That can sometimes take years because of a lack of judges and lawyers and because the administrative system is so lax that files often are lost. There is no attempt to rehabilitate prisoners. It is not uncommon for an inmate to spend five years in jail because there is no such thing as bail. The offense for which the inmate is jailed might ultimately merit only a 30-day sentence. Prisoners complain they spend more than 23 hours a day in their cramped cells.
Fights often break out, and they become brutal.
Another inmate had bitten off a chunk of it. The wound had begun to abcess by the time officials saw it and sent him to an infirmary. He acknowledges the system is ridden with flaws, but says he is doing the best with what he has. Not all inmates are treated alike, though. Ricot Mathieu receives preferential treatment because he is a former soldier, and most of the prison guards are former military.