Jason Robb is
on a hunger strike beginning with the evening meal on June 6. He is demanding
that he be transferred to Chillicothe Correctional Institution and treated like
any other death row prisoner. Chillicothe CI currently houses all but six of Ohio 's
death row prisoners.
Robb started the hunger strike after his appeal of his level 5 security review was denied. In a letter to Warden David Bobby announcing the hunger strike, Robb says: "I have decided not to play this sick twisted game of revenge by the administration any longer, I am not a puppet." Jason Robb has been held on 23 hour a day lockdown for 19 years. He has been atOhio 's super max prison, Ohio
State Penitentiary (OSP) since the facility opened 13 years ago. In that time
he has only had two non-violent rules violations, and has participated in many
of the programs offered to level 5 prisoners.
In his appeal, Robb stated that no one is able to tell him what the facility requires him to do transfer off security level 5 and join the rest of death row. In his denial of this appeal, Warden Bobby admits that "Robb has not had any disciplinary dispositions of guilt or conduct reports since his last security review [and] has displayed good interaction with staff and other inmates". Warden Bobby explained his denial of Robb's appeal with a mischaracterization of his placement offense, a conviction that arises from the Lucasville Uprising at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility (SOCF) in 1993. The Warden states that Robb "participated in the murder of Officer Vallandingham and Inmate Summers [sic]" but Jason Robb was not convicted of those offences. According to the Supreme Court of Ohio in State v. Robb, which Warden Bobby cites as evidence: "the state never asserted that defendant personally killed Vallandingham and Sommers... but only that defendant was guilty under the law of complicity (page 75-76)." This guilty conviction was based on unreliable informant testimony and is currently being appealed in federal district court.
Robb started the hunger strike after his appeal of his level 5 security review was denied. In a letter to Warden David Bobby announcing the hunger strike, Robb says: "I have decided not to play this sick twisted game of revenge by the administration any longer, I am not a puppet." Jason Robb has been held on 23 hour a day lockdown for 19 years. He has been at
In his appeal, Robb stated that no one is able to tell him what the facility requires him to do transfer off security level 5 and join the rest of death row. In his denial of this appeal, Warden Bobby admits that "Robb has not had any disciplinary dispositions of guilt or conduct reports since his last security review [and] has displayed good interaction with staff and other inmates". Warden Bobby explained his denial of Robb's appeal with a mischaracterization of his placement offense, a conviction that arises from the Lucasville Uprising at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility (SOCF) in 1993. The Warden states that Robb "participated in the murder of Officer Vallandingham and Inmate Summers [sic]" but Jason Robb was not convicted of those offences. According to the Supreme Court of Ohio in State v. Robb, which Warden Bobby cites as evidence: "the state never asserted that defendant personally killed Vallandingham and Sommers... but only that defendant was guilty under the law of complicity (page 75-76)." This guilty conviction was based on unreliable informant testimony and is currently being appealed in federal district court.
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| Robb after the 1997 occupation of death row |
The Warden also cites an incident on death row at Mansfield
Correctional Institution in 1997, when prisoners took over a pod for a few
hours. According to prisoner
accounts the take over was peaceful until the SWAT team stormed the
pod. They found Jason Robb in his cell, ordered him to strip to his underwear,
which he did without objection and then they severely beat him. In his denial
of Robb's appeal, Warden Bobby encourages Jason to "continue to interact
appropriately with staff and other inmates and to remain compliant with
institutional rules".
Robb participated in a hunger strike in January of 2011
where he and 4 other prisoners sentenced to death following the Lucasville
Uprising won a set of demands bringing the conditions of their confinement
closer to those of death row prisoners housed at OSP. Since then death row has
been moved to Chillicothe , but six
level 5 prisoners remain behind. Jason Robb states that he "will not eat
until [he] is at Chillicothe CI, Death Row Unit around other death sentenced
prisoners and treated and given the same privileges they have".
You can read Jason Robb's full letter at LucasvilleAmnesty.org.
Sign Jason's petition.
Write Jason:
You can read Jason Robb's full letter at LucasvilleAmnesty.org.
Sign Jason's petition.
Write Jason:
Jason Robb
OSP308-919
878 Coitsville-Hubbard Rd
Youngstown , OH 44505
OSP
878 Coitsville-Hubbard Rd
Contact Warden Bobby:
Warden David Bobby
Ohio State Penitentiary
878 Coitsville-Hubbard Rd
Youngstown , OH 44505
(330) 743-0700 ext. 2006
JoAnn.King@odrc.state.oh.us
(330) 743-0700 ext. 2006
JoAnn.King@odrc.state.oh.us
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