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To Whom It May Concern,
I am writing to express my deep concerns about the ongoing corruption and negligence within the prison system, specifically regarding the treatment of my husband, Ryan Epperson, who is currently serving a 7-year sentence for drug-related offenses. Ryan is battling addiction and should be receiving the help and rehabilitation he desperately needs, not being placed in environments that further perpetuate the cycle of substance abuse and institutionalization.
Prior to Ryan’s sentencing, while he was still in county jail, I worked diligently with Spectrum and Momentum to get him diagnosed and approved for inpatient rehab. This program would have given Ryan the chance to get clean and receive the treatment he so desperately needs. However, despite all of these efforts, the prosecutor refused to allow this option, even denying any bond reduction or paper bond that would have permitted Ryan to attend rehab. It is beyond comprehension that in all of Ryan’s drug-related offenses, he has never once been offered drug diversion programs—only prison time on yards filled with drugs that are frequently brought in by staff.
Instead of receiving the proper treatment for his addiction, Ryan was sent to Red Rock Correctional Center, a prison riddled with Fentanyl, the very substance that has plagued his life for years. How is it acceptable that an institution meant for "correction" is teeming with the very drugs that inmates like Ryan are trying to escape from? This system is setting him up for failure.
After just one month, Ryan was transferred to another facility (La Palma), where he was greeted by a correctional officer telling the new inmates, "You're in the trenches now. Welcome to La Pillma." Such a statement is indicative of the toxic and dismissive attitude that pervades these facilities, further proving that these environments are designed not for rehabilitation, but for institutionalizing inmates even more deeply.
How is this acceptable? Rather than offering Ryan the help he needs to break free from addiction, he is being pushed further into environments filled with temptation and danger, where drugs are readily available, often brought in by the very people meant to oversee his care and safety. Are they trying to make him even more institutionalized than he already is?
To make matters worse, while Ryan is fighting all of this, I am also facing my own battle. As a former correctional officer, I am now facing felony charges stemming from Ryan’s relapse and the possession of substances found in our car. Ryan has taken full responsibility for this, yet the county is using my former profession as a correctional officer to sensationalize the case against me. Despite my innocence, they seem determined to make an example out of me for the sake of clout.
As a result, I am being forced into homelessness, unable to secure employment, with my disabilities worsening to the point that I am now pending permanent disability. I have no income whatsoever, and I am left to fight not only for my own freedom but for my survival. I am battling the very real threat of homelessness, while living with agoraphobia—conditions that make it nearly impossible to survive alone. All of this is happening because my husband, who is a drug user, is being further institutionalized by a system that claims to rehabilitate but instead perpetuates the cycle of destruction.
This is not justice. This is not rehabilitation. The system is failing Ryan, it is failing me, and it is failing countless others in similar positions. It is incomprehensible that rather than offering drug diversion, support, and rehabilitation, the solution continues to be prison yards overflowing with the very substances that destroy lives.
I implore you to investigate this situation and take the necessary steps to ensure that the prison system is held accountable for its actions. Ryan deserves a real chance at recovery, and I deserve a fair chance to clear my name without being used as a pawn in a system desperate for "wins."
Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to your prompt response.
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