Alabama inmate activists from an Oscar-nominated film are moved to solitary, attorneys say

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — The Alabama prison system has moved three well-known inmate activists who supported a 2022 prison strike and were featured in an Oscar-nominated documentary about the troubled system to isolated cells with little contact with others, family members and attorneys said.

Family members of the three men said they fear for their loved ones’ safety and are concerned the moves to solitary confinement are a form of retaliation for outspokenness about problems within the prison system. Robert Earl Council, Melvin Ray and Raoul Poole were transferred two weeks ago from their existing prisons to solitary confinement at Kilby Correctional Facility outside Montgomery, Alabama, their lawyers said. The transfers come as some groups have encouraged a new prison labor strike this year.

“This is straight-up retaliation,” said Julie Sledd, who is close to Poole and spoke to The Associated Press about his situation. “They’ve all three been very involved in standing up for the rights of incarcerated citizens.”

Council, Ray and Poole were featured in “The Alabama Solution,” a documentary about the state prison system that relied heavily on cell phone footage from inmates. The film has been nominated for an Academy Award in the documentary category.

Sledd said she has been able to talk to Poole once since the transfer and he told her the men are being held in separate cells on an isolated and closely guarded floor.

“Since their arrival, the men have been cut off from contact with their families and are being held in isolation with no contact with other prisoners or prison staff except for a small group of guards and supervisors,” lawyers representing the three men said in a statement.

The attorneys said the prison system did not provide a reason for the move and said the restrictions “far exceed standard administrative segregation protocols.”

“Given ADOC’s decade-long documented history of excessive force against prisoners and its pattern of retaliation against these specific individuals — including a prior 2021 incident in which four guards nearly killed Robert Council — their attorneys fear for the activists’ safety and well-being,” the lawyers wrote.

The Alabama Department of Corrections cited security concerns as the reason the men were moved, but did not elaborate.

“The transfer of inmates is based on intelligence that they are engaged in activity that is detrimental to the safety and security of the facilities and the public,” prison officials said in an statement emailed by spokeswoman Kelly Betts.

The statement added that “all inmates are safe, secure, and receiving regular meals and other services as needed,” and that they have had legal visits and phone service.

Earnestine Council said Wednesday that she has gotten little information about her son and has not been able to speak with him. Ann Brooks, Ray’s mother, said she hasn’t been able to reach her son, although he was able to make one call to his brother.

“I don’t know what is going to happen or what could happen,” Brooks said.

The moves come as some have pushed for a new prison labor strike this year similar to one in 2022 that drew national attention. Thousands of Alabama inmate workers went on strike that year, refusing to labor in prison kitchens, laundries and factories to protest conditions in the state lockups.

Several inmates told The Associated Press that prisons have recently reduced the amount of food and other items they can purchase each week at the prison commissary, a move that could prevent items from being stockpiled ahead of any strike.

The prison system said in a statement that food service has been contracted out to a new vendor, Aramark, but didn’t elaborate.

“We’re really concerned because they’ve had retaliation and abuse in response to all of their activism,” said Andrew Jarecki, director of “The Alabama Solution.”

“It’s particularly ironic that these men who are incredibly brave — and frankly, scholars — and have learned the law and have been leaders and always observe nonviolent means of protest, are always met with violence by authorities.”