters Day 8

Lawyers Furious, Trying to ‘Raise Hell’ as MCC Lockdown Enters Day 8

Numerous pre-trial inmates have moved from Metropolitan Correctional Center to Otisville as the MCC facility lockdown reaches its eighth day — all while the search for an alleged smuggled gun continues.

The head of the Federal Defenders Office in Manhattan said many inmates from MCC have been moved to Otisville including some who are scheduled to be in court Thursday and Friday.

David Patton, Chief of the Federal Defenders Office, said defense lawyers still have not been able to meet with most pre-trial clients for the eight days the MCC has been on lockdown.

“Let us in to see our clients,” Patton said Thursday, adding that defense attorneys are trying to “raise hell” with the MCC and through the courts to gain access to their clients.

Investigators are focusing on whether a corrections officer at MCC helped smuggle a gun to an inmate, sources previously told News 4.

Defense lawyers representing MCC inmates that were questioned by authorities previously said the focus appears to be on that theory, and the subsequent investigation has left them unable to see their clients.

The MCC issued a statement Thursday saying lawyers could begin meeting with clients again starting Friday on a floor-by floor-basis. Full attorney visits could resume next week, the Bureau of Prisons statement said. 

The BOP says their officials met with the Chief Judge of the Southern District of New York, federal defenders, the U.S. Marshals and the U.S. Attorney’s office to explain the ongoing issues.

The BOP and MCC say inmates have been receiving hot meals regularly, have access to medical care and are now getting showers on a rotating basis — a statement Patton said is inaccurate. He claims many clients have been locked down for 24 hours a days for the last eight days.

Meanwhile, the BOP has said more time is needed to complete a thorough investigation. However, Patton claimed the time it has taken is a result of “pure incompetence and a total lack of concern for the constitutional rights and humane conditions” for the defendants.

“It’s worse than solitary confinement and the BOP just doesn’t give a damn,” Patton said in an email to News 4.

That hunt for the alleged weapon has forced an extensive search of the facility, both common areas and individual cells, and has prompted federal officials to bring in out-of-town teams to assist with the search. In the meantime, while the probe continues, inmates have said they have been denied access to phones, computers and showers, and are getting cold sandwiches shoved through doors for food.

The BOP said that visitation from inmates’ families and friends could resume later next week, or possibly sooner.