• Student's ordeal: How was Daniel Chong lost in DEA detention?

    K.C. Alfred / Zuma Press

    Daniel Chong appears at a news conference Tuesday in San Diego where he discussed his detention by the DEA.

    By Kari Huus, msnbc.com

    So far, the facts of the case are not in dispute: College student Daniel Chong was picked up by federal agents during a raid on a party in the San Diego area where there were illegal drugs, and after questioning he was left locked up in a holding cell with no water, food or access to a toilet for nearly five days.

     


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    The mystery is the reason for the nearly fatal treatment. How could the federal Drug Enforcement Administration misplace a person in custody? Does it represent one serious mistake or a systems failure?

    "It’s just incredible," said George Kirkham, professor of criminology and criminal justice at Florida State University. "It’s in the genre of a parent locking a child in a car in 100-degree heat … And this is a major federal agency, not a Podunk sheriff’s operation out beyond Yuma."

    See the full account by NBCSanDiego.com and The Associated Press

    Chong, a 23-year-old student at the University of California-San Diego, was taken into custody with eight others during a DEA raid on April 21 of a "suspected MDMA distribution operation." Chong said he had gone to the house to get high with his friends.

    After processing and questioning the nine young men, "seven suspects were brought to county detention … one was released and the individual in question (Chong) was accidentally left in one of the cells," according to a statement from the DEA. 

    Chong said he could hear agents outside his cell, but no one could hear his cries, according to an NBCSanDiego.com/Associated Press report. He said that after 48 hours, he started hallucinating, and that to survive, he drank his own urine. After he was "found" in the cell, Chong spent three days in intensive care at a hospital, according to the report.

    Chong’s case is extreme, and the DEA issued an apology Wednesday.

    "I am deeply troubled by the incident that occurred here last week," said DEA San Diego acting special agent-in-charge William R. Sherman. "I extend my deepest apologies to the young man and want to express that this event is not indicative of the high standards that I hold my employees to. I have personally ordered an extensive review of our policies and procedures."

    DEA would not discuss the case beyond what was said in the statement.

    "The DEA rightfully put out a pretty forceful apology and said they will review procedures … and that is appropriate," said Kevin Sabet, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Florida and a former senior policy adviser to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. "This was an extraordinary situation and, as far as we know, an isolated incident."

    College student Daniel Chong has filed charges against the DEA for $20 million after agents forgot him for almost five days while he sat in a cell so small, he couldn't even spread his arms out wide. KNSD's Tony Shin reports.

    Symptom of systemic problem?
    But organizations advocating the reform of drug laws say that the problem is a symptom of the system of the war on drugs.

    "Not that (Chong’s case) is typical, but that it is an example of what happens when you are arresting millions of people a year and putting them behind bars where all sorts of terrible things happen," said Ethan Nadelman, executive director and founder of the Drug Policy Alliance, which advocates alternatives to the criminalization of drugs.

    According to the Drug Policy Alliance, the number of people behind bars for drug law violations rose from 50,000 in 1980 to more than a half of a million today — a 1,100-percent increase. The group said that in 2008, more than 800,000 people were arrested for marijuana alone — nearly 90 percent for simple possession.

    "The system is unable to meet its basic responsibilities with respect to the people we arrest and incarcerate because there are just too many of them," said David Borden, executive director of StoptheDrugWar.org, which advocates for regulation of drugs instead of prohibition. "There’s a general devolution of standards from the sheer volume."

    Arrest for marijuana possession in April 2003 had fatal consequences for Jonathan Magbie, 27, a first-time offender in Washington, D.C.  Magbie, who was quadriplegic, was riding with his cousin when they were pulled over by police, who found some marijuana and a gun in his pockets. In September 2004, a judge sentenced Magbie to 10 days in jail for the pot, according to a Washington Post report. Magbie needed a respirator at night, but the jail infirmary didn't have one. He died four days into his 10-day sentence.

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    The death led to a substantial settlement for Magbie’s mother and changes in the way that the District of Columbia screened inmates with medical problems and disabilities, the report said.

    "A typical characterization from authorities when things go wrong is that it was unacceptable what happened, but the rare exception," said Borden. "In my opinion this misses the central point. In the past few decades we have escalated the drug war and the criminal justice system generally, to the point where we are running huge numbers of people through it, the system becoming incapable of reliably carrying out its basic responsibilities as a result."

    The DEA said that in the April 21 raid that led to Chong’s arrest, it had seized 18,000 MDMA, or ecstasy, pills as well as marijuana, prescription medications and hallucinogenic mushrooms, according to a statement. Agents also reported seizing a Russian M91/30 rifle, a Glock 17 handgun, and a Beretta 92fs handgun, along with thousands of rounds of ammunition.

    "The individual in question was at the house, by his own admission, to get high with his friends," the statement said.

    Chong was not charged with a crime. With his lawyer, Chong announced that he was filing a claim for $20 million against the federal government over the incident.

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  • Student left in cell for 4 days files $20M claim against DEA

    Daniel Chong, a 23-year-old university student who was allegedly forgotten about in a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) holding cell for nearly five days. KNSD-TV's Tony Shin reports.

    By Sarah Grieco and Rory Devine, NBC San Diego

    Daniel Chong, a San Diego student who was left in a Drug Enforcement Administration holding cell for nearly five days after he was allegedly forgotten about, has filed a claim for $20 million after what he described as his "life-altering" experience, NBC San Diego reported.

    The 23-year-old told NBC San Diego that he was increasingly worried throughout the days he spent in a 5-foot-by-10-foot cell, and told how he drank his own urine to survive.

    “They never came back, ignored all my cries and I still don’t know what happened,” he said. “I’m not sure how they could forget me.” 

    As NBC San Diego was first to report Saturday, the DEA confirmed its agents were investigating an incident in which a suspect, arrested Saturday, April 21, was detained at their office for several days and allegedly forgotten about. 

    DEA apologizes to student left for days in cell with no food or water

    Chong's lawyers filed the claim Wednesday, and also asked the DEA provide evidence related to the incident. The DEA said it was investigating why the student was not released.

    Chong said he was at a friend’s house in University City celebrating 4/20, a day many marijuana users set aside to smoke, when agents came inside and raided the residence. Chong was then taken to the DEA office in Kearny Mesa. 

    He said agents questioned him, and then told him he could go home. One agent even offered him a ride, Chong said. No criminal charges were filed against him. 

    But Chong did not go home that night. Instead, he was placed in a cell for five days without any human contact and was not given food or drink. In his desperation, he said he was forced to drink his own urine.

    “I had to do what I had to do to survive ... I hallucinated by the third day,” Chong said. “I was completely insane.” 

    Chong said he lost roughly 15 pounds during the time he was alone.

    His lawyer, Gene Iredale, confirmed that Chong ingested a powdery substance found inside the cell. Later testing revealed the substance was methamphetamine. 

    After days of being ignored, Chong said he tried to take his own life by breaking the glass from his spectacles with his teeth and then attempting to carve “Sorry mom” on his arm.

    He said nurses also found pieces of glass in his throat, which led him to believe he ingested the pieces purposefully. 

    Chong said he could hear DEA employees and people in neighboring cells. He screamed to let them know he was there, but no one replied.


    He kicked the door, but no one came to get him. By the time DEA officers found Chong in his cell Wednesday morning, he was completely incoherent, said Iredale. 

    “I didn’t think I would come out,” Chong said. 

    He said when employees discovered him in the cell that they looked confused and nervous. A DEA employee rode with him to the hospital, where they paid for Chong’s visit. 

    He spent three days in the intensive care unit at Sharp Hospital and his kidneys were close to failing. 

    “He was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Iredale, who compared Chong’s experience to the torture suffered by inmates at in the Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, Iraq.

    The incident also caused Chong to miss his midterms at UCSD. He said he does not know if he will return to school because his perspective on life has changed since his isolation. 

    San Diego defense attorney Gretchen Von Helms said Chong could get millions from a lawsuit. 

    "In all my years of practice, I've never heard of the DEA or any federal government employee simply forgetting about someone that they have in their care," she said. 

    "There has to be repercussions if people do not follow the safety and the care when they have a human being in their custody," she added. 

    The Drug Enforcement Administration has issued an apology to Chong. 

    DEA San Diego Acting Special Agent-In-Charge William R. Sherman said in a statement Wednesday that he was troubled by the treatment of Chong and extended his "deepest apologies" to him. He has ordered an extensive review of his office's policies and procedures. 

     

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  • DEA apologizes to student left for days in cell with no food or water

    KNSD-TV's Tony Shin reports.

    By Sarah Grieco and Rory Devine, NBCSanDiego.com

    Daniel Chong, the UC San Diego student who was left in a Drug Enforcement Administration holding cell for nearly five days, said the time spent there was a life-altering experience. On Wednesday, the DEA apologized for the incident.


    The 23-year-old spoke with NBCSanDiego and said he was increasingly worried throughout the days he spent in a 5-foot by 10-foot cell. “They never came back, ignored all my cries and I still don’t know what happened,” he said. “I’m not sure how they could forget me.”

    In a statement, DEA San Diego Acting Special Agent-In-Charge William R. Sherman said he was troubled by Chong's treatment and extended his "deepest apologies" to him, The Associated Press reported.

    Sherman said the event is not indicative of the high standards to which he holds his employees, AP said. He said he has personally ordered an extensive review of his office's policies and procedures.

    NBCSanDiego was first to report Saturday that the DEA confirmed its agents were investigating an incident in which a suspect, arrested April 21, was detained at their office for several days and allegedly forgotten about.

    Chong said he was at a friend’s house in University City celebrating 4/20, a day many marijuana users set aside to smoke, when agents came inside and raided the residence. Chong was then taken to the DEA office in Kearny Mesa.

    He said agents questioned him, and then told him he could go home. One agent even offered him a ride, Chong said. No criminal charges were filed against him.

    But Chong did not go home that night. Instead, he was placed in a cell for five days without any human contact and was not given food or drink. In his desperation, he said he was forced to drink his own urine.

    See video, read the full story at NBCSanDiego.com

    “I had to do what I had to do to survive …. I hallucinated by the third day,” Chong said. “I was completely insane.”

    Chong said he lost roughly 15 pounds during the time he was alone. His lawyer confirmed that Chong ingested a powdery substance found inside the cell. Later testing revealed the substance was methamphetamine.

    After days of being ignored, Chong said he tried to take his own life by breaking the glass from his spectacles with his teeth and then attempting to carve “Sorry mom,” on his arm. He said nurses also found pieces of glass in his throat, which led him to believe he ingested the pieces purposefully.

    Images: Man "Forgotten" in DEA Custody

    Chong said he could hear DEA employees and people in neighboring cells. He screamed to let them know he was there, but no one replied. He kicked the door, but no one came to get him.

    By the time DEA officers found Chong in his cell Wednesday morning Chong was completely incoherent, said Iredale.

    “I didn’t think I would come out,” Chong said.

    He said when employees discovered him in the cell that they looked confused and nervous. A DEA employee rode with him to the hospital, where they paid for Chong’s visit.

    Watch the most-viewed videos on msnbc.com   

     

    He spent three days in the intensive care unit at Sharp Hospital and his kidneys were close to failing. 

    Chong and his lawyer spoke to the media on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the claim they will file with the federal court system on Wednesday.

    “He was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said his lawyer Gene Iredale, who compared Chong’s experience to the torture suffered by inmates at in the Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad, Iraq.

    Student in DEA custody forgotten without food or water for days

    The incident also caused Chong to miss his midterms at UCSD. He said he does not know if he will return to school, as his perspective on life has changed since his isolation.

    San Diego defense attorney Gretchen Von Helms said the victim could get millions if he files a lawsuit.

    "In all my years of practice I've never heard of the DEA or any Federal government employee simply forgetting about someone that they have in their care," she said.

    "There has to be repercussions if people do not follow the safety and the care when they have a human being in their custody."

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