pelican bay, tehachapi and corcoran. they had their core support. they have a list of demands about overhauling how the units are run and why and how inmates get in and how they get out. the big plaint among inmates and their supporters is to get out you have to betray the gang or have to snitch. for a gang member that's dangerous. if you're not in the gang and you're expected to renounce the gang, you're in something of a catch-22. >> belva: so where does this go now? with both sides saying they haven't -- one saying there was a give and the other said there wasn't. >> the department has said they're conducting a system -- a widespread comprehensive assessment of their policies in terms of gangs and these security housing units. they haven't said they will make any major changes but they're doing an assessment. we found out this week they made an assessment four years ago. there were recommendations. they haven't been imp llementim. we have to wait and see. >> belva: josh, your story has nothing to do with prisons or gangs but the one topic in this

in an ice are in pelican bay i should say. actually do not see the sun for decades and another thing just for your viewing audience to understand the nature of the problem they do and don't hear music for decades just imagine being in the situation where you hear music no more. could you tell us about your personal situation like you said again you were in solitary confinement for a time a lot of international organizations would say that that's something that amounts to torture when you describe it that way. i would absolutely describe it that way if you look at the conditions and i'd like to focus on the conditions that tens of thousands of prisoners of facing today. their estimates are up to as high as one hundred thousand prisoners are in or confined in isolation cells and at pelican bay what i understand is that prisoners are in a cell no larger than a small bathroom they have a concrete slab protruding from the wall which is their bed and they have a sink in the toilet and it's a soundproof room and there should say it's

but i was never subjected to any treatment like this that's going on in pelican bay where people are subjected to is being in a prison cell that's in many cases no bigger than a bathroom and it's windowless. in many cases it's soundproof you can't hear you know prisoner in an adjoining c.e.o. and also they are held under those conditions for twenty three hours a day and they're only let out every time they're let out of the cell they're subjected to a cavity search in their handcuff by guards so these are horrendous conditions i think is nothing short of torture and it's not consistent with international law i think a lot of people have even called it torture i know this sort of came to light a little bit with bradley manning the private first class accused of leaking a lot of information to the whistle blowing web site wiki leaks he was previously in solitary some really harsh conditions and so it was sort of in the discussion in the light for a little while do you see things changing much. i don't see them changing in that regard i think i'm very impressed with what these prisoners

of the american friends service committee she's a mediator with the pelican bay prison hunger strike and co-author of the book beyond prisons a new interface paradigm for field prison system laura welcome and my apologies if i mispronounced your last name. said my how do you say it. i'm yawning thank you very much but kind of abuses of the prisoners striking against. oh this is a really serious problem that they're facing very long term isolation i think most people don't know that we even did that since country but there are thousands of christians who are currently in their time inside prisons in criminal law and situations so much very confined situation sensory deprivation situation and their fear for years that it's time some people have been near islamist for years mostly here or there because somebody seduced them to be gang related a gang related that's not necessarily confined to gang activity and trying to association some kind of content. so it's a very nice it spread problem and in prisoners don't have very many options of trying to hunt and. one of the prisoners demands.

that strike started with prisoners at pelican bay who want an end to isolation units. multiprison hunger strike shows just how far prison gangs can reach. the ktvu spoke to one man who's seen the conditions at pelican bay and he offered a different view. >> those are people who normally would be at each other's throats. so for them to be together, different gangs supposedly that are at each other's throats more shows the gang type. it just shows that they are being treated wrong and they've come together for a cause. >> almost 700 inmates from at least five prisons are refusing to eat their meals. >>> amazon.com and the state are likely headed to court over an online sales tax. amazon is pushing it's state ballot to pass a tax on internet sales. many small business say amazon should pay the same taxes they pay. >> 7.75% or it was $8.75 you know it's a big hunk of money. >> we're looking at 500 million to a billion a year once you know all internet retailers are really collecting the sales tax on california purchases. >>> amazon says quote californians deserve a voice a

that strike started with prisoners at pelican bay who want an end to isolation units.ultiprison hunger strike shows just how far prison gangs can reach. the ktvu spoke to one man who's seen the conditions at pelican bay and he offered a different view. >> those are people who normally would be at each other's throats. so for them to be together, different gangs supposedly that are at each other's throats more shows the gang type. it just shows that they are being treated wrong and they've come together for a cause. >> almost 700 inmates from at least five prisons are refusing to eat their meals. >>> amazon.com and the state are likely headed to court over an online sales tax. amazon is pushing it's state ballot to pass a tax on internet sales. many small business say amazon should pay the same taxes they pay. >> 7.75% or it was $8.75 you know it's a big hunk of money. >> we're looking at 500 million to a billion a year once you know all internet retailers are really collecting the sales tax on california purchases. >>> amazon says quote californians deserve a voice and

. >>> it has been -- the pelican bay hunger strike. >>> it's been a long time coming, what made this bay area solder's funeral so special and why his casket was so small. >>> protesters dressed in orange jumpsuits marched through san francisco this evening, a show of support for california prison inmate who have been on a hunger strike the past two weeks. we have the story live from the city and it was a small but loud gathering. >> reporter: it was loud. they came right along this stretch of market street and ended up down at the pal street cable car turnaround. at one point activists went face to face with police raising their signs in support of the pelican bay inmates. it started with picking up their signs and wearing orange jumpsuits. >> prisoners have had enough, coming together from class racial barriers to say enough is enough. >> reporter: then a loud and slow march down market street. >> what's the point because there's no transparency or accountability with cdc right now. >> reporter: one activist said he's a former activist from san quentin. >> these people aren't to be r

a vigil was held at pelican bay state prison. prisoners stopped eating july 1st protesting what they call deplorable conditions and say they plan to make a statement with their deaths. >> they are reaching past death to give meaning to their lives through the way they choose to die as opposed to having it be forced on them by the torture of the prison system. >> prison officials say they are concerned but they say nurses are ready to provide medical care to those who want it. >>> new study out there suggests being in prison cuts the risk of death in half for black men. researchers at the university of north carolina chapel hill looked at the records of 1000 men held at some points in north carolina prisons over a decade. being in prison seemed to reduce black men's risk of drug or alcohol-related deaths. fatalities related to cancer. diabetes. cardiovascular disease. suicide. even murder. they are all lower. white men were more likely to die if prison but no difference in the death rate for black and white men behind bars. >> aft

in particular, inmates at pelican bay. they say some inmates are having serious medical issues because of the strike. four were hospitalized on saturday. the strikes are to raise awareness of what the protesters say are poor prison conditions. >> they're humans just like any of us. you know, we make mistakes. unfortunately, the mistakes that they made have landed there, but still are humans, and they need medical treatment regardless of why they're there. you know, they should not just be thrown in a hole and ignored and forgotten about. >> their demands include adequate food, cleaner conditions, and an end to group punishment. prison officials say striking inmates are being monitored and that some are eating and have even gained weight. >>> county officials suspect the noro virus is to blame for a spike in sickness at camp mather. illnesses have already been attributed to the same virus. both camps are located just outside yosemite national park. the towomni camp was closed saturday because of the virus and was reopened y

. >>> supporters of a hunger strike begun by pelican bay prisoners rallied in san francisco today. activists are calling on corrections officials to negotiate with the hunger strikers who are demanding rehabilitation programs. they began their hunger strike on july 1st demanding better housing conditions and treatment by corrections officials. since then, the hunger strike has spread to at least seven other prisons in the state. >>> getting weapons out of the hands of would-be criminals was the mission today in east palo alto. where police, tonight, tell us they're annual gun buyback program netted 75 guns. why this event had particular meaning. >> it is a colt .38 special. >> today in east palo alto. >> i hear gunshots all the time. >> reporter: high-powered firearms. were filtering in off city streets. >> the reason i have the guns, a friend owed me some debt and guns are collateral. >> on this day, willie decided to turn them in for $100 apiece. money he and others gladly accepted from the city's gun buyback program. >> i think it's great. it helps get guns off the streets. >> r

the hunger strike began at pelican bay and has spread to several other prisons in the state. >>> a powerful taxpayer's group is challenging the $150 a year they must pay to cover the cost of wild fire fighting. the fee is expected to generate about $250 million a year. the tax association calls that fee an illegal tax increase and is considering a lawsuit. >>> friends and family of an iraq war veteran are mourning tonight after a bizarre roller coaster accident. army sergeant james hackmer was killed yesterday in upstate new york. officials say the 29-year-old was ejected from a roller coaster during a family outing. he lost his legs in iraq back in 2008. his family says they find comfort in knowing he died doing something that made him happy. >> however long he was on that ride, the minute, minute and-a-half, it was probably the only time in the last three and-a-half years that he felt completely normal. >> his family says they don't blame the theme park for the accident. >>> the public will soon be able to visit the new york ground zero memorial in new york city but not without a ticket.

. >> at pelican bay we saw inmates distilling white lightning.illustration confiscated. >> i saw it in a prison's cell. >> 150 proof. that's not your regular prune alcohol. more sophisticated. >> this is the final result. this here about the equivalent of grain alcohol. extremely potent. >> how does this stuff taste? >> white lightning tastes like whitney without any cut. kool-aid or something. you have inmates who like rot gut. they down it. a lot of these dudes make this stuff. the stuff they're drinking doesn't do anything. >> since drunken inmates can lead to big trouble, correctional officers are constantly on the lookout. >> officers are out there searching cells. they'll find it. three days later, same cell, they're making alcohol again. we have over 3,000 inmates doing this. >>> coming up on "lock up raw" -- >> one of the items he makes the most up, spiders. >> artwork of america's most infamous inmate. [ male announcer ] you sprayed them. thought they were dead. [ laughter ] [ grunting ] huh? [ male announcer ] should've used roundup. am

organizers say they want to show solidarity with hundreds of prisoners, many from pelican bay who are on a hunger strike demanding better conditions. we've learned that within the past hour the prisoners have unanimously rejected a proposal by correction officials. because the document gave no indication that changes would be made. >>> protesters told us that the prisoners have only five straightforward demands. among them an end to group punishment, ishment. the governors office has been silent on this whole matter and they are planning to march on the capital on monday. >>> the men accused of walking out of a san francisco art gallery with a picasso drawing pleaded not guilty this morning. at the same time new information is coming to light about a string of high end thefts mark lugo is accused of committing on both the west and the east coast. claudine wong talked to prosecutors about his case there. >> reporter: we were not able to take the picture of lugo. at issue, three pictures all showing lugo committing crimes. >> i think public safety is absolutely something that this would

this one supporting the prisoners at pelican bay who started the hunger strike two weeks ago. the more than 700 inmates are refusing to eat. they are calling for an end to isolation units. >>> at 8:00 this morning president obama will hold his second news conference of this week about raising the national debt ceiling. coming up for you at 5:15 we will have a live report from our washington, d.c. newsroom on what the president told congressional leaders to do at the end of five days of talks yesterday. >>> back here at home, 56 city employees in oakland are about to lose their jobs over the next couple of weeks. it's all a part of the city's new budget cuts. many of those getting layoff notices are employees responsible for cleaning up public parks and cutting down trees. in addition to that, the police department will be budgeted now for 636 officers this year, 588 next year and beginning in july 2012 the fire department will close two fire houses per day on a rotating basis. >>> several community groups are coming together in san jose to protest the city's decision to bring

inmates in the shoe at pelican bay started their hunger strike last week to protest what they say areinhumane conditions. inmates at a half dozen other prisons are also refusing to eat in support of the pelican strike. since july 1, 5 inmates at various times have refused to eat their state issued food. the department of corrections also says it is reviewing the prisoners grievances. >>> the british girl is lashing out for allegedly hacking into the girl's phone messages. >> their family is completely horrified. they thought this was all over. they lost their daughter. and then >> britain's news of the world is known for its lurid photos and headlines, but they were shocked, she was abducted and killed back in 2002. tom vacar joins us now with why high profile cases like this one has people calling for better internet security and regulations, tom. >> reporter: another awful case of hacking. in fact, websites and servers just like these are constantly under the big hack attack. the british tabloid news of the world has just been accused of hacking into a murdered teenage girls voice m

but we have a pretty good following and the chino and pelican bay, even on the gp yards, there are gay boy gangsters that are not on the sny yard. we're just a group of people that are gay and pretty much stand for our own. you know? that's our car is gay and then pretty much we're -- that's our car. >> while clements says the gbg is not a violent gang, some members can't leave their violent lifestyles in the past. >> i usually go by the nickname demon. i'm a gay boy gangster. >> they call us gbgs. you have to be able to fight to get in the gay boy gangsters. most gay boy gangsters are previous gang members that dropped out or kicked out because of their sexual orientation. on the mainline i ran as a skin head. i just tried to be that guy, the tough guy. someone needed to get beat up i raised my hand. anybody that tries to forcefully take property, rape or in any way hurt a homosexual that can't defend themselves, that's where we step in. we come in and tell them, check this out. this in your one and only warning. leave our people alone. do not put hands on our people. do not try to hu

. >>> inmates in pelican bay have ended their hunger strike. backers of the hunger strikers say the hunger strike continues. inmates began the hunger strike july 1st to protest. >>> a potentially life saving change is coming to ucsf shuttle bus following that deadly accident last week. and sal castaneda is here to tell us what will be added to those buses. >> reporter: one over there has just pulled up. a lot of people use those shuttle buses to get around. but none of those buses have seat belts. and now some are wondering if that would have been the difference between life and death. ucsf says it will begin adding lap belts in the next week and say it is entire fleet should have them by the end of august. ucsf professor kevin mack who was riding to work was killed while shuttling to work. >> i think seat belts on buses would be a good idea. >> reporter: david coleegan was working with dr. mack at the time and regular rides the shuttle. he and others still think it's a safe and valuable service. >> it allows people who work for ucsf as well as

they tried to raise awareness of an inmate hunger strike at pelican bay prison. prisoners at the facility call their living conditions deplorable. last night protestors wound through the streets of oakland, including a stop in front of the north county jail. >>> the city of oakland has secured concessions for all five of its public employee unions, saving the city an estimated $46 million the next two years. in spite of that, the city did send out pink slips yesterday to 68 city employees. their names and jobs have not been released yet. the unions including police, fire and service employees have all accepted new contracts. concessions vary from union to union but do include higher pension costs and pay cuts. members of the local 1021 also agreed to 15 unpaid days off per year. even, so the city says it may still have to ask for more. depending on how much funding it receivers from the state and federal government. >>> new firefighters could see their salaries slashed up to 10%. the city is trying to save money to form a new fire department in october. delay new

they are raising awareness of inmate hunger strikes at pelican bay and other state prisons. the protestors claim inmates are subjected to inhumane treatment such as long confinement in windowless rooms, lack of health care, group punishment, and poor food. >> prisoners have had enough. and they're courageously going on hunger strikes, coming together from across racial barriers to say that enough is enough. >> prison officials say they monitor the health of inmates closely while they have treated a few inmates for dehydration. they say there have been no serious health issues with other prisoners. >>> local families in need are going to receive some help today. six by area food banks will send volunteers it safeway stores throughout the bay area. they'll collect cash and food donation. people can help by buying a specially produced $10 background of groceries. the food will go to needy families and bay area food banks say bay area demand has risen by 45% since 2008. >>> a new trend is moving to marin county and is causing some concern for restaurant owners there. five gourme

the vigil was held outside in oakland yesterday in support of the prisoners at pelican bay that started the strike two weeks ago. just about 700 inmates from at least five prisons are now refusing their meals. they are calling for an end to isolation units. this is the largest coordinated prison protest in state history. >>> time is 6:05. at 8:00 president obama will hold his second news conference of this week about raising the national debt ceiling. coming up at 6:15 we will get a live report from our washington, d.c. newsroom and what the president told the congressional leaders to do after they wrapped up five days of talks. >>> city workers in oakland are about to lose their jobs. it's all part of oakland's budget cuts. many getting layoff notices are workers that clean up public parks and cut down trees. the president obama will be budgeted for a 636 officers this year 588 next year. they are cutting back. starting in july 2012 the fire department will close two fire houses per day on a rotating basis. >>> this morning it could be the final friday for the borders bookstore chain u

at one point activists went face to face with police raising their signs in support of the pelican bay inmates. it started with picking up their signs and wearing orange jumpsuits. >> prisoners have had enough, coming together from class racial barriers to say enough is enough. >> reporter: then a loud and slow march down market street. >> what's the point because there's no transparency or accountability with cdc right now. >> reporter: one activist said he's a former activist from san quentin. >> these people aren't to be released but for human dignity and human rights. >> reporter: more than 1,000 inmates allegedly declined food at one point. inmates say they are subjected to inhumane treatment such as long confinement in windowless rooms, lack of healthcare and poor food. activists say some inmate hunger strikers are facing serious health problems now. earlier this week the cdc said some inmates have been treated for dehydration but say there have been no other serious health issues. tonight police followed the march closely on motorcycles and on foot. at one point the protesters f

i've been in the hot desert, pelican bay, every one of them, major riots with guys getting their headslown off. but here, nothing happens. because they want to keep you on lockdown for nothing. >> what's wrong with change? >> back in ad seg, another inmate faces the icc after fighting with a cell mate. >> they put crazy people in your cell and crazy things happen. he was having problems with somebody else, so they moved him in my cell. if this guy is having problems, why they moving this guy in my cell? i don't need no problems. i had an operation on my testicles, because one of them swelled up as big as a softball. so when they let me out of the hospital, i came back to the cell that i was in, the cell with this guy, and the guy jumped on me and kicked me in my testicles right after i had an operation and hit me in the head with a cup. so i grabbed him and held him and choked him and made him quit. what really happened, nobody really knows, because we were in this cell and an altercation occurred. he wound up getting hurt worse than i did, it so looks like i'm guilty. >> michael calla

want to raise awareness about the continuing hunger strikes in california prisons including at pelican bay. they claim the health of some of the hunger strikers have deteriorated to critical levels. however prison officials say that they as well as court appointed court appointed medical supervisors are monitoring the situations and some prisoners are eating and even gained weight. >>> the city of san francisco accuses a china town pastry shop of underpaying workers. the examiner reports that the city is seeking to recover $440,000 in back pay for seven workers. the city attorney says the employees worked 11 to 14 hour shifts and reportedly received just $3 to $4 an hour. the shop's attorney says the people making the allegations are not trustworthy. >>> former employees of m i p pueblo markets are expected to announced to claiming the san jose based store did not pay them for all their hours worked. the workers say the company retaliated against them when they tried to improve working conditions. mi pueblo has not responded to our request for a comment. >>> let's let sal help you get to w

hundreds of inmates at pelican bay and other prisons are staging a hunger strike.hey are protesting what they call deplorable conditions and say they plan to make a statement. >>> the weekend is finally here and everybody has been asking for sunshine and warmer temperatures all week long. those are going to come around but not quite yet. still seeing cloud cover out there this morning. this shot from our roof you can see a lot of gray out there still. clouds throughout most of the bay area out the door this morning. inland spots, some are seeing some clearing although clouds elsewhere. bay seeing clouds and drizzle out there. seeing some drizzle at the coastline, as well. breezy start and cloudy start. temperatures in the 50s throughout the bay area. inland mid-70s, bay 60s, cloud cover and sunshine peeking through as well at the coastline, keeping it cool in the mid-50s and breezy at the coast. we are still seeing the low in the picture that's keeping us cool. we'll gradually warm up as this high slowly makes its way into the bay area. it's not going to be immedia

they want to raise awareness about an ongoing hunger strike in california prisons including one at pelican bay. they claim the help of some strikers have deteriorated to critical levels but prison officials say they and a court appointed medical supervisor are monitoring the situation. >>> time now 5:17. police in richmond investigating a deadly bicycle accident. it happened yesterday afternoon on the bike trail at point pinole regional shoreline. police say they found a 67-year- old man on the ground about a mile from the parking lot. he was flown to medical center but died later of head injuries. it's still not clear what caused that accident. >>> time now 5:17. check back in with sal for a look at the morning commute. how's it look, sal? >>> looks pretty good, pam. although roads are wet out there, pam and dave. so if you are driving any time soon give yourself a little extra time. you will see traffic doing very well despite the wet weather as you can see here on the san mateo bridge. our camera a little bit wet. so are the roads. but don't have any major collisions right now according to

they it want to raise awareness about the strikes that several prisons including pelican bay.aim they've deteriorateed to critical levels. homeowners are hoping a new bill will provide them help. this will allow people who want to modify their mortgage, the opportunity to do so even if the home is worth less than the -- than what any paid for it. >> we are frustrated. houses -- price have gone down. >> the bill is sponsored by a republican senator from georgia. lawmakers with support from both sides, the bill could soon become law and this would provide a much-needed boost fot real estate market. >>> we're getting if some reaction that mitch mcconnell's backup plan it -- we're getting some reaction that mitch mcconnell's backup plan is it it it it getting criticized -- is getting criticized and it's been rejected. president obama and congressional leaders immediate gent today it trying to work out an -- meet again today trying to work out an agreement. >>> well, ben bernanke is testifying before the house committee as we speak. he says defoughting. it -- defaulting ton this wo

. >> about 100 demonstrators gathered to show support for inmates at pelican state bay prison. the hunger strike has protested positions in its shoe that houses high rate inmates in solitary confinement. no one was arrested. >>> questions are getting louder tonight about whether the captain and crew followed the rules when their fishing boat sank in mexico leaving one man dead and seven others missing. continuing coverage tonight, ktvu's eric rasmussen is live with the fish fishermen who made it back and what experts say should have happened. >> reporter: if one of these boats would go down, a beacon would be set off. it's not sure if that boat even had that beacon in mexico. >> if they would have had some kind of a call out, we would have been rescued within five hours. they would have got all of us out of there. >> reporter: but gary nelson says that never happened. he and another fishermen made it home today. >> in my heart i think he was probably the first man adrift. >> if that would have been me, i would have sent out an s.o. sos. all of a sudden everybody was out. >> rep

. >> about 100 demonstrators gathered to show support for inmates at pelican state bay prison. the hunger strike has protested positions in its shoe that houses high rate inmates in solitary confinement. no one was arrested. >>> questions are getting louder tonight about whether the captain and crew followed the rules when their fishing boat sank in mexico leaving one man dead and seven others missing. continuing coverage tonight, ktvu's eric rasmussen is live with the fish fishermen who made it back and what experts say should have happened. >> reporter: if one of these boats would go down, a beacon would be set off. it's not sure if that boat even had that beacon in mexico. >> if they would have had some kind of a call out, we would have been rescued within five hours. they would have got all of us out of there. >> reporter: but gary nelson says that never happened. he and another fishermen made it home today. >> in my heart i think he was probably the first man adrift. >> if that would have been me, i would have sent out an s.o. sos. all of a sudden everybody was out. >> rep