xt75x63b2w4v https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt75x63b2w4v/data/mets.xml  Kentucky  1972 newsletters  English Eddyville, Ky.: Kentucky State Penitentiary  This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed. Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically. Physical rights are retained by the owning repository. Copyright is retained in accordance with U. S. copyright laws. Please go to https://exploreuk.uky.edu for more information. Castle on the Cumberland Kentucky State Penitentiary -- Periodicals Journalism, Prison -- Kentucky Castle on the Cumberland, Spring 1972 text Kentucky State Penitentiary v.: ill. 28 cm. Call Numbers HV8301 .C37 and 17-C817 20:C279 Castle on the Cumberland, Spring 1972 1972 1972 2021 true xt75x63b2w4v section xt75x63b2w4v  

 

 

 

 'aurrsm*wE”3TAﬁﬁi, TIIﬁVIDED’WE FALL 7

 

u‘Henorabla Wendell HrQ‘ Ford EffliﬁH Honorable Julian Carroll
* ‘ Governar VJQQ‘UH_ :ygfjﬂj‘_jy, Lieutenant Gavernor ,14f»;

L ‘1 THE DEPARTMENT FGGRREG TIGNS ' * ‘

 

KENTUEKY STATE PENITENTIARY

 

9‘95HgJ;'H3 Hinge Warden

 

Ylgdbhn W. Drennon Assoc. Warden/Administ

    

I w G Herndan ’ 1 A8303 .1 Wﬂl‘dan/ 00.8170 dy

Assoc. Wardan/Treatment

 

f5iQ;lJerry wilaon
1,1};inmke eurn“tt°lﬂ
,., f w D. a
,{125F R walker

      

Seniar Captain

   

son .

£13_¥ Educational Eﬂrecter 1115:1H

    

   

3%;¢#S¢ﬁﬁf3ré33flii"">“'

         

1"7{Bob Badman " Editor 1, Ghaa DuﬁainQHIllust.V9141:pr7"’5

”Clifford Hall Prass Opsr._ ;ﬁ;v3\V3”

 

   

.JGaatlo 1 ‘ﬁublished under the suparvision cf Mr. James R Hubbard, ,VVM
and 1a a member of the American Penal Press Aaaoeiatian._H , _\ _;Tmll<§;gk,

  

?M@@ O aﬂ??@@?@

CASTLE is published by the inmates of the Kentucky State
Penitentiary near Eddyvillem The primary purpose of this publi-
cation is to promote a better understanding between the prisoners
and interested personssoutside. The views and comments eontained
herein do not reflect those of the Administrationo Permission to
reprint all material is granted provided the source is. acknowledg-
ed.

FROM THE EDITORQOOOoooooooooooooooooooo0°2“3
WARDENVS MORANDUMoooooooooooooeooooooooL}
COMMISSIONER SPEAKS..........o...o...ooooﬁ
REHKBILITATION BEST POLICY..°oo....oo.oo.6
JAIL FOR SALEoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo?
GUEST EDITORIALooooooooooooooooo0000000008‘3’9
POETRYooooooooooooooooooo00.0000000000900103’11
EDITORIAL OPINIONG9°0000000.0000.0000000012013u14
BATHTUB VS CRD’IEooooooooooooOoOOoocooc.0012;
BITS AND PIECESOO0.000000000000000.00000015
OLD YARD KATGOOOOOOOCOOOOOCOOOOOOIO00000016
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT}.o.o..oo..oo.o.o17
EASTER MESSAGEoooooooooooooooo0000000000018
HOME BOYooooooooooooooooooooooooooo0.000019
MAIL-«THE ONLY CONTACT.............°9°...20n21
A PRE’BOARD INTERVIEWooooooooo0900000000022
GRADUATION EXERCISES PLANNEDooooocooooooogg

JAILHOUSE LKWYEROCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO0000.291” “’25
”PRACTICAL IDEA 90.000.000.000000000000920

    
  

IN KENTUCKY STATE PENITENTIARY NEARLY
EVERYONE ENJOYS THE CASTLE

  
   

As 1 sit at my desk, it is a cold
gray dayathe trees are barren but show
the new buds that herald the coming of
Springo Each Season has its own specm
ial message for use More than anything
else it indicates changeo What is more
meaningful than new growth appearing
out of seemingly barren trees and pl»
Itants? After natnre rests it reneWS it
_self with new life which is active,pul
eating and expandingo In other words
the dormant stage doesnvt last forever;
, Aleng with the coming of Spring, all you CASTLE readers have
a new editor, beginning with this issue“ lid like to say hello
to each and everyone of youo My name is BOB REDMDN and l intend
to do my very best to continue to publish material of interest to
all of you as has been done in the pasto News 19m not claiming
to be a qualified editoro Hell, I dingt even know how to spell
the word until an old Frenchman, called DnRain, dragged me off
the yard and taught me to read and writeo ‘
Now, 19m not knocking old DuRain, because he has done an exu
cellent job, but he certainly has changed since he turned the tin
tle of editor over to meg HeVs rqnit shaking and spilling his

coffee all over everything as he waso All he does nowvis sit a»'

round draWing his cartoons, whistling and humming that tune ”Put
The Blame On Mame Boy‘sm all the time. When l ask him what heVs
so happy about, he just smiles and goes.on drawing as if he
doeant have a care in the world° If he keens it up ,hels going
to have me shaking and spilling my coffee before longo Hevs al-
ready got me wondering what the hell lvve gotten myself into,

"In spite of my being new and DuRain acting so weird these
days, I believe were come up with a pretty good issneo

First, were got a message from the Warden, which clears up
alot of questions that have been asked by a great number of in“
mates, concerning the operation of the commissaryo See page i

By the way, I noticed an addition being added to the commisa
sary for more storage space, which is one of the items mentioned
in Warden WingoVs messageo

Commissioner Holmeszis: interviewed by the Kentucky Post of
Covington, where he states his views on rehabilitation and the
action he plans to take on prison conditions and prison reform,
See page 5 '

Next, we have an interview of Mr. John Rees, newly appointed
Director of Planning for the State Department of Correctiois° Mr,
~Reesvtalks on rehabilitation and what is presently being done and
the plans in the making for the near futureo See page 6

Our guest editorial this issue is by one of our counselors ,
Mr. William Cottringero Mr. Cottringer is the newest member of
our fine counseling staff. He has some pretty strong views on
penal reform that he calls practicalo Good readingli See page 8

CASTLE ' SPRING l972 PAGE 2

 Our peotry in this issue featnres a poem written by Mrs.
Carla JohnSOn of Denver9 Coloradoo A lady who knows what its
like to have her husband away for a long period of time° Mrs.
Johnson started writing poetry while her husband was away in
Vietnam fighting and has had alot of her work publishedo
' We haVe an EASTER message for all our readers on pageaa
that we realize is a little late getting to you» but just the
same, we hope you each and everyone had a happy holidayo

' Finally, I wonld like to say a.fewr words to all our inside
readers;" ‘ ‘ 7 ‘

There are about 5% of the population of: this penitentiary
that take it upon themselves to represent the 'whole population
for whateever complaints they hayeg when the other 9§% donlt even
know what” they are talking about and doth even share the-same
complaints at allo ‘ '“

More often than not, this is damaging to the whole populau
tion in regards to privileges already established whieh we all
want to hang on too

There is no way of pleasing everybodyo God himself» eanvt
do that. Each individual thinks differently and wants different»
ly, so we have to stick to the old rule of ”majority roles”° It
stands to reason that if 1000 men are satisfied with the way that
things are being run and 50 men donltg that 50 is hot going to
accomplish anything by bitching all the time about the way things
are run, except, maybe, in having what privileges we already have
either cut down or taken away completely0

IVve been asked by a great number oi inmates to please let
those 5% of you, (and you knowvwho you are) know that they donlt
wish to be represented by others for reasons not even known to
themo ‘

Regardless of the environment we are li ing ingwe still live
in a civilized world and there are civilised methods to any pros
blems a.person or group of persons may have9 if the time is taken
to think and talk things over before aeoing on them0

; ~ i, 17/;1;/’ 4;}7’)’
/ /,,,/ p,(J// / [1,,
we I %M [1/ 1”

.11.-

 

I don't suppose it has oeeurred to you that i donlt pertienlaig’
give a damn what time it is?
CASTLE SPRING l972 fAGE 3

‘3

k

 MEMORANDUM FROM THE WARDEN
For sometime now we‘have_been criticised for the operations
of the commissary with particular complaints concerning_prices.
We have continually checked the operation of this facility and
have tried in every way we know to keep the prices as low as ‘we
can. Someéof the things the inmate body may not understand are
as follows; ‘ 7 ' '

(T) The Kentucky State Penitentiary Commissary, Incorporated
is run only for the benefit of the inmate population and
is not in any way connected with state government except
for administration purposes by the staff here at the in
stitutiono ,

(2) The institution is obligated by statues to furnish all
Of the mandatory items required by the inmate body such
as food, clothing, shelter and personal needs. 'They are
not required to furnish luxury items, cosmetics, tailor=
’made Smokes and goodies, This is where the commissary
operation comes in to try ‘and furnish items which are
considered standard on the outside to the inmate popula=
tion who can afford themo In addition the state pays a
few dollars per month to all inmates who are working so
that they may purchase a.limited number of items,

(3) Profit from the cemmissary operations have to go for the
payment of civilian employees such as Mr. Atwood and Mr,
Gray who operate the store, plus a limited salary to the
civilian clerks who keep the books and handle other ac:
count operations. All items have to be received on bids,
purchased, picked up at the delivery point and deliVa
ered to the institutiono

To give you some idea of the operation last month, we made a
gross profit of ‘$3314.67. We had expenses of $5h90989 for the
month, leaving a net loss of $2176022. The reason we had such a
loss was because of the college which was put into operation at
the school. This item alone cost over $lOOOoOO to pay the in=
structor, furnish text books and other items involvedo

Our movie films for the month a $659.02: glasses for the ina
mates $390.75: vocational school operationSm$213°28 (tools, rec
pair parts and so forth for the radio and television repairs )
and special items for holiday meals came to $i550309 7

' For operating expensese the civilian employees salaries came
to $116h.00, while the inmates assigned to the commissary opera:
tions such as the leather workers, commissary store clerks, lea=
ther stand operator and others came to a total of $l183.000 The
other two main items in operating expenses are state tax $8th066
and store supplies $355.95.

'We believe the above explanation will give you some idea wh=
ere the profits from the store operations go and explain why we
simply cannot operate the facility without making a certain pro»
fit. You may be interested in knowing that we cannot buy items
in large amounts due to a lack of storage space and funds avail=
able. In addition these items have to be delivered to the instia
tutiondwhich creates a limit upon the number of vendors available
for bi s. -

John”wo'Wingo
warden

CASTLE SPRING 1972 PAGE h

 COMMISSIONER SPEAKS OUT ON REHABILITATION

FRANKFURTuauquRISONS AND PRISONERS

'The newly appointed Corrections Commissioner Charles ado,
Holmes has intoned his opinions on the various aspects of
prison reform and sent along this information so that the inmates
and Staff at Eddyville would understand just how he standso Mro
Holmes sees himself as a moderate in priSon reformo "If le a
Liberal, then IVm a cautious one,W he said»

"Why Cath we plan right now to close the big prisons in 8
to 12 or even 15 years, ‘and use the community more? We should
plan on opening a series of diversified community centers to deal
with divers offenders effectively, and return them to society.
In'a community correctional center, we can work with the offender
and his family; and we can tap into community programs like menu»
tal healtho And thatVs where the employment isomin the community
not in the prisons,”

"In rehabilitation we have to work at trying to alter the
behavior of the man, and that we can do with counselingo If you
take a law violator and teach him to repair ths but you doth
repair his nerms, all you release into society is a. potential
violator who can fix T’VVSo Anything is cheaper than returning a
man to crimeo We get these men a we better do something for them
while we have them, or welre going to get them right backo"

’ "we have to do'more in training than teach men to make lic=
ense plates. There iant much demand in society for that a le
sorry, ‘itVs just not thereo But that doeant mean we are going
to stop, thougho Repeated offenders, people we cath do anything
with, programs like license plates are neededoW '

"I have seen people abused and mistreated a I donlt like it,
If a manls cold at night, and you can give him two blankets and
you donYt e something_is wrong.0 No matter what a man has done =
I don?t have the license to mistreat him,"

"Riots bring more attention to correction, People care more
and look to leaders to improve the situation in our institutionso
Men don’t riot unless they have something to gaino When youlre
so far down, anythingls upo” '

"I'm against the death penalty, personally° Two killings
don't make a right° Although this person may have killed, my
killing him isn‘t going to bring the victim back, or make me feel
any better, or even make society feel any bettero But what I
feel personally won t interfere eith what I do; IVll follow the
law. My official position will be the same as the Covernorlse”

"Escapes bother meo It bothers me that people in the commu:
nity on the outside get involved an the hostage thing mean and it
bothers me that men on the run get trapped and are dangerous; and
it bothers me that other men are shooting at them, hoping to hit
themo The prisoners are the ones who wind up getting hurt with=
escape attempts, but men do escape every day an and people dont
usually think about this° They go right out the front gate on
parole, or by expiration of sentence, and we havenvt helped them
at all Too often, we have just hurt themo 19m concerned for
everybody."

(Kentucky Post)

CASTLE SPRING PAGE 5

 PRISONER REHABILITATION BEST POLICY FOR SOCIETY
FRANKFURT aaaaaaa LAW AND ORDER

This is probably one of the more emotionally" charged terms
in contemporary political discussions. To people on one side of
the fence the term envokes’ visions of rabid reactionaries. To
others it simply means feeling free to walk down the street at
night without fear. ‘ ' ' ' ' '

John Rees, the 'recently appointed director of planning in
the State Department of Corrections, takes more of a middle gre
ound on the iSsue, believing the term implies protecting society,
but in a humane and ratiOnal manner.

Because of this, he is a "strong proponent of progressive
legislatiOn and programs designed to aid in the rehabilitation of
prisonerS. ' ‘ ' / ' '

”People are conCerned abOut law and order," and so am I,” he
eXplained, "but people are beginning to realize that what we have
been doing over the past 100 years in our institutions is not
working." . H. ,. . . H ._

”We (COrrections) are supposed to be protecting society, that
is Our job. ‘ But we know that 98 per cent of the people sent to
priSon are going to come out someday, So unless we do something
to change these people while we have them, we are not protecting
society." ‘ ' ‘

Rees feels there are a number of programs now under considn
eration or in the process of being implemented in Kentucky which
are capable of bringing about this change. ' ‘ ‘

‘ He said the proposed workmrelease program, presently await»
ing action in the Senate, is a perticularly worthwhile program,
having been tested and proven succeszul in other states.

This program, now in Operation on a local level in Kenton
County, would allow a few low risk prisoners to work at outside
jobs but return to their institutions in the evening. Criminolon
gists believe this program aids in establishing selfesufficiency
and helps smooth the transition from institutional life to frees
dom.

Rees also praised the criminal justice proposal presented by
Gov. Wendell Ford in his. budgetary message and approved by the
General Assembly as the first penal reforms in Kentucky in recent
history.

7 Among other things, Gov. Forst legislation calls for the es
stablishment of a premrelease center .at. Kentucky Village near
Lexington which would provide "social education” for prisoners aa
bout to be released, and the establishment of a forensic psychiw

atry building at dentral State Hospital for the purpose of treata
ing prisoners who are mentally ill.

Rees, who holds an A. B. degree from the University of Ken=
tucky and a masters degree in criminology from Florida State Unim
versity, has had a great deal more experience in criminology than
his age would indicate.

Rees said one of the biggest problems facing criminology i3
that "very few people look at it as a system", with the policea
courts, parole officers and other personnel all working together.
He said the criminal justice system could not progress until all
these agencies began working in concert. .

Frank Coots
State News Bureau

CASTLE SPRING A PAGE 6 '

  

 

JAIL FOR SALE.

'The little town of Durant, IoWa desided to get rid of their
jail, so they ran an ad in the paper that went like this;
FOR SALE: wOne twonunit jail cell, used very little, any reason
able offer," ' _ “WWHW_ 7 '

Why would a town want to sell their jail? Well, the story
goes semething like thiSo ' W' ”

Its been ten years since it has even been uSed,according to
the town Mayor, the Honorable Harold‘Rhoelko He stated that the
jaills last occupant was a stubborn lady citizen who refused to
pay some parking tickets she received and insiSted on parking in
the same spot on top of it, She Only done two days for it.

When the original jail house fell down from old age, they
transfered the cells to the fire stationo It>finally got in the
way there, so they moved it to the rear of the city maintenance
garage with the weed mowers, Well, the garage started getting so
crowded that the city clerk had to decide something else to do
with it, so he ran an ad in the paper, not really expecting to
get any calls, but just to be able to say he was doing something
about getting the cells out of the wayo To his surprise, he got
about a dozen calls about them from all over the countryo

~ A guy starting a bar in Des Moines, wanted them because he
said they would fit in perfectly with the barlsdecoro (19d like
to see that place), A man in Minnesota, wanted to buy the cells
on installment. One woman offered $200,000 She said something
about wanting to keep her husband home at night.

‘They never did sell it. They decided to donate it to the
Iowa State Fair Board, who said they would use it in a pioneer
villageo

When Mayor Rhoelk was asked what they would do if they need=
ed to lock someone up, he replied by saying that he couldvt even
remember when they had a citizen that needed to ever be locked up
except for the stubborn lady with the parking tickets, of course.
He said if they ever did, they would just drive them over to the
county jail, twentyefive miles away.

Oh, by the way, Mayor Rhoelk said the stubborn lady doesnlt
park in the same place any moreo She straightened up finally.

Maybe thatVs the real reason behind selling the jail!!!!

Bob Redmon

CASTLE SPRING l972 PAGE 7

 GUEST EDITORIAL ,
PRACTICAL PRISON REFORM

In the wake of later day prison reform it has become in:
creasingly evident” that a very wide lchasm exists among "and be»
tween the values and objectives of prison management, staff 'and
inmateso Clearly and.justly, the paramount purpose of any penal
system is to provide protection for society. Ideally then,, all
the components= management, staff and inmates= within each system
should be Working together in a odoperative effort to attain that
stated purpose with maximum effecto *,To date, —there is no widea
spread affirmation of this effort.

‘The diversion from the common aim has been complicated by
three factors:_ (i) ‘The powerful statistics which emphatically
tell us that the protective function is,a farse; not because pri=
sons are failing to keep inmates inside the walls during their
sentence, but rather because they are not at all able to keep
them out after legal release is made, (2) The arrival of profess
sionals who pose somewhat of a threat to the nonaprofessional
prison status quo because they possess scientific knowledge and
ability and (3) the new breed of inmates who are tired of being
complacent and now want to be involved in everything that concern
theme

'As stated before, the central goal of thsaprison is protece
tion, but society, through knowledge of its failures, has attache
ed qualifications to this goal. First of all and most important,
the protection has to be on a reliable and relatively permanent
basis, since turnaover has been proven to be so frequento Seconds
ly, the degree of protection has to be measured with scientific
exactness so that success or failure can be known and appropriate
alterations made, and most recently, probably due to academic ex=
periences, society has come to the realization that the prisoner
himself should be an active participant in the goal that is act=
ually focused on him° These qualifications have obviously not
been accepted with equal zeal or understanding by all the compon=
entSo

Logically and unmistakably, the organization founded on this
qualified goal is dependent on a single ability a the ability to
teach behavioral change from that of criminal to non m criminal
with more than token effecto But, before we can deserve the right
to expect such a behavioral change on the part of the inmate, the
milieu setting must be conductive to the basic principles of lea
arning that we know so well: readiness, reinforcement and trans==
fer°

At first glance, one would readily discount the prison en=
vironment for failing to meet this requirement and give up hope
entirelyo Contemporary penologists argue that the concept of in=
stitutionalization is a futile one that should be largely aband=
onedo Valid or not, this idea will not receive overmnight ac=
ceptanceo For the time being we are stuck with our institutions
and will have to deal with the problem as is°

(CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE)

CASTLE SPRING PAGE 8

      
  
  
 
 

1e11111 could p1 Obcbly 1e mpre 1V order to at
mee1 “”LtEF‘Cfo '“ 113111m3 nega=

    

Q3 "

,111e9 ubiqu11=
spa 101$ unnat=
1 1 111 Should be

would subsequently
1he devaed behev1oral

i 1 “prQ ~1
‘113111019 invaria.ble 39
feW “ommoV V11w1 “ *
fa WC lﬁa '0 JAE i
1er pVeeab111 V e
e 11oVemwp L1hedo
The responsibﬁ 11V 11 J1 11V1V 1L1 tme fxmyone1191 parsu1tss
in Wh1eh am ace eptan11 of 11e qual11lea baa- 1eade to 1he use of
81m1lar meaneg natuV* 1V belcngs 10 111811 man1geme n1 directing
the follow1ng ae11on; (12 616311111Q1111.L171v development and implie
menta11on of sol1d DolLeV 81311211121111) 1: 1o the ooje 1111e1 of and
the proeee11e1 for 131 1V1mg 111 :1e qua1111~a g011o 12) taff
tra1n1ng 1n Wh1Ct 311 pro1eseia » ’11 nenmprofess140nals jointa
ly assist one anot her in O31M ang 11e bes1 1eehm1ques and methOds
to use 11 aeh1ev1ng 1he hav1111enemge obuvot1veo f3) Open
commun 1111101 in whieh 711soners 131V an 111e egra1 1111 in 1e111ng
the other eomponen1s KHGW Wha1 is 7111111e9 prcbable anﬂ effeetm
ive eoneeVning 1ne1V own 11awgeo S1Ch organlza11/1 1111 be a
challenge and. a d1ff*er1 1181 10 agcomb‘wsny 111 15 13V181nly
not one wh1e 1 811111 1e W1111em off as 1m1155111eo

119 11$:

*1 Q 11 11%
W 3 F
9L4

 

modif1ed
lead 11 a g
Change b1e

    

(1 £1 E: (E
(”1%
s":
6,
6
5
CG

  
 

M10 Will1au So 111111ger

3‘31 3‘1 1‘1 :33: sis; >31 1%; 2:: ,1: 223:; 31“,; a: 3;: 1% :ﬁg 11 “ 33: :51 >71 2‘; 1; *7 1;; 23:21:16 211”; :25: :3: 33:; :7: 33:

As everV 0111131 knows9 laugn and the world ,1; 11V and

some eoun&e e1oﬂ 11l1 11V 10 eomfor1 V010

 

. l
7 > , ' 1 7. :- r ,- 1 :. A. .1 v2, a, ,: c . . c c . a 1n,
2:: Egg 131 17,1 1,1 251: 2+: 2;: 37s 27,: 231 3,: >21: 41 1; 221 a“: 1: 233,1 1;. 27:. 13; 1t, 131 z: :1 >3: 1:71 3:5 11 >01 12“.: 11

 

 

 

 thgﬁ;:f

"MY DESTINY”)

 

err

I looked down the road and wondered ahead8
What is my destiny? ' '“

For I could nOt See beyond the curve»
What lay ahead for meo

 
 
  

I begin to fear beyond the'curveg
For I knew not what it brought;
But I knew that I must pass thecurve9

If I found the place I soughto WOHARLEYW

  

But fear took hOId‘and I slowed down,

And said9 ”awhilecIlll rest”; Hair of pure gold»
I must go on! But I canltzi' Eyes of the deepest blue;'
I doth know‘whatvis‘besto The prettiest little fateé

That this world ever knewo
One friend said to go ahead9 -

The other one said stay; ‘ Her skin is white and'creamy,
I really‘donlt know what to do» Asgfresh as morning dew;' ' f' '
Or what is the right wayo And your heart swells with pride;

‘ When she says9 ”mommie I luv you.”
IVll just stop and stay right here9 " ' 1 ' a V

Where all thins I ean see; Her age is only two8 ’
But some how I must find out9 And she belongs to Karla and me;
What lies ahead of meo Our one and only little girls

That we both call ”CHARLEYWO

I began to run toward the curve9

I ran as fast as could be; CHUCK FRANKLIN
I ran so fast I stumbled and fell»

For the way I could not seeo

As I got up and looked around»
All my friends were there;

I turned to them for some advice9
But speak they did not dareo

I said to themg "IVm so confusedws
"I doth know what to do”;

They said to me with love in their voice»
"The decision is up toyou”o

I said9 "If only I had a friend»

That could see and know it all”a
And as I spoke I thought of Him;
And on my knees I did fallo

He said, ”Get up and go ahead»
The futurels in front of you;
Whanever you doubt or become afraid»
Illl show you what to doc"

 

As I now get up and walk ahead,
The curves I can still see;
But now IVm not afraid to go»
For I know He seeth me. »v
Submitted By Mrs. Carla Johnson
Denver; Colo. Page 10

 "DOES CRIME PAY?"

A group Of inmates were standing around,
In the prison yard one day;

Talking about crime,

And whether it really does payo

They told of their scores in days long gone,
And bragged of their ten dollar ties; "
They told how they lived in the finest hotels,
And ate meals that a gourmet would prize,

How their women wore mink and were covered
with jewels,

That they each drdve a Custom car; '
How they Sneered with contempt at the judge,
'When brought before justicevs baro

Sure, they were in stir, they were forced to admit,
But their lawyers were working each day;

And with writs, probation, Communtation, or parole,
They‘d soon have their going out wayo

I stood and listened. not saying a word‘,
Listening to their boasts loud and crude°
But finally I spoke with a withering glint,
And remarked in a manner subdued.

"Have you thought of the price of a wifeVs
broken heart,

Or of a mother who has died from your shame?
was it worth all this time and your familyvs
grief,

When you realize you are to blame?W

”Can your memories pay you while you are shut in,
For these years of gazing through bars;

For the loss of your freedom to be with your kids,
Or to walk at night under the stars?” '

"Can you honestly say you would take,

A million a year to remain?

Of course you wouldnlt, any one whoid agree,
Would be suSpected of being insane-oW

”IVve stolen my last, it did me no good,
1911 go straight if I get out some day;
The thousands of men prisons such as this,
Are sure proof that crime doesnit pay.”

Bob Redmon

>§< >'=>€<"<“’>‘¢*>"****>ﬁﬁ<*"’>‘ra<>;<*>§<**>£~*>"** *3" >3<*iudﬁﬁs".<33<>§=3‘a<>§<>i<>ﬁ<>30}: *ﬂ<>§<***>§<*>§<*>§<*** ***=§<*>1<>§<

"This I know and wise it were
if each could knothhe same,
That every prison that men build,

Is built with bricks of shame,”
***************xw****$****X*wsm 4**$*n*%¥%*¥6**4w¥*¥**** ******#*

 EDITORIAL OPINION:

THE CHALLENGE OF REDEMPTION,

The jury, after long hours of deliberation, had reached a
verdict-uguilty as charged? The defense9 after utilizing his mo—
st competent legal talentsgexhausted further remidies at his disﬂ
posalo‘ As a matter of formality in accordance with the ethics Of
his profession, he stood Solemnly by his client while the judge
pasSed sentence as prescribed by law.‘ ‘Regardless of the circumc
Stances involving the defendantls crime» the law had to be applia
ed in all its vigOro mSummum jus‘summa injuriawo

A dramatic tense mement followed as powerful T. V9 cameras
were focused on the Convicted and temporarily _ socially' defunct
mang a Korean and Vietnam war veteran9 as he was rUshed to the
state penitentiary. Perhaps, for an indeterminate length of time
long years of ‘imprisonment or even’death9 if the case warrantss
The approach to the penitentiary seemed bleak and forbiddingo
Freedom is barred as the steel gates under the fertified gun tows
ers clang shut and isolate that man from a ‘world; that was once
hiso Equally5for his family9is also the beginning of humiliation
and enduranceo Was this man premdestined to be an outcast of see
ciety by virtue of fate9 and headed for the horizons of his self
imposed rejection, or maybe a journey of no return?

NO--Criminal tendencies for practical purposesg'we are told9
are not hereditary5but due to Certain psychologicalggenvirOnment
and inner conflictso Howererb the cause and 'effeCt’ of crime
can be analyzed objectively from information researched and" come
piled by qualified sources in the vast field of criminologyo

It is important9 howerer, to state unequivocally that there
has to be REPRISAL OR FEAR OF PUNISHMENT§ otherwise9 society
would revert back to the law of the jungle. ”Without restraintgit
would be nonexistent; But equally» justice9 under certain mitin
gating circumstancesg'SHOULD'BE'TEMPERED‘WITH MERCY. _ '

Whats for example are correctional institutions doing to
help the inmates? transition from prison life to community re»
sponsibility? After parole or’discharge9 how qualified is he to
accept the moral Obligations entrusted" to a laweabiding citizen?
These and many other questions shall be answeredo But first let
us follow the usual 'itinerary of incarceration in retrospecta or
the act of reflecting penal views from common experienceo "
' Generally speakingson the other extreme end of the spectruma
establishing public relations between prisons and society through
a‘prOcess of human reasoning9 regarding the criminalls imageawoue
1d help eliminate misunderstandings and mistrust generated in the
past, because of the nature of crimes committedo 'Nevertheless,
those in prisons belieVe in the challenge of tomorrow- because it
seems that the centuries old adherence to» or belief ingthe antic
quated Wcode of the Convict” "is losing its touch gradually, and
instead,‘education seems to be the incentive of this generationo

Merely discussing the failures‘ and needs of a criminal Sou
ciety'Would not be-enough without tOuChing upon some of the doubt
and frustations to be encountered upon an eye to eye confrontata
ion with the outside worldo

(CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE)

CASTLE SPRING , PAGE 32

 For example, a very few dedicated individuals in our society
seem to cast a shadow of a doubt with reference to the allegation
that criminals are being WcoddledW by the courts, 'Such an allea
gation needs a proper defense of our Court systemso It stands to
logic and common knowledge, that under our juditial system, Wdue
process of lawW is derived from the federal constitution, er the
law of the land, granted? ' Therefore,justi ce is a monumental and
legal concept, a challenge, because it is a symbol of equal pro=
tection under the law to all citizens, 'regard.less of sOcial Staa
tus. True, 'in a relatively few cases, 'relief has been granted
criminals,’ but only after the higher courts have diScovered ins
consistenCy,‘ and/or irreleVanCy on a technical point of law in
that individualls trial prodeedingso'

As citizens, faith should be placed in our American system
of criminal juStice° As a rule, the courts are upholding the hi=
gheSt traditions found under a d.emoCratic form of governmento lts
legal interpertation should not be construed as mere WcoddlingoW

Another disad.vantage cdmmdnly experienced is the distrust
of'a person who has serVed time in priedno That fixed image she
ould be changed and instead, understanding substituted, Especie
ally if that person is trying to rectify his or her past behavior»
’There seems to be no doubt but that the concept that ‘Wif equal
rights are to be Sought under the law, responsibility should also
be asSumed under the lawW, is gradually being acCepted by‘ those
incarCerated in the modern age prison era. However acrimonidus
the feeling may be, yet,‘ towards the ex=convict stigma, society
more often, is willing to help its unforunate citizens, if that
person tries to help himselﬂ.or herselfo

But lif