By Paige St. John
LA Times
SACRAMENTO — Ten state inmates were placed under medical observation Tuesday as tens of thousands of others refused meals for a second day in a mass protest at California prisons.
The ten, who launched their own hunger strike July 1, a week before the statewide action, are at High Desert State Prison in Susanville, in northeast California. They were being watched by prison medical staff for signs of distress, said the federal monitor in charge of inmate healthcare.
The inmates issued a hand-written letter spelling out their demands for improved prison conditions, including cleaner facilities, better food and more access to the prison library. It is one of at least eight demand letters California prison officials had in hand as some 29,000 inmates — a slight decline from 30,000 Monday — refused meals Tuesday.
Corrections officials said the wide protests — mostly focused on solitary confinement conditions — were causing no disruptions, although 2,000 inmates refused to show up for their prison jobs or attend classes. The state does not acknowledge a hunger strike officially until inmates have missed nine consecutive meals, which would occur late Wednesday.
Full story: 29,000 California prison inmates refuse meals in 2nd day of protest