The exodus of Lifers from San Quentin to freedom is no longer a rare occurrence. Yet, the parole of a Lifer is still worthy of celebration as it encourages all of us to persevere. Lifers Patrick Mims and Edward Payton were paroled in March 2009. Jerry Elster’s parole date has been approved by the Governor. We offer their insight on their years of incarceration and imminent freedom as a way to give hope to those of us still struggling for parole.
Edward Payton was 33 years old when he was imprisoned for a murder he describes as the shooting of a 22 year -old man who “tried to take advantage of my 13 year- old daughter.”
He recalls that he reacted emotionally after he confronted the young man who answered him roughly.. Payton regrets to this day, that action he took 33 years ago.
Payton emphasized that we should try to surround ourselves with “thinkers” rather than people who are emotional. He took a man’s life because he reacted angrily to that person’s remarks.
“If a person is not capable of thinking for themselves, they can not think for someone else. And that’s for male and female,” he said.
“If I was thinking instead of allowing emotions to take over, no matter what was said to me, this would never have happened,” he added. “Nothing was worth me taking someone’s life. That’s what happens when you don’t allow yourself a chance to think or are incapable of doing so. Thinking is an art.”
Originally from south New Orleans, he anticipates rejoining his two sons, two daughters and 11 grandchildren and adjusting to freedom. Payton said what he missed most was “the love and affection of my family. I regret that I was not able to lead my family spiritually from prison.” As the eldest of five children he feels a responsibility to demonstrate to his family the kind of love and affection he was shown as a child growing up.
After serving in the Marines, Payton went to Detroit from New Orleans to live with his brother, Lawrence Payton, and his family.
“I liked the city of Detroit so much I did not go back to New Orleans. What interested me the most was that as a master barber, I was able to open my own business and make a lot of money doing hair styles and cutting hair.”
Payton’s brother, Lawrence, was a member of the Four Tops. He died of cancer in 1997, which still saddens him.
Payton said he never gave up hope of being released. Two days before his release, Payton said, “I have clear thoughts. Now I can see positive change. Before there was doubt that I could do the things I wanted to do.’
He said imprisonment restricts our thoughts and keeps us from being the complete “you, that you can mentally and spiritually be. It’s like being a scientist without the use of a laboratory to do experiments.”
His advice to others is to educate themselves and maintain a positive outlook on life. “The only people I have seen fall by the wayside are people who have given up on themselves.”
Over the past 33 years he has educated himself, “something I may not have done on the streets.”
Payton said the reality that he was going home struck him when he received a letter from the governor declining to review the parole board’s decision to grant him parole. He removed the letter and read from it. Contemplating the fact that his cell would no longer be home, he said, “I feel good about that. I’m feeling freedom. Once your mind opens up to the manifestation of the reality of freedom, now you know that you have the ability to put your plan in action.”
After more than twenty years of incarceration for second-degree murder, Patrick Mims acknowledged his victim was “a fine young man named Kevin” and he expressed “feelings of joy for the reality of going to live my life. At the same time I’m feeling sadness for the good men I’m leaving behind.”
He recalls that he had a “distorted perception of reality” and after about “four years into my incarceration my transformation started.” He expressed a
desire to reunite with his family and “honor Kevin and his family by doing good work and serving my community.”
Twice the Board of Parole Hearings found him suitable. The governor reversed both dates. At his last board hearing, Mims received a three-year denial. A successful challenge in the state courts to the governor’s reversal of his second date resulted in his recent parole.
Mims stated: “My faith in God sustained me through it all. The obstacles were challenges; I looked forward to facing the challenges. I found hope in my successes while in prison, the more I achieved the clearer it became to me that I would become a ‘physically’ free man someday.”
Mims was chosen as one of the first nine men to participate in the Victim Offender Education Group [V.O.E.G.] of San Quentin.
He said, “V.O.E.G provided me a safe place to talk about my crimes against society, my personal history in regards to my relationship to others and the impact all of this had on my life. This in turn helped me to understand how I got to the point to where I could commit the horrible act of murder.”
His belief in the effectiveness of the program led him to become a co-facilitator in the program and develop an 18- month curriculum for a continuation program called The Next Step.
He says he is proud that he has developed from an “uneducated substance- abusing child into a mature, responsible, compassionate, loving and caring man.”
Mims offers this advice to Lifers still awaiting their day of freedom: “I would suggest that individuals who have made a sincere change within their hearts, keep in the forefront of their minds that they are not their crimes of 20- plus years ago. The shame, the guilt, and the self persecution are not a healthy way to live the rest of your life.”
Jerry Elster’s life sentence of more than twenty-five years ended in March 2009. He has several months of a consecutive sentence left to serve but still experienced the joy of having the governor agree with the Board that he was suitable for parole.
Elster spoke about “the awesome power of God, who was able to forgive me and look aside from my shortcoming. God took a gang member and thug and gave him a spiritual heart.”
He awaits a joyful reunion with his mother. He overcame the disappointment of being found suitable for parole on two prior occasions, only to have
the governor reject them. He states that he and his supporters felt “devastated” after the governor rescinded his first date in 2005.
“I had to really put my trust in God, because the world seemed to have turned their back on me,” he said. He faces freedom with “no fear but plenty of anticipation of how I will learn to maneuver through life as I’ve learned to do inside.”
He feels that the parole process “forces a man to take responsibility, not only for the crime, but for practically every questionable area of his life.”
“I think that more emphasis should be placed on rehabilitation and restorative factors rather than politicizing the process, he added.”
A key figure in the creation of numerous self-help groups, Elster has mentored inner city, at risk youth in programs such as No More Tears, Real Choices and S.Q.U.I.R.E.S. An articulate spokesman about gang violence and how to help young people avoid its snares, Elster was featured on a recent Dr. Phil program that was taped at San Quentin. He said that a major goal for his life to trying to reverse the pain he caused by his former life of gang violence.
Elster reminds all of us to “never stop believing in second chances.” He credits his wife, Miki, as being a source of strength and stability. Her patient resolve and belief that he would be free helped him endure the arduous parole process.
