My wife and I founded this website in 1996. Since that time we've published many hundreds of articles by many authors from allover the world. Occasionally we publish a personal story when we believe it may benefit some of our users (we get over 10,000 hits a day). Ours is by far the largest and most popular website of its kind in the world. My personal experiences with a prison guard and the subsequent suit may be interesting or useful to others. Mike Conti is more than a little strange. Starting at age 34, in 2004 he became a guard at the state prison at Frackville in East-Central Pennsylvania. He's the kind of guy who stood at my cell door repeating "What's up, doc? What's up, doc? What's up, doc?" That's strange. He's the only guard peculiar enough to like to watch me shit. That's 'REALLY strange! For some reason he wanted to think I'm a homosexual. Once he called me "peter-puffer." It's not uncommon for persons to see queer things in others where they are really in themselves. Mr. Conti was the kind of prison guard who said things like he was going to help me "get dead." He seemed to be in desperate need of attention, almost any kind of attention. Perhaps he'd been picked on as a kid. He puts one in mind of a guy who'd be picked on by normal kids. For some reason, this strange fellow became infatuated with me. Perhaps there are no likely gentlemen in Ringtown. In April 2006 he started to harass me, to threaten me and to call me names. He wanted me to notice him, to care about him. Being obnoxious seemed to be his only way to get attention. He's got nothing else going for him. I ignored Mr. Conti for months. He's easy to ignore. When he persisted to the point of awakening me in the middle of the night, I realized that I'd have to take action. Following the required procedure, I submitted a pointless prison grievance. They aren't really intended to solve problems. They're intended to obstruct access to the courts. Of course, my prison grievance was denied, but it took a long time. I couldn't bring suit until March of 2007. One interesting twist was the answer I got to my grievance. It was answered by a guy named Sean Downs, who purported to be a guard lieutenant. Records show that he was paid over $2250 every other week for his dubious contribution to Pennsylvania law and order. Mr. Downs used the grievance reply to first defame and then threaten me. I had to add the overpaid Mr. Downs to the suit by charging him with libel and obstruction of justice. Even after being badgered by a self-important middle manager, I couldn't go to court until Central Office added it's NO! I won't reproduce the whole legal complaint. It's lengthy and technical as all things legal must be. However, I've reproduced the statement of facts so the reader can see (a) how a legal statement of facts may be drafted and (b) get an idea of what Defendant Michael J. Conti did. Statement of Facts. Persons with personal information about Michael Conti, his past, his conduct or his psychological condition are invited to email the information to us if it will help with the suit. Debra Sue Thinks She's a Lawyer Rebecca's Bargain Antiques Collectible Vintage Photos Fine Prints - Old Maps Sheet Music - Old Books Elegant Antiques and Collectibles "Scratch where it itches," Alice Roosevelt Longworth (1884-1980) You are welcome to use or republish any of our material. Please give www.prisoners.com credit as the source. Return to the New and Interesting Items Menu. Return to the Glimpse of Prison Life Menu. Return to the Frackville Prison Menu. Return to the Court Cases of Interest to Prisoners Menu. Return to the Main Menu. Go to our site's Search Engine. Send us Your Comments, Questions or Input.