Cody: My name is Cody Huggins.
I live in Scottsdale, Arizona.
My father's name was Glen Alan Huggins.
My dad was a great guy,
unfortunately he liked booze and drugs
and that's what got him in a lot of trouble.
You know, did a couple years and then he'd come back,
and he would, either violate his parole
or, you know, do something silly again
to get put back in, so,
just a vicious cycle.
The last time he got locked up,
I didn't see him for eight years.
I get a call from my grandma
that says, "Your dad's not doing well.
He's in bad shape."
and I said, "Oh boy, what's going on?"
And she said, "Well, he's sick," and this and that.
I went and saw him in the Mesa Hospital
and, of course, he's shackled to the bed
by his ankle and his wrist
and he had Hepatitis C,
so leading up to this
they were just treating him as, like
"I guess it's Hepatitis C side effects."
Thing like that.
Things, I guess, like that just happen to people?
But, meanwhile he's continuing to lose weight.
His stomach distended.
Just weak, frail, all the signs
and the nurse was giving him antacids.
Once we, once he finally did see a doctor
at the very end,
that's when they said, "Oh yeah,
stage four esophageal cancer."
Not a big fan of prisons.
I don't believe that they rehabilitate you at all.
The treatment that they should be receiving
is not there.
The doctors weren't there.
The medical devices, they're not there.
The medications, not there.
The last time I saw him in Tucson
before he was released,
I thought that was the last time
I was, I would see him.
He was so weak and so tired
that he just placed his head on the table.
You know, there were times that are a little scary.
You know, you're, "Is he taking a breath?"
I mean, he was that bad. He was very frail,
and I would say, "Well Dad, are they giving you anything?
I mean, are you on..."
like, "No, no son. Nothing."
You look at that and you just think,
it's just not fair treatment.
I went before the Clemency Board
and gave them my side of the story
for the family, spoke on behalf of the family,
and Governor Brewer did sign it
and he was released, so we had him for exactly
seven days before he passed away.
You know, I don't know why my dad
couldn't see a doctor till the very end
to diagnose and say, "Well, yeah,
he's got an imminent terminal illness... "
I don't have a medical degree,
but I could say that.
I mean, if you've seen somebody with cancer,
you know that look
and it was written from head to toe on my dad.
I think the policies definitely need to be set different
to where they are receiving the help they need.
If you have an inmate that has a disability,
he or she should be receiving that, you know, the help.
They're all in for various reasons,
but while they're in, they still,
they're still humans.
Produced by Rooted in Rights
in partnership with Arizona Center for Disability Law
and Disability Rights Washington's
Amplifying Voices of Inmates with Disabilities,
or AVID Prison Project