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tv   Lockup Savannah Extended Stay  MSNBC  August 15, 2015 6:00pm-7:01pm PDT

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that's all for this edition of "caught on camera." i told her i just wanted to spend the weekend with her, i was going to spend my whole paycheck on her. >> a planned romantic weekend turns into a nightmare. for one young couple. >> i'm the youngest one in here. up and it's scary. i can't sleep at night. people scream in their rooms. it's really scary. >> a fight sends two women to segregation.
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>> when you hit me don't think i'm not going to touch you back. >> for one of the combatants isolation takes a toll. >> i'm going crazy in that room. >> they want to violate the rules and regulations but they don't want to do the time. located on the atlantic coast of georgia, savannah is one of the south's oldest and most historic cities. a leading travel magazine twice listed savannah as one of america's favorite destinations. more than likely it wasn't taking county jail into consideration. >> i want my money back this vacation. this is not where i wanted to go. >> the chatham county detention
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center houses about 1,500 inmates, most of whom are only charged with crimes and are awaiting trial at the resolution of their cases. among them is 18-year-old brooklyn day who arrived in savannah nearly two weeks earlier from her home in south carolina. she and her boyfriend had planned a romantic weekend on nearby tyby island. the only keepsakes they have of this trip are mug shots. >> i came down for the weekend to have fun on tyby. i was expecting to get back to school that monday and didn't ever think this would happen to me. i'm the youngest one in here i think and it's scary. i can't sleep at night like people scream in their rooms. it's really scary. >> inmate day is young. there are a lot of females here that have been in and out of
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this facility. and it's become more of a way of life for them. she is not one of those inmates, at least not in this point in time and i'm sure she feels intimidated by them. >> i should not be in a place like this. it's not where i want to be. >> where your food at? >> i don't know. >> why you didn't eat? >> i didn't like the bread. i didn't like the sauce. >> you have to eat something. >> i know. >> she looks innocent and my heart goes out to her. she is acting nervous. i know she is scared. so much can be going on in here. >> day is charged with entering an auto to commit theft and theft by taking for allegedly stealing items from parked cars. she pleaded not guilty and was arrested along with her boyfriend, jack. >> i got one of my first paychecks from my new job and i told her, i wanted to spend the weekend with her and was going to spend my whole paycheck on
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her. we were going to go to taibbi and get a hotel and hang out all night. we dropped some acid to just be out on the beach and watch the waves and listen to everything. afterwards took some xanax. >> xanax is a prescription drug used to treat anxiety and depression. when abused it can lead to a high that includes memory loss and spell admits to frequent abuse. >> i realize i have a problem with them. seems like every time i take them one leads to another to another and before you know it you are blacked out taking more and more. that is what happened to me that night. >> i remember having this handful of them. i was already on them and i took them all. i have no idea why i took so many. i didn't have a care in the world what was going to happen to me.
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i just wanted to feel that rush like fun. >> day says the fun led to her and spell checking car doors to see if they were locked. >> i just remember like thinking it was such a good idea to like open a door and look through it like new things like almost like shopping. like a treasure hunt. we didn't know what we were going to find. i do not remember how many cars it was, any specific items that i took. i just know we were out all night just walking around getting into trouble. >> the next day police were called to the couple's hotel and according to the arrest report they refused to check out. like day spell was also charged with entering an auto to commit theft and theft by taking, but picked up an additional charge of theft by receiving stolen property after an officer discovered he was in possession of a stolen handgun. spell says he purchased the gun for protection and pled not guilty to all charges.
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>> never know what is going to happen at night walking around, just me and her. if anything did ever happen i wanted to be able to protect her. >> it scared me that he had that. he has no need for it, just to feel to have that rush, to have a loaded gun on you. i mean, that's putting my life in danger, and his, too. >> day will soon appear in court and hopes to at least be released on bond so she can return to her senior year of high school. >> you are still young enough to make changes in your life and do the right thing. you don't have to keep coming back to this place. >> this will be two weeks of school that i missed. this will be the third week. that's a lot of school. you wouldn't think but i have added it up, that is 16 tests and quizzes that i missed. the fact that it's a felony, i'm hoping they can maybe drop it down to a misdemeanor.
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that would make a big difference because my whole future is at stake. that is hard to get a job. if you are a convicted felon you can't even work at mcdonald's. there is a lot of things that would be changed in my life. >> don't be scared. think positive. >> i'm trying to. i want to graduate high school. this could change everything. >> yeah, it could. i know i have a daughter who is young and she got in some trouble when she was younger and it ruined her. she was in an international program. she made straight as and she got in trouble and it ruined her whole high school and college. it ruined it. >> i really don't want to be in here. i want to be in school. i want to have a high school diploma, not my ged. i want to be able to graduate. that would be the best feeling to graduate. >> coming up, brooklyn day turns to art to cope with jail but might have gotten herself in more trouble.
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>> that is what they call damaging jail property. you can be written up for that. a fight in a female housing unit ends in a version of she said she said. preconceptions and experience a cadillac for yourself. ♪ the 2015 cadillac srx. lease this from around $339 per month, or purchase with 0% apr financing. did you know that the tripadvisor you have always trusted for reviews book...! now checks over 200 websites to find the best price? book...! book...! book...! so don't just visit tripadvisor, book...! at tripadvisor (ee-e-e-oh-mum-oh-weh) (hush my darling...)
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it's not muted. was that you jason? it was geoffrey! it was jason. it could've been brenda.
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♪ established in 1733, savannah, georgia has maintained much of its historical integrity. that is no small accomplishment considering a humid subtropical climate makes it prone to severe thunderstorms and hurricanes. and officials at the chatham county detention center have developed a protocol for such events. >> anytime there is a severe weather issue the watch commander will call over the radio and tell you to lock your unit down. >> let's go! >> want to have everybody secured so that if you need to
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do an emergency evacuation or anything like that everybody is accounted for and you know where everybody is at. >> the atmosphere inside the jail can be highly charged, as well. >> sometimes you can walk out here and you can almost feel the tension and you just know that something is about to happen. >> this morning is one of those times. officers have been called to a fight at one of the female housing units. the combatants are teshia berry and kathleen blaja, wearing the orange top. blaja is thrown to the ground. other inmates appear to surround her and keep her from reentering the fray, an unusual occurrence in most jail fights. officers get to the unit and reach berry first. she is immediately secured with handcuffs and removed from the unit. all other inmates are ordered
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back to their cells. >> go on! go to your rooms. >> those two got in a fight. she pushed her and she fell on the floor. she needs to see medical. the one in orange. the other one in there, she was the one that came here and got all riled up. >> she punched me first and i shoved her away. that is it. i didn't come towards her. she came towards me. >> teshia berry is in jail on charges of simple battery, for what she says was a domestic dispute with the father of her newborn twins. she pled not guilty. >> i ain't got nothing to lie for. >> berry says the fight stemmed from an argument during a card game. >> she is stomping at me and got all up in my face.
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you talking about you are going to hit me then hit me, but when you hit me don't think i'm not going to touch you back. and then she punches me in my face. so i shoved her. she came back at me so i shoved her again. i could have been pulling out her hair, dragging her. i did all that. but did i do that? no. i simply shoved her off of me. >> blaha is in jail for fighting charged with battery to which she has pled not guilty. she blames today's fight on berry. >> she pushed me first. that's what got me up and pushed her back. i could have swang like i wanted to and if she would have she would have been down on the ground because it is normally with me it's one hit and you're down and that's it. i know she's young.
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that's why i didn't really hurt her because i know she is a child. >> berry says she held back, too, but for a different reason. >> girl is crazy, man. >> blaha, who has lost custody of three other children, is actually seven months pregnant. corporal savone said she is not surprised blaha is fighting in her condition. >> i have known inmate blaha for probably the whole seven years i have worked here. she has been in and out several times. inmate blaha has a short temper. if she feels like somebody is intimidating her space she doesn't hesitate to engage. i have seen her deteriorate over the years. i think from her drug usage and living on the streets and being homeless and that type of thing. >> until officers have completed their investigation, berry and blaha are moved to single person
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cells and placed on lockdown status. >> how long am i going to be here? >> once we've done the investigation, once we check the cameras and everything. hold on tight. >> all right. >> they will be confined 23 hours a day and lose phone and visitation privileges. that comes as especially bad news for berry who had an important visit scheduled later in the day. she was going to ask a friend for bond money. >> i was supposed to get my visit to get up out of here. >> i understand but anybody on lockdown don't get any visits. they lose that privilege. she wasn't happy at all because today is their visit day. i believe she was expecting a visit because somebody was going to bail her out, but her actions, that's the reason why she is in there. >> so i'm stuck here. i'm trying to stay strong, but to be away from my kids and all that i have to deal with, it
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hurts. you don't want to be here. you don't. coming up -- >> just trying to get a clear view of what really happened and add their stories to it and try to piece together anything. >> officers turn to the tape to find out what really happened between tisha berry and kathleen blaha. then -- >> stay positive and ask me to tell you stupid jokes. >> first big mistake i made. >> an older inmate takes jack spell under his wing. this allergy season,
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as days turn to weeks and months while awaiting the resolution of their cases or serving sentences, inmates at the chatham county detention center in savannah face a variety of challenges, among them dealing with sheer boredom. steven says it was a childhood hobby that gave him the inspiration for his recent distraction. >> when i was eye kid i had an ant farm.
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i put the cookie there and i woke up and there was five. i woke up and there were ten. i woke up again and like 18. it's like having a household pet in a way. it's something to take care of, even though they're just ants. even though they are just ants. it may be a little off but it is something to preoccupy yourself and stay positive about. what am i going to do today? i have to feed my damn ants. some prisons have like a cat program. i see cats walking all over the place and some places have dog programs. apparently cell number 14 at the chatham county jail is an ant program. >> mcaloon is charged with aggravated assault, simple battery and cruelty to children. a police report states he was intoxicated and arguing with his fiancee when he slapped her and fought family members who came to help.
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including his stepson who he apparently struck with a baseball bat. mcaloon says he hardly remembers the night and pled not guilty. >> it is vague. i don't remember that much. i was at the bar. i had two shots of tequila. i remember that. and basically that is one of the last things i remember and then i end up with these charges. you hear that all the time. it's not my fault because i didn't know what happened. it might have been my fault. but i don't know what was going on. i don't want to find out that i actually went home and hurt the people i love. >> steve is a cool guy. steve just has the right thing to say to make me feel better about my situation. >> mcaloon has made friends with jack spell who says he doesn't remember much about his alleged crimes, either, due to being high on prescription drugs and acid at the time of his arrest. he and his girlfriend are accused of stealing phones and other items from several cars on nearby taibbi island. >> when i was young i was getting in trouble.
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i lost a lot of stuff because of getting in trouble. i lost a lot of freedom. >> stay positive. and ask me to tell you stupid jokes. >> i don't, man, i'm just hoping -- this is like the first big mistake i made. i just want to get out and get it behind me. >> you are going to have this on your record for a very long time. you don't ever have to look back from this. >> can you imagine the situation i put her in? she was a straight a student through high school. >> that's not all your fault, though. >> it is, man. it's my fault. >> everybody makes their own choices. you can't blame yourself for something somebody else has done regardless. you can sit around and say what ifs what ifs for hours. you have to accept what it is and move on from that. >> but spell says moving on won't be easy when it comes to his girlfriend and now co-defendant, brooklyn day. >> we have been together about seven, seven and a half years. she was my first kiss and stuff.
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it wasn't her idea to go to the beach and get into all the trouble we got into. it was all me. i was like let's go. we are going to go party this weekend and have a good weekend. i didn't see all of this coming. >> going through this together and i don't blame it all on him. like i'm in it just as much as he is even though i would never do this if it was not with him. i see it as we are in this together. i just can't see my life without him. >> day recently went to court hoping to be released on bond but things did not go her way. >> stand right over here ladies. >> i didn't get bond. it's really disappointing. i didn't go in there with high expectations anyway. i didn't have good news to come back with either. >> in fact, she received bad news. >> going in today i didn't realize i could have more charges. like it's pending.
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they are interviewing people saying are you missing these things. i'm trying to think how many more charges am i going to get because of this? >> day says a combination of anxiety and boredom has her literally scratching at the walls of her cell. >> i scratched on the walls a little bit. these flowers are just reminding me of how my room was. i had it decorated with wall stickers that were flowers. it says wisdumb but spelled dumb because i thought that i had wisdom, i thought that i was smart about making the right choices, but really i don't have wisdom, i have dumb. >> a lot of them draw pictures and graffiti or different things like that. any of that is considered damaging jail property. >> hi, ms. day. how are you doing today? >> i'm okay. >> i noticed you got a lot of artwork on your wall.
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>> yeah. >> was that like this when you moved in here? >> no. i was scratching on some of the walls. >> that's what they call damaging jail property. you know, you can be written up for that? >> i didn't know that. >> you can get lockdown time and they can charge you restitution to paint the cell over again. you going to quit doing that? >> yeah. >> i don't want to see anymore the next time i walk by here. >> okay. >> all right. >> i did not write her up at this time. miss day is a young lady. i know i talked to her shortly after she had first come in and she did seem pretty overwhelmed by the whole jail situation. i try to be fair with people. i believe that she probably didn't know that she shouldn't do that, but like i said, if there is any further damage we will take care of that at that time.
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>> i don't think i will be scratching on the walls anymore. >> day says what remains is a source of comfort. >> i just wrote in a few things that i think about as a few of the things that i love. >> what is jts? >> jack taylor spell. i love him. i can't see my life without him. some of the things, they are not good but still i'm attracted to the drugs and money. i can't lie and say that i don't want to do drugs. what made me start trying different drugs was just peer pressure like the influences of other people. i felt like if i was the only one not doing it i would be left out. first it was like smoking cigarettes and smoking weed and cough medicine. it sounds ridiculous, but i was addicted to huffing air dusters
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like canned air. i would have three cans a day. i would have it like constantly near me. i had it in my bed one time doing it before i went to bed. i was really out of my mind. i'm disappointed in myself. i wish that i could have said no. i probably wouldn't be here right now. i know that i wouldn't be here. >> and day says the peer pressure she felt on the outside extends to her life in jail, as well. >> i'm still young and i'm still like a sponge pretty much like taking in everything i'm hearing. this one girl i remember how she described it to me. she was like first you have to try crack and coke and shooting up. and i have been really curious about trying heroin. and they go like, oh, you should try it. it's the best feeling. i'm like what to think. should i? all these people are telling me it is the most amazing feeling.
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i have been tempted big time. >> the jail, however, has offered her a very different opportunity, a spot on the 28 day long substance abuse program but for day it's not an easy decision. >> i know it would help me. it's just my pride. i don't know if i would be able to let myself do that. it's just the fact that people would know, probably all of my family would know where is brooklyn? she is in a rehab. that would be embarrassing to have to say to anyone. coming up -- jack spell and brooklyn day step outside the rules to create a jailhouse e-mail network. >> i can probably get in some kind of trouble if they figured out about it and everything. it helps me get through the day. >> and -- >> you know you are pregnant. why would you want to try to fight somebody when you know you are with child. >> officials hand down sanctions to kathleen blaha and tisha berry.
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i'm page hopkins. flight delays are persisting up and down the east coast, even after a technical failure at a flight control center at virginia has been fixed. and vice president joe biden spoke at a memorial for five servicemen killed in a shooting rampage in tennessee, calling it the act of a quote perverted jihadist" official comments from the fbi said it has not been able to tell if the kuwait-born suspect had been radicalized before that attack. now we're going to take you back to "lockup." every year about 18,000 men and women are arrested and booked at the chatham county detention center in savannah, georgia.
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the vast majority of those individuals are released within 24 hours, either on bail, a promise to appear in court or because their charges have been dismissed. recently, one of the 18,000 booked joined the 1500 or so were incarcerated in the jail until their cases were resolved. jack spell's booking is a little more memorable than most. he says he was still feeling the effects of the drugs he took the night before. >> when they arrested me i was freaking out and i was just like causing a huge scene and stuff and just being the most like incooperable -- is that a word? >> uncooperative. >> i was the most uncooperative like just fighting everything they said, disorderly, being loud and stuff. >> by the time i got here he was
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already in what we call a detox cell and was being loud, disruptive, and i think he used his head a couple times to beat on the door. another deputy went to talk to mr. spell and said if you don't calm down we will have to put you in a restraint chair. mr. spell, first time i ever heard this from an inmate, wanted to go into the restraint chair. so we obliged him. >> spell neither denies nor recalls requesting the chair. but says he didn't enjoy being confined to it. >> they put me in a hard black plastic chair and strapped me down in it with my hands cuffed behind my back and everything. that just made it worse because i was freaking out even more. >> spell and his girlfriend brooklyn day are accused of rummaging through a number of cars and removing items. day was a high school senior at the time of her arrest. >> right now i would be in my second block art class. we're making clay sculptures of a mask.
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so i would be in there with my friends, you know, having fun with clay and art, which i love. >> while the couple awaits trial they are housed in different sections of the jail and are only permitted to communicate by sending letters through the mail. day and spell discovered a new way around that restriction. there is a computer kiosk in each housing unit that inmates use to order commissary and file other requests within the jail. >> they used to come up with you and ask you for a paper request. you have classification forms and all of these forms that we have to get to them through paper. this knocks that out. this is digital. they can request commissary and request to see a counselor. >> inmates may send e-mails to family and friends on the outside for 50 cents a message.
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spell and day, however, have figured out a way to use the kiosks to communicate with each other. >> me and brooklyn have been talking because we went to court yesterday and see, these have your little p.i.n. numbers and stuff on it. i memorized her p.i.n. number so i could get on hers and she could get on mine. we write each other e-mails but we can't send them so we save them as a draft. so whenever she gets back on hers she will see the draft that i saved on her account. whenever i get back on mine i can see the draft she saved on mine. draft for my babe. she will know it's a draft i saved her. i'm pretty sure we are not supposed to be doing this. we can probably get in some kind of trouble if they figured out about it but it helps me get through the day. it's really one of the only thing that keeps me going like reading all of this. it gives me reassurance about how she is going to be there when i get out no matter what happens everything is okay just
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a setback in our life. >> tisha berry and kathleen blaha may be in for a different type of setback. they recently fought and have different ideas as to who instigated the fight. now officers assigned to the incident will determine who played the role of aggressor and what to do about it. >> i am trying to get a clear view of what really happened and add their stories to it and try to piece together everything. all right, so -- >> she said she just swung on her. she hit her. >> so the actual instigator is ms. blaha. >> now she goes back at her. >> each individual hit each other. >> they did. >> basically both of them are going to be charged. >> charge them. >> yes, ma'am. >> even though ms. blaha initiated, they both had an
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equal part in the altercation. and neither one of them were listening to the officer's orders when she was trying to give them orders to separate and lockdown or whatever. in this case we have to charge both of them. >> the charges are strictly internal as the fight is not considered serious enough to file criminal charges. rather than defend themselves in a hearing, blaha and berry sign waivers admitting to the infractions and are given 30 days on lockdown status. >> what room is ms. berry in? >> 42. >> 42. >> yes. >> they will be confined to single person cells 23 hours a day and lose phone visitation and commissary privileges. had they been found culpable in a formal hearing, they could have gotten up to 74 days lockdown. >> y'all kept doing what y'all wanted to do. >> i didn't hit her. >> i told them everything that happened. she was pregnant and older caucasian lady. just told me to take it, don't fight it. >> you take care. >> all right. >> blaha is seven months
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pregnant. >> i do feel that part of it was my fault, but there's nothing really i can do about it. >> do you feel like you were responsible, given the fact that you are pregnant? >> yes, i do. >> private fisher who has dealt with both women in the past agrees with blaha. >> why would you want to try to fight somebody when you know you are with child? common sense tells you let her say what she has to say, you walk away from the situation all together. you have been coming in and out of here long enough to know how things go. you are putting yourself and your unborn baby in danger. that's on her. i don't have any sympathy for her. >> coming up -- jack spell asks for a transfer and winds up sharing a cell with a familiar face. >> it was somebody i knew from the streets, my friend garret. we kind of met through pills. >> i am worried about him losing
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at the chatham county detention center in savannah, georgia steven mcaloon is awaiting trial for allegedly getting violent with his fiancee and stepson during an alcohol-fuelled tirade. he can spend several hours socializing with others his temporary home is a cell but he imagines it as something much more. >> you don't know how long you are going to be here. i don't. you call it your house and treat it like your house. you don't treat it like a jail cell. there are certain things you do in certain parts like you have the master bedroom minus the nice flat screen. this is my dining room/living room.
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there is the kitchen/jail sink. and then, of course, you have a bathroom. >> this actually tastes good. >> mcaloon made friends with a younger inmate in his unit, jack spell. recently spell was transferred to another unit. >> i am worried about him losing it and doing something stupid. everybody is prone to it especially being 19 years old more prone to it than somebody my age. especially him not being certain of what's going to happen. how much time he's getting. for some reason i feel responsible for him. he is not even my son. >> spell's move, however, could be a significant step for the better. he was accepted into the jail substance abuse program. >> the thing is start off with a plan and you start to work that plan. >> it's a 28-day drug and alcohol treatment program. the overall purpose is to get individuals who are addicted to drugs, alcohol to start somewhere. it's 28 days.
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if they have been doing drugs 28 years it definitely is not going to stop the problem right then and there. it's a start. it's a push to get them into the right direction. and that's the ultimate goal, change for the better. >> you got to change the way you look at things, change the way you think. >> obviously got a problem because i keep ending up in jail because of the same [ bleep ]. i figured it will look good in court. i'm trying to help myself out and stuff. >> there is a duplicate program offered to female inmates. >> i have told these girls stuff i never told anybody, not my parents. they have all helped me in a major way. >> among newer participants is spell's girlfriend and co-defendant brooklyn day. >> we just started the program monday. and i think it's really helpful. a lot of people have cried and shared their stories. so it means a lot. >> you consider yourself an addict?
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>> at first i didn't think about it, but we have a piece of paper that has like little scenarios and when you read it, it will tell you like if you're an addict -- like you answer a few questions and then it will tell you if you are or not. and i kind of realized i was. >> day says she now recognizes how easily her addiction influences her. two days into the program she says she traded commissary snacks for another inmate's prescription pills. >> i feel like a failure because i'm in the substance abuse class and yet i'm still thinking about getting [ bleep ] up and doing drugs. i don't know. i'm really disappointed that i did that. but it just felt right at the time. it just makes me think like wow, i do have a problem. i do need to wake up.
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i am an addict. and that really kills me saying that. i really don't -- >> what is it about hearing yourself say that, why does that make you emotional? >> because i never thought that i would say that. i never imagined that -- like i'm 18 years old. i'm not a drug addict. i don't abuse drugs, but, yeah, i am. yeah. it hurts to say it, but it's the truth. a lot of women have actually told me you remind me of myself when i was that age. it's really scary thinking that could be me in 30, 20, 10 years, somebody that is in and out of jail, still an addict. >> though day has never met kathleen blaha she could well be describing her. blaha says her drug addiction
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spanned some 20 years and attributed to homelessness and a variety of prior convictions and incarcerations. >> the crack and the meth mainly. i have done more meth than crack. it has an effect. a lot of people can tell that you have done drugs in the past because of your expressions you make, sometimes the looks that you can make, how you walk and talk. they can tell what kind of drugs you used. when they said that every time i get a chance i look in the mirror and i see what they are saying because it does show. it does show. it's frustrating because as much as you want to hide that part of you, you can't because they can see it. >> now just weeks from giving birth, blaha is confined to a
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single person cell 23 hours per day and has lost privileges such as visitation and commissary for fighting with another inmate. though she agreed to the 30-day sanction and is about halfway through, she says it is getting to her. >> i'm just going crazy in that room. i'm to the point where i'm >> though mental health counselors are available to segregation inmates, blaha hasn't requested a visit. but she has asked for a meeting with lieutenant york to ask for a favor. >> all i'm trying to ask is there's any way to get off lockdown early so i can be around people. >> one, i can't cut your time. i will tell you straight up. you took a waiver, didn't you? >> yes, ma'am. >> when you take a waiver you're saying, i'm guilty, i know i did what i shouldn't have done, and you're going to take the time offered on that waiver. okay? i can't change the waiver you accepted on your own free will. actions, reactions and consequences, right? okay. we're grown here, right?
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you're grown. you have to be responsible for what you say and for what you do. >> yes, ma'am. >> okay? >> thank you. >> you're welcome. >> they want to violate the rules and regulations but they don't want to do the time. kind of like on the streets when you break laws but you don't want to come to jail. >> coming up -- >> get started on this tattoo. jack spell takes a break from rehab and acquires some body art and brooklyn day is left with a major question. >> i really think i might have to consider letting him go. or a mouth breather. a mouth breather! well, put on a breathe right strip and shut your mouth. allergy medicines open your nose over time, but add a breathe right strip and pow! it instantly opens your nose up to 38% more. so you can breathe and sleep. add breathe right to your allergy medicine. shut your mouth and sleep right. breathe right and look for the calming scent of
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by 10:00 each night the chatham county detention center in savannah takes on a different feel from the daytime as all but a select few inmates are locked in their cells. the only ones out and about are part of the jail's maintenance team. >> i'm the night sanitation officer.
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we take care of the cleanliness of the jail at night, sweep and mop the floors, clean the offices, and painting. there's always something to paint. in the rooms paint gets peeled off the walls. walls get scuffed up, scarred up. it's a jail. there's always constant work. >> on the work list tonight is a cell that once belonged to 18-year-old brooklyn day. >> you can tell a lot about the girl. you can tell she's young, she's talented. she's a virgo. she lives in the moment. she loves america. she keeps her head up. looks like she was pretty bored, though. yeah, this one ain't that bad. not compared to some of the rest of them i've done. >> for the past few weeks, day has been living in a housing unit dedicated to the jail's female substance abuse program. >> what is the process from the
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first day you started class to where you're at now, from what you've learned and what you walk away with? >> well, i really never, ever would have thought that i would be going through this. i didn't even think that i had a problem until i was here and sober and able to realize that. >> brooklyn was a big concern for us when she first came in. for a little girl, brooklyn had been taking a lot of crazy drugs and her life was very chaotic. brooklyn has been able to move to a place where she understands that she has a problem and that she is an addict. and that's not easy for someone at 18 years old. >> but i'm going to admit and say honestly that i -- it's not all out of my system. i know that for a fact because i crave drugs all the time in here. >> i guess i'll get started on this tattoo. >> day's boyfriend jack spell is in the men's substance abuse
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housing unit. but spell and his new cellmate are risking their ability to stay in the program by violating the rules. >> it was somebody i knew from the streets, my friend garrett. we kind of met through pills. >> garret has been tattooing spell using among other things a staple and pencil shavings. >> yes, this is a little tattoo parlor right here. >> it's not helpful to have a cellmate that i knew on the streets who was doing -- you know, living this other lifestyle with it. because we're sitting up here, talking and reminiscing about all the [ bleep ] we used to do. then we try to go downstairs and try to change and try to get out and not do those lifestyles. >> thank you. >> you're welcome. >> who is it from? >> it's from jack. >> while day and spell have figured out ways to use the jail's kiosk system to exchange e-mail, they still send each other handwritten letters as well.
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>> i know his feelings towards everything. like he wants to still be with me and have a future and all that. but i don't know. i just -- i've been up and down with it. the biggest factor in my life is jack right now, but he's part of the reason i'm in here. and i really think i might have to consider letting him go. i really don't want to do that. i don't want to have to put this person out of my life, but if it causes me this much trouble then, you know, it's something i might have to do. but he would have to make big changes in his life in order to have me in his life as well.
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due to mature subject matter viewer discretion is advised. >> living with somebody's blood on your hand. >> after running a man down with his car one inmate prepares for life behind bars. >> when i wake up i see something that i can't change. >> a hazard. >> accused of knowingly exposing women to the hiv virus another

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