Phone Zap Toolkit to Defend Rashid from Repression in South Carolina
đ PHONE-ZAP TOOLKIT
Mirrored from https://bit.ly/rashid-may-phone-zap
Updated May 21 2025 â Protect Kevin âRashidâ Johnson
1. Whatâs happeningâand why it matters
Kevin âRashidâ Johnson (VADOC # 1007485, now SCDOC # 397279) is an internationally cited prison-journalist. In Fall 2024 he broke the story of a prisonerâs self-immolation at Red Onion State Prison and began organizing against Virginiaâs super-max abuses. State officials have answered with an escalating campaign of retaliation:
- 1 May 2025 â Forced ICC transfer. Virginia used the Interstate Corrections Compactâmeant for rehabilitationâto ship Rashid to South Carolina without his consent.
- Transport abuse. Guards chained his wrists to his ankles (near-hog-tie) in a steel van with seatbelts removed; a high-speed run slammed him into the walls, injuring his left leg. He has no MRI, no orthopedic careâonly an unreleased X-ray.
- Mattress-less solitary. From 1â13 May, and again since 20 May, he has been held in Restrictive Housing on a bare concrete slab in extreme cold with insects and mice.
- PREA violation. 19 May, ~9 PM: a female sergeant stared into his dark cell for 30-45 seconds while he used the toiletâcross-gender voyeurism barred by PREA; a camera faces his cell.
- Retaliatory lock-down & threat. 20 May: Captain Lasley and an intelligence officer cuffed him back to RHU. A Special Agent from SCDOC Inspector-Generalâs officeâname sounded like âFreoleâ (spelling uncertain)âvisited. The agentâs words (Rashidâs summary, paraphrased):
âTell your people to stop calling and complaining, or Iâll charge you, keep you in the hole, and youâll get hurt.â
Tablet, phone, and email access were cut on the spot. Rashid filed a PREA grievance and restarted his hunger strike. - 21 May â Outside world finally alerted. One inbound call arranged by an attorney reached supporters; Rashid cannot dial out and may send only two personal letters per month.
Current cell conditions
- Bare concrete slab (no mattress); ice-cold cell; insects/mice.
- Minimal clothing: jumpsuit, boxers, socks, crocs.
- No books, pens, or paperâforced to sit idle all day.
- Leg still painful and stiff, though he is no longer limping.
- SCDOC returned only property accumulated in SC; â30 boxes from Keen Mountain plus most of his legal mail remain confiscated.
Why this is illegal
- Retaliation for protected journalism and organizing â violates the First Amendment.
- Prolonged mattress-less solitary â violates the Eighth Amendment and U.N. Mandela Rules (torture after 15 days).
- Hog-tie restraint & denied treatment â âdeliberate indifferenceâ under Estelle v. Gamble; hog-tie ruled unconstitutional in Weigel v. Broad.
- Blocking all phone/email and seizing legal mail â destroys access-to-courts rights (Bounds v. Smith).
- PREA breach â 28 C.F.R. § 115.15 forbids non-medical cross-gender viewing of private bodily functions.
- ICC abuse â Article IV(c) lets Virginia recall him âat any time.â
2. What you can do today
- Step 1: Call every Virginia official belowâVirginia can recall Rashid under ICC Art. IV(c).
- Step 2: Call every South Carolina officialâSCDOC can end the abuse now.
- Step 3: Log names, times, any case #, then share this toolkit and call again tomorrow.
3. Virginia officials to call
- James Parks â Interstate Compact Administrator â 804-674-3000 â 0 â âInterstate Compact, James Parksâ
- Chadwick Dotson â Director, VADOC â 804-674-3000 â 0 â âDirectorâs Officeââ|âdirector@vadoc.virginia.gov
- A. David Robinson â Chief of Corrections Operations â 804-674-3000 â 0 â same request
- Gregory Holloway â Western Regional Ops Chief â 276-783-7154 â ask for him
- Thomas Meyer â Western Regional Administrator â 276-783-7154 â ask for him
- VADOC Ombudsman â 804-674-3081 â âOffender complaintââ|âinfo@vadoc.virginia.gov
- Andrea Sapone â Corrections Ombudsman, VA OSIG â 800-723-1615 â request herâ|âosig@osig.virginia.gov
Virginia call script
Hello, Iâm [NAME] calling about Kevin âRashidâ Johnson, VADOC # 1007485.
⢠On 1 May Virginia sent him to South Carolina via the ICC for exposing abuse at Red Onion.
⢠In transit he was hog-tied and injured; he still has no MRI or treatment.
⢠SCDOC now keeps him in extended solitary on a bare concrete slab, after an IG agent (name sounds like âFreoleâ) threatened him on 20 May and cut all phone/email. The remarks are paraphrased, but the threat is documented.
⢠He filed a PREA grievance over a female sergeant watching him on the toilet, and ~30 boxes of VA legal papers are missing.
Virginia remains legally responsible under ICC § 53.1-216. I demand an immediate recall under Art. IV(c), medical care, an end to mattress-less solitary, restoration of communications, and an investigation into the threats.
Please log this complaint and confirm to me at [EMAIL]. Thank you.
4. South Carolina officials to call (SCDOC)
- Curtis Earley â Warden, Perry CI â 864-243-4700 â press 2
- Bryan Stirling â Director, SCDOC HQ â 803-896-8500 â 0 â âDirectorâs Officeââ|âinfo@doc.sc.gov
- SCDOC Inspector General / Internal Affairs â 803-896-4766 ¡ 5214 ¡ 8507 â voicemail & ask for case #â|âSCDOC.OIG@doc.sc.gov
- SC State Inspector General (Ombudsman) â 803-896-4729 â file DOC abuse complaintâ|âcontact@oig.sc.gov
- SC Administrative-Division Ombudsman â 803-734-5049 â ask to log formal DOC complaint
South Carolina call script
Hello, Iâm [NAME] calling about Kevin âRashidâ Johnson, SCDOC # 397279.
⢠He arrived from Virginia injured after a hog-tied transport.
⢠Held 1â13 May and again since 20 May in RHU without a mattress.
⢠On 19 May a female sergeant watched him use the toilet; he filed a PREA grievance.
⢠On 20 May Captain Lasley returned him to RHU, and an IG agentâname heard as âFreole,â spelling uncertainâthreatened him (paraphrased) to stop outside calls âor youâll stay in the hole and get hurt,â then cut all phone, tablet, and email access.
⢠He now has no outbound communication, no legal calls, and still no orthopedic care.
I demand: remove him from RHU, supply a proper mattress, arrange MRI and treatment, restore communications, return his confiscated legal property, and preserve video of the PREA incident and the threat.
Please log this as a formal complaint and give me the reference number. Thank you.
5. Tips for effective calls
- Speak slowly; repeat Rashidâs name and both ID numbers.
- Ask if the complaint is logged and request a reference #.
- Record staff name, date, and time.
- Follow up by email for a paper trail.
- Share this toolkit and keep callingâpersistent, polite pressure works.
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