By Anna Simon STAFF WRITER asimon@greenvillenews.com
PICKENS - Jerry Buck Inman is in solitary confinement under
security cameras, but Pickens County officials would like to move
him.
Pickens County is requesting a transfer to a state Department of
Corrections facility for the man charged with murder in the slaying
of Clemson student Tiffany Souers, said Lt. Gary Bryant, detention
center manager.
There are state facilities that are more equipped to handle
high-security inmates, Bryant said.
Inman’s attorney, Greenville lawyer Symmes Culbertson, said he
and Inman were served a motion to transfer when they met at the jail
Thursday afternoon, but Culbertson said he sees no reason to
transfer Inman to another facility.
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“He is isolated from the rest of the population. It’s a lonely
situation but it’s a safe situation,” Culbertson said.
Inman
was very quiet and somewhat reserved as Culbertson talked to him
about what was ahead. He asked pertinent questions and took the
information “fairly well,” even when Culbertson told him there’s a
possibility this could be a death penalty case, the lawyer said.
Inman “understood the severity” of the situation he is in,
Culbertson said.
Unlike the majority of the 107 prisoners
housed in the facility at the county Law Enforcement Center, Inman
is in solitary confinement in 6-foot by 8-foot concrete block cell
furnished with a mattress, blanket, a small sink and a toilet.
Added security measures include two placards posted on his
cell door - one noting a past history of escape attempts and the
other indicating an assault risk, Bryant said.
Inman is
under constant video surveillance and sat on the mattress leaning
against the wall much of the day, doing nothing, Bryant said.
There’s not much for him to do and he’s had little to say,
Bryant said.
Shortly after the lights came on at 6 a.m. in
cells throughout the facility, a breakfast tray with crispy steak,
hash browns, grits, and a cup of milk was passed through a food
passage slot in the steel cell door. The only utensil he is given to
eat with is a detention center-grade “spork.”
A toothbrush
and toothpaste are passed through the slot in the door at
appropriate times.
Around the middle of the morning, Inman
was shackled and handcuffed and taken from the cell to a secure
shower area by two detention officers, where he showered alone,
dressed and was shackled and handcuffed again and returned to his
cell, Bryant said.
Lunch consisted of a cheeseburger and
chips and his choice of tea or Kool-Aid, served through the slot in
the door. Salami and turkey sandwiches and cookies were on the
Thursday night supper menu.
Light comes into the cell through
a small unbreakable glass window in the steel cell door and a single
bulb light fixture set high on the back wall of the cell. Lights
stay on until 11 p.m.
While in the cell, Inman can dress as
he wants, but all he has are the orange short-sleeved V-neck
pullover top and the elastic-waist bottoms.
He will be moved
from the cell only for scheduled showers and exercise, meetings with
legal counsel, for scheduled telephone time, and business that can’t
be conducted in the cell such as court appearances, Bryant said.
Anytime he leaves the cell he will wear leg and arm chains and
handcuffs and at least two officers will be present.
The
exercise area is an empty, enclosed space about the size of an
elementary school classroom, where he can walk or jog, but he will
still be alone. The phone area is a cell with a telephone inside and
all calls must be made collect.
A book cart occasionally
makes the rounds and inmates can get books to read, passed through
the door slot. A list of items available at the prison commissary,
such as underwear and socks, soap and deodorant, snacks and drinks,
also can be passed through the slot for him to order from. |