Gorilla Justice � Caged War Veterans and the Mentally Ill in Solitary Confinement - Toxic and Harsh prison conditions - a Reality check Gorilla Justice is an un-edited raw fictitious parable about a returning Iraqi war veteran who is incarcerated for a crime that may have been forgiven as an accident but was prosecuted under the guise of �tough on crime� rhetoric by politicians and local prosecutors yearning recognition and power. This book follows the ex-soldier�s trials and tribulations as he combats those elements detrimental to his own survival as he learns how to cope with hopelessness and despair that contemplates suicide for him and many others. During his incarceration period he is exposed to the harsh and toxic prison environment as it really exists today in America�s darkened prisons. Cyrus Grossman, a former Army Airborne Ranger, comes home from the war and is basically a good person who has already experienced the impacts of PTSD from the war and other personal tragedies but suffers trauma through his denial for treatment and counseling. Cyrus is a fictional person who experiences reality strewn with real life events and experiences of persons incarcerated under such horrific prison conditions throughout the United States. Each event written resembles or counterfeits happenings in various prisons operating under administrative conditions that are reflections of Abu Ghraib type of DNA but seemingly ignored by the Department of Justice and those local state and federal officials in charge of protecting prisoner�s civil rights and offering humane treatment. The awareness to this phenomenon is brought to the reader through anecdotal and empirical evidence supported by many experts of solitary confinement and its psychological and physiological effects on the human mind. This book documents what Cyrus sees, hears, smells and touches the lunacy of his cellmates and fellow prisoners inside this man-made hell-hole.
Carl R. ToersBijns is the author of the Wasted Honor Trilogy [Wasted Honor I,II and Gorilla Justice] which is a reflection of his life and his experiences as a correctional officer and a correctional administrator retiring with the rank of deputy warden in the New Mexico and Arizona correctional systems. Carl is considered by many a rogue expert in the field of prison security systems since leaving the profession. Carl has been involved in the design of many pilot programs related to mental health treatment, security threat groups, suicide prevention, and maximum custody operational plans including double bunking max inmates and enhancing security for staff. He invites you to read his books so you can understand and grasp the cultural and political implications and influences of these prisons. He deals with the emotions, the stress and anxiety as well as the realities faced working inside a prison. He deals with the occupational risks while elaborating on the psychological impact of both prison worker and prisoner. His most recent book, Gorilla Justice, is a fictional version of realistic prison experiences and events through the eyes of an anecdotal translation of the inmate�s plight and suffering while enduring the harsh and toxic prison environment including solitary confinement. Carl has been interviewed by news stations in Phoenix regarding the escape from the Kingman prison and other high profile media cases related to wrongful deaths and suicides inside prisons. Since writing this book, he has been contacted and interviewed by various advocacy groups that include the ACLU and Amnesty International. He has also been interviewed by the Associated Press, the Canadian Broadcasting news group in Toronto and the British Broadcasting (BBC) network in London. He has added his expertise to demonstrate policy violations and best practices within a correctional setting. He has also been contacted by the ACLU, Amnesty International and other advocacy groups regarding the use of solitary confinement and gang step down programs in the USA. He is currently a senior advisor to the LEOAC (Law Enforcement Officers Advocacy Council) that works closely to issues related to personnel and legal issues regarding the fair and ethical treatment of federal officers. Carl is also a current board member of David�s Hope Inc. a non-profit organization for the mentally ill and a member of the Arizona Criminal Justice Mental Health Coalition and other volunteer groups to work on sentencing reforms in Arizona. Carl has an Associate Degree of Arts � Criminal Justice Administration w/ honors from the American InterContinental University and graduated in 2006. A native of Columbus Ohio, he recently moved to Riverside California where he spends his time writing short stories and various articles for Yahoo Voice, Corrections.Com and other publications.Carl has converted some of his articles into YouTube videos and invites you to watch them. His war experience consists of serving two years in the U.S. Army as a combat medic doing a 1 year tour in Vietnam during the period of 1967 to 1968. He earned the Combat Medic Badge while engaged with the Americal Infantry Division near the DMZ and I Corps region assigned to the 196th and 198th Light Infantry Brigades and the 1st Squadron 1st Armored Cavalry out of Chu Lai and Da Nang.