Family of California Man Jailed for 23 Years Pleads for Parole After Alleged Abuse From Guards

January 4, 2021

Loved ones of a 41-year-old man incarcerated since his teens are appealing to California Governor Gavin Newsom for parole due to alleged threats over his health and life.

Searching for justice: Jeenha Huh started a petition on Change.org to bring attention to her brother, John Huh, who was jailed for a non-violent crime when he was 18 years old.

Despite it being his first offense, Huh was given a maximum 28-year prison sentence by Los Angeles superior court Judge Moony.
Huh reportedly earned the ire of some correctional officers following an unspecified incident that “led to two officers being dismissed from the facility.”
Shortly after, Huh was stabbed in the neck by an inmate and had since been continuously hunted down by correctional officers and members of the Investigations Services Unit (ISU) who would allegedly start conflicts with him and beat him.
Huh’s niece, Paris Kang, recently took to Instagram, sharing that while her uncle “made wrong decisions at a young age and ultimately accepted the consequences,” he made efforts to change and become better.

While in prison, Huh has married, raised a stepson, graduated high school with honors, completed a GE in Biblical Studies and finished with a degree in Psychology.
Huh, who suffers from weak kidneys, high blood pressure and stage 4 fibrosis, also contracted Hepatitis C which escalated from stage 2 to 4 before getting treatment.
The petition noted that due to his health condition, he is vulnerable to COVID-19 if exposed.

Alleged abusers named: Both Kang’s post and the petition mentioned the names of officers Portee, Kennedy, Perelpa and Ramos as the corrupt correctional officers and ISU involved in beating and abusing Huh. They also claimed that there is a plot to kill Huh and make it appear as a suicide.

Kang shared that the named officers allegedly tried to “handcuff my uncle to drag him to the showers in the middle of the night and kill him.”
Huh had been able to stay alive by spending most of his time in the hole (solitary confinement) and infirmary (hospital).
Attached in the petition is a voice recording of Huh narrating how the officers have been tormenting him in the last couple of weeks.

Feature Image via Stop the death of John Huh Petition

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