What It's Like In Thailand's Deadliest Prison

[Fatherfluffybottom]

A life sentence for not reporting a friends murder!! Surely more to the story than just that!?

I personally wouldn't be a happy camper if that happened to me!

[maidu]

A life sentence for not reporting a friends murder!! Surely more to the story than just that!?

I personally wouldn't be a happy camper if that happened to me!

I agree. There's got to be more to that. I was told, years ago, by a Thai lawyer, that Thailand has no law against harboring a criminal. It came to my mind when, right after the cop was shot point blank at a nightclub near Don Muang, the top (and only)suspect (Chalerm's youngest son) was harbored for several days by a Thai general. Mai pen rai, from the view of Thai law.

[TinoThailand]

After spending only a year in Bangkoks finnest, I decieded not to transfer back to USA when I had the oppertunity

Thai prisons are a much better alternative, no rapes, little violence and you need not be a "skinHead" "Black" "Hells Angle" or "Hispanic" to survive... to me there was no question, Thai prison is a far safer place,

That story isn't going to sell any books

Why not believe him? If he lied it would be his own lost. I believe him

[Ferangled]

@Brit 1984

Yes you are right; prison inmates are a nice bunch of guys/girls and we should spend even more taxes on making sure they are comfortable (because tax is so low these days)

Maybe we should stop sending money to all them less deserving starving children in Africa and spend it on new gym equipment and bigger televisions for the prison population

Come on!... while a few prison inmates might be more silly than evil, it is crazy to spend time worrying about the level of comfort felt by the prison population as a whole, given the huge number of victims they as a group have left in their wake

Never mind, the bigger problems facing the world today...

Yes, that was my point, obviously....have you even read the OP?

There are clearly some deeply disturbed individuals that require locking up for the safety of others if not themselves, but there's also a considerable amount of decent people that have simply made mistakes, crossed the wrong people or been jailed for insignificant offences. There but for the grace of God go all of us. I see no reason why these people should be treated inhumanely, this is the 21st century.

It's fairly clear from your post that you are not talking about Thai prisons here and haven't visited any. You may associate pumping weights and watching big screens with some US prison shows but I can assure you that most Thai and other developing nations don't offer the same level of "home comforts" as you've seen on the Discovery channel... and please save me the "starving African children" BS, it does nothing to validate your point, and is frankly in bad taste.

Edited May 23, 2012 by Ferangled

[SomTumTiger]

Don't do the crime if you can't do the time.

[Nisa]

Interesting story on CNN.com today

Funny subject, you have many people who are appalled at harsh prison conditions in Thailand but then have many others who feel just as appalled by a prison like this http://edition.cnn.c...cest/index.html

Edited May 24, 2012 by Nisa

[Ferangled]

Interesting story on CNN.com today

Funny subject, you have many people who are appalled at harsh prison conditions in Thailand but then have many others who feel just as appalled by a prison like this http://edition.cnn.c...cest/index.html

On the face of it, it seems like an idyllic holiday spot, shocking to our sensibilities of what a prison "should be", but Scandinavians have historically been far more forward thinking with their penal system than others. I find the re-offending statistics of great interest - 16%, compared with US currently listed at 53%... I wonder how much the tax payer is putting into the care of each prisoner comparatively between Norway and US? Be interesting when you factor in repeat costs of re-incarceration as to which makes more sense on a purely financial level.

Now clearly Bastoy is an exceptional example and more traditional high security jails exist in Norway and are much more akin to those we are used to seeing in the states, the difference being the focus is still on compassionate treatment of prisoners and rehabilitation not punishment; the national re-offending statistics are not much higher though at around 20%, still less than half that of the US.

The goal, Nilsen said, is to create an environment where people can build self-esteem and reform their lives. "They look at themselves in the mirror, and they think, 'I am s***. I don't care. I am nothing,' " he said. This prison, he says, gives them a chance to see they have worth, "to discover, 'I'm not such a bad guy.'

"

In locked-down prisons, inmates are treated "like animals or robots," he said, moving from one planned station to the next, with no choice in the matter. Here, inmates are forced to make choices -- to learn how to be better people.

There's a lot of sense in what this guy is saying; in my opinion the crime levels we see in most countries are a direct result of people being at odds with society, feeling they have no value and nothing to contribute. When you don't even care about yourself how are you expected to care for others or care for the laws of the land?

It's about educating people so that they actually want to be members of society and want to contribute. Giving them a feeling of self worth rather than trying to force compliance and subservience. Crime rates are generally on the rise and if we don't adopt some new methods in dealing with this issue, indeed re-assess the whole way criminality is perceived, we're going to end up with dangerously segregated societies, which we are starting to see today in the US and Europe.

It's also about general social reform and ensuring that we don't have huge rifts in prosperity between those at the bottom and the top - how do you rehabilitate someone if they know on leaving prison they will have no job, no prospects and see a life of crime as their only method to improve the conditions they live in?

Clearly certain individuals have just gone too far for this sort of care, are not capable of rehabilitation into society and simple require removing from any situation where they can hurt others but does this require us to keep them in inhumane conditions and punish them for their sins? Is that the response of a modern, progressive society? To incarcerate and punish it's own?

It's an interesting notion that a truly successful society measures it's success by the treatment and performance of it's weakest members, while a truly failed society seeks to hide and punish the weakest among them.

Edited May 25, 2012 by Ferangled

[LucidLucifer]

The prisons in Bangkok are less deadly because embassy staff visit them. Embassy staff have no say as to what goes on in a prison and can do nothing to prevent anything happening to an inmate. They may be able to ask the prison to put someone in protective custody (the hole), but can only make a request.

Just as they can do nothing for you other than take messages, enquire about your health etc. maybe see that you got a lawyer, but in most cases it is probably to late for that.

I have also written a book, unpublished that in part covers the subject of prisons both foreign and Canadian. The names were not changed to "protect the innocent".

I refuse to say more on the grounds that it would incriminate myself.

And now you're working as a teacher!!!???

[farang000999]

total bs

[moe666]

I would wonder how many Thais in prison are mentally ill. I knew a man who was a mental health worker in the new Mexico State Prison and he said 75 percent were mentally ill. If Thai prisons are similar to the one my daughter-in-laws uncle was in its a cake walk. He could have family visits and the visitors could bring beer and food for a cook out. He had his own cottage and could have walked away because no fence.This was In the Phillipines.

[Deserted]

Having purchased all publications by ex-cons serving in Thailands prisons, I dont think I will be buying his.....apart from 3of them all other publications are badly written and really are not anything new.....just another ex-con after an easy buck.....

Yes but this one is different, he didn't do anything really wrong. He just made a "tragic error in judgment".

I have little interest in books such as these, but the movies are often quite watchable. When a society deprives people of their freedom, then that society needs to provide for their basic care. Prisons don't need to be nice places, but they do need to be livable.

Could I ask what it was he did?

[KKvampire]

Alot of Americans on here referring to the Usa prison system .Some facts I know about their penal system. 1 It has one of the highest rates of imprisonment per head of the population 2.่It has one of the highest rates of wrongful convictions 3.It executes the highest number of any"civilized" country. It not always the conditions im prison but being part of a bigoted politcal and legal system that puts you there in the first place.

Sent from my LG-P350 using Thaivisa Connect App

[moe666]

Alot of Americans on here referring to the Usa prison system .Some facts I know about their penal system. 1 It has one of the highest rates of imprisonment per head of the population 2.่It has one of the highest rates of wrongful convictions 3.It executes the highest number of any"civilized" country. It not always the conditions im prison but being part of a bigoted politcal and legal system that puts you there in the first place.

Sent from my LG-P350 using Thaivisa Connect App

You left out the fact that a lot of the prisons are now run by private companies for a profit, that might explain the huge number of people in prison. The justice system is more than happy to keep those profits rolling in.

[KKvampire]

All paid for by tax payers who dont seem to mind paying for mass incarceration but moan about health and welfare spending

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[me313]

Mr. Hoy describes people being beaten to death by guards in this prison without any legal recourse. People on other posts for Thai Visa describe how murder can so easily be paid for in Thailand. He's trying to bring to light the violence and injustice of this penal system. It doesn't sound like he is trying to make an easy buck but trying to open people to the horrors that are hidden in Thai society. He then makes a comparison with the American prison system, saying it is even more brutal than the Thai system. Prison culture is also hidden and obscured in America and prisons are ways of destroying people's lives through a so-called legal system where they end up in prison, possibly raped or beaten or killed. This should be brought to people's attention more often.

The one big difference that he neglects is that the American system allows for better living conditions. Such as food and cells built for two or four that don't have up to 20 in them. Yes the violence is certainly there many is the prisoner who leaves the U. S. jail in a coffin.

Overcrowding in US prisons is well-known in states like California.

[me313]

Alot of Americans on here referring to the Usa prison system .Some facts I know about their penal system. 1 It has one of the highest rates of imprisonment per head of the population 2.่It has one of the highest rates of wrongful convictions 3.It executes the highest number of any"civilized" country. It not always the conditions im prison but being part of a bigoted politcal and legal system that puts you there in the first place.

Sent from my LG-P350 using Thaivisa Connect App

You left out the fact that a lot of the prisons are now run by private companies for a profit, that might explain the huge number of people in prison. The justice system is more than happy to keep those profits rolling in.

The large number of inmates in US prisons is due to the "War on Drugs", and a high "recidivism" rate. 2/3 of released prisoners return to prison within 3 years of release. It's called "The revolving door" of prison culture. Most of the inmates are minorities (black and hispanic). It's really a war on minorities and the poor who use or sell smaller quantities of drugs than the big dealers or more wealthy white users/dealers.

[me313]

Alot of Americans on here referring to the Usa prison system .Some facts I know about their penal system. 1 It has one of the highest rates of imprisonment per head of the population 2.่It has one of the highest rates of wrongful convictions 3.It executes the highest number of any"civilized" country. It not always the conditions im prison but being part of a bigoted politcal and legal system that puts you there in the first place.

Sent from my LG-P350 using Thaivisa Connect App

You left out the fact that a lot of the prisons are now run by private companies for a profit, that might explain the huge number of people in prison. The justice system is more than happy to keep those profits rolling in.

The large number of inmates in US prisons is due to the "War on Drugs", and a high "recidivism" rate. 2/3 of released prisoners return to prison within 3 years of release. It's called "The revolving door" of prison culture. Most of the inmates are minorities (black and hispanic). It's really a war on minorities and the poor who use or sell smaller quantities of drugs than the big dealers or more wealthy white users/dealers.

The name "Hoy" has a decidedly Latino ring to it ("Hoy" means "today" in Spanish). It's very possible Mr. Hoy's experiences may be due to being of a "minority" culture instead of being from a "Neo-Colonialist" Western country (the US). His harsh treatment in the Thai prison may be learned racism Thai people have adapted from the racist White races that spur investment and real Neo-Colonialism (this is purely opinion).

[Buchholz]

The name "Hoy" has a decidedly Latino ring to it ("Hoy" means "today" in Spanish). It's very possible Mr. Hoy's experiences may be due to being of a "minority" culture instead of being from a "Neo-Colonialist" Western country (the US).

Mr. Hoy is a Caucasian American.

Are any of our long-time Chiang Mai resident members familiar with the Mr. Hoy's past conviction?

T. M. Hoy

http://indieaisle.com/tmhoy1

After extensive travel through Asia, he settled in Bangkok, and then Chiang Mai, located in Northern Thailand. While living there, he made a tragic error in judgment; by not reporting a friend to the police for murder. In 1995, he was given a life sentence

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tm-hoy

[ratcatcher]

Alot of Americans on here referring to the Usa prison system .Some facts I know about their penal system. 1 It has one of the highest rates of imprisonment per head of the population 2.่It has one of the highest rates of wrongful convictions 3.It executes the highest number of any"civilized" country. It not always the conditions im prison but being part of a bigoted politcal and legal system that puts you there in the first place.

Sent from my LG-P350 using Thaivisa Connect App

You left out the fact that a lot of the prisons are now run by private companies for a profit, that might explain the huge number of people in prison. The justice system is more than happy to keep those profits rolling in.

The large number of inmates in US prisons is due to the "War on Drugs", and a high "recidivism" rate. 2/3 of released prisoners return to prison within 3 years of release. It's called "The revolving door" of prison culture. Most of the inmates are minorities (black and hispanic). It's really a war on minorities and the poor who use or sell smaller quantities of drugs than the big dealers or more wealthy white users/dealers.

The name "Hoy" has a decidedly Latino ring to it ("Hoy" means "today" in Spanish). It's very possible Mr. Hoy's experiences may be due to being of a "minority" culture instead of being from a "Neo-Colonialist" Western country (the US). His harsh treatment in the Thai prison may be learned racism Thai people have adapted from the racist White races that spur investment and real Neo-Colonialism (this is purely opinion).

Mr Hoy is probably of Irish descent. Not sure if Ireland qualifies as a neo-colonialist nation?

[FOODLOVER]

I thought Hoy meant itchy ears.