Biography
Daud Obika Tulam, whose name was misspelled as “Daud Obida Tulam” on a widely circulated political-prisoner roster, was a New Jersey prisoner and control-unit plaintiff. His underlying 1980 convictions were for armed robbery and assault, not a political offense; as a second offender, he received an extended term of twenty to forty years. Tulam nevertheless became a politically targeted prisoner inside New Jersey State Prison. He spent eighteen years in the Management Control Unit, where prisoners were confined alone for roughly twenty-three hours a day. The American Friends Service Committee reports that New Jersey corrections officials told journalists that Tulam and two other filmed MCU prisoners had not been placed there for violating prison rules, in reporting about the political use of isolation. Tulam was released in July 2004 and later gave public testimony about the effects of prolonged isolation. His historical prisoner number was 55657; “CN-861” in the old roster was New Jersey State Prison’s mailing code, not part of that number.
Independently identified photograph
NPR reporter Laura Sullivan interviewed Daud Tulam after his release from New Jersey State Prison. The accompanying photograph explicitly identifies him and credits Douglas Hopper, NPR. His New Jersey custody and eighteen years in isolation match this profile, independently of the old prisoner roster. The original 200 by 150 photograph is preserved unchanged; its precise exposure date and reuse license are not established. The July 28, 2006 publication date is not a prison release date, and the reported approximately twenty-five years is not used to calculate an admission date.
Source: Laura Sullivan, NPR, original report republished by KNKX; original Douglas Hopper photograph. Existing custody dates remain unchanged.
