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Justice 4 Inmates ATTN: EDITOR P.O Box 660 Binghamton, NY 13905
JUSTICE 4 INMATES- BOX 660 - BINGHAMTON, NY 13905 email:
[email protected]
Germany Anti-Death Penalty organization gains U.S support Clearly put, the death penalty serves no purpose. In recent years more states are realizing this and we believe we can actually look forward to a day when the U.S abolishes the death penalty. But we have to constantly remind our local representatives and congressmen that the death penalty itself is dying. Those of us at Justice-for.org who take a stand to voice our concerns for the men and women sentenced to death do not support the crimes which took place and do not attempt to justify their actions. We do support humanity, we do support bringing justice. Justice does not equal stated funded murder. There have been cases of wrongful executions, meaning a persons innocence was determined only after their execution. There have been over a hundred people exonerated from death row. There have been stated funded murders on mentally ill inmates There have been botched executions, where something goes wrong with the execution. JUSTICE FOR THE INNOCENT (JFTI is a non-profit organization established in Germany in August 2005 to fight for the lives of innocent men and women sentenced to death. We are a close group of dedicated supporters from all over the world who share the same goal. Among our members are family and friends of death row prisoners, former death row prisoners, human rights activists and those committed to the abolishment of the death penalty. JUSTICE FOR THE INNOCENT now has a U.S contact based in NY (www.myspace.com/justice4inmates). To contact JUSTICE FOR THE INNOCENT in the U.S email:
[email protected] The Broken Bridge Brigade prisoner newsletter has also teamed up with JUSTICE FOR THE INNOCENT to feature updates, news and articles from
death row inmates, their families and supporters. Anyone is welcome to submit an article. JUSTICE FOR THE INNOCENT USA division will work to bring together people affected by the death penalty, writing campaigns, U.S events and more. If you are based in the U.S and would like to assist us in working towards this goals we welcome your ideas, participation adn encourage you to get involved. Plan a local event, email us your 'Against the Death Penalty' pictures or artwork for our website or newsletter publication. We encourage your involvement and look forward to working to abolish the death penalty and save the lives of the men and women sentenced to death in the U.S You can also learn more about these men and women through our penpal network. Send inquiries to: Gerechtigkeit für Unschuldige Justice for the innocent e.V. Postfach 6017 49093 Osnabrück Germany Webpage: www.justice-for.org
NEWS FROM THE D.R.I.V.E. Movement The D.R.I.V.E. Movement has recently seen a great deal support or recognition from friends and families of inmates to various media outlets such as; NYTimes, Blackout News Radio, KPFT Radio with three recent interviews with Charles Perroud and Bryan McCann from the D.R.I.V.E Movement. This organization is rapidly growing with supporters who show their support to improve conditions on death row and bring awareness to issues with the death penalty. Inmates on Death Row have also become active comrades to bring public knowledge of what it is like for them inside the walls of these units. I would like to congratulate everyone who is involved on their success with raising awareness not only to the public, but with officials as well.
Issue 1
JAN 2007
Texas Death Row Comrades: Reginald Blanton, Steve Woods, Kenneth Foster, Gabriel Gonzalez, Rob Will, Da'mon Simpson, Randy Greer, Randy Halprin and Carroll Par. Outside of Texas Comrades: Carolyn King PA. To learn more about the organization or how to get involved got to: http://drivemovement.org/ OR write to us at the Broken Bridge Brigade.
A Featured Article by the newest D..R.I.V.E Comrade, Steve Woods "The walls, the bars, the cons, and the guards can never encircle or hold down the idea of the people. And the people must always carry forward the idea, which is their dignity and their beauty." Huey P. Newton Revolutionary Greetings! As you can see, I've titled "my" section of this site as "Anarchy In Chains". I use that word, ANARCHY, not for 'flavor', but in the spirit of the Anarchist ideal: The negation of authority over anyone by anyone. What better place to apply this ideal than in an environment designed specifically for the purpose of controlling an individual and all aspects of their existence? And holding the one thing in their hands that no man should ever have the right to determine: the life and death of a human being. There are thousands of people in the United States who all face death at the hands of a ruthless and unjust system, and all are placed in such an environment. Each of those people exists in a frustrating struggle to both save their lives and retain their humanity. I am among those people and I am grateful for this opportunity to raise my voice with my comrades and be heard by all who read these words. I have been fighting this fight, alone for the most part, for most of the last 4 years. I was incredibly naive about prison when I first rolled up. Hell, this is my first experience at all with this type of environment. cont. in " On The Web" section
the Broken Bridge Brigade
the Broken Bridge Brigade
News and Updates Law Enforcement: Woman Arrested Over Flour-Filled Condom Wins $180,000 in Suit Settlement from Drug War Chronicle, Issue #468, 1/12/07 A Bryn Mawr college student who was arrested and jailed for three weeks on drug trafficking charges for carrying condoms filled with flour will be paid $180,000 by the city of Philadelphia in a settlement announced this week. Janet Lee was carrying the condoms, which women at the college used as toys to squeeze when they were stressed out, in her carry-on baggage as she boarded a Christmas season flight home to Los Angeles. Airport screeners found the condoms, and Philadelphia police said preliminary drug tests indicated the condoms contained opium and heroin. Lee spent the next three weeks in the Philadelphia jail as authorities ignored her protestations of innocence. It was only when later drug tests failed to confirm the presence of drugs that she was released. After her release from jail and the dropping of the charges, Lee filed a civil rights lawsuit against the city. It was scheduled to go to trial Thursday, but city officials announced Wednesday that they had agreed to pay Lee $180,000 to settle the suit. "Under the circumstances, something went terribly wrong," Lee's lawyer, Jeffrey Ibrahim, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We're trying to ensure that nothing like that ever happens again." Lee, a freshman at the time of her arrest, said she had no idea drug traffickers used condoms to carry drugs. "I was naive, really stupid," she said. [Editor's Note: Condoms are used by "mules" who swallow them filled with drugs and have them in their stomachs when flying into the country; they are not a preferred packaging for drugs carried outside the body, say in one's carry-on baggage.] Naivete, however, is not yet a criminal offense in this country, and neither is carrying flour in a condom. Now, the city of Philadelphia is paying for its drug war zealotry, although it refuses to admit to wrongdoing or liability.
TEENAGERS LIFE SENTENCE REVERSED, GRANTED A NEW TRIAL! Tyler Edmonds, a Mississippi teen who was charged with the murder of his brother in-law Joey Fulgham at the age of 13 has been given a 2nd chance. At the age of 15 Tyler was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Friends of Tyler created a website and myspace page to bring public awareness to his case. Tylers half sister, Kristi Fulgham, was also tried for the murder. In December she was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death. Thanks to Andrea and Madame Boohiss for creating Tylers page, his page now has over a thousand readers. Tyler has maintained such a positive outlook while incarcerated and has worked diligently to get his high school diploma and is now working on college courses. Victory for Tyler and a special thanks to everyone who has worked to bring awareness of his case and who have worked hard on his case!
LIFE IN PRISON FOR SMOKING POT At the age of 17, Tyrone Brown was arrested for a two dollar stick, the victim was unharmed. For this Mr. Brown received 10 years probation. While Mr. Brown was on probation he was caught smoking pot, the sentence was then reversed to life in prison. Judge Keith Dean, said at the sentencing, "Good Luck Mr. Brown". Tyrone has now served 16 years in prison and was recently featured on 20/20 and on the Dallas Morning News. D.A Bill Hill has asked Gov Rick Perry to release Mr. Brown. A decision will be made soon. A website has also been set up: http://www.savemrbrown.com/ "We create our lives a thought at a time. And sometimes, it comes down to changing a thought such as 'Why did this happen to me?' into 'There is a divine plan and there is a reason for this, and my choice is to create the most positive reaction I can.'" ~Dee Wallace Stone American Actress (She played the mom in "ET")
NY GOV. CUTS THE COST OF PRISON PHONE CALLS Newly elected, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer, has ordered that the NY Department of Correctional Services stop charging a commission on collect calls made by state inmates to their families. Spitzer said the decision would cut the costs of the calls by at least 50 percent without cutting prison programs that the commission previously funded such as; AIDS medications and family reunion programs, these will now be funded from the general revenues. It will go into effect April 1, 2007. Spitzer's action comes the day before the state's highest court, the Court of Appeals, hears oral argument challenging the legality of the high phone charges. Spitzer's' office called the phone charges "excessive" and said they were hindering the ability of some families to keep in touch with their loved ones in prison. In 1996, former Gov. George Pataki's administration reached an agreement with MCI Worldcom Communications for MCI be the exclusive provider of collect call service from New York state prisons. Between 1996 and 2001, the Department of Correctional Services imposed a 60 percent surcharge on the calls. When the contract was renewed in 2001, the surcharge was reduced to 57.5 percent. When the commissions were challenged by advocates for inmates, Pataki's Department of Correctional Services said the surcharges went to maintain the state's system of being able to monitor the outgoing calls inmates were placing. At the time, the state said it had to make sure that inmates were not conducting illegal activities on the phone or placing harassing phone calls to people outside prison. “This is a victory for all New Yorkers because increased contact with family members is proven to reduce recidivism rates after release,” said Annette Dickerson, coordinator of the New York Campaign for Telephone Justice, which pushed for the change. Ms. Dickerson is also the director of education at the Center for Constitutional Rights, which filed suit two years ago on behalf of prisoners’ families to end the charges.This victory proves that the efforts of activists and advocates for inmates and their families should push forward. Start a petition in your state to end the commission of inmate collect calls. Thanks to Eliot Spitzer NY will soon a cut in collect rates, from $6.20 a phone call down to around $3.00 Speak up about this issue. If NY can stop this, other states can do the same.
Resources The Abolishment Movement The Abolishment Movement is an educational website and free member forum, concerned with Capital Punishment, and long natural life sentences. We have a section for inmate members on death row, and have opened a section for inmates not on death row, but supporting our cause. If you would like to be listed with The Abolishment Movement, send your contact info, photo, writings, pen-pal requests, etc., to: Dee Martin PO Box 63095 New Bedford Ma. 02746 your property will be returned if you like http://www.theabolishmentmovement.org/ Big House Art Big House Art is a non-profit organization structured to help provide exposure to artwork, but not just any type of art. Every piece that I own is very special as each was done for me by one of my good friends who is doing some hard time in prison. Most of them are sitting on the row in the state of Texas. Recently, I had the opportunity to spend some quality time sitting on Oklahoma's death row, just shooting the breeze with a buddy who lives there. Now I don't mean sitting in the visiting room; but literally in a cell locked down on death row of the H Unit in McAlester, OK. There is not a stranger feeling in the world than looking at the faces around you and knowing that most of them will be dead in the next few years. Weird feeling for real. So if you are not afraid to ride the blade then welcome to my world. My world is a world where dead men walk, talk and express themselves through their artwork. It is a place where those called the ‘worst of the worst’ are often better people than those in the world. Many of these dead men have more life than those who are still alive and in the world. By clicking on the website link below, you can meet some of these special people and even purchase items directly inspired by their artwork. Profits are used to support the artist that created the original drawing or painting from which each item was created. http://www.bighouseart.com/ Paid In Full Ministry Post Office Box 285 Millbury MA 01527 Accepts used stamps from your mail to send U.S. stamp collections to children in orphanages in Nepal, India, the Philippines and some African countries. The children learn about famous Americans, American institutions and other American cultural images through the images on the postage stamps.
We hope to accept used stamps from prisoners and others around the world and to make the stamp collection a truly international event! Write us for more information or send us your used stamps to help do your part. Remember, when removing the stamps from your mail, just tear the corner of the envelope off making sure the stamp is whole and intact. Trying to remove the stamp from the envelope will tear and ruin the stamp- tearing the whole corner, envelope and all is the best way! Thank you very much for your help. ADVOCARE, INC. P.O. Box 133 Hancock, MD 21750 www.advocareflash.or
[email protected] Provide assistance to prisoners and ex-offenders in the form of education and employment referrals; and, to provide prisoners and their families with updates on legal issues re prison conditions and criminal legislation. Voice For Inmates 1003 N. Shelby St. Shelby, NC 28150 www.voiceforinmates.com Advocates for Fair, Humane & Equal treatment of inmates Provides penpal and email services for inmates FREE and fee based services. ALL applicants approved. Write to the above address for an application or have a family member got to website for more info. LostVault www.lostvault.com PO Box 261
[email protected] Washburn, TN 37888 dedicated to creating and maintaining a free place for inmates to find pen pals, and for you to find them. Unlike many of the other prison pen pal sites, we do not charge the inmate OR you for this service as long as the ad is posted via the internet by a loved one. For ads posted by our staff, there is a nominal $5 fee for all inmates other than death row, who receive free ads. Our services are free for everyone, unless an inmate wishes for our staff to post the ad for them We do not accept free pen pal ads via snail mail except for death row inmates inmates (they will be verified).
the Broken Bridge Brigade
the Broken Bridge Brigade
Voices from the Outside Submitted article from: Mindie
[email protected] On March 22, 2003, a tragedy caused the life of two innocent people. A young lady was shot and killed and an innocent young man was accused of the terrible crime and sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison. Rodney Burton of Pittsburgh Pa. was accused for the tragic shooting death of a Ms. Dana Palaski of Murraysville PA., early Sunday morning on March 22 2003. Mr. Burton was found guilty on all circumstantial evidence and was sentenced to a life sentence in prison. The district Attorney asked for the death penalty, but the jury spared his life because of lingering doubt in the case and who shot the young lady. Mr. Burton’s trial attorney, Mr. William Brennan, refused to help Mr. Burton and did little to no work on the case. Mr. Brennan showed his ineffectiveness in the courtroom by not bringing up pertinent evidence to prove Mr. Burtons innocence. Because this trial took place during election year, Mr. Burton’s attorney explained to him, as he was picking his jury, that it was very important for the DA to win the case, for it would be the DA’s very last case as a DA. Here it is three years later and no word from his attorney, nor has Mr. Burton received his transcripts. Mr. Brennan also made it a point to mention information in Mr. Burtons briefing that was never brought up in court, which the appeals court will only hear evidence that was presented during trial. The biggest piece of evidence that was not presented and should have been was the DNA. Swabs were taken from the young lady that showed semen inside and outside of her body and none of the DNA matched Mr. Burton. During court, Mr. Burton asked his attorney to bring up the DNA issue and his attorney did go to the side bar with the DA and asked to use it, but when the DA said that if Mr. Brennan brings up the DNA that the DA would only say that Mr. Burton raped the young lady. Mr. Brennan had documentation to up-hold and proves that Mr. Burton’s DNA did not match. In fact the man who’s DNA did match gave the police three different names and three different birth dates and told police that he was homeless and had no phone. The police let the man go before the DNA results came back, and because he gave no information, he was not able to be located. Mr. Brennan never retrieved any experts to support Mr. Burton’s innocence, no ballistic expert or a handwriting expert was available. Every witness that testified against Mr. Burton gave a different story all the way from the police report, questioning, the codefendant’s trial and Mr. Burton’s trial and none of that was ever brought up in court. There was even a tape available from a conversation that the co-defendant confessed on that she had lied on Mr. Burton. When Mr. Burton asked his attorney about using the tape in court his attorney told him that the DA had the tape and that Mr. Burton had confessed on the tape. Mr. Burton was shocked at the attorney’s comment and asked him once again to please have the DA use the tape. That tape was never mention in court. During court the young lady’s mother walked up to the DA’s table and TOLD the detective “ he didn’t do it “, and the assistant DA walked to the back of the courtroom and told another woman the same thing. The funny thing is during Mr. Burton’s sentencing both the mother and the DA changed their tune.
As an honest citizen, you would think that both women would want the person who killed the young lady to be brought to justice, but I guess since the justice system refuse to follow the evidence that was put in their faces the young lady’s mother will settle for anybody to take the blame. We are now trying to start the Rodney Burton Foundation to help free the innocent in prison. As of January 23 2007 the court, appointed attorneys and judges were under investigation for corruption and fraud.
A LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE Cont. Amador remains very positive, even humble, admitting to many serious mistakes while still maintaining his innocence of the crime that put him on death row. “It’s not what he wants; it’s what he has to accept. But the bitterness and the anger are not there, and that’s something I’ve worked on with him. But he’s come to discover a lot on his own. He’s a very reflective person, and I admire that in him,” Father Mallinson said. When Father Mallinson learned about this setback, he remembered his promise of years ago, the promise to be with Amador at his execution. Now, the man facing death at the hands of the state is not just an inmate he was visiting, but a beloved friend. “I’ve watched this man change,” he said, and in 10 years Father Mallinson has grown through this relationship with someone he would not have chosen as a friend, by understanding in his heart that you cannot demonize or dismiss someone you have come to know. “An innocent life or a guilty life it’s all sacred. It can be an ugly life, but it’s still life, it’s still of God. I don’t want to be there to see this man die, but I will be there for a man who calls me his friend.” (Maryann Clarke is a free-lance writer who lives in Richardson). Original article from Texas Catholic http://www.bighouseart.com/Stories/TX_Catholic.pdf
DONATE YOUR USED STAMPS Paid in Full Ministry accepts used stamps from your mail to send U.S. stamp collections to children in orphanages in Nepal, India, the Philippines and some African countries. The children learn about famous Americans, American institutions and other American cultural images through the images on the postage stamps. We hope to accept used stamps from prisoners and others around the world and to make the stamp collection a truly international event! Write us for more information or send us your used stamps to help do your part. Remember, when removing the stamps from your mail, just tear the corner of the envelope off making sure the stamp is whole and intact. Trying to remove the stamp from the envelope will tear and ruin the stamp- tearing the whole corner, envelope and all is the best way! Thank you very much for your help. See Resources page for address.
A LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE Friendship with death row inmate transforms priest By MARYANN CLARKE LANCASTER. Father Arthur Mallinson, pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Lancaster, has never witnessed an execution. But because of a promise he made to a death-row inmate 10 years ago, he anticipates doing so at a date soon to be decided. In the years since Father Mallinson began writing and then visiting this inmate, John Joe Amador, known as Ash to most people, he has participated in a transformation not only of Ash, but of himself. Years ago, Father Mallinson found himself touched by “Dead Man Walking,” the book by Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ, describing her relationship with Matthew Poncelet, a death-row inmate in Louisiana. He was influenced, too, by the late Cardinal Joseph Bernardin’s teaching on the sacredness of all life, his “seamless garment of life” philosophy of a consistent pro-life ethic. But he admits to being uncomfortable with this aspect of right to life. “I could understand emotionally why right to life of the innocent unborn is a very significant emotional issue, but then when it’s someone who’s guilty, who’s done horrible things, you know, we’d rather just push them aside,” he said. But the verse in St. Matthew’s Gospel, “When I was in prison, you visited me” spoke to him, too. “There wasn’t any kind of distinction being made where you visited me when I was in prison falsely accused, or you visited me in prison when I was innocent,” Father Mallinson said. So when he read an article in the National Catholic Reporter about forming pen-pal relationships with inmates, he felt called to do this. “I wondered what it would be like to visit Jesus in prison. I thought I needed to do that,” he said. He emailed the contact named in the article and the match with then 20- year-old Amador, who was then in prison in Huntsville, was completely random. So began 10 years of letter writing and eventually visits, and the formation of a strong bond. “I watched Ash change over the years,” Father Mallinson said about the inmate who, convicted of killing a taxi driver in Poteet, Texas, in January 1994 at the age of 18, was soon moved to the maximum security prison in Livingston. It was a slow change at first. Ash was full of rage and hatred, especially of the people in the justice system who he felt had failed him. “He was a very difficult person to be with,” Father Mallinson said. “I came out of a sense of obligation, because I was trying to be a positive influence in his life.” Nor would Father Mallinson have called Amador his friend in those early days, an admission he finds a little embarrassing. “I was visiting a guy who was in prison. I would never say he was a friend.” Amador and Father Mallinson talked about many things in their letters and in their periodic visits (Father Mallinson visits him about three times a year): his violent childhood, the circumstances of his conviction and insistence on his innocence, their shared love of art. “He sent me many of his works over the years, and I watched as his art evolved,” Father Mallinson said. He began with paños, drawings on handkerchiefs, a popular art form in prison.Eventually, he graduated to working on art board. “He did a stunning black-and white leopard on art board that I gave as a Father’s Day gift.” Influenced by work the other inmates were doing, he moved on to color, using paints he made from grinding colored pencils and mixing with baby oil. “He made brushes from his own hair.
His progress and imagination were amazing,” Father Mallinson said. His subjects included the fiercest animals and birds, but also dreamlike images of women and paintings with spiritual themes. Father Mallinson believes he influenced one of these paintings. “His most powerful is one of Jesus fallen under the cross. Three ends of the cross are out of sight, giving the impression that this burden might be not just a cross, which we expect, but part of the framing of a building under construction, and he is either lifting it with the strength of his back or has fallen under the weight of it.” Over the years, Father Mallinson has received, raffled, displayed, and given away numerous art works from Amador. “I raffled one of his paintings at church,” he said. “He sent a thank-you note to everyone who bought a ticket, not just the winner, although he wanted to send them to everyone.” And so, the community at St. Francis has also become part of Amador’s spiritual network. The inmate’s love of art was not his only salvation. He always had his own eclectic brand of spirituality, heavily focused on his dreams, which tend to be very vivid and which he would share with great excitement with Father Mallinson. He fully believes God speaks to him through his dreams. Eventually, Amador was reunited through a friend with Linda, a generous, loving woman he had known before his incarceration. They fell in love and were married, and this is when Amador truly began to change. “One love led to another,” Father Mallinson said. “He now had joy, and he felt that he had a purpose in life. He wanted Linda to sell his art and donate the proceeds to fund projects that would help children stay away from gangs and crime. “Our visits became times of shared ideas and insights and, often, laughter. He spoke more of God and how he was sure of God’s love and mercy.” Amador was inspired to write a book, also intended to help others avoid the mistakes he made with drugs, gangs, and violence. It is almost finished and it won’t be exactly autobiographical. It’s “more of a fantasy, sort of in the style of The Alchemist” (by Paulo Coelho), which has strongly influenced Amador’s spirituality. Amador wants it to be a parable, with the characters being symbols rather than representations of actual people. He claims that Father Mallinson (who apparently is a character in his book) has contributed to the change in him. “I would be constant,” Father Mallinson said. “Ash knew he could rely on me to write and visit and to do as much as I could to encourage him. He could not rely on members of his family, and this hurt him very much.” Over the years, they exchanged dozens and dozens of letters, all of which Father Mallinson has kept. When Linda re-entered his life, she became another anchor for him, visiting about once a week.In August Amador learned that he has one appeal left, scheduled for November, and this will probably be his last, with the likelihood of a Supreme Court appeal slim to none. Despite this turn of events, Father Mallinson said Amador remains very positive, even humble, admitting to many serious mistakes while still maintaining his innocence of the crime that put him on death row. “It’s not what he wants; it’s what he has to accept. But the bitterness and the anger are not there, and that’s something I’ve worked on with him. But he’s come to discover a lot on his own. He’s a very reflectiveperson, and I admire that in him,” Father Mallinson said. .... Continued in "Voices from the Outside" section
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the Broken Bridge Brigade
On The Web
On The Web
Support Groups and Organizations Looking to get more involved in prison issues? We encourage you to get more involved and speak up about what concerns you, by getting involved in any of these great groups or organizations
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AdvocacyforInmates2005 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AdvoCareInc http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AmericaPositivePrisonReform 2005 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/criminaldefenselawforum http://groups.yahoo.com/group/criminalmentalhealthcourts http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DoNotGiveUpHopeUSA http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Families-of-Inmates http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FedCURE-org http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Florida_Prison_Movement http://groups.yahoo.com/group/fppp http://groups.yahoo.com/group/inmate-advocates http://groups.yahoo.com/group/inmate_medical http://groups.yahoo.com/group/innocentinprison http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Intl-Network-of-PrisonMinistries http://groups.yahoo.com/group/isaiah61_cfcprisonministry http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Loving_An_Inmate http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mental-illness-and-dp http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Mothers-of-Prisoners http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewYorkStatePrisons http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NoInmateLeftBehind http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrisonerEducation http://groups.yahoo.com/group/prisonerlife http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrisonerActivists http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PrisonMovement http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Prison_News_Stories http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PRUP http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RehabilitationRevolution2006 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/restorativejustice http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sosenflorida http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TexansAgainstPrisonAbuse http://groups.yahoo.com/group/the-convicts-co-op http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheFloridaLOLITS http://groups.yahoo.com/group/The_Lawyerdude http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UNA-News http://groups.yahoo.com/group/USAFamiliesInPrison2006 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/VirginiaCentralTriCityIncarce ratedPeople http://groups.yahoo.com/group/VirginiaFamiliesandFriendsof Prisoners http://groups.yahoo.com/group/voice_ofthevoicelessinstatepri sons http://groups.yahoo.com/group/peopleagainstprisonabuse http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wisepeople http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wrongfulconvictions http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Wrongfully_Convicted http://groups.yahoo.com/group/patrickcrusade JUSTICE 4 INMATES http:www.myspace.com/justice4inmates
Death Row Inner-communalist Vanguard Engagement “D.R.I.V.E Movement” http://Drivemovement.org
drug use and the elevated crime rates more properly related to drug prohibition than to drug pharmacology and (2) To restore the public's
Steve Woods Cont ...
respect for law enforcement, which has been greatly diminished by its involvement in imposing drug prohibition.
I've spent some time as an adolescent and teenager in
Incorporated on March 16, 2002, Law Enforcement Against
various psychiatric centers but that's not a comparable
www.stopthedrugwar.org
Prohibition has grown from five founding police officers to a
experience. I've been an anarchist the majority of my
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pennsylvaniaamericanfamilyri 9
membership of over 4,500 including over 125 speakers, living in 38
life, which makes accepting this situation so much
of the United States and in 8 other countries.
harder, yet makes living here so much easier. I was
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PeopleHelpingPeopleinPrison http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PLEAFORHELP
All LEAP speakers are former drug-warriors; police, parole,
able, after a short period of confusion and depression, to
probation, and corrections officers, judges, prosecutors, prison
throw the foot of the oppressors off my neck (or at least -
Christian Ministry/ Penpal network and Shout Out Radio Show KDOL 96.1FM http://www.myspace.com/alllifeisprecious2006
wardens, FBI, and DEA agents. LEAP has members and supporters
reduce its effect). It's my ideals, shaped from years of
across the United States and in fifty-six other countries.
anarchist literature and thought that have given me the
ORIGIN OF SPEAKERS BUREAU LEAP is a tax exempt,
ammunition I needed to fight this place and this "justice"
international, nonprofit, educational entity based in the United States
system. It's the struggle that helps keep me alive.
LostVault http://www.myspace.com/lostvault Penpal Service and free newsletter http://www.bondsbehindbars.com http://www.myspace.com/bbbbondsbehindbars
that was modeled after Vietnam Veterans Against the War. These Veterans had an unassailable credibility when speaking out to end that terrible war and LEAP has the same credibility when its former
Students for Sensible Drug Policy The DARE Generation Fights Back: No More Drug War http://www.myspace.com/ssdp
drug-warriors speak out against the horrors of the War on Drugs.
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition www.leap.cc
policies.
http://www.myspace.com/copssaylegalizedrugs “cops say legalize drugs” Our speakers entered into a career of law enforcement, they pledged to protect and serve. Realizing that their participation in the War on Drugs undermined the fulfillment of that pledge, the men and women of LEAP have joined forces to take action. It requires integrity, passion and bravery for our speakers to rise above the status quo. The mission of LEAP is to reduce the multitude of harms resulting from fighting the War on Drugs and to lessen the rates of death, disease, crime, and addiction by ultimately ending drug prohibition. LEAP's goals are: (1) To educate the public, the media and policymakers about the failure of current drug policy by presenting a true picture of the history, causes and effects of
LEAP's message demands the attention of the media and resonates with members of law enforcement who question current U.S. drug
TOGETHER WE CAN! End the prohibition of currently illicit
One of our main goals here is to chronicle our struggle to give you a good look inside these walls. One rarely gets to see beyond the facade the system presents to the world. As stated by one of this century's most prolific writers, Paulo Coelho: "What the eyes don't see, the heart doesn't grieve over." We hope that if we can help you see we can move you to act. We also hope to somehow foster the attitude throughout the world that we on Death Row are fellow human beings. I will try
substances, raise awareness of the harm wrought by the U.S. led
my best to remove the misconceptions generally held
"War on Drugs"and educate the public about legalization as a safer
that we are monsters - cold blooded, un-feeling,
more effective measure for dealing with drug use, abuse and
unthinkably evil. Most people who are pro-death and
addiction.
those working with the machine feel this way. They
Prison Support Services for Families, Legal Document Prep.,
have to. If they don't hate us enough, how can they kill
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us? And how else can one learn to hate a person,
Justice 4 Inmates
without first removing their humanity? I refuse to give
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up my humanity. And I refuse to allow you to see me as
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anything other than who I am. Through our sacrifice
email:
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and return of good for evil, we intend to win this fight.
Webpage: www.myspace.com/justice4inmates
In struggle, strength & solidarity, Steven Woods
For more info about any of these groups write to us. Submit your stories, ideas, artwork for future issues.
Polunsky Death Camp