July 16, 2012Dear Sir,Senator Kim Wilson was invited to Westgate Hotel. She was in the right church but the wrong pew. A few decades ago when Casemates was called the Western Hotel, I want Senator Wilson to know that Westgate would have been known as a guest house and it has a good record of return guests.Three inmates that were interviewed, one serving eight years, another one serving 12 years and the last one is serving life. They all made comments that the place is not a hotel. During the interview not one of them took the opportunity to apologise to the victim and or families.I have contact with lots of ex-inmates and none of them ever said it was rough, as a matter of fact I can tell you a number of stories they have told about their time there. One inmate had three days to find somewhere to stay before he was to be released, he had no one to take him in so he resorted to slapping a prison officer and got six months for that offence. That was his way of staying longer. Another inmate never used drugs before he landed in prison, but he became a drug addict while there. A friend of mine was at the Prison Farm (St George’s) doing ten years. He was given a trusted position to check the gift bags sent to the inmates from family and friends he would help himself to their chocolate, cigarettes or whatever he liked. He was allowed to check the visitors at the gate until one day the Prison Commissioner showed up and caught him doing this and the prison officer in charge that day was disciplined, not the inmate.Do you wonder who runs the prison? These prisoners have a better menu than some of the restaurants, even the schedule is that of a guest house, breakfast 7-8, lunch 12-1, supper 4-5 and a snack 6-7. I am surprised they don have afternoon tea. Their room and board is paid for by the public - seniors, single parents, widows, just to name a few. Doesn’t this sound like a guest house? They are doing a lot better than a lot of us out here.WS FOXSmith’s