About 150 men gathered at San Quentin’s Protestant Chapel to praise dozens of graduates of a prosocial program designed to teach empathy, self-control, and humility.
Incarcerated Men Putting Away Childish Things (IMPACT) acknowledged the efforts of these inmates for completing the Fatherhood Enrichment and Male Accountability module of its curriculum.
“Men were incarcerated in their mind before they ever came to prison,” said the program’s sponsor, Albert Featherstone. “This program creates a culture that changes the dynamic of men’s lives.”
Featherstone, who was paroled from prison in 1987, became IMPACT chief sponsor in 2011. He has been assisting the program for the last 23 years. “I facilitate some parts of the 16-week program, but the men here teach most of it,” he said.
“IMPACT stresses that a man’s body can be used as an analogy for how to build a man,” said John “Yahya” Parratt. “The feet are a man’s foundation, while his head the center of his control.”
One of the key principles of IMPACT is the acronym AIR—Accountability Integrity Responsibility, said one of the graduates, Travis Banks.
“It’s about being in control of the situation, being able to de-escalate the situation by stopping, observing, and processing what’s happening,” he said. “You learn body signals.”
Banks has been attending IMPACT classes for four years. “I have one more module to complete, and then I’ll have all of them,” he said.
Each man had the opportunity to say how the program’s way of thinking has helped him.
James Jenkins talked about a potential violent confrontation with his cellmate.
“A friend of mine pulled me away,” he said. “Later God put on my heart to apologize to him. Even though I believe he provoked the situation.” Jenkins said he concluded he had to take ownership of his part of the situation. “The entire episode taught me that patience is something important. The experience taught me that I am in control of myself, and that’s what IMPACT is all about.”
Marlon Beason, 33, said he has completed two of the five modules. “I’m not a lifer, but lifers look up to me because I’m involved with the program. It teaches me how important my family and my community are,” Beason said. “IMPACT helps me articulate reason in the presence of conflict. This program humbled me by seeing guys who’ve been in prison for decades that changed the way they think about what it means to be a man.”
“It has reaffirmed my path of integrity, responsibility, and being a peacemaker in our community,” said Miguel Quezada, 32. “In the future, I will use what I learned in IMPACT to model what it means to be a responsible man—as an example for my peers and other men in my family and young men.”
“I learned to resolve conflict resolution by taking a time out, said John Ham, 27. “I’m carrying this message to other guys that are suffering from violent impulses.”
Although Cleo Cloman’s story is common for some young men who go through the maturation process in a prison atmosphere, there are many who do not have access to prosocial programs like IMPACT.
“I came to prison a young knucklehead. However, I’ve grown out of being that,” Cloman said. “Several years after being incarcerated, I came across a friend who knew me as that previous knuckle head. I talked to him about the self-help programs available at San Quentin and the ones I’ve been involved in. He told me he was amazed in my change in attitude. The experience gave me a firsthand experience in witnessing the change within myself. What warmed me was to be able to tell my friend about my change, and to demonstrate to him that I am truly a changed man.”
Cloman concluded by asking: “What will stop us from throwing our lives away? What will it take for us to change?”
Another graduate, Sean Scales, said he’s excited about learning new tools on how to deal with conflict.
“Violence is never the right way to go,” said Scales. “IMPACT teaches us humility, and with humility we’re able to knock down the pride which prevents us from doing the right thing.” He said IMPACT taught him how to have confidence in his ability to better articulate himself.
“You can control the choice, but you can’t change the consequence,” said Darnell Hill.
Archives for October 2013
Mark Jackson’s Celebrity Team Tops the S.Q. Warriors, 134-119
Mark Jackson, head coach of the Golden State Warriors, returned to San Quentin with ex-NBA champion, Brian Scalabrine, Warriors General Manager Bob Myers and others to play a scrimmage game against the San Quentin Warriors.
The spirited competition was called by comical play-by-play announcer Aaron “Imam Jeddi” Taylor.
The visiting team won 134-119. They had inspirational support by Marreese “Mo” Speights. Speights won a championship with the University of Florida. He was not allowed to play because “he is too valuable to risk injury,” said Myers.
The visiting team roster included Jackson, Scalabrine, Myers, who played for the UCLA 1995 championship team, Kirk Lacob, son of GS Warriors owner, former college players Chris Demarko, John Fahey, Joe “Time” Boyland, and Ben Draa.
The event started out with both teams circled around SQ resident Robert “Bishop” Bulter at center court. He introduced NBA Hall of Famer Jackson to the crowd. Jackson said a few words before leading everyone in a prayer. He did the same at halftime:
“Thank you guys…the same way we impact your lives, you impact ours,” said Jackson, who is also a pastor at True-love Worship Center International in Reseda.
“Floyd Mayweather said, after winning his fight, ‘my daddy put an incredible game plan together and I just followed it.’ Your father has a plan for you too, embrace him and he can turn your life around,” added Jackson.
“This event is good for the men, good for the institution and good for the Warriors organization to want to come and reach out to the men,” said SQ Warden Kevin Chappell.
“It is an extraordinary day when you can have such enjoyment at San Quentin, and it is good to be here,” added Lt. Sam Robinson.
“This game is a great opportunity for everyone. The visiting team gets to meet the guys at San Quentin,” said Don Smith. Bill Epling, Draa, Myers and Smith’s Christian Sports Ministries were instrumental in getting the Warriors Organization to come into San Quentin to play basketball.
“This was big. I may never have this kind of experience again. Even guys on the street don’t get this opportunity. For them to take their time out is a blessing. A cat in prison can’t have a better day,” said SQ Warrior Michael Franklin. Franklin scored 30 points against the NBA and college level talent.
“This experience was great. I always aspired to play in the NBA. Now I got to play against the Hall of Famer and actually got fouled by him,” said SQ Warriors’ forward, Greg Eskridge. 6’3” Eskridge blocked Scalabrine on consecutive plays.
The game was very competitive. Golden State had a huge size advantage with the 7 foot Scalabrine and 6’7” Bob Myers, while the tallest SQ Warriors was about 6’4”.
“They have the size, but we have the speed, and we want it more,” said SQ Warriors Coach Daniel Wright.
On the second play of the game, A. McIntosh slammed a rebound dunk off the backboard. “That woke me up. I knew we had a game to play at that moment,” said Scalabrine. In the second quarter, McIntosh tried to dunk again on Scalabrine, but it was blocked. Scalabrine made his size difference evident. But, McIntosh managed to score 23 points, which impressed Scalabrine. “I’m used to banging against big bodies, but those guys are fast and have great reflexes. They’re good,” said Scalabrine.
“I’m disappointed in that 23, I think I should have had 43,” said McIntosh. Wright called McIntosh his best player.
Toward the end of the first half, Jackson hit a three pointer with 10 seconds left. SQ Warrior Franklin responded by hitting a three at the buzzer, leaving the score, 68-67 SQ.
Golden State was up one at the end of the third, after Oris “Pep” Williams’ long two point shot with 3 seconds left on the clock. Williams normally plays for the SQ Kings, but he and Larry “TY” Jones suited up as SQ Warriors for this game.
The SQ Warriors are “playing well. Formidable foe,” added Degregorio.
“If I had to pick one player for the NBA, it would be Maurice Hanks,” said Speight
“Keep playing! It ain’t over till all zeros are on the clock,” Hanks rallied the team toward the end of the fourth, down 10 with 3:20 left in the game. He scored 24 points.
The SQ Warriors broke down in the fourth. GS Warrior representative Demarko kept finding himself open for easy baskets, scoring 32. “When they ain’t looking, I cut to the hole,” he said.
Scalabrine had several dunks, including an alley-oop pass from Jackson. He scored 25 with 16 rebounds.
Taylor’s play-by-play calling using a wireless PA system enhanced everyone’s fun. He had the crowd in stitches.
“I’ve never heard [play-by-play] quite that entertaining. It enhanced the game. I stopped taking pictures to hear what he was saying,” said SQ photographer, Sam Hearnes.
After blocking a shot, Jackson waved his index finger a ‘No, No,’ Mutumbo fashion. “Mark Jackson had zero blocks his whole NBA career, and he comes in here with a 1/16 of an inch vertical and blocks two,” joked Taylor over the PA system.
“Somebody come off the bench for Joe-Time, ‘cause he’s not working out,” joked Taylor after Boyland failed to score in the first half. The 5’9” Boyland responded by hitting a 3 and mugging the crowd while throwing up three fingers on his way down court. He went on to score 13 points and left the game to a cheering crowd initiated by Taylor’s comment, “Give Joe-Time a round of applause. He played well.”
“I had fun. Joe Time/Show Time changed the game in the third quarter,” said Scalabrine.
“What you think I came here to do?” clowned Boyland. “A lot of guys said I hadn’t made a bucket yet. I had to show them I can make a shot,” he added.
Taylor nicknamed the players names like, Anthony “Half-Man, Half-Amazing” Ammons, Michael “The Option” Franklin, Maurice “Optimus Prime” Hanks, Bryan “The Red Mamba” Scalabrine and Joe “Joe-Time” Boyland.
When Jackson’s behind the back pass ended in a turnover, Taylor joked in Chick Hearns fashion, “the mustard just came off the hotdog.” On the next play, when Jackson’s pass resulted in an easy bucket, Taylor added, “Way to put the mustard and relish back on the hotdog.”
“He did Chick Hearns proud,” said SQ resident Earlonne Woods.
Everyone had a good time. “I had a lot of fun. It was great coming out here. These guys are incredible,” said Jackson.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen NBA players up close, and it’s a cool and positive experience. They’re friendly,” said stat keeper Troy Allen Smith.
“It was a pleasure and a privilege to see them come kick back for a day and show we aren’t forgotten,” said spectator Walter Cook, who is incarcerated at San Quentin.
“Lovely. A blessing,” said SQ Warrior guard Montrell Vines.
When Myers was told he only scored 35, compared with 40 last year, he joked, “That’s disappointing. I came to get 40. If I got 30 rebounds, that’s okay.” He had 24 boards. The game ended as it started, with prayer and good will.
‘Justice Reinvestment’ Gets Billions for Reform
A reform movement is taking hold in the country. It’s called “justice reinvestment,” and it aims to harvest the billions spent on incarceration and redirect the money to social service programs that might remove the root causes of lawless behavior.
According to Alison Shames of the Vera Institute of Justice (VIJ), “The future of the Justice Reinvestment Initiative looks bright, with President Obama including $85 billion for this effort in his proposed 2014 budget, an increase of $79 million over last year’s appropriation.”
In 2003, Susan Tucker and Eric Cadora coined the term “justice reinvestment,” in a policy paper published by the Open Society Institute (OSI).
OSI said the goal was to reduce the billions in prison spending and spend it instead “rebuilding the human resources and physical infrastructure—the schools, healthcare facilities, parks, and public spaces—of neighborhoods devastated by high levels of incarceration.”
U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ), Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the Public Safety Performance Project of the Pew Center on the States co-sponsors the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI).
support
The JRI provides technical assistance and financial support to states, counties, cities, and tribal authorities that seek to reform their criminal justice systems using a data-driven approach.
So far, more than a dozen states are participating in the JRI.
The VIJ, as well as other research organizations such as the Council of State Governments and the Pew Charitable Trusts, help these states study the factors contributing to high prison populations and devise cost-effective ways of reducing them without endangering public safety.
Since 2003, the amount spent on prisons has increased. In mid-August, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said the U.S. now spends $85 billion annually on incarceration.
Supporters say justice reinvestment has helped stop the consistent steady rise in imprisonment. Critics say the movement has not gone far enough, noting that the prisoner numbers have fallen only slowly in spite of a precipitous decrease in the crime rate.
“The U.S. prison population dropped last year by 27,770 inmates, or 1.7 percent. The total still exceeds 2 million if local and state juvenile facilities are included,” according to The Crime Report.
VIJ highlighted views of Don Spector, executive director of the non-profit Prison Law Office, who challenged poor conditions, including overcrowding, that ultimately led to Brown vs. Plata, the landmark case involving California prison overcrowding.
Although VIJ reports that realignment gave the counties virtually unlimited discretion to reform their own criminal justice system, it left them free to develop cost-effective evidence-based programs or to continue their reliance on incarceration.
“What realignment didn’t do is address the underlying causes that led to prison overcrowding. Spector said. “The Governor’s and legislature’s decision not to change the length of any sentences means that the number of offenders incarcerated will not abate…”
Statistics
However, DOJ statistics report an increase in California’s county jail population(s) from mid-2011 to mid-2012 by 8,923 prisoners as a result of legislation passed to implement the state’s realignment program. During this same period, national jail populations “remained relatively stable.”
According to The Crime Report, a little over half the total national decline in prison population since 2011 occurred because of California’s “realignment” plan. However, this “decline” is somewhat misleading. Rather than lowering overall imprisonment rates, California’s realignment plan simply transferred prisoners to local jails. When the cost of the subsidy to counties is calculated into the equation, neither savings nor reduced incarceration actually occurred.
All of California’s 58 counties were given additional funding to deal with the increased correctional population and responsibility; however, each county must develop a plan for custody and post-custody that best serves the needs of the county.
After record low jail populations between 2010 and 2011, the California jail population increased in 2012 by an estimated 7,600 prisoners since 2011, according to the U.S. Office of Justice Statistics.
Nationally the concept of justice reinvestment has garnered a fair degree of bipartisan support, according to Todd R. Clear of Rutgers University, adding, “Reducing mass incarceration is an idea that appeals to the left; reducing the costs of government is an idea that appeals to the right.”
Delaware
Delaware has made significant improvements in the operation of its criminal justice system.
In 2011, Gov. Jack Markell established the Delaware Justice Reinvestment Task Force to conduct a comprehensive examination of the factors contributing to the size of the corrections population, both pretrial and sentenced individuals.
VIJ aided Delaware’s task force by analyzing, “who was coming to prison, why were they committed, how much time [did] they receive, and what sort of program participation they were involved with.”
The task force found that people awaiting trial made up a large portion of the jailed population. Other factors included supervision practices that resulted in a large number of parolees returning to prison, and long sentences with limited opportunities for prisoners to earn reductions—even when the prisoners had made significant steps toward rehabilitation.
VIJ’s website says that, despite California’s prison Realignment Program being less than effective, some counties such as “San Francisco continue to find new ways to reduce recidivism and lower jail populations through successful alternatives to incarceration.”
However, VIJ noted that other California counties continue the failed policies of the state by overcrowding their jails and, in the process, “deprive prisoners of their right to be free from the cruel and unusual conditions the Supreme Court recently condemned.”
According to the Bureau of Justice Assistance, state prison populations fell in nine states using the justice reinvestment strategy. However, California is not part of the justice reinvestment program.
The JRI process has encouraged states to identify and realize savings through reduced corrections and justice system spending. Those savings result from a number of reforms, including reducing prison operating costs, averting spending on new prison construction, and streamlining justice system operations.
North and South Carolina have both reported substantial savings in adopting the reinvestment approach.
The critics say California needs to join the trend.
Christopher Nelson, writing on Realignment in August, said, “Without state mandates on exactly how to implement AB 109, counties are free to embrace old world ideologies with the AB 109 funding they are given (e.g. hiring more law enforcement rather than exploring evidence-based programs).”
Two years into the realignment program, many California counties “are without significant data collected or interagency cooperation forged to ensure the success of such a massive undertaking,” said Nelson.
According to Don Spector, this indefensible situation “calls for the creation of a public safety commission to devise a sentencing scheme that is based on data, risk, proven practices, and available resources.”
“It’s not just a matter of the right and left hand not talking, it’s 10 fingers operating independently and without knowledge of each other. That is not a recipe for success,” said Spector.
Professor Todd R. Clear, Rutgers University said criminologists seem content to study and lament the origins of mass incarceration but not to orchestrate its demise. “My fear—or more directly my observation—is that criminologists have little training in such matters and have little to offer policy makers and the public for how to get it done. It is like establishing a Manhattan-type Project on how to reduce imprisonment with no scientists to build the decarceration bomb.”
Mark A.R. Kleiman, University of California, Los Angeles, said he proposition of “justice reinvestment is attractive on the surface.” Kleiman argues that if money spent on bringing down crime via incarceration “could prevent just as much crime, or even more crime, if spent some other way, then why not do so?”
Kleiman said that if the “budget mechanism” is defective, not able to put saving into financial support for programs replacing prisons, then what needs to be done is to change the budget mechanism. This change would be “justice reinvestment as a policy, rather than merely as a slogan,” said Kleiman.
For more information on JRI, visit http://ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/JRI or email justicereinvestment@urban.org.
2 Studies Help CDCR Judge Inmate Risk Level
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) is using one of two studies on crime, incarceration, and recidivism as management tools to assess the risk level of inmates in California state prisons.
The studies developed by the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and the PEW Center on the States used an evidence-based approach to assist the CDCR to identify levels of risk that inmates pose to public safety.
“After decades of experience managing offenders and analyzing data, practitioners and researchers have identified key factors that can help predict the likelihood of an individual returning to crime, violence or drug use,” the PEW study stated.
PEW described a risk/needs assessment tool as “essentially a uniform report card that measures offenders’ criminal risk factors and specific needs.” And further said, “When developed and used correctly, these risk/needs assessment tools can help criminal justice officials appropriately classify offenders and target interventions to reduce recidivism, improve public safety, and cut costs.”
PEW Study
Unlike the work of UCI, the PEW study recognizes “changeable (dynamic) and unchangeable (static) risk factors related to criminal behavior.” The seven changeable risk factors are Antisocial Personality Patterns, Pro-criminal Attitudes, Social Supports for Crime, Substance Abuse, Poor Family/Marital Relationships, School/Work Failure, and Lack of Prosocial Recreational Activities.
Unchangeable or static risks, linked to recidivism are factors such as the age of an offender at his or her first arrest, the number of prior convictions, and the current commitment offense.
This distinction between “dynamic” and “static” risk assessment is important to note because:
In 2009, the CDCR adopted the California Static Risk Assessment (CSRA) as both an instrument to determine the rehabilitation needs of inmates, and as an indicator of those inmates who are at risk of returning to custody within three years of being released.
The CSRA’s assessment method consists of “four major steps. They are: 1) prior felony and misdemeanors; 2) the counts of prior convictions and age at release, and gender; 3) calculations from the second step used to create subscale scores; and 4) measures of predicting the accuracy of a subsequent conviction.”
Researchers at UCI developed the CSRA tool for CDCR based on a model created by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP). “The Washington tool was chosen for several reasons…most important was the tool that used static items only.”
CDCR’s data did not contain “dynamic” factors for every offender. As a result, factors like education and drug use could not be developed for risk assessment in a timely manner.
UCI Study
According to UCI, “CDCR felt that Washington state offenders would be similar enough to California offenders that replication would result in a valid tool…The project began in October, 2007 and produced the CSRA tool by the end of January 2008.”
Development of the CSRA began with a data sample of 103,603 California inmates released from the CDCR during the 2002-2003 fiscal year.
The California Code of Regulations, Title 15, Section 3768.1 reflects the CSRA. It was filed as an emergency on January 7, 2010 and says, in part: “The tool produces a risk number value that will predict the likelihood that an offender will incur a felony arrest within a three-year period after release to parole.”
“Risk groups were developed based on cut points for each of the scales, resulting in five different groups,” UCI said. The risk groups numbered from low to high are: 1, Low Risk; 2, Moderate Risk; 3, High Drug Risk; 4, High Property Risk; and 5, High Violent Risk.
“The three high risk groups have the highest overall recidivism rates,” UCI noted. “Whites and ‘others’ are more likely than Hispanics and blacks to be included in the Low Risk category.” However, in the High Risk category for drug or violent crimes, whites and ‘others’ were just as likely to re-offend as Hispanics and blacks.
The CSRA uses information from automated California Department of Justice criminal records (“rap sheets”) to calculate risk group assignment. The use of an automated tool has the advantage of being faster and more consistent than manually scoring risk assessment.
Metric Test
However, according to UCI, metric tests used to assess how well the CSRA tool predicts recidivism show mixed results. Predictions for a felony arrest within three years of release were better (or more accurate) than predictions for actual convictions for felonies. This makes sense because parolees are frequently arrested for parole violations that do not lead to criminal convictions, according to prison officials.
The PEW study has concluded that, “There is no one-size-fits-all risk assessment tool. Risk/needs assessments cannot predict an individual’s behavior with absolute precision. Inevitably there will be lower-risk offenders who reoffend and higher-risk offenders who do not reoffend.”
The UCI study stated, “The Center for Evidence-Based Corrections is collaborating with CDCR on a number of enhancements of the CSRA,” and promised, “resulting refinements of the CSRA will be documented in additional reports” in the future.
Ex-Convicts Will Soon Qualify for ObamaCare
Beginning January 2014, the 10,000 plus ex-convicts released from California prisons monthly will be eligible to receive health care through the Affordable Care Act—ObamaCare. In addition, the 40 to 50 thousand offenders on probation could qualify for ObamaCare.
The expansion of Medicaid, a key provision of the health care reform law, would provide the coverage, according to The Associated Press.
Advocates for ex-offenders say they believe a healthier population will “reduce medical costs, and possibly keep them from sliding back into crime,” The AP reports.
“It potentially revolutionizes the criminal justice system and health system,” said Faye Taxman, a health services criminologist at George Mason University. “We now have a golden opportunity to develop and implement quality interventions to both improve health outcomes for this population and also reduce the rate of criminal activity.”
Medicaid coverage should help reduce the high mortality rate for ex-offenders, according to Taxman. “Given the high rate of addiction and mental illness among ex-prisoners, another vital law that helps them is the federal Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act, which requires health insurers to provide benefits for mental health and substance treatment that are on par with those they offer for medical and surgical services.”
Nation-wide, many of the 650,000 prisoners released next year will also be eligible for Medicaid.
According to The AP, New York, Oklahoma, Florida, Illinois and California have pre-release programs that connect some ex-offenders with Medicaid. New York is trying to figure out how to connect ex-offenders “with full-service medical homes that coordinate health care services to manage patients’ care.”
Joshua Rich, a professor of medicine and community health at Brown University, studies the health of ex-offenders. In Rich’s opinion, “The states that get out ahead of this, they’re going to have fewer people incarcerated and healthier societies.”
Some Prisoners Still Wait on Prop. 36
Numerous San Quentin inmates are still waiting for their day in court nearly a year after voters agreed that the nation’s toughest recidivist law punished them too harshly.
California voters approved Proposition 36 last November. The new law modified the Three-Strikes Law and gave judges an opportunity to reduce life sentences given to offenders who committed non-violent/non-serious crimes. However, judges are mandated to review each case to ensure that the petitioner’s release would not endanger public safety.
Of the 1,092 petitions filed, 1,011 inmates have been released, according a study by Stanford University. Less than two percent of offenders released, have committed a new crime. By comparison, 16 percent of regularly paroled inmates released between 2003 and 2004 committed new crimes within the first 90 days of their release.
“The low recidivism rate of inmates released under Proposition 36 confirms the Department of Correction’s static risk projections that inmates sentenced to life under the Three Strikes law for non-serious, non-violent crimes are among the safest to release from custody,” according to the study.
However, 2,000 cases have yet to be processed, with more than 800 of them originating from Los Angeles County. Counties other than Los Angeles have resentenced 40 percent of all eligible inmates, according to a Daily Journal analysis of data from California prison officials. (Graph: Number of Prop 36 Cases Pending and Processed)
In 1994, James Norton was arrested for possession of a firearm and sentenced to 25 years to life. After being determined to be eligible under Proposition 36, Norton accepted representation from the Los Angeles County Public Defenders.
He said the district attorney has asked for and has received seven extensions of time to bring his case to the court.
“It took them three months to convict me with the evidence they had,” said Norton. “Now that it’s time for me to have my day in court, I can’t get a court date, and it’s a year later.”
Norton’s case is not unusual for qualifying petitioners from Los Angeles County.
Kevin Tindall, 53 has been imprisoned since 1998. He was convicted of receiving stolen property and sentenced to 25 years to life.
He filed his petition for relief under Proposition 36 last February. The district attorney handling his case has filed three extensions of time.
Tindall said his lawyer told him that she made a strategic decision not to oppose the extensions. In a telephone conversation with his lawyer, Tindall learned that the “strategic decision” was because the lawyer said she didn’t want the district attorney to oppose his resentencing.
“I believe that the district attorney’s job is to keep me in prison,” said Tindall. “So, allowing the DA excessive extensions to find evidence that would keep me in prison doesn’t make sense. It’s my attorney’s job to fight for my freedom based on the reasons Proposition 36 was passed.”
In 2000, Derek A. Loud, 48, was convicted of grand theft. He was sentenced to 25 years to life. The public defender took his case last December.
After the district attorney was granted two extensions of time to file his case—Loud’s attorney opposed the third.
“Now that my lawyer is opposing the extension, the DA has suddenly opposed my release, based on my prior convictions, and something about me ‘possibly’ having a knife during my crime,” Loud said.
Kevin A. Callahan was convicted of driving without owner’s consent. He said his crime is commonly known as joyriding. His sentence, 28 years to life.
He said he began his case by filing a petition to the court himself and all the court documents went directly to him. “Once Post Conviction took my case, all the stuff went to them and the extensions began,” Callahan said. “The district attorney was looking at everything in my file, and asking for individual extensions for everything they found. So far they’ve ask for three extensions.”
Callahan said while he was at Donavon State Prison some people were taken to L.A. county jail to wait for a resentencing hearing. But the process was taking so long that they asked their judge to send them back to state prison, so the judge sent them back.
Willie Stephens, 60, was convicted of possession of a firearm in 1999. He was sentenced to 25 years to life. Post Conviction has represented him since February. The district attorney has asked for and received an extension of time for 90 days.
Michael Walker, 60, was convicted of possession of cocaine in 1996. He was sentenced to 26 years to life. Walker filed his own petition a week after the initiative was passed. Post Conviction now represents him. The district attorney has asked for and received three extensions of time to file his case. Walker said he has not had the opportunity to read the reasons for the extensions.
William Marshall, 53, was convicted of possession for sale of crack cocaine in 1997. He was sentenced to 25 years to life. He was contacted by the public defenders office shortly before the law was passed. He said they made it appear that it would be a simple process, so he agreed to accept their representation. The judge scheduled his case to be heard early this year, however, the district attorney asked for and received several extensions of time to prepare his case. Then Marshall was contacted by the public defenders office with a stipulation that in order to gain his release, he had to sign and agree to Post-Release Community Supervision.
“The incarceration cost to keep the 2,000 qualifying inmates locked up is about $112 million”
“I was hesitant to sign the agreement,” Marshall said, but all of the extensions of time wore him down. “I could not turn down my freedom. Even though I believe those conditions are illegal.” He still is waiting to be released.
Ivory Joe Ewells was sentenced to 25 years to life for grand theft. Post Conviction represents Ewells. The district attorney has received two extensions of time to file his case.
Mitchell E. Fryer, 42 was convicted of transportation of marijuana and sentenced to 25 years to life. Post Conviction has represented him since February.
According to the Legislative Analysis Office, the annual cost of incarceration for each state prisoner is $56,421; this translates to $154.58 a day.
In the nine cases of Norton, Tindall, Loud, Callahan, Ewells, Fryer, Stephens, Walker, and Marshall, if they were released pursuant to Proposition 36, to date taxpayers would have spent about $500,000 less on their incarceration.
Since Proposition 36 was passed last November, the incarceration cost to keep the 2,000 qualifying inmates locked up is about $112 million.
John Curzon Becomes New Acting Chief Deputy Warden
John Curzon takes his 26 years of experience with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to greater heights as San Quentin’s new Acting Chief Deputy Warden.
Curzon did not follow the usual professional track by coming in as a correctional officer when he began his career working in a state prison. He began in food services.
“I started out as a supervising cook in food services,” he said. “I came up in the business services side of the house.”
Curzon said he worked for approximately 13 years in that position and those years, along with the work experience he gained, has helped him with his current position.
“It’s about so much, especially listening and being in the moment because in my position I deal with so many different people,” he said.
It was his brother Joe who encouraged Curzon to relocate to California and get a job with the state.
“My brother recently retired after putting in 30 years. Joe was working in corrections when it was just called the California Department of Corrections,” Curzon explained.
With different duties, Curzon said his new position calls for him to work closely with San Quentin’s Warden Kevin Chappell.
“My role really is to support the warden’s goals and the vision he holds as the warden of San Quentin,” said Curzon.
“Part of that role is to ensure San Quentin is prepared for the new challenges heading its way,” Curzon said. He believes the challenges come from the number of new inmates coming to the prison and issues surrounding the reduction of California’s overcrowded prison population.
“For those inmates coming here it’s a great opportunity to see how institutions that have programs operate,” Curzon said. “And our staff and everyone is handling it fine. We’ve seen San Quentin at an inmate count of 6,000. It’s not posted any challenges at this point.”
Acting Chief Deputy Warden John Curzon
and Carlos Meza at the 2013 Avon Breast Cancer Walk
On Sept.16, Attorney General Kamala D. Harris filed a defendant’s request for an extension of the Dec. 31 deadline and status report. This report is in response to the order by three Federal Judges, Thelton Henderson, Lawrence K. Karlton, and Stephen Reinheart.
The Judges orders require the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to reduce the prison population to 137.5 percent of design capacity by Jan. 27, 2014.
“As to any political grumbling about the Governor, I think his office has a good handle on the direction that we’re going,” the Acting Chief Deputy Warden said.
Known for being the prison by the bay, San Quentin is also home to more than 700 inmates housed on Death Row. He said in his position one of his responsibilities is to carry out and uphold the law.
“I believe the voters have spoken on the death penalty in California,” he explained.
One point the Acting Chief Deputy Warden made was that the department has a responsibility to ensure public safety continues once inmates are released from prison.
“Education is the key to that,” Curzon explained. “From the moment inmates come in, until the moment they leave, we must make sure they are better educated because inmates have a higher probability of being successful if they have a higher education.”
As for California’s recidivism issues, Curzon said he thinks it is a combination of things.
“I think it’s also education, but we also have to focus on what originally brought them here,” he said.
Inmates have to have the education and skills when they leave, said Curzon. He thinks the department is doing well addressing the issue.
“The department, under the leadership of Dr. Jeffery Beard, is doing a good job of addressing rehabilitative programs,” Curzon said.
Moreover, San Quentin has educational programs where the inmates can get GEDs, high school diplomas, or AA degrees from the Prison University Project, Curzon explained.
“I think San Quentin is so fortunate to have the generosity and resources of our volunteers,” said Curzon. “We are the blueprint for other institutions.”
Curzon’s co-workers enjoy working with him.
According to Chaplain Mardi Jackson, “He’s a man of few words but a man of integrity.”
Vice Principal of Robert E. Burton’s Adult School of Education Marci Ficarra says, “He’s always been a great listener and kind; I feel heard when I’ve had discussions with him. I think he’s got a very calm demeanor, which is necessary in this environment.”
As for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation discontinuing the prison building boon.
In the 1990s, early in his career, Curzon said he watched the building of prisons slow down.
“I don’t think the lack of building prisons will create a perpetual prison crisis in California,” said Curzon. “I think Governor Brown, the Secretary and the legislature have a good plan and vision for CDCR,” Curzon said.
Richmond Project Promoting Non-Violence
Dozens of local residents gathered at Richmond’s Civic Center Plaza to watch a short documentary produced by incarcerated men to promote nonviolence among youngsters.
The Richmond Project, an inmate organization inside San Quentin, made the 10-minute video. Members of the group, from various parts of Richmond, are trying to inform the public about their views.
“The Richmond Project is for change, help the Richmond community, the youngsters to stop violence and do something positive,” said Darrel “Waylo” Williams from south Richmond in the video.
The video opened with a panoramic view of San Quentin prison and proceeded to interview a group of Richmond natives who expressed their hope for change and willingness to engage. It showcased the ordinary lives inside San Quentin and ended with an original rap song advocating peace and change.
“We were all on the same path; we made mistakes in our lives; we want to give back so others won’t fall into the same situation and predicament,” inmate Nythell Collins said.
Richmond 1943
The city of Richmond is plagued by violence, including youth gang violence. At the time of this printing there had been 14 homicides, with the latest one occurring on Labor Day, according to Richmond Mayor Gayle MacLaughlin.
“We can’t take back the negative impact that we had on our community, but we can have a positive impact from this point forward”
“That’s why this project is so important because young people would listen to those who come from the same culture,” MacLaughlin said, adding that the San Quentin men reached out to her to build a connection between inside and outside.
The video sparked heated discussion among viewers in the Whittlesey Room, which is located next to the main library in the plaza. Some offered comments, and others suggested new ways to get the video to young people.
“This is an exceptional video,” said Rodney Alamo Brown, a 47 years old writer in the audience. “It’s delightful to see them in good spirits again and willing to give back,” he added.
Contra Costa County California
“The opportunity to reflect on our own stories and use them to shape other people’s stories is essential to recovery and transformation. We need more of these projects,” said Rebecca Brown after seeing the video.
Editor’s note: This article appeared in the Richmond Confidential, an on-line community newspaper published by journalism students at the University of California at Berkeley. After some of the members of the Richmond Project read the article, they made the following comments:
“I’m in the Richmond Project to help find solutions to the re-occurring problems before it’s too late,” said Walter Cook.
“Collectivism is a powerful tool when used to raise the social consciousness of humanity via awareness, emotional stability, and intellectual responsibility,” said Richmond Project chairman, Vaughn Miles.
“We can’t take back the negative impact that we had on our community, but we can have a positive impact from this point forward,” said Head of Education of Richmond Project, Royce Rose.
“The men of the Richmond Project have helped me understand that violence is universal and that the tools that are used to curb violence in Richmond can be used anywhere,” said Sha Wallace-Stepter.
“We want to help bridge the gap of misunderstanding between the children and parents,” said Jason Green.
“I joined the Richmond Project because it give me the opportunity to help my community, my family, myself, and the men here at San Quentin,” Ishmael Rashid Wesley said.
The Office of Neighborhood Safety [https://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/271/Office-of-Neighborhood-Safety] techniques involve street outreach and transformative travel. ONS seeks out young men who are active firearm offenders to present credible alternatives to violence.
Taking Aim to Stop Childhood Violence
There is a new effort to prevent childhood violence, and address the needs of America’s youngest victims according to a report by Dr. Nadine Burke Harris and Esta Soler.
The new push comes at a time when violence against children in America is at an all-time high. According to a report by the U.S. Attorney General’s Defending Childhood Task Force, children are experiencing or witnessing violence on an alarming scale. Approximately two out of three children in the U.S. are exposed to violence, with as many as one-in-10 experiencing multiple layers of violence, the report said.
Health care professionals have amassed a wealth of knowledge about violence prevention as well as how to help children exposed to violence and developed a plan of action.
The plan calls for a national effort to make homes, schools, and communities safer, supportive, and healthier places for American children. To achieve this goal, health care professionals are insisting on a “change in public policies to support prevention and healing for children and families, using key policy shifts such as health care reform, the Violence Against Women Act and the Victims of Crime Act,” according to Harris and Soler’s article.
The next step would be to set up routine screening programs to identify children who have been exposed to violence and to “establish prevention programs within the health care system, schools, and youth organizations to protect children from future violence” the report said.
The plan also calls for a change in spending. Monies spent on punitive programs such as juvenile justice facilities would be re-invested in programs that can help children heal and thrive. The programs would keep troubled kids safe in school and under the guidance of responsible adults.
Finally, education about the effects of violence is essential to the plan’s success. “Make violence a public issue and educate all Americans about this problem and the role each can play to ensure our children are safe,” the report said.
Violence can occur in any community, and there are many forms. Sexual, physical, and verbal abuse are among the most prevalent. Violence can occur in or out of the home, against friends, family members, and innocent bystanders. It is important to note that experiencing the violence first hand is not the only way a child can be affected; witnessing violence done to others can be just as traumatic.
“With their brains and bodies still being formed, children are uniquely vulnerable to the impact of toxic stress on their physical, mental, and emotional health”
Children exposed to violence are at risk for a lifetime of disciplinary, learning, and health deficiencies. “With their brains and bodies still being formed, children are uniquely vulnerable to the impact of toxic stress on their physical, mental, and emotional health” the Bay view Child Health Center concluded.
The human body responds to violence by producing hormones intended to fuel the fight or flight response. The body’s emergency response system could save a child’s life in the face of violence.
However, constant stimulation of the body’s emergency response system can damage your health and well-being the Bay view Child Health Center said. Examples of the health risk include heart and lung disease, as well as hypertension and neurological disorders. Without intervention, “many of our children will experience lifelong consequences from exposure to violence and the toxic stress it causes” Harris and Soler wrote.
“We must not allow violence to deny any child the right to grow up safe and secure,” according to Harris and Soler. “Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for and cherished and always safe from harm” (President Barack Obama, Second Inaugural Address, Jan. 21, 2013)
Study Shows Summer Jobs Curb Violence By Teenagers
Research indicates summer jobs for youths help to reduce violence and reckless behavior such as alcohol, drug use, and other misconduct.
“Teenagers who acquire summer jobs are less likely to engage in violence, according to a new study unveiled by Boston’s Mayor Thomas Menino,” said The Crime Report.
The study was done at Northeastern University’s Center for Labor Market, the Boston Globe reported.
Research
The research assessed 22 negative social behaviors considered risky or deviant. “Researchers recorded net improvements in behavior over the course of the summer in 19 of the 22 areas examined,” said The Crime Report.
Using confidential questionnaires, about 400 adolescents and teenagers who found work last summer through a violence prevention program were polled regarding their behavior before and after employment.
“Summer jobs help us reduce violence in the city,” said Mayor Menino. “It gives the kids hope, gives them an opportunity they never had.”
The Globe reported that Northeastern professor Andrew Sum said less than one percent of the youth that found employment reported harming or threatening to harm someone with a firearm one month prior to his or her employment.
According to the Globe, Professor Sum said 15 percent of the youths had a fight the month before starting their jobs.
When the jobs ended, less than 8 percent of the youths reported being involved in a fight in the last 30 days, the Globe reported.
“The biggest differences in behavior change between the participants and comparison group involved using alcohol, selling or using drugs, picking on others by chasing them, spreading false rumors or lies about others, and not listening to ones parents,” researchers wrote in The Crime Report.
Sum said the reduction in violence is “very significant,” and that the summer jobs program helped the youths to find work in the fall, demonstrating the need of jobs for low-income youth.
“This important research settles questions about whether we should address high youth unemployment in our highest crime areas,” said Emmett Folgert, executive director of the Dorchester Youth Collaborative.
Crime Report
The Crime Report said the University of Chicago Crime Lab (UCCL) conducted its own study on at-risk youth participation in a Chicago summer job program joined with a cognitive behavioral therapy-based program producing similar results.
“The findings of the Chicago study mirror a recent study of the affects of summer employment on Boston youth,” said The Crime Report.
The UCCL study “experienced a 51 percent drop in arrests for violent crime” according to its study, reported The Crime Report.
Study
The study tracked some 700 youths, ages 14 to 21, who were picked as participants in One Summer Plus (OSP), in 2012. OSP provides at-risk, violent youth with jobs, mentoring, and therapy.
The youth “showed an enormous proportional drop in violent-crime arrests after seven post-program months (3.7 fewer arrests per 100 participants, a 51 percent decline),” The Crime Report reported.
The Chicago researchers said it is too soon to do a cost-benefit analysis, but if the results continue, program benefits may “outweigh the cost, based on a reduction in violence.”
The program director at the Boston Ten Point Coalition, Rufus J. Faulk, said job programs should be “a 365-day a year priority,” and that focus should be on at-risk youths, as well as on students who standout in positive ways.
“We want to keep kids safe and engaged,” said John J. Drew, president and chief executive officer of Action for Boston Community Development, a nonprofit organization that has also assisted Sum’s researchers. “We know that hot summer days can stir unrest in city streets.”
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