Boom, bang! Tales from a cell below the ‘crazy unit’ of a US prison

No one seems to care about the incarcerated men with mental health issues who bang and scream above my head

I was moved onto unit 1EE on the south compound inside New Jersey State Prison a year ago. On the floor just above me is 2EE, which is known as the crazy unit".

This unit is where incarcerated men throughout the state are sent when they experience mental health difficulties. It has three cells for suicide watch, where men are stripped down and given turtle suits", thin vests that barely keep them covered. There are no pillows, blankets or sheets. A man is left with only his skin and his wits.

Banging is normal in prison. We hear it all day, constantly.

Kory McClary is a writer for the Prison Journalism Project, a non-profit news organization that provides incarcerated writers with tools and training. As part of a partnership, a reporter with MindSite News, a non-profit news outlet that covers mental health, investigated the death - and life - of the man who had been incarcerated above McClary. That story can be found here.

This story is the product of a collaboration between the Prison Journalism Project, MindSite News and the Guardian US.