DOC officials direct Anamosa prison staff to remove ‘insensitive’ Halloween display

ANAMOSA — An “insensitive” Halloween display, which seemed to mock inmates, was removed Friday from the front entrance of Anamosa State Penitentiary, after state prison officials were alerted.

“After I was made aware Friday afternoon of the offensive display at the Anamosa State Penitentiary, I immediately directed the institution’s leadership to have it removed,” Iowa Department of Corrections Director Beth Skinner said in a statement to The Gazette on Friday.

A woman who was visiting her son over the weekend contacted The Gazette because she was offended by the display at the front of the prison, an entrance that visitors use when arriving to see loved ones and friends.

The display featured a large cage and inside was a headless scarecrow figure, dressed in an orange prison jump suit. The display included a sign — shaped like a pumpkin — that read, “Doing 30 years in the pumpkin patch.”

The Gazette took photos of the display that was still in place on Wednesday.

“I want to apologize to visiting family members who saw it and for the poor judgment that led to this incident,” Skinner said in her statement. “It was inappropriate and insensitive, and it does not represent the values of our department.”

  Buy Photo

The woman who contacted The Gazette asked not to be identified because she was afraid of possible retaliation against her son because she reached out to the media.

“Seeing this, set my hair on fire,” she told The Gazette Thursday. “It was heartbreaking for all the kids who come to see their family members and they have to see that.”

The mother said her previous experiences with staff at the prison have been positive. They have been kind, respectful and friendly, both on the phone and in person.

“They have always been accommodating and helpful,” she added.

Anamosa State Penitentiary was a medium- and maximum-security prison until earlier this year, when it became a medium-security level facility.

Comments: (319) 398-8318; trish.mehaffey@thegazette.com