TAMPA, Fla. — After the ABC Action News I-Team showed video of an inmate being slapped by an officer at Hamilton Correctional Institution, calls for body cameras inside the third-largest state prison system in the United States are growing.
While the calls grow louder, a man who was sentenced to life in prison at the age of 13 is advocating for prison reform. Ian Manuel shared with the I-Team how he spent 18 years in solitary confinement and how more eyes need to be on a system the public rarely sees.
IN FOCUS:
13-YEAR-OLD SENTENCED TO LIFE
“These types of incidents happen repeatedly within the Florida Department of Corrections, just outside the prying eyes of the public," Ian Manuel told the ABC Action News I-Team.
Manuel said he's speaking out now for the 26 years he couldn't. Manuel was born in Tampa, but he would be raised in prison.
“I eventually fell in with the wrong crowd as a teenager and was subsequently sentenced to the rest of my life in prison as a 13-year-old child for a non-fatal, non-homicide crime," he said.
The crime — a botched robbery attempt in downtown Tampa in the early 90s.
“Peer pressure from my friends, or people I thought were my friends, at that young age," Manuel said.
The victim, Debbie Berkovits, was shot and survived. She forgave Manuel and later petitioned for his release.
“I would have died had it not been for Bryan Stevenson and the Equal Justice Initiative taking my case to the U.S. Supreme Court and subsequently getting that sentence overturned," Manuel said.
That day came after 26 years in prison,with 18 of those years spent in solitary confinement.
FROM 18 YEARS IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT TO ACTIVIST
Now an activist, keynote speaker, and author, Manuel shares his experience in Florida's corrections system to help others.
“I just spoke at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, about the United States and solitary confinement and how it has to end," Manuel said.
He now lives in Brooklyn, where New York City recently banned solitary confinement in city jails.
I-TEAM SERIES | Crisis in Corrections
It was a family member at Hamilton Correctional Institution who sent Manuel the video of an inmate being slapped, which brought him back to his own experience.
"When I was 14 years old, I was slapped repeatedly by a captain and a staff member when I was in confinement," Manuel said. "I never forget that feeling of fear and just helplessness. And so when I seen this new video that was sent to me, it kind of brought up all that old trauma of my childhood, of being abused at the hands of correctional staff.”
Manuel said he couldn't do anything at the time.
"But I felt that now that I’m outside of the prison system, I could do something about it and that’s why I took action and sent it to the legislators and the news media," he said.
LAWMAKER PROPOSES CHANGES
Legislators like Democratic State Rep. Dianne Hart of Tampa, who has made a point to visit 50 of the state's prison facilities, including Hamilton C.I., after she saw the video recorded on a contraband phone.
“I can tell you that that is a very dangerous thing for inmates to do. However, if they were not doing that — how would we know?" Hart told the I-Team.
"They are right now still at the same institution, facing repercussions of telling me about this abuse and the camera and this video," Manuel said.
Legislators proposed a bill during the 2024 regular legislative session that would create a body camera pilot program at Lowell Correctional Institution, the women's prison.
Hart said she tried and failed to get bills passed that would require every officer at all state prisons to wear a camera.
“If there is a use of force? Your camera should come on. Not only are you protecting the inmate, our loved ones, but you’re also protecting your officers. But not having that camera kind of puts you in the dark," Hart said.
The I-Team reviewed violations reported to Florida's Criminal Justice Standards & Training Commission. In the first six months of last year, the I-Team found 36 violations for "excessive force by corrections." The disciplinary hearing results ranged from suspension and probation periods to voluntary relinquishment and revocation.
“I hear the officers have been fired at Hamilton. Had this video not happened, you know, what they would have said? The inmate spit on me. The inmate assaulted me. These are the types of things that they utilize to cover up the rampant abuse that occurs within the Florida Department of Corrections," Manuel said.
The Florida Department of Corrections told the I-Team that since this is an open investigation, further information, including the names of the two officers, is not available at this time.