By 1845 Almost half the state of Florida’s population were enslaved African-Americans working on large cotton and sugar plantations in the north-central part of the state. Slave labor accounted for 85% of the state’s cotton production.
Black slaves used to be rounded up to work on those plantations, now the Florida criminal justice system rounds up blacks to work as unpaid labor within the Florida Prison system, aka the Department of Corrections (DOC). Blacks (men and women) makeup only 17% of Florida’s population, but 47% of it’s prisons.
With almost 95,000 prisoners, Florida has the third largest state prison population in the United States. Florida is one of a small group of states, all Southern, all with disproportionately black prison populations, that rely on unpaid prison labor for tasks including; building construction and maintenance, sewage treatment, road maintenance, landscaping services for government buildings, and trash pick up, among other labor intensive projects.
These prisoners are not the chain gangs of the past. Florida decided those were bad for tourism. These prisoner’s work as “ community work squads” or Florida Department of Transportation “road squads” Their work conditions are not much better than the chain gangs of old, and by chain gangs of old I mean the 1990’s. Yes, Florida had chain gangs as recently as the 1990’s. The work conditions, now, as then, involve long days in the hot Florida sun.
DOC estimates prisoners assigned to community work squads perform over 3.4 million hours of work annually. DOC claims that the value of their labor is just under 30 million dollars.
That 30 million is a gross underrepresentation as it does not factor in actual wages and benefits that would have to be paid for non slaves to perform the same work. FDOT estimates that they use $13.5 million in inmate labor annually, again, a gross underrepresentation.
If a prisoner is “selected” to work a squad they have little choice but to work. Those that refuse receive a disciplinary report and face up to 60 days in confinement, as well as the possibility of serving more time than they would have had they complied.
According to the DOC Black men make up 43% of the work squads, despite making up less than 10% of the state’s population.
How do the modern slave traders of the DOC acquire their slaves?
Many ways; Broken Windows Policing, Racial profiling, and Paper, just to name a few.
We are going to cover paper today. “Paper” is one of the nicknames given to a probationary sentence.
Probation in Florida is a punishment that may help an offender to avoid jail time or to serve less time, when used in conjunction with it. The punishment aspect of this penalty is the adherence to certain terms and a probation officer’s supervision. That is the official definition.
Some prosecutors and judges jokingly refer to probation as “the delayed entry program.”
They do so because there are so many rules attached to probation it is easy, even for someone who is trying to do right, to violate their probation (VOP) If that happens they end up back where they began only to face more jail or prison time than they originally faced.
A handful of the “rules”
No alcohol, illegal drugs, or prescription drugs you don’t have a prescription for.
Probation Officer (P.O.)comes by and you’re having a beer with your dad.
You just violated your probation.
Avoid Criminal Associations; got a brother or a friend who is a convicted felon? You can’t see them while on probation. If your P.O. comes by and your brother is there, you just violated your probation.
No firearms. You think you’re good on this one as you have never had a gun.
Your P.O. comes by, your wife is home, she has a gun in her purse, you didn’t even know she had one. You just violated your probation.
Your P.O. can come by your home, your work, any place you may be, at anytime, and search without a warrant. If you are driving down the road your P.O. can follow you and search your vehicle, when you stop.
Travel restrictions
You can not leave the county without permission. If you live in Duval and you’re out in zip code 32259 where the roads bounce back and forth between Duval and St.Johns, and someone rear ends you, if a police report is filed, you just violated your probation. Even if no report is filed if you P.O. learns you were out of the county without permission, you just violated your probation.
And the big one, MONEY. That’s what everything in the criminal justice system boils down to. Money or lack thereof. If you have money you can hire a top notch attorney and not go to jail, or go to jail at a substantially reduced sentence. If you don’t have money, you get a Public Defender and oftentimes , not always, but often, serve more time than you would with a private attorney, and or end up on probation. If you don’t pay or are unable to pay all the fees and fines, court costs, the monthly cost of supervision, cost of a monthly drug test, if applicable, anger management classes, or other classes, if applicable, and restitution, if ordered. If you don’t pay, in full, and on time,you just violated your probation.
If you violate a condition of probation, you will be charged with a Violation of Probation (VOP) a warrant will be issued for your arrest and you will be held without bond until your first appearance before the judge. Oftentimes the judge will let you sit a bit, in jail, before first appearance.
Unlike a criminal case, there is no right to a jury trial in a VOP. Nor do you have the right to remain silent. Hearsay is admissible, although it cannot be the sole basis for violating your probation. If the judge determines you have violated the terms of your probation, you face up to the statutory maximum for the original offense you were on probation for, plus however much time the Judge decides to give you for the VOP.
“Jonas” is a 38 year old Black man. His story came to Jax Examiner from his sister. When he was 19 he was riding with his cousin and his cousin’s friend in the friend’s car, they had offered him a ride as it was raining and he had been walking.
They were pulled over for a broken taillight. Unbeknownst to Jonas his cousin and the friend had stolen some guns from a pawn shop earlier that night.
All three were arrested, despite the cousin stating that Jonas had nothing to do with it, Jonas was charged with Third-degree grand theft and a misdemeanor drug charge for the joint he had on him. He was looking at
3-5 years and $3500 restitution and various fees. Jonas had a public defender who said the .
state was willing to offer him a deal, 18 months probation and he would have to pay $200 a month restitution.
Jonas took the deal. What the public defender didn’t tell him was there was also a $50 monthly charge for cost of supervision and another $25 for a drug test. The $200 a month was doable, the extra $75 made it harder, losing his job because he had been arrested made it even harder. By the time Jonas had a new job he was behind on his payments. His P.O. violated him. Jonas sat in jail for 2 weeks before he went before the judge. The Judge gave him time served and reinstated his probation.
While in jail, Jonas lost his job, again. By the time he had a new job his P.O. had violated him, again. Jonas sat in jail for several weeks before seeing the judge.
The judge adjudicated him guilty of the original charge of Third-degree grand theft and sentenced him to 4 years in state prison.
Jonas was 25 when he was released from prison. It took him until he was 30 to pay all of his original court costs, fees and restitution, as well as the new court costs and fees from his VOP and adjudication. He was now a convicted felon for doing nothing more than accepting a ride from his cousin, while walking down the street, in the rain.
“Marcus” is a 30 year old Black man. He would rather not talk about his original charge. He says,” I did it. I was young and I was stupid. I was looking at 5-7 years and they offered me probation for 3 years, so I took it.
I did everything right for 2 years, then my wife divorced me. Money was tight. I got behind. They violated me. Judge left me in jail for awhile, then reinstated my probation. I got out, worked my ass off, but was behind on everything, then they violated me for not paying my child support. Only reason it wasn’t paid was I was in jail for not paying court stuff which I couldn’t pay because I paid my child support. You know, one big nasty circle. Go before the judge again, I figure I’m good, he will let me out, because I can’t pay anything if I’m in jail. I figured wrong, he adjudicated me, gave me 4 years in the big house. They said I was lucky, I could have got 7, maybe more. I don’t feel lucky.”
Those ‘Paper Chains” are tight.
If you have a story you’d like to share concerning your own experience, Jax Examiner would like to publish it.
Contact us via email jaxexaminer@outlook.com
According to the ACLU, one out of every three Black boys born today can expect to go to prison in his lifetime, as can one of every six Latino boys—compared to one of every 17 White boys.
*Modern Slavery Art Print by Keith Negley*