Mar. 8—Families of individuals who died at Southern Regional Jail are bringing their pleas for an independent federal investigation directly to West Virginia lawmakers Friday at the West Virginia capitol.

Members of the West Virginia Poor People's Campaign, a national organization which focuses on gaining economic justice for poor people in the U.S., is helping organize the rally, which will start at 11 a.m. on the front steps of the capitol in Charleston.

Pam Garrison, West Virginia Poor People's Campaign state chair, said they intend to deliver a petition to Gov. Jim Justice, signed by thousands, calling for a full federal investigation into Southern Regional Jail by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Since 2018, Southern Regional Jail, located in Raleigh County, has seen a 13-fold increase in deaths.

In the last year, 13 people have died at Southern Regional Jail, a prison that is understaffed and over-crowded with inmate reports of neglect and harsh conditions.

"We're in crisis," Garrison said. "It's to the point now where we're expecting to hear of a death every other month."

The West Virginia Poor People's Campaign and the Raleigh County National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) have organized a van to take people from Beckley to Charleston on Friday for the rally.

Elaina Hurley, a board member with the Raleigh County NAACP, said they will meet at the McDonald's on Prince Street in Beckley at 9 a.m. on Friday.

Hurley said they are taking a 15-passenger van to Charleston and have about seven seats left.

Anyone who would like to be part of the shuttle is asked to call Hurley at 304-894-5628 to reserve a spot. Hurley said they may take a second van if there is enough interest.

Hurley said the NAACP wants to do whatever it can to make sure those who want to can attend the rally.

"It's about solidarity," she said. "The NAACP stands for the cause in which the rally is about and that's a moral call to justice. It's about human rights because everybody has the right to live."

Garrison said their petition, which can be found online at bit.ly/3kkqHCZ, has also been sent to U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin.

"He's the senior senator so that's the reason we have called Sen. Manchin out," she said.

Garrison said it isn't just Southern Regional Jail that should be investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice, but all the regional jails in West Virginia.

"Our jail up in Martinsburg (Eastern Regional Jail), number one in (overdoses) and another is number one in suicides," she said. "Why is it so bad that people have to kill themselves in this place? We got questions, and we want answers. And we want Manchin to get involved and help us get a federal independent civil rights investigation."

Garrison said she hopes the rally will not only catch the attention of the state but also the nation.

"We're trying to get national attention on this because they've hid it long enough in West Virginia," she said. "We've got a supermajority down there that has done nothing but cover for each other. And the corruption — this has got to stop ... We might be poor, but we're not stupid."

The rally comes on the heels of a march for justice that took place in Beckley last weekend. It was organized by the family of Quantez Burks, who died at Southern Regional Jail on March 1, 2022.

While the mother of Quantez Burks, Kimberly, said the march was meant to bring attention to all the wrongful deaths that have taken place at Southern Regional Jail, she places significant importance on sharing her son's story.

"My son, Quantez Burks, was murdered on March 1, (2022) at the hand of the (correctional officers) at the Southern Regional Jail ... He was there on a misdemeanor charge for about 14 to 24 hours," Kimberly Burks said. "It's been a year and we still haven't received any answers. We're still seeking justice and we haven't had any acknowledgement ... from the state, from the COs, from (Gov.) Jim Justice, from the mayor to the police department of what happened to him."

Kimberly Burks and the fiancée of Quantez Burks, Latasha Williams, were among the first to speak out about the inhumane treatment of inmates at Southern Regional Jail in early 2022 that later led to a class action lawsuit.

Since then, the family of Alvis Shrewsbury, another inmate who died at Southern Regional Jail, has joined the Burks family in sharing their stories.

Alvis Shrewsbury died on Sept. 17, 2022, after spending 19 days at Southern Regional Jail.

Shrewsbury's family said he died of gastrointestinal bleeding, which neither the state nor the private autopsy could explain.

In December, The Register-Herald also spoke with Malinda "Linda" Harmon Cunningham, the wife of Douglas Cunningham, who died at Southern Regional Jail on Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022.

Linda said she has still not been given information about how her husband died.

The families of Quantez Burks and Alvis Shrewsbury have said they plan to be at Friday's rally in Charleston.

Email: jmoore@register-herald.com