WASHINGTON — Close to three dozen people currently residing in Washington D.C.'s jail, charged with crimes related to the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, believe they are living in inhumane conditions.
So, they requested they be moved to Guantanamo Bay, NBC News and NPR reported.
In a seven-page letter recently submitted in federal court, the 34 defendants detailed issues they had, allegedly including no access to religious services, "black mold" in the food and on the walls, and being abused by guards, the news outlets reported.
According to the news outlets, the defendants also claimed that their laundry was returned covered in "brown stains, pubic hair and or reeking of ripe urine."
The defendants wrote that "due to malnourishment," they have reportedly experienced hair loss and loss of sight, the news outlets reported.
In the letter, they ask they be moved to the U.S. detention camp because it has "nutritional meals, routine sunlight exposure, top-notch medical care, is respectful of religious requirements, and has centers for exercise and entertainment," NBC News reported.
According to the United States Government Accountability Office, the facility in Cuba houses "individuals captured during overseas counterterrorism operations," CNN reported.
In an April press release, the Department of Defense said 37 men are currently detained at Guantánamo Bay.
This isn't the first time the Washington D.C. jail has been scrutinized about its conditions.
Last November, the U.S. Marshals Service announced in a press release that they moved 400 inmates from the jail to a prison in Pennsylvania after an unannounced inspection the previous month "revealed that conditions there do not meet the minimum standards of confinement as prescribed by the Federal Performance-Based Detention Standards."
Some defendants who signed the letter include David Dempsey and Ronald Sandlin, NPR reported.
The media outlet reported that Dempsey is accused of attacking police officers with a metal pole, and Sandlin allegedly assaulted officers twice on separate occasions while inside the Capitol.
