The Insight Prison Project (IPP) known for its restorative justice groups such as the Victims Offenders Education Group is not normally associated with the art community at San Quentin. However, IPP has recently introduced a new group, The Artistic Ensemble.
The Artistic Ensemble centers on performance art and writing. Tristan Jones, 30, has been a member since its inception in July of this year.
Incarcerated since 2004, Jones arrived at San Quentin in late 2011. Soon thereafter, he discovered a hidden talent for acting and joined the Shakespeare group.
“Acting allows me to let loose, be completely free of judgment, and be in the moment,” Jones said, adding that he needed this outlet to help him on his journey to healing himself.
“Method acting,” Jones said, “has helped me to recognize and feel emotion by stepping into someone else’s shoes… I experience an emotional release on stage because I’m going through this intense experience where adrenaline is flowing and everything is heightened.”
Jones gets to express his creative side with The Artistic Ensemble on Tuesday nights from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The group practices acting, dance, music, vocal warm-ups, writing, and poetry.
“Anywhere else in the world I would feel insane doing some of the things I do, but in that room there is no judgment or restraints that I feel in everyday life,” said Jones.
The group often incorporates current news events into their work. A recent example of this was the Trayvon Martin case.
“We used the Martin case to inspire our poetry, music, prose, and stories,” Jones said.
The content promotes healing by creating a dialogue about stories that affect everyone, he explained. “Sometimes we take someone else’s work and reflect upon the topic and how we’ve experienced the world in this context.”
Through these methods, Jones noticed he has really started to reconnect with his childhood.
Inspired by his acting opportunities at San Quentin, Jones hopes to pursue a drama career upon his release. He plans to enter an acting program at San Francisco State University through Project Rebound.
For now, Jones is thankful for the program and looks forward to the continued development of the class.
“It is a place where art is created by simply allowing a space for us to express ourselves,” he said.
Archives for October 2013
San Quentin Avon Breast Cancer Walk
Amid the sounds of tennis balls hitting the hard court, basketball players yelling for the ball, and geese squawking as they fed on bread crumbs and grass, inmates at San Quentin began the first of two days of an annual walk-a-thon to help find a cure for breast cancer.
Robin Guillen playing the flute
The sunny Saturday morning began with Robin Guillen’s wood flute blowing a soothing melody to cheer up the dozens of community members, and prison staff who participated in the Avon sponsored walk-a-thon.
“I want you to focus on those life forces in your life,” said Guillen to the hundreds of walkers and spectators on the prison’s Lower Yard. “This is for the mothers, daughters, aunts, and nieces,” he added.
Jeffery Crum, Daniel Schrader, Johnnie Brice
and Az Ford showing their support
Steven Emrick, Community Partnership Manager, and Associate Wardens Kelly Mitchell, and (A) Chief Deputy WardenJohn Curzon coordinated with inmates Stephen Pascascio and Sam Johnson to bring the walk-a-thon to San Quentin. Emrick said he cleared about 40-50 community members to join in on the walk.
“I would like to thank inmates for supporting such a worthy cause,” said Curzon.
Mike Ingram cutting E. Yazzie’s hair as Robin Guillen watches from behind
“I get enjoyment out of events like this. We get a sense of community and giving back,” said inmate volunteer Orlando “Duck” Harris. “We all have mothers, daughters, and sisters. We have an obligation to support the women of our community. The only way to beat this is to unite.”
The walk-a-thon was Dr. Elaine Tootell’s second. “I’ll get my 39 miles in from all the walking up and down the hill doing the logistical things to support the walkers,” said the prison’s Chief Medical Officer while smiling and trudging up the hill.
Kelly Mitchell, Chris Bailey, Al Lee, Tammy Foss, Peter Bailey, Kim Bailey, Kathy Bailey, Mike Ingram, Ron Self, Ghaza Mahdavian, Troy Williams, Triston Jones, Karen Tynes, Billy Allen, Carlos Meza, Stephen Pascascio, M. Foss, Dr. Elaine Tootell, Jill Friedman, John Curzon, (bottom) Sam Johnson, PsyD. Monique LeSarre, Ke Lam, Khalifah Christensen, E. Yazzie, Alex Goldsmith, Amelia Kriss, Clinton Martin, Alex Ruiz and two welcomed guest
Local reporters Nancy Mullane from radio station KALW and Patrick Sedillo from television station KPIX circulated through the crowd, interviewing prisoners and staff members to bring the event to the public.
Sedillo said it was the first time in five years he’s been in San Quentin. “I performed on the Lower Yard with a KPIX band, called “Eyewitness Blues.”
Upu Ama, Kathy Bailey, Debbie Bailey and Peter Bailey walking for a cure
Inmates Douglas “Jimmy” Manns, Eric Womack, Eric Boles, and Ke’lam manned a registration table that gave each inmate a bracelet and an “I Walked” memento for donating to the cause.
“I passed out dozens of Avon T-shirts to the community and staff volunteers,” said supporter Jill Freeman. She added, “I ran out, and have to go get more right now.” San Quentin staff members, from the warden’s office to the Chief Medical Officer to the Community Partnership Manager, gave support to the walkathon, said Freeman.
Douglas “Jimmy” Manns, Nghiep Ke Lam, Eric Boles and Eric Womack
E. Yazzie offered his hair to Locks of Love, which makes wigs for cancer victims. This was the first time he could remember cutting his hair, since his grandfather “crossed over.”
“I’m doing this for my aunt who has cancer,” Yazzie said. “This is a worthy cause.”
Women’s Cancer Resource Center received $1.5 million in support from Avon, said representative Peggy McGuire. The Oakland based non-profit provides emotional and practical services to more than 5,000 women with cancer annually, McGuire said.
McGuire said it was her second year participating in the San Quentin walk. McGuire said on the second day of the walk, she’ll be outside. “Our table will be located closest to the finish line,” she said. The organization can be found at: wcrc.org
Program director, Carolyn Gauther and Producer Lisa Starbird of Bread and Roses provided walking music from three bands:
“The fellas in the San Quentin music program really appreciate the outside entertainment,” said Paul Comauex, an inmate in the music program. “I say that from deep within my heart.”
Booths were set up on the Lower Yard featuring San Quentin Thespians, H.E.R.O.E.S., Arts in Corrections, San Quentin Prison Report, Alliance for Change, and Kid C.A.T.
The San Quentin Prison Report inmate reporters host a radio show on KALW 91.7 F.M. On Mondays at 5 pm, “Cross Currents” with Holly Kernan will air shows covering Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in prisoners, inmate care givers who assist disabled inmates, and an ex-gang member who talks about his transformation. The reporters said they have many other story ideas which address public safety that the community would be interested in hearing.
Around 300 inmates donated more than $1,700 to the cause, said Dr. Tootell. She said about $5,000 was donated from outside sources, and she was optimistic that the goal of $12,000 would be met. San Quentin Cares will continue taking donations up until the end of October.
Sometimes the daily routine of prison life gets interrupted by the occasional institutional alarm. On the second day of San Quentin’s walk-a-thon an alarm sounded shortly after the walk began. While the inmates quietly sat in place the air was filled with the soothing sounds of Marco Davidson playing his guitar.
The walkers were entertained by several inmate musicians:
Rapper: Steven “Stiggs” Hall, stage name, Abakust 006. He performed his original songs, Eye of the Storm and Aces and Eights. Abakust 006 said, he wrote Aces and Eights on May 14, 2012 because he was arrested on that day. He said he was only out of prison 38 days when he caught this case. “If it weren’t for Arts in Corrections, I would have gotten into trouble,” he said. “Arts in Corrections helps me avoid getting into the prison life.”
Abakust 006 said performing on this day was important for him because his grandfather died of cancer. “I have a tattoo on next to my eye. A lot of people misunderstand what it means to me,” he said. “The tattoo represents the fact that I was the only person in our family that wasn’t at my grandfather’s funeral.”
The rap group, M.A.G.I.C. (Music And Guidance Induces Change), Antwan “Banks” Williams, Le’Mar Maverick Harrison, and David “Jaz” Jassy, performed their original songs, Save a Life, and Keep on Walking. Banks. Maverick said they donate two songs each year to the events they perform at.
David “Jaz” Jassy, Antwan “Banks” Williams
and Le’Mar Maverick Harrison
The blues band, Wall City Band with Boston Woodard, bass; Joe Shelton, guitar/vocals; David Walker, guitar; and Lanny Poindexter, vocals/harp performed classic rock.
The event was closed by Neu Dae performing original songs from D. Buckhanna vocals, and vocals, R. James vocals, and R. Rogers Keyboard and vocals.
Huget has been teaching a guitar class in San Quentin for the past several years.
The next band was Syria Berry on guitar with William Greene backing him up on percussions. Berry said the duo performs mostly in churches in the Richmond area. They have been playing music together for about 10 years.
Finally, The James Moseley Band performed ‘70s-‘80s style music. Moseley played guitar, Doug Morton, keyboard, Jack Pendergast on Bass, and Matt Camgros, on drums. Moseley has been associated with Bread and Roses for about 15 years.
A Restorative Justice Dialogue
At age 17, I married my high school sweetheart, graduated from high school, got a well-paying job at a major aircraft company and became a devoted father, all in one year—1965. I guess it would be correct to say that we were well on our way to becoming your typical “American Negro” family. But then, something changed. Later that year (Aug. 1965), the Los Angeles “Watts” revolt broke out. This revolt (the beginning of waves of uprisings all over the country) had a cathartic impact on me. It was the culmination of years of civil rights protest and legal frustration over racial discrimination against Blacks in this country. I watched on television as dogs and water hoses were turned loose on nonviolent protesters in the South. As I watched the horrible images, I became filled with rage. I was angry and at the time, I couldn’t understand why those civil rights demonstrators wouldn’t fight back.
In my mind, I didn’t want to be like them. I wanted to be part of a more confrontational movement to end racial discrimination. Therefore, I sided with other young people who had rejected Martin Luther King Jr.’s philosophy of “nonviolence” and adopted a more militant posture.
Thus, it was inside this social consciousness and tumultuous climate that I decided to join the cultural nationalist organization “Us” in Los Angeles. I became a Simba Wachanga (Young Lion). And, I became a “warrior.”
At the time of the shootings I was a warrior for the “revolution,” and I was willing to die for the cause. This warrior mindset is essentially militaristic and confrontational. It is “commandist” and combative. It is a mindset that finds justification in violence and accepts casualties of war over preservation of life. It was a mindset that I am still paying for today.
It happened just inside the cafeteria doorway. A heated argument, some profane words, a tussle between four angry young men. The first shot silenced the revolutionary chatter. More shots rang out as frightened students scrambled for cover, leaving me wounded in the shoulder and two Black Panthers, Alprentice “Bunchy” Carter and John Jerome Huggins, dead on the floor of UCLA’s Campbell Hall, room 1201.
In 1969, I was tried and convicted of “conspiracy” to murder these two Black Panthers. One of the men, John Huggins, was the 24-year-old husband of Ericka. She was at home with their three-week old daughter when she first heard about the killings.
Subsequently I was sentenced to “Life” in prison. I started serving my time in Soledad before being transferred to San Quentin State Prison. Five years later, in 1974, I escaped from San Quentin and fled the country to South America. I lived there in self-imposed exile for 20 years.
Throughout my journey (both inside and outside the U.S.), I have had many brushes and direct encounters with acts of violence. I have been a perpetuator and a recipient.
What I now know: all violence, no matter which side you are on or how it is justified, eventually consumes the human spirit and usually undermines the intended purpose.
About three years ago I began corresponding with Ericka Huggins the wife of John. She and I had been on long, arduous journeys of the mind, heart, and spirit as we prepared to meet each other. Initially, I was frustrated with my desire for dialogue and reconciliation. It was difficult trying to communicate from a prison cell, and I honestly did not know how to proceed.
I was anxious and unsure of Ericka’s reaction. For years, I had contemplated what I would say and how I would say it if I were to meet face-to-face with John or Bunchy’s family. However, I could only try my best to convey to Ericka my thoughts through a letter, and let the woman the campus shooting affected most know how sorry I was that it ever happened. I wanted to offer Ericka Huggins, John’s widow, my sincere apology for the warrior mindset that contributed to the deaths of two human beings. And, after two years of correspondence I got my chance to do it in person. In September 2012 I sat down with Ericka for the first time since the January 17, 1969 UCLA killings.
On December 21, 2012, a week after the horrific Newtown murders at Sandy Hook elementary school, Ericka and I participated in a Restorative Justice Symposium at San Quentin State prison. Facing a packed audience of prisoners and outside guests, we told our stories and talked about the spiritual power of forgiveness and the need for Truth and Reconciliation.
In future columns, I will be revisiting and exploring the restorative justice dialogue between Ericka and myself. I believe it is a dialogue that can heal, educate, inspire and transform. I hope that it will be a model of dialogue and reconciliation for the younger OGs.
****
A Question on Leadership
My name is Dwayne Sullivan, and I am 51 years old. I have given your question about OG leadership some serious thought. Before any OG can tell a young person anything, I think the OG has to be together himself. He has to be someone who is respected, respectable, and credible. OGs cannot just expect young people to automatically accept or follow advice from someone older. That just ain’t happening.
I am not trying to be self-righteous or judgmental towards OGs or in any way imply that many of these youngsters do not need some serious discipline in their lives. With absolutely no doubt, plenty of them certainly do! Rather, I am suggesting that OGs lead by example.
To me, leading by example is the most effective quality of any leadership. As an OG, this is what I observe and try to model. I do not spend a lot of time preaching to them or instructing them on how they should or should not behave. My point is, young people learn more effectively from what they see OGs do rather than what they hear them say.
One Father’s Perspective on Sports, Raising a Family and Reality
I met author Jeff Gillenkirk at a baseball game between the San Quentin All-Stars and the Pacifics. The Pacifics is an independent baseball team that hails out of San Rafael.
According to the team manager, Mike Shapiro, “The Pacifics provide the local community with low-cost fun, in a family-friendly environment.”
The game-time interview went well, as I talked with many of the players—a bunch of college kids and an assortment of good athletes, many drafted by major league teams. How they got to the Pacifics, the answers varied—an injury here, slow development there, or some other circumstance that thwarted entry into the majors. Now with the Pacifics, these ball-players are trying to crawl their way into the Big Show.
Sports
That being said, no matter what level of play—in sports—moving up is the objective, which is the framework of Gillenkirk’s first novel, Home, Away.
Well, since I have a baseball coach for a cellie, and I’m a huge baseball fan, I thought it quite right to give Home, Away a look-see.
I learned a little about organized sports from Gillenkirk’s main characters—Jason and Raphael Thiodeaux. Gillenkirk used this father/son duo as a conduit to teach, “money ain’t all it’s cracked up to be” by comparing two icons of Western Civilization; the team spirit and the family unit.
Family
Jason forked over his $42 million contract to focus his energies toward raising his son.
So, while reading this sacrificial tale, I kept asking myself, would I have done the same?—especially when Jason woke up only to grasp a stark reality:
“The sweet morning breeze off the ocean troubled him for some reason. The world was good, it seemed to be saying, but to him it felt anything but. His son had already been expelled from two schools, arrested three times and jailed, ran away from his mother and was hardly making progress in Denver. What chance did he have of making anything of himself with that kind of foundation?”
I know exactly what it feels like to fail at parenthood. Nothing makes you feel worse than to be missing during the developmental years of your child’s life. There’s no “get back” when you’re absent for those impressionable years. Adding insult to injury—incarceration does not negate paternity. Benign neglect to fatherly responsibilities is sadly wrong and is inexcusable. But, here I am, reading about real sacrifice through Gillenkirk’s storytelling.
Jason fought his own demons to help his son, and Raphael eventually recognized what a treasure he had in his father. Happy endings are nice to read, but behind bars, they are rare.
All athletes or anyone who gets the “material world” shoved between him and his family ought to pick this book up and use Jason’s determination as a study as to how good fathers act under pressure. Gillenkirk just uses baseball as a conduit to tell it—to get an understanding about life.
Moreover, Gillenkirk’s journalistic skills weren’t wasted in Home, Away, as he injects a flavor of sports writing into strategic places in the storyline. By doing so, the storyline is easier for reader/fans to understand media influence on an athlete’s attitude toward the public.
The right to play baseball is something that begins with a willingness to step up to the plate. Talents and skills are secondary. The right attitude is paramount to make it to the Big Show. Even still, Gillenkirk emphasizes, you can always go your separate way, when you have a greater love than the Big Show, but reality bites:
Reality
“Nations went to war, economies collapsed, marriages began and ended but the beauty of el beisbol went on. His father was right—it was a privilege to play this game,” thought Raphael.
Gillenkirk knows and never lets us forget that baseball will always be the Great American passtime. To get a feel of the good, the bad, and the ugly, Home, Away is a good read for incarcerated fathers. It is an inspirational story, which is always good in a prison environment.
Win-Win Outcomes For S.Q. Dog Program
Not many people are aware that the San Quentin Fire Department co-sponsors a dog training program called “Pen Pals of San Quentin” funded exclusively by the Marin Humane Society.
The program houses dogs going through behavioral and physical rehabilitation. Men from the Fire Department must sign-up to become dog handlers. After being screened and accepted, the men are entrusted to care for and train an individual dog. All canines are kept in dog kennels, where there are rules to follow as part of their training.
The dog program at the Fire Department has proven to be a real morale booster, allowing the trainers to grow as human beings by demonstrating concern and genuine affection for the animals. Some of the dogs have been passed from shelter to shelter, and have now, in-effect, been given a second chance at San Quentin. Otherwise, they might have been euthanized.
Gilbert Torres
To date, 215 dogs have been through the program and 46 inmates (firemen from the San Quentin Fire Department) have been their handlers.
The Pen Pals program has six instructors and five assistant dog trainers. Larry Carson is the program coordinator. All of them are volunteers who give unselfishly of their time. The warmth and dedication of these volunteers is apparent even to the dogs, who readily respond to their arrival.
Maxwell Krohn and Luna
The San Quentin firemen learn how to teach the basic lessons a dog must know to co-exist with the human race. This training gives the dog a much better chance to be adopted. When the dogs reach a higher level in their training, they are awarded a CGC certificate of completion, which stands for Canine Good Citizen certificate.
When canines make it that far, they are ready for a new home. They go back to the shelter to await that special someone to call their own. It’s the firemen’s job to prepare these animals for re-entry into society and they take this charge very seriously.
Craig Salazar and Calvin
Once through the program, the dogs have become desirable pets. All the canines are either spayed or neutered, and fitted with micro-chips so they won’t ever again lose their way home. They have also received all the necessary vaccines.
Members of the public who are looking for a pet are encouraged to get in touch with the Marin Humane Society and inquire about the San Quentin dog program (ask for Larry). Those who already work in San Quentin can speak to any of the Fire Captains about the program. They will have all the information available.
San Quentin Islamic Community Graduates 30 Men After Ramadan
At a celebration after Ramadan, San Quentin’s Islamic community held a graduation for 30 students who completed three spiritually based classes.
The celebration after Ramadan is called Eid-ul-Fitr, which means reoccurring happiness.
The classes taught the men spiritual unity amongst mankind, how to combat man’s vices, such as aggression, arrogance, hatred, and greed and to benefit from lessons learned.
Shaykh Atik taught the classes; Essence of Divine Unity, Purification of the Heart, and Manners of the Students. Participates devote at least three hours a week for a year to the classes. Shaykh Atik is a Hafiz. A Hafiz is someone who memorized the entire Qur’an. In the Islamic community, a Shaykh is a noted scholar.
“I was amazed at their dedication and sincerity in learning,” said Shaykh Rami, founder of Tayba Foundation who sponsored the classes through The Malcolm X Distance Learning Program. The foundation offers follow-up courses online for students interested in continuing Islamic studies once they parole, said Shaykh Rami.
Tom Martini, a prison volunteer for the Restorative Justice program at San Quentin, talked about his experience with Muslims in Sierra Leone, Africa. “Abroad, it is more spiritual, but in America there is much more pursuit of individual material success,” he said, of his views comparing Africa to the United States. However, he said he sees more of a spiritual connection inside San Quentin than in the free world.
One guest known only as Oscar “Mustafa” Pena a former gang member and now a Latino Muslim who recently returned from studying abroad, spoke strongly to remind us that our different races do not divide us.
“Keep good company with good people and seek Allah’s help with all sincerity,” said one of the graduates reading from his essay. “Shaytan (the devil) has many ways to enter man’s heart, but angels have only one: The truth.”
Keynote speaker, Shaykh Rami, spoke on the importance of freedom through education, stating, “Freedom, like in the case of Fredrick Douglass, is a state of mind. Fredrick Douglass was mentally free through education long before his physical freedom.”
“Everyone should strive to establish a meaningful relationship with God,” said San Quentin’s Islamic Chaplain Imam Husain Kawsar. “Many of us believe in God, pray to God, but how many of us have meaningful relationships with God? By this I mean, how concerned are we with making God happy in our decision making process? When you truly love someone, that love colors your every decision. You ask yourself ‘what does my beloved want to see in me?’ This is how our relationship with God should be because He, (God) sees our every action; our every action should be made pleasing to Him.”
The celebration was attended by guests Shaykh Rami Nasour, founder/director of the Tayba Foundation, Haseeb Sadat, a sixth grade teacher, Abu Taqi from Tunisia who came to observe, a volunteer from the Omega Boys Club in San Francisco, and Martini.
Construction Tech Class Seeks 27 Students
A new vocational course at San Quentin seeks 27 dedicated students, according to the prison’s education department.
“This curriculum will ground the trainee in the basic knowledge and principles of carpentry, masonry, concrete finishing, electrical work, HVAC, and plumbing,” said Dante Callegari, instructor of Vocational Building Maintenance. “Students will become skilled in different phases of a project from start to finish.”
Various construction skills taught in the 16-week course include: wall, ceiling, and floor framing; electrical wiring; how to work with concrete; and bricklaying.
The program targets inmates close to release, and according to prison officials, will give them a marketable skill, which improves their employment chances.
The construction technology program will be intense, according to Callegari. It requires a full time assignment. “I don’t need a person who is looking to sign up for the course because he wants time away from his housing unit,” he said.
No previous construction experience is needed, but those interested in signing up for the program must be able to read English and understand elementary math.
Inmates must be eligible for milestones credits to qualify for the program. If eligible, interested inmates should contact their counselor or Lt. Graham.
Prisoners Submit Essays to Yale
Last year, The Yale Law Journal asked prisoners throughout the United States to submit essays on their perspective about how the law affects their lives.
The editors said they received “about 1,500 responses from people all across the United States—men and women, adults and juveniles, former petty offenders and current death-row inmates.”
The question, “what does fair treatment look like in prison” generated three outstanding essays: The Prison Rape Elimination Act, The Meaning of Imprisonment, and Solano Justice.
Aaron Lowers, an inmate at Solano State prison, wrote about the arcane disciplinary concept called constructive possession, used by California prison officials.
Lowers gives the following scenario: “…if two men are housed in the same prison cell, where a cell phone is discovered, both men can, and often are, found guilty of possessing the contraband and both suffer the consequences.”
Lowers alludes that “this tactic has evolved into a coercive device designed to force inmates to police themselves” putting inmates in “the precarious position of being their brother’s keepers.”
The ever-changing definition, plus the sheer amount of contraband found inside the prisons create extreme stress for inmates, especially those who must appear before parole boards in order to earn their release, Lowers argues.
His essay is sound, uses easy to understand language and supports an argument to end the practice of constructive possession by prison officials.
Ernie Drain’s introduction to The Meaning of Imprisonment is power packed as he writes, “Being incarcerated in prison means tucking your life into your back pocket for a while.”
Drain’s essay smartly describes what it means to be locked up, pointing to the little boring things people do while biding their time, as well as the “imagined authority and real tyranny, unnerving ethos and unavoidable conflict. It’s a lesson learned, never to be forgotten,” concludes Drain.
Elizabeth A. Reid, who attended Green River Community College, wrote about holding prison guards accountable for raping inmates.
Reid approaches this sensitive subject from a legal perspective as her essay reads like a court document.
The Prison Rape Elimination Act contains “graphic” details of what these violated women have been subjected to, as well as the “despicable” behavior of prison administrators who are ironically tasked with keeping the public safe from crime.
Editors of The Yale Law Journal said, “People who are incarcerated offer a unique perspective on the law. Having broken it, they now live in an environment pervaded by it. But only rarely, if ever, do scholars, lawyers, and policymakers hear directly from them about it.”
The May 2013, Volume 122, Number 7 edition of The Yale Law Journal offered inmates a voice in one of the most prodigious publications in the world.
Vietnam Veterans Group of San Quentin
Democracy Among Veterans 
The spirit of democracy thrives among a group of veterans inside the walls of San Quentin. In July the Vietnam Veterans Group of San Quentin held the annual executive body elections.
In a tight race the group elected US Army veteran Paul Stauffer as their new chairman. He will be responsible for presiding over all meetings of the VVGSQ and modeling examples of camaraderie and diplomacy.
“I was surprised, yet honored that the group elected me to lead. Being a member of this group has given me a sense of purpose and dignity that is often a struggle to hold on to in prison,” said Stauffer.
The vice-chairman position went to the group’s elder statesman, Lawson Beavers, 77. Beavers, an Army veteran who served in the Korean War, hopes to provide the levelheaded wisdom needed to accomplish the mission and objectives of the group. The vice-chairman is responsible for being the Chief Coordinator for all of the groups various committees.
US Marine Corps veteran Greg Sanders ran unopposed and has assumed the role of Secretary/Treasurer. He plans to use his gruff demeanor to reinforce the group’s commitment to the VVGSQ by-laws and constitution.
“Being part of this group gives me the opportunity to be of service to others and a helper of mankind. My vision is to provide group members with the education and therapy necessary to build their self-esteem,” said Sanders.
The newly elected Outside Coordinator, Christopher Bell, served our country as a Corpsman in the US Navy. He has only been with the VVGSQ for a year but plans to breathe new life into relationships established with the outside veteran community.
“I plan to fulfill my role by contacting outside military facilities and enlisting their support to provide incarcerated veterans with the resources that are so vitally needed,” said Bell.
VVGSQ in company formation on the Lower Yard
Elected to Member-at-Large positions with the various housing units were Kenneth Goodlow (Donner), John Johnston (H-Unit), Craig Johnson (West Block), and Ernie Vick (North Block). These men are responsible for providing membership applications to the mainline population and serving as the voice of the membership on the executive board.
With the new executive body in place, the VVGSQ is gearing up for another year of service to veterans inside and outside of the prison. A new Veterans Training Ground “Relapse Prevention” program is set to start in October, and preparations have already begun for the VVGSQ Holiday Toy program.
“I plan to continue to build on the hard work and dedication of the previous executive body, while at the same time, giving group members the opportunity to step up and contribute. It’s hard for people to feel excluded when they’re a part of experiencing something positive,” said Stauffer.
“64% of California’s jail population is awaiting trial or sentencing as of December 2016.” Most remain in pretrial custody because they cannot afford bail. Jail Profile Survey, http://www.bscc.ca.gov/
“if y’all think I did it…just give me a lawyer, dawg, ‘cause this is not what’s up.”Warren Demesme said during police questioning.The Louisiana Supreme Court held that this reference was too ambiguous to count as a request for counsel.REASON Magazine, January 2018
73 percent of Alabama is within a drug-free zone, defined as extending three miles from schools, colleges and housing complexes and resulting in a five- year enhancement. REASON Magazine, January 2018
San Francisco Debates Need for New Jail
San Francisco’s sheriff and the city’s Chief Probation Officer have opposite ideas when it comes to the city needing a new jail.
Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi believes the city needs a new jail, whereas Chief Probation Officer Wendy Still told the San Francisco Chronicle she thinks it would be better to invest in an alternative to incarceration.
Despite the difference of opinion, the city is moving forward with a $632 million plan to rebuild a new jail adjacent to the Hall of Justice – where the local courts, police department and the offices of the district attorney and probation department are located.
San Francisco only uses around 60 percent of its jail space, even after Gov. Jerry Brown implemented his plan to reduce the state’s prison population by shifting the responsibility of how to deal with low-level offenders to county governments. San Francisco’s jail population did not dramatically grow after the shift, and 75 percent of its jail population is awaiting trial, according to the Chronicle report.
San Francisco should try to find ways to get people awaiting trial out of jail and work out a classification system that would help determine where to house detainees, according to Micaela Davis, a criminal justice and drug policy attorney with the ACLU of Northern California. Davis said Los Angeles County had a similar problem and found many detainees were improperly catergoized, according to the Chronicle report.
“Why, when San Francisco is doing such a good job creating alternatives to incarceration…are we investing money in beds?” Still asked the Chronicle.