Lawsuits allege ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ at SCI Mercer prison
MERCER, Pa. — Mark Bowman said he was living the American dream, with a family and his own business, before he went into the State Correctional Institution — Mercer in August 2018.
When Bowman was released, he entered a homeless shelter to start rebuilding his life. He blamed his treatment while in prison for that decline.
Bowman and another man filed civil lawsuits this week against officials in the state correctional system.
The civil lawsuits allege that Bowman, of Butler County, and Timothy Waldron, of Washington County, were subjected to cruel and unusual punishment when they were thrown into solitary confinement for extended periods at the prison.
Bowman said SCI Mercer officials told him that he was placed in solitary confinement because he violated probation when he was accused of stealing the identity of a former employee. He said he lost his family and his business after the ordeal.
“I was treated like I raped a child or something,” Bowman said. “You’re treated like a complete and total animal down there, and nobody cares about what you have to say.”
The lawsuits were filed against John E. Wetzel, secretary for the Department of Corrections in Pennsylvania, and Melinda Adams, superintendent of SCI Mercer, according to the Lindsay Law Firm in Butler.
Department of Corrections spokesperson Sue McNaughton said in an email that the department had no comment because the matter is ongoing.
According to the complaints, Bowman and Waldron were accused of crimes and placed in solitary confinement for more than six months and more than nine months, respectively, without any hearing or judicial process.
Bowman said there were several things he was denied during his time in what he calls the “hole.”
“I was denied a pillow,” Bowman said. “If you’re a general population inmate, you’re outside walking around, you can go outside and play basketball, go to the library, use books. You’re not allowed to do this in the ‘hole.’ You’re not allowed to go to religious services. You don’t have access to a phone. You’re allowed three showers a week, and that didn’t happen all the time. For 57 days, I wore the same underwear. It was stuff like that. They don’t care.”
According to Bowman’s complaint, he was charged with theft in Columbiana County, Ohio, and was placed on probation after relocating to Grove City. Bowman was then arrested on charges of identity theft in Venango County based on accusations of a former employee who was terminated almost two years earlier.
Bowman was taken into custody for an alleged violation of his Ohio probation and taken directly to SCI Mercer. Bowman claimed that he was forced to plead guilty to the charge of identity theft, but he was still returned to solitary confinement for another 10 days before he was released.
Waldron said in his complaint that he was charged in 2002 with DUI manslaughter in Florida and sentenced to five years in prison followed by 10 years probation. After relocating to Pennsylvania in 2009, he was stopped in Allegheny County and the officer reported smelling marijuana. He was charged with driving under the influence. Waldron was placed into SCI Mercer after he was discharged from a rehabilitation facility.
Both complaints state that the men were denied notices and hearings regarding their placements in solitary confinement.
Waldron was found not guilty after trial, according to his lawsuit.
Both men said they suffered permanent emotional, psychological and economic damages as a result.
“The carryover from all of this has played such a mental toll on me,” Bowman said. “I see a counselor now. I have anxiety, severe depression. I have never had any of this stuff before. Two times while I was in there, I felt like killing myself. It was a totally hopeless situation.”