San Quentin News
THE PULSE OF SAN QUENTIN

VOL. 2008 NO. 4

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN, CALIFORNIA 94964

POPULATION:5,435

A Victory For America
By ALY TAMBOURA
In an election that is truly
one for the history books,
Barack Obama won his bid for
the White House in a sweeping
victory, capturing an overwhelming number of the nation’s electoral college votes in
a fashion which the nation has
rarely seen.
By 7:30 pacific time, Fox
News had announced Obama
the victor and president-elect.
The other major networks followed suit of the announcement, forecasting Obama as the
next president. Over the next
few hours, as the vote counts
were broadcast on television, it
became evident that Obama had
overwhelmingly won the election.
Obama made his victory
speech to a quarter of a million
supporters in Chicago’s Grant
Park shortly after the networks
announced him the victor. The
speech moved many in the
crowd to tears of joy, including
celebrities such as Jesse Jackson and Oprah Winfrey, who
were both in attendance.
Obama’s message of change
was clear in his speech, along
with a direct appeal for help
from the American people.

Volunteers Doris Fendt and Kathryn Jackson at the ballot box
(Photo by Troy Williams)

Prisoners Conduct
Mock Election

President-Elect Barack Obama
“The road ahead will be
long. Our climb will be steep.
We may not get there in one
year or even one term, but
America, I have never been
more hopeful than I am tonight
that we will get there,” said
Obama.
Obama used the story of

California Officials
Openly Defy
Federal Judge
By DAVID MARSH
California officials face
fines of up to $2 million per day
for refusing a federal judge’s
order to turn over more than
$250 million in state funds.
The money is needed to jumpstart construction on more than
$8 billion in improvements ordered to bring the medical facilities in its state prisons up to
constitutional standards.
The state’s long-running
battle with U.S. District Judge
Thelton Henderson heated up
Oct. 25 when lawyers for Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger and
State Controller John Chiang
questioned the judge’s authority
to force the state to hand over
the funds.
They also questioned his authority to order the
changes in the California Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation’s medical facilities.
Henderson, in 2006 appointed a federal overseer to
manage the state’s beleaguered
prison health care system. He
responded to the attack on his
authority at the hearing with an
order that the funds be transferred by Nov. 5. Failure to

comply with his directive will
result in both Schwarzenegger
and Chiang facing a hearing for
contempt the following week,
the judge said. That raises the
potential for as much as $2 million per day in fines, he said.
Deputy Attorney General
Daniel Powell told Henderson
that although the state has the
funds, it is the state’s position
that Henderson has failed to
provide sufficient information
regarding his plans for the
money. He said that any plans
that Henderson has for state
prison construction must be
approved by the Legislature
before the state will release any
funds.
Plans submitted by the federal
manager, law professor Clark
Kelso, call for the building of
seven prison health care centers, a
dental care center and improving
some existing facilities.
The state faces a trial in federal
court Nov. 17 before a three-judge
panel that will include Henderson.
Among the issues to be decided
during the trial are claims that
chronic overcrowding has led to
unconstitutionally sub-standard
medical care.

106-year old Ann Nixon Cooper as a symbol of the AfricanAmerican struggle.
“Born just a generation past
slavery, but for many years
could not vote for two reasons,
because she was a woman and
because of the color of her skin.
See Obama, Page 5

By KAMAL SEFELDEEN
In a well organized peaceful
civil-dissent to state law that
prohibits state prisoners and
parolees from voting in local
municipalities and national
elections, San Quentin inmates
conducted a mock election on
Oct. 25 which marked the beginning of absentee voting in
California.
The ballot contained the
presidential candidates, ObamaBiden (Democrat), McCainPalin (Republican), NaderGonzales (Independent) and
McKinney-Clemente (Green
Party). It also included five
state propositions from the Nov.
4 election, Proposition 5—the
Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act (Nora), Proposition.
6—The Safe Neighborhood
Act, Proposition 7—Renewable

Fuel Sources. Proposition 8—
Protect Marriage Act, and
Proposition 9—Victim’s Rights
and Protection Act.
Classrooms became voting
stations and community volunteers became poll workers and
election monitors.
Inmates lined up for voting,
each presenting his prison I.D.
with picture identification at the
check-in table where a volunteer
and an inmate marks his name in
the official print-out provided by
the administration.
“Just to make sure nobody
votes twice,” says Red, 57, an
inmate with a big smile.
“I voted against Proposition 8,
because I don’t think they should
amend the Constitution. I voted
against Proposition 9, because
It’s a vengeful bill,” says Red.
See Mock Election, Page 2

Centerforce Holds 2008
Prison Reform Summit
By NAN SINCERO
The Pew Center on the
States has stated that there are
now more than one in 100
adults incarcerated in the
United States – more than any
other nation.
Centerforce, whose mission
is to support, educate and advocate for individuals, families
and communities impacted by
incarceration, hosted its 9th Annual “Inside/Out Summit” on
Oct. 6-7 at the Double Tree
Sonoma Wine Country in
Rohnert Part, California. The
theme, More Than One in One
Hundred: the Crisis, the Issues,
the Solutions, was in response
to the report that came out.
The successful two-day
event included 15 workshops
on a variety of subjects: Reentry, Employment and Mental
Health, Employment for Veterans, Substance Abuse Treatment, Eliminating the Death
Penalty, California Prop. 5
(NORA), Props. 6&9, Inside
Arts Programs, Visitation Programs, Restorative Justice, HIV
Programming, Supporting Children and Families, Making,
Mending and Maintaining Rela-

Matthew Cate,
Secretary of CDCR
tionships, and Advocacy.
Special panelists and speakers included, Secretary of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Matthew Cate, actor of M*A*S*H
fame Mike Farrell, Chief Medical Officer Receiver Clark
Kelso, Dr. Terry Hill, and Centerforce Executive Director
Carol F. Burton. The keynote
speech was delivered by Superior Court Judge and author
Norbert Ehrenfreund who was a
journalist at the Nuremberg
Trials in 1945. His powerful
and emotional message resonated through the hall as he
spoke passionately about the

legacy of Nuremberg and its
effects on due process and fair
trial. He also addressed the
audience as an influential force
– a large group of people who
understand three words:
“people can change.”
Special plenary sessions
included: The 2nd Annual Socratic Dialogue, Incarcerated
Medicine Session, Sentencing
Reform Caucus, and Ask-aFunder. Phillip Jay Seiler, a
formerly incarcerated Lifer at
San Quentin Prison participated
on the Socratic Dialogue panel
along with representatives from
10 organizations; California
Inspector General, David Shaw;
CCPOA, Pam Douglas; Stanford Criminal Justice Center,
Kara Dansky; Prison Law Office, Don Specter; Prison Legal
News, Paul Wright; Crime Victims United of California, Nina
Salarno-Ashford; ProbationParole and former Warden of
San Quentin, Jeanne Woodford;
author of 3 books on incarceration, Sasha Abramsky; Vacaville Police Chief, Rich Word,
and Taxpayers for Improving
public Safety, David Warren.
See Centerforce, Page 2

Page 2

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

No More Tears
‘Putting a Face On Crime’

Top Row: Lonnie Morris, Jerry Elster, George Jurand, No More Tears Group
Bottom Row: Mona and Bobby G. Hall Sr., Maddie Scott and Paulette Brown

An Interview with
Denise Banister of
No More Tears
By MICHAEL R. HARRIS
San Quentin News: What is
No More Tears, and what role do
you play in it?
Denise Banister: NMT is a
violence and crime prevention
program conceived of by SQ
prisoners. It was developed
through collaboration between
NMT founders Lonnie Morris,

Jerry Elster, Bobby Dean Evans,
Jr., and Lafayette Nelson, community and staff volunteers
Vernell Crittendon, Mick Gardner, Cat Aboudara and Yolanda
Najera, of Centerforce. Centerforce is the umbrella organization
over NMT. The Muslim Chaplain, R.S. Hassan, is the chief
sponsor of NMT, as well as a
founding member. I am a cosponsor of NMT, serve on the
steering committee, perform administrative duties for the program, coordinate volunteer efforts

and help implement workshops
and events.
SQN : What inspired you to
work with NMT? And how long
has the organization been in existence?
D.B.: NMT was “born” in
2001. I came on board in 2004.
What inspired me to work with
NMT was the hope I experienced
when I first came to San Quentin
to observe the program. Let me
say that again; I found HOPE at
San Quentin. I almost didn’t
come that first day; I was skeptical and expected to find just another group of people who sit
around talking about issues of
violence in our communities; I
was so tired of talk. I grew up in
Oakland, Berkeley and Richmond, and was disheartened by
the deterioration of those communities due to disenfranchisement,
economic disparities, and the
infusion of drugs and dwindling
of economic opportunities. What
I found at NMT was a group of
dedicated people working to proactively address all the issues
underlying the growing violence
in our communities; particularly
the youth-on-youth violence.
See Healing Circle, Page 3

Student Injured in Print Shop
By ALY TAMBOURA
Andre Taylor, a vocational
student, was seriously injured
while operating a paper cutter
in the San Quentin Print Shop.
Taylor’s hand was caught in the
clamp which holds the paper
for cutting, as a result, three of
the fingers on his right hand
were crushed and partially severed.
The seriousness of the injuries warranted emergency response by the San Quentin Fire

Department which arrived on
the scene within minutes of the
accident. Taylor was stabilized
and transported to an outside
hospital for emergency surgery.
Taylor was returned to the
prison infirmary after surgery
where he is recovering.
According to the infirmary
staff, Taylor’s fingers were
reattached and he is expected
to make a full recovery and is
expected to retain the use of
his hand.
Print shop instructor John

Wilkerson says, “All students
are trained to safely operate
the equipment in the Print
Shop and are constantly reminded of safe-operating procedures throughout their vocational training.”
The paper cutter involved
in the accident has been taken
off-line until completion of
the investigation by the California Occupational Safety
and Health Administration.
The accident remains under
investigation.

Centerforce Summit
Continued from Page 1
The moderator was Ron
Clement, formerly of the
Haigh-Scatena Foundation.
The format of the Socratic Dialog involves revealing a hypothetical scenario in which the

Phillip Jay Sieler
panelists must discuss outcomes
in order to foster positive solutions.
The Incarceration Medicine
Session was moderated by Dr.

Jacqueline Tulsky and featured
an update on the Receivership
by Dr. Terry Hill, chief medical
officer under Receiver Clark
Kelso. Panelists who posed
questions to Dr. Hill were Doctors Lisa Pratt, MD of San
Quentin and Denise Taylor,
MD of California Men’s Colony. The session was followed
by an audience question and
answer period.
The Sentencing Reform
Caucus was moderated by
Carol F. Burton and included
panelists Mike Farrel of Death
Penalty Focus, Dan Abrahamson of Drug Policy Alliance and
Elizabeth Gaynes of Osborne
Association. This session was
unique because it included
questions for the panel that
were blogged into the Centerforce website prior to the Summit.
This year the “Jeanne Woodford Award,” for recognition of
Outstanding Leadership in Proactive Correctional Community
Collaboration, went to San

Candelaria Podesta registering prisoners to vote
(Photo by Troy Williams)

Mock Election
Continued from Page 1
Scott, 47, an inmate standing
by the voting classroom conducting an exit-poll said, “I’m
doing this to see how close our
thinking process aligns with the
outside community. It shows,
even though we are not allowed
to vote, that we are still involved and pay attention to the
issues affecting our community.”
Mike Dunne, a community
volunteer in S.Q. Film Makers
Project, followed by a handful
of inmates with expensive TV
cameras, believes in rehabilitation instead of incarceration.
“This idea of conducting voting
here at S. Q. at the start of the
absentee voting in California is
an idea and a project by the
inmates themselves. It has historic implications. It’s voting of
the un-counted. It’s training for
the inmates to follow the issues
and to form independent decisions based upon what is real,
and objectively caring rather
than subjective interests,” says
Dunne.
According to Dunne, the
ballots will be tabulated and
sealed until Nov. 4. Similar
voting will take place for inmates in H-Unit. Today’s designated for the 743 inmates of
North Block. The check-in
records reflect that 66 percent
of the population voted in this
mock election.
“In Europe over 75 percent
of eligible voters vote. I know
how it feels to be disenfranchised. I’m one of the disenfranchised. I can’t vote because
I’m not a citizen. This election
is about the men here. There are
too many issues at stake in this
election. I would like them to
have hope by connecting to
common issues,” says Doris, a
German citizen and a graduate
of San Francisco State University with a degree in psychology. Doris, who refers to S.Q.
inmates as “the men,” believes
that Prop. 9 is catastrophic.
“We ought to direct our social

education toward building a
society of citizens rather than of
consumers,” said Doris, before
paying full attention to the entire football team, arriving in
their team uniforms to vote.
Someone said, “They may runout of ballots.” Another inmate
shouted “Florida, Florida!”
Laughter and comments before
Doris responded, “We have the
ballot template, and if we need
more we will get copies.”
Kathleen, a seventh-grade
teacher who teaches English to
S.Q. inmates participating in
Patten University, believes that
a great number of the inmates
are more aware of the socioeconomic issues than many
people on the outside. She finds
most of the inmates knowledgeable, engaging and seeking
redemption by trying to learn
more.
“This election gives
them a sense of hope that someone really cares,” says Kathleen, who is not a democrat but
does intend to vote for Obama,
“because he gives hope to
many.”
When asked if this mock
election would make any difference, she responded with deep
earnestness, “There is a man
who came and voted, and after
he was done he said, ’I don’t
feel like a criminal right now.’
The fact (that) people don’t
understand that people can
change is a crime,” says Kathleen.
In Switzerland, the government faces pandemic drug
addictions. They don’t consider it a criminal problem,
but they consider it a health
problem that requires a health
solution.
The advocates of the Swiss
solution say that criminalizing similar problems in the
U.S. would enlarge the problem, that sending adolescents
and adults to prison for drug
use would expand the power
of a corporate vigil-ustice
driven by a rich lobby. Others
advocate Prop—5 as a solution.

Flu Vaccine is being Offered
Norbert Ehrenfreund
Quentin Warden Robert Ayers,
Jr.
The Socratic Dialogue keynote speech featured Secretary
Cate. Incarceration Medicine
and the Sentencing Reform
Caucus will air on SQTV sometime in November or December. Look for your weekly programming updates!
Article provided by

By DOCTOR ELENA TOOTELL, CMO
Flu Season is here once again. On Nov. 7 and Nov. 8, vaccinations were given out to those who wanted them. Flu is spread easily, and the older we get, the worse it can affect us.
If you have any kind of health condition, like heart disease, lung
disease, asthma, kidney disease, diabetes, HIV, or seizures disorders, getting the flu can be much worse. Last year a prison in
Southern California didn’t vaccinate everyone, and some died from
complications.
“I don’t want a shot; it’ll make me sick,” is what many people
say. You CAN’T get the flu by getting a flu shot. You need vaccination every year. If you have had an allergic reaction to a pervious
vaccination, or if you’re allergic to eggs, you need to tell that to the
nurse.
Our nurses are trained to give injections properly, and, IT WON’T
HURT for longer than a second. It’s worth the small inconvenience.

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

Page 3

A Portrait From the Past
Clinton Duffy: Mr. San Quentin 1940-51
By DON (COACH) DENEVI
No one would have believed
that as late as the summer of
1940 San Quentin was on the
brink of deadly riots certain to
reverse efforts in rehabilitation
by 100 years.
San Quentin was considered a
“modern” prison where Warden
Jimmy Johnston had ended officer barbarism in 1919 and Warden James Holohan instilled
imprisoned men with new dignity and inspiration in the
1930s.
Now the tough, hard-boiled
Warden Court Smith had adamantly refused to end “the
shame of San Quentin,” a 50foot long dungeon that was
constructed under the old hospital with seven niches cut into
the subterranean rock on each
side to serve as cells. Hundreds
of convicts trembled with so
much hate and fear that some
were arming themselves to escape or kill as many guards as
they could.
With the growing crisis no
longer kept secret from a public
well aware that the “Big House
By the Bay” was a city of nightmares, Gov. Culbert Olson
ousted the entire Board of
Prison directors. And on the

morning of July 13, a new
five man board convened
in the conference room of
the warden’s office at San
Quentin to fire Smith.
Four years of bloodshed,
strife, and some officers
insisted, rot and corruption
during his brief tenure
were about to end. Clinton
Truman Duffy, a 42-yearold Parole Board secretary
who was born, bread, married and now lived on the
prison grounds, was summoned along with several
other witnesses for questioning about the increasing abuses and chaos.
Clinton Duffy: Warden 1940-1951
“I sat on a long polished bench outside the meeting four o’clock and clumped down
room for what seemed like the hall and out the door withhours, mopping my face and out a word.”
listening to the wildest kind of
After several other flushed
rumors,” Duffy wrote 10 years and nervous administrators enlater in his autobiography: The tered and exited the conference
San Quentin Story. “I was sure I room, someone called out,
was due for the chopping block “Duffy, you’re wanted inside.”
since a number of official heads Duffy walked in and sat down,
had already been lopped off that wiping his glasses to conceal
morning. Then and there I made his nervousness. He didn’t want
up my mind to quit prison work to get fired; he wanted to quit.
for good. Warden Smith was After all, his father had been a
called before the new board highly respected guard for more
around noon and for several than 30 years. Suddenly somehours loud voices filtered out one said, “We have not agreed
into the hall. Smith emerged at upon a new warden. You’ve

Healing Circle
Continued from Page 2
I felt the genius of the program was that men who had
once been the offenders were
now the mentors for positive
change and healing. They reminded me of some very special individuals who took time
to mentor me in my youth and
turned me from the path of selfdestruction. NMT allows me
to give back, to thank those
who helped me, to serve my
community; and as I said, it
gives me hope.
SQN: What is the Mission
Statement of NMT?
D.B.: NMT Mission Statement: To curb violence and
detrimental behaviors within
targeted communities by utilizing the specialized knowledge
and experience of former perpetrators of violence and crime.
These former perpetrators hold
themselves accountable to bring
solutions to the communities
where once they had contributed to the problems.
SQN : And where do you see
the group going in the future?
D.B.: I see NMT reaching
out into the community, providing mentors who have successfully
overcome the negative
to model positive change and
offer guidance and hope to our
youth. Our communities are
suffering from a terrible disunity at the core; the result of
racism, classism, social injustice, economic imbalance and
the systematic destruction of
hope. I believe NMT’s greatest
value will be in collaboration

with groups such as the Healing
Circle, partnering our efforts to
provide forums for healing,
growth and positive change.
For any of our programs and
efforts to have a lasting effect,
we must learn to value each
other and work together across
all lines, to create a strong, unified, diverse community that
fosters and sustains the wellbeing of all our children and all
of our people.
SQN: Who/ How many people are in NMT?
D.B.: Who: Inside: Incarcerated men who, through word of
mouth, have been intrigued to
investigate NMT and been inspired to work with us. Outside: Various community volunteers from all walks of life.
How many: NMT has maintained an average of 55 inside
and 15 outside participants over
the last four years.
SQN: If someone were interested in becoming a part of
your group, how would they go
about doing this?
D.B.: Those interested in
joined NMT should speak to
one of the Steering Committee
members. We try to keep a balance of long-termers and shorttermers (sentence), so that we
know a good percentage of our
members will be going home in
the next few years to bring what
they’ve learned from NMT into
their communities.
SQN: What is the Healing
Circle and how does it relate to
your group?
D.B.: The Healing Circle for
the Soul Support (HCSS) is a

group of individuals who have
lost loved ones to murder;
many of them have lost one or
more children. The founders
of the HCSS, and the chief
sponsor , George Jurand,
formed the group to provide
culturally appropriate and sensitive support to communities
of color who traditionally have
not had their needs considered
by existing services. The format and the methods are so
effective that persons across
all cultures participate and
find solace in the HCSS.
NMT began collaborating
with the HCSS in 2007, in a
series of dialogs that examine
all aspects of violence and its
impact. Side by side “victim”
and “offender” have found
empathy and common ground.
We have learned to cross the
lines we imagine divide us to
create a forum for support,
healing and empowerment.
From our initial collaboration
we also developed additional
workshops
such
as
“Reconnecting the Community
Through Communication,”
where young incarcerated
adults and community members rediscover the value in
each other, and explore breaking down barriers and creating
solutions in an effort to rewrite
the community.
SQN: What do you expect
out of a relationship between
the two groups?
D.B.: NMT and HCSS are
currently working to broaden
the scope of our collaboration
and develop a solid curriculum, to make this powerful
forum available to other communities and venues.

been around here all your
life and you know all the
spots. We understand your
dad taught you the cardinal rule of reform: no man
can ever be redeemed by
using the whip. How
about taking over for the
next 30 days?”
Duffy, from his autobiography, writes, “I could
have crawled under the
rug. ‘Taking over?’ I
asked mechanically.”
“Yes, as acting warden.”
It was about six
o’clock when Duffy
called his wife Gladys
about the news. They reflected upon how their old
way of life was finished and
that he was now assuming a
great responsibility to the
people of California and to
the thousands of men behind
the walls. “Before I come
home, I have something important to do,” he said quietly and hung up.
Duffy then walked down
San Quentin’s long main
street to the house closest to
the East Gate and knocked on
the door. Captain Ralph New,
under whom guards had used
the dungeon, the straps, and
SQN: What are some of the
things you would like our readers
to know?
D.B.: I would like your readers to know that every one of you
is valuable and necessary. No
matter what previous experience
you have had, what wrong you
have done ( and we all have done
wrong, sometime), you have talents and abilities that you can
develop and use to make your life
a good life, to help yourself, your
family and your community.
SQN: Are others in training
for Leadership positions?
D.B.: Yes, we have other cofacilitators that are connecting
with the groups, each in his own,
unique way: Marvin Mitchell,
Marcus Williams, Eugene “MC”
Montgomery and Michael Lewis.
SQN contacted NMT’s cofounder Jerry Elster for comment.
Jerry Elster: Our original
intent at NMT was to expose
perpetrators to victims, and victims to perpetrators. And in that
way to put a face on crime. It’s a
lot harder to commit crime when
you put a face on the victim. Our
goal is to make everybody accountable for public safety.
SQN: Could you comment on
Denise Bannister’s role at NMT.
JE: She puts in a tireless effort to keep NMT together, no
doubt. Denise is the glue that
holds it all together. And I’d like
to mention Lonnie (Morris),
because NMT is his idea. Without Lonnie, there is no NMT.
Everybody puts in a good effort
to make this all happen, to all
come together.
More on the Healing
Circle next issue.

the rubber hoses so frequently they had cost an old
warden his job, opened the
door. The unsmiling new
acting warden said simply,
‘I’ve just been appointed to
take control of the prison
and staff. I’m making
changes and as of this minute, you’re through.” He
turned and walked back to
the warden’s office.
Upon entering the deserted office, he immediately telephoned Joseph
Fletcher, a guard he had
observed for years. “I’m
appointing you Captain of
the Yard and your first official act within the next hour
is to abolish the dungeon.”
“By eight o’clock that
night, the moldy, foul 50foot cave where hundreds of
men had suffered unbelievable tortures through the
decades had ceased to exist,” Duffy would say in
later years.
Part two of this three part
biographical
sketch
of
“Mister San Quentin,” as
Time Magazine referred to
him in a January 7, 1942,
article, will appear in the next
issue of the SQ News.

PROPOSITIONS

5&6
By DAVID MARSH
In an election that was quite
clearly overshadowed by the
uncertain economic times,
Americans went to the polls and
voted their pocket books in
sending Propositions 5 and 6
down to decisive defeat.
Prop. 5, known as the NonViolent Offenders Act, would
have diverted drug and nonviolent offenders into rehabilitation and diversion programs,
making it much more difficult
to incarcerate them. According
to the Legislative Analyst’s
Office, the initiative could have
eventually cost the state over $1
billion a year, off set by an additional $1 billion a year in savings from reduced parole and
prison costs.
Voters who participated in
exit polls cited the certainty
of the projected expenditures
in deciding to reject the initiative.
Prop. 6, A Police and Law
Enforcement Funding initiative, would have mandated an
initial outlay of $965,000,000
per year to fund police, sheriffs, district attorneys, adult
probation and jails, an increase of several hundred
million per year over current
levels of spending. It proposed numerous changes in
current laws related to membership in gangs, as well as
sentencing changes. The
measure was soundly defeated by voters.

Page 4

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

‘Songbirds in a Golden Cage’
sort of attention commonly
reserved for religious leaders
and rock stars.
Karroll crosses and recrosses her legs as she addresses her rapt audience. She
lost her long, brown hair to
chemotherapy. Short, gray,
curly hair frames her face.
The day after Thanksgiving,
when she was 9-years old, she
was walking about a block from
her house. "I heard brakes
screech and felt two hands grab
Red Frye & Jaimee Karrol tuning up to play
me," she says. "I was immediately bound and attacked for
stopped singing completely.
By RONNIE COHEN
approximately 10 hours."
Not even in the shower. In the
Her assailants raped her reJaimee Karroll shares her meantime, she underwent intenpeatedly with the handle of a
tale of violence with a dozen of sive psychotherapy and sought
knife, she says. "If you can
to regain and process repressed
San Quentin's most violent
imagine being 9 and having the
As a teenager and young memories of the 1963 day when
knife inside of you. It was terriadult, Jaimee Karroll sang. She she was abducted and assaulted.
fying.”
She joined Bay Area Women
played guitar and sang mostly
"It was a day of complete
dark folk songs until she real- Against Rape, counseling other
violation. In that day, I totally
ized that she used her voice to victims, and a few years ago
lost myself. I broke in so many
disassociate from herself, a began working inside San
ways.
coping technique she says she Quentin with men serving time
"I just couldn't tell my parlearned in the wake of a child- for crimes like the one she says
ents anything about what hapsilenced her. Inside the prison
hood kidnap and rape.
pened. Basically, I came home
Karroll, now 53, quit singing overlooking San Francisco Bay
and went to
Marin
more than 20 years ago. She put i n
war with my
away her guitar and never County, Karroll
picked it up again until last began to forgive “Prison has helped me grasp the depths of hu- family."
prisonweek, when she changed the the three men
manity and the possibility of transformation.” ersThe
stare constrings and tuned it up to sing to she says abt e mp l a t i v e l y
a group of San Quentin State ducted and asand empathetically.
saulted her when she was 9- voice teacher and tuned up her
Prison convicts.
Karroll says that she married,
long-silenced instrument.
In her deep, melodic voice, years old.
became a singer and tried to
Last week, dressed comThis weekend, the MarinKarroll explains that she had to
bury her pain by drinking.
quit singing to begin healing. based Worldwide Forgiveness pletely in black with tights
"When I was a performer," she
"Why would I stop singing?" Alliance will give Karroll a and a turtleneck beneath a
says, "I still didn't have a voice.
long skirt and a jacket despite
she asks, sitting on a floral fu- Hero of Forgiveness award.
In order to have a full experi"Forgiveness was not the summer heat, she sat in a
ton next to her Labrador reence of myself, I had to let go
triever and her cat in her El achieved in a single moment circle with 12 inmates, many
of that.”
Cerrito home overlooking the but has unfolded over two dec- of them serving life sentences
"Violence renders people
Golden Gate Bridge. "In order ades," she says. First Karroll for murder, in a San Quentin
silent."
to use my voice, I would lose had to remember a crime she prison classroom. The only
She tells the men that they
awareness of myself. I fled my- had long tried to forget. Though window looks out on a hallunderstand her in a deep way.
self in order to not be conscious some have questioned the way.
"You really know what hapThe men, wearing denim and
of what happened. I wanted to claims of people with repressed
pened to me," she says. "I can't
become whole." So, after a memories of crimes, Karroll's sneakers, all intently concenthink of a better way to interpsychiatric hospitalization, she story has been heartfelt enough trate on Karroll, giving her the
to earn not only the forgiveness
award but the trust of her colleagues working in the prison
and the prisoners themselves.
At a recent dinner party with
the leaders of the Insight Prison
Project, a nonprofit program
through which Karroll trained
to run a weekly prison group,
Rochelle Edwards invited Karroll to sing to her 11-year-old
daughter. She sang "My Songbird," a 1977 ballad that Jesse
Winchester wrote and Emmylou Harris made famous.
When he heard Karroll
sing, Jacques Verduin, Insight
Prison Project's executive director and founder, asked her
to sing for his prison group.
Karroll hesitated. But another
event nudged Karroll to more
openly confront her past and
to overcome her hesitation.
About a year ago, she was
diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
To prepare for her first performance in two decades, Karroll reunited with her old

rupt the cycle of violence than
to be right here in this prison.
This work in the prison has
helped me grasp the depths of
humanity and the possibility of
transformation."
Phillip Seiler, a well-groomed
47-year-old prisoner serving time
for murder, thanks Karroll for
telling her story. "What a brave
little girl," he says.
Performing terrifies Karroll.
But she feels compelled to share
her story and her song with the
criminals.
"It feels really profound to do
it with you," she says, "to do it
with men who've committed acts
of violence and are committed to
transcending that. It just feels
important to tell you how I lost
my voice as a result of that crime
and to share it with you."
For more than five minutes, the
men focus on Karroll while she
tunes her guitar.
"All right," she says finally,
beginning to strum, "don't expect
much."
"It sounds good already," Seiler
says, smiling tenderly.
Swaying back and forth, her
legs still crossed, Karroll's harmonious voice fills the room as she
sings "My Songbird."
Songbird in a golden cage
She'd prefer the blue
How I crave the liquor of her
song
Poor bird who has done no
harm
What harm could she do
She shall be my prisoner her
life long
My songbird wants her freedom
Now don't you think I know
But I can't find it in myself
To let my songbird go
I just can't let her go
See Songbirds, Page 7

How to Persuade a Judge
By STEPHEN LIEBB
When faced with someone
who sits in judgment over us,
we need wisdom and skill to
persuade that judge to rule in
our favor. We all must appear
before the “Judge of the whole
earth” (Genesis 18:25). Antonin Scalia, an associate justice
of the Supreme Court, has written a practical guide called,
“Making Your Case: The Art of
Persuading Judges.”
Justice
Scalia provides clear and concise principles to be an effective
advocate.
An advocate’s character is
important.
Justice Scalia
writes, “All of us are more apt
to be persuaded by someone we
admire than by someone we
detest…
Your objective in
every argument, therefore, is to
show yourself worthy of trust
and affection. Trust is lost by
dissembling or conveying false
information not just intentionally but even carelessly; by
mischaracterizing precedent to
suit your case; by making arguments that could appeal only to
the stupid or informed; by ig-

noring rather than confronting
whatever weighs against your
case. Trust is won by fairly presenting the facts of the case and
honestly characterizing the issues; by owning up to those
points that cut against you and
addressing them forthrightly; and
by showing respect for the intelligence of your audience.”
Justice Scalia states that
judges can be persuaded only
when three conditions are met:
(1.) They must have a clear idea
what you’re asking the court to
do. (2.) They must be assured
that it’s within the court’s power
to do it. (3.) They must conclude
that what you’re asking is bestboth in your case and in cases
that follow.
Among the principles that
Justice Scalia presents for effective argumentation are:
Your arguments must
make logical sense.
Always
outline your brief.
Know your audience.
Know your case.
Know your adversary’s
case.

Never overstate your
case. Be scrupulously accurate.
If possible lead with
the strongest argument.
Select the most easily
defensible position that favors
your case.
Don’t try to defend the
indefensible. Draw the sting
out of unpleasant facts by presenting them yourself.
Select your best argument and concentrate your fire.
Justice Scalia quotes Quintilian,
who said, “We must not always
burden the judge with all the
arguments we have discovered
since by doing so we shall at
once bore him and render him
less inclined to believe us.”
Communicate clearly
and concisely. An advocate’s
job is to present clearly the laws
and the facts favoring your side
of the case. It is not the judge’s
job to piece the elements together from a wordy or confusing brief or argument. Scalia
states that successful arguments
are marked by brevity. Courts
don’t want to hear you repeat

yourself. He advises advocates
to compress their writing by
eliminating sentences, phrases,
and words that do not help.
Appeal not just to
rules but to justice and common sense.
Reason is paramount
with judges and overt appeal
to their emotions is resented.
Assume a posture of
respectful intellectual equality with the judge. “An advocate should be instructive
without being condescending,
respectful without being obsequious and forceful without
being obnoxious.”
Restrain your emotions and don’t accuse.
Close powerfully and say
explicitly what you think the
court should do.
Justice Scalia’s advice is
a powerful tool to improve
the art of communication.
Communication is about
trust and that is why honesty and fairness are important characteristics for a
judge and for anyone who

wants to persuade a judge.
When Moses was chosen to
be an advocate for the Hebrews, before Pharaoh, he
protested to God: “I am not
a man of words…my speech
is difficult and my tongue is
difficult.” (Exodus 4:10)
God responded: “Who gave
man a mouth…Is it not I,
God? Now go, and I will be
your mouth.” (4:11-12).
Moses, a man who was not
a “talker” became a powerful
and effective advocate because of humility. He got
out of the way of his arguments. Moses was an effective advocate because he was
not in love with his own
words and arguments. Moses
did not let ego dilute or distort his message. He absorbed higher wisdom and
became a channel to convey
knowledge and truth greater
than himself. These principles, when applied, can help
us to become more effective
advocates before those who
judge us.

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

The President-Elect
& VP Joe Biden

Obama
Continued from Page 1
She was there for the busses
in Montgomery, the hoses in
Birmingham, a bridge in Selma
and a preacher from Atlanta
who told people that we shall
overcome. Yes we can,” said
Obama to an exuberant crowd.
John McCain watched the
voter results from his campaign
headquarters in Arizona, where
he graciously conceded the
election. “I wish Godspeed to
the man who was my former
opponent and will be my president,” said McCain to a sympathetic crowd.
McCain’s speech was the
defining point which ended his
decade long quest for the White
House. He praised his supporters and his running mate, Sarah
Palin, calling her, “one of the
best campaigners I have ever
seen, and an impressive new

Page 5

SAN QUENTIN NEWS
voice in our party for reform.”
Pundits are crediting
Obama’s defeat of McCain to
what is being called the best run
political campaign in modern
history. By early Wednesday
morning Obama had an astonishing 338 electoral votes with
McCain’s tally at a diminutive
156, with Obama winning the
popular vote by over 7 million.
Countries across the globe
celebrated Obama’s victory
with Americans. In Kenya,
his father’s home country,
President Mwai Kibaki proclaimed that Thursday would
be a public holiday. Desmond
Tutu of South Africa praised
Obama’s victory. The Iraqi
foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told the press that he
thinks Obama “will not have
the same enthusiasm and momentum for this situation,”
speaking of the on-going war
in Iraq.
George W. Bush commented that Obama’s win is
“especially uplifting for a
generation of Americans who
witnessed the struggle for
civil rights with their own
eyes and four decades later
see a dream fulfilled.” He
also invited the presidentelect to visit the White House,
while vowing to keep him
informed during the transition
of power.
“At this defining moment
change has come to America,..” Said Barack Obama,
president-elect.

Condemned Row Inmates
Form Advisory Council
By SAMUEL CAPERS
East Block’s Condemned
Row has been a world of its
own. It’s known to house the
worst of the worst. It is a man’s
final stop before his ill-awaited
fate is to be carried out. But
many out on the mainline do
not know that there are quite a
few changes taking place here
on the row. And, though there
may be no hope for the condemned in the eyes of others,
we see things a lot differently.
We no longer sit under rocks
and simply accept the fact that
many of us may never see the
streets again.
There were many issues
that needed to be addressed
within the East Block unit and
absolutely no kind of communication when it came to staff
and prisoners.
This, of
course, caused many difficulties and gaps that to this day
remain, except for the reality
that these issues are “fixable.”
With that said, the East Block
Advisory Council came into
play. The “EBAC” members

“He who opens a school door closes a prison.”
―Victor Marie Hugo (1802-1885)

Arts & Entertainment
Tips
for

Prison
life

Here is a tip you may wish
to pass on: The sodas that we
get are not cold. So, all you
need do is soak a sock in water,
place the whole thing in front of
the vent, and let evaporation do
the rest.
By Fernando Caro

We all need to make a serious
effort to re-establish an old and
very effective program – the
Post Card system. We had
good results in the past. It allowed fast notes from home (23 days). A mailroom sergeant
said they can process up to 20
post cards in the time it takes to
do one envelope. That saves
time for getting the mail out
faster.
Post cards must have CDCR
Number and your proper housing address in big bold letters.
It worked very well before. It
also saves 15 cents a letter, and
a larger post card can hold a
good size “letter” on both sides.
If we’ll all get on board, it
works well.
By Douglas Clark

constituents, we can now
bring to the staff’s attention
issues that have an adverse
effect on a certain group of
prisoners, or a single person.
On many occasions, the individual issue could turn into a
population issue. By being
able to address the staff using
the EBAC process, we can
now be at ease to know that
most problems will be worked
out on a timely basis and resolved.
Condemned Row has a
history of not being able to
function as others do out on
the mainline. By working to
resolve the problems on the
row, we have now shown that
not all inmates are program
failures and many are willing
to function like any other
prisoner housed in the CDCR.
It’s the EBAC’s
hope
that the line we now have to
the staff and administration
can remain open so that programs can continue to run
smoothly.
Condemned Row is now
stepping out.

work along with the unit staff
and administration on the row
to make life easier and the
program run smoother, for
both staff and prisoners. It is
a council of the condemned
that have been here anywhere
from upwards of many years
to just a few. We are all
working together to make this
program more suitable and
beneficial to all.
There are six “Grade A”
yards here, and on each yard
there are four EBAC representatives, one for each of the
basic four ethnic groups, and
one yard chairman who goes
to the scheduled meetings
with the staff. The issues
brought up vary, such as: canteen, medical, property, and
general unit issues that involved the condemned population as a whole. The staff
needs to know that we are
willing to work out issues
with them on an advisory
level, instead of using the
I n ma te A p p e a l P r o c es s
(CDCR 602).
Thru
the
EBAC reps speaking to their

Bone Head

Think You Can Write?
Contest Held for Writers
Resilience Multimedia, publisher of the widely praised
book, “Think Outside the Cell:
An Entrepreneur’s Guide for
the Incarcerated and Formerly
Incarcerated,” is sponsoring a
writing contest for people who
are or were in prison, and their
loved ones. The best submissions will be included in books
in Resilience’s “Think Outside
the Cell,” series, which is intended to help the incarcerated
and formerly incarcerated
tackle hard challenges and have
successful lives.
Contestants may share personal stories about one or more
of these topics: reentering society after incarceration, waiting
for loved ones to return home
from prison, or prison marriages and relationships. Three
winners will be chosen for each
topic and will receive cash
prizes: 1st Place $300, 2nd Place
$150, 3rd Place $75. Stories
that do not win cash prizes will
still be eligible for inclusion in
the series. Writers whose stories are selected will receive a
free copy of the book in which
their work appears.
The Contest rules are as follows: All stories must be original and about situations or
events that actually happened.
You may submit stories on
more than one topic. Stories

may be up to 3,000 words.
Stories should be typewritten
and double-spaced. Handwritten stories will be accepted as
long as they are legible. Each
page must include page number, your name, contact information and story title. Resilience Multimedia reserves the
right to edit stories for clarity,
punctuation, spelling and grammar. Story entries will not be
returned.
ALL ENTRIES
MUST BE POSTMARKED
BY NOVEMBER 30, 2008.
Winners and other selected stories will be announced on February
01,
2009 at
www.thinkoutsidethecell.com
and in a press release.
Emailed stories can be submitted to resiliencemultimedia@verizon.net. Stories submitted by mail can be sent to:
Resilience Multimedia, 511
Avenue of the Americas Suite
525, New York NY 10011

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Page 6

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

Religion
Chaplains Serving
Hope on All Levels
By KENNETH R. BRYDON
Just as the U.S. military hires spiritual counselors, so does the
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The
makeup of San Quentin’s five chaplains is as diverse as the population: Catholic, Islamic, Jewish, Native American and Protestant. The
Chaplains serve Condemned Row, Reception Center, North Block,
and H-Unit, as well as the Hospital.
San Quentin Chaplains go through extensive theological training
and education in their respective beliefs. Each Chaplain conducts
religious services for those of their faith in areas appropriate for the
prison security, and, when necessary, becomes the bearer of bad news
for family tragedies to many who aren’t expecting to hear it.
Each chaplain brings a focus to their religious convictions, with
the intention of providing a depth of understanding and ability to participate and practice in their chosen faith. Interviews with the five
chaplains: Father Stephen Barber, Imam Rafeeq Hassan, Rabbi Carol
Hyman, Hector Heredia and Pastor Morris Curry were quite revealing as to how each one approaches his or her responsibilities.

Father Stephen Barber
Father Stephen Barber
started at San Quentin as a volunteer in 1996 along with other
Jesuit priests from Berkeley
where he attended the School
of Theology and received his
Master of Divinity degree. He
entered the Jesuit Order in
1989, and was ordained a priest
in 1998.
Upon being hired as a chaplain for San Quentin, former
Warden Jeanie Woodford told
him, “You are the priest and
chaplain for San Quentin.”
After being appointed to San
Quentin by Archbishop Le-

Chaplain Hector Heredia
At age 57, the Native American Indian (AMI) chaplain, Hector Heredia has been involved in
Indian Spiritual affairs for 40
years. He was brought up in the
teachings by two Shaman, Charlie Kills Enemy and Shelby
White Bear, and introduced into

Imam Rafeeq S. Hassan
Muslim Chaplain, Imam Rafeeq
S. Hassan began volunteering at San
Quentin State Prison in 1985 under
the endorsement and sponsorship of
Masjid Waritheen of Oakland, CA.
Imam Hassan officially became the
Muslim Chaplain at San Quentin in
1986. Imam John Faqir had been the
Chaplain at San Quentin for 10 years
prior to Imam Hassan becoming the
Chaplain for the Muslim Community
at San Quentin. Imam Hassan is a
student of Imam W.D. Mohammad.
Prior to his arrival here at San
Quentin, Imam Hassan, came from
Detroit, Michigan, where he worked
as a fashion coordinator for the fa-

vada, he was told the same
thing by the Archbishop.
When asked what was the
most difficult issue that he’s
had to deal with, Father Barber
pointed to seeing his parishioners in blue who had passed on.
He pointed to the death of
Ricky Earl, a three-strike Lifer.
Ricky had grown to embrace
the Catholic faith, and many
saw in him a caring and sincere
individual. Father Barber visited Ricky in the prison hospice
program at California Medical
Facility before his death.
In serving the San Quentin
community, Father Barber says
he seeks to be of help wherever
he can. He recognizes the diverse ethnic and age group here
that represents California as a
whole. One of the great joys
he receives in this job is seeing
people enhance their own dignity and humanity, and grow in
their walk with God.
Looking into the future, Father Barber wants to be around
to see the Condemned Row
population housed in the new
building being constructed. He
continues to work on his Spanish to better serve the Hispanic
population. He hopes to be an
example to all who have become
a part of the priesthood.

In November 2004 Carol
Hyman came to San Quentin
part time as the Jewish Chaplain.
She brings a background of institutional experience to her work. First at
Napa Hospital, and then California Medical Facility and
Solano. She now has a Master of Divinity from Graduate
Theology University in
Berkeley,
and continues
work on her Doctorate in
Ministry. When asked why
her interests had taken her in
this direction, she spoke of an
intense desire to see people
change in life’s path.
“Teshuvah” is the Hebrew
word, for the process of repentance.
Rabbi Hyman

the “Fire Place,” Inner Circle to
be trained in the traditional Indian Way.
Hector was taught the prophesies of the “Red Road,” that
were Native practices to gather
the people back. The Shamans
of all tribes had come together in
one accord saying that there
should be one tribe. At the heart
of the practice is the “Sweat
Lodge Ceremony,” a purification ritual. The Native American
population of San Quentin includes the 52 Native Americans
on Condemned Row.
Coming to San Quentin in
1995 to rebuild the lodge, Heredia came as a “Sun Dancer,”
participating in a four-day dancing ceremony (without water and
food). Welcomed back by the
pervious AMI Chaplain, Lee
Palanoc, he became a regular at

San Quentin, and was offered a
job at Folsom as an adviser.
Working with an average of
352 prisoners, religious services
are provided for Reception Center, Mainline, and Condemned
Row. Some of the other ceremonies that are provided for the
population are the: Smudging
(burning herbs) and Chanpua
(Chawnupa) Pipe Ceremony.
He says his most important
duties at San Quentin are teaching the elders here. He sees his
biggest challenge as the distraction of alcoholism and drug use
inside and outside the prison. He
encourages respect for grandparents, who exemplify the Way.
Looking down the road, he is
working on transition housing
for the AMI’s being paroled, and
facilitating programs for AMI
females at Chowchilla.

Rabbi Carol Hyman

mous singing group “The Temptations.”
As part of his religious training he
received an Islamic scholarship from
the Islamic Society of North America
(“ISNA”), in Indianapolis, Indiana.
His studies included the following
subjects: Fiqh Al Sunnah, Fiqh Al
Hadith, and Fiqh Al Qur’an.
Imam Hassan facilitates Jumuah,
Ta’leem, and Islamic study programs
for the Mainline, Condemned Row,
and Reception Center prisoners. He
also finds time to facilitate various
self-help programs which include,
No More Tears, San Quentin Trust,
and Milatti Islami (12-Step).
Imam Hassan anticipates sponsoring a Halal program in the near future
that will allow prisoners to meet their
religious dietary requirements. Imam
Hassan constantly encourages Muslims and other incarcerated men to
try and fulfill their obligations as
fathers and for becoming productive
members of society.
His 23 years of service here at San
Quentin has allowed Imam Hassan
the opportunity to work with and
assist men of all faiths.
says, “I seek a balance of
being honest about the past in
a factual way, while living
under the circumstance in
which prisoners find themselves.” She recognizes that
many who come to her are
facing very difficult issues,
and many have sunk into
deep despair. Her focus is in
helping them to find a balance without trying to justify
mistakes made.
Rabbi Hyman’s goals for the
future are to improve the San
Quentin image of being a place
where redemption can and
does take place. She sees her
duties as a chaplain and a rabbi
as being over a single congregation rather than each being
isolated from the others.
“They have a sense of being
part of a larger whole,” she
says. Whether it’s Condemned
Row, Reception Center, or the
Mainline, she intends that each
one see themselves included.
“This is my vocation,”
Rabbi Hyman says, “and I’m
in the right place.”
The refining pot is for silver
and the furnace for gold, but
the Lord tests the hearts.
Proverbs 17:3

Pastor Morris Curry
In the early 1990s, Pastor
Morris Curry began teaching
“Biblical Counseling Foundation” (BCF) as a volunteer.
Recommended by then Protestant Chaplain Earl Smith, who
saw a group of Lifers eager to
learn.
With an interest in Prison
Ministry inspired from his congregation, Pastor Curry began
teaching the program to Lifers
who passed on their understanding to short-term prisoners
being released. These first students went on to eventually
teach the program themselves.
Pastor Curry’s interest in prisoners continued to grow over the
years. He continued teaching
BCF along with bringing his
church congregation into into
San Quentin. In March of 2006,
he was at the prison to renew his
volunteer status when he discovered that Chaplain Earl Smith
had retired. His friend and fellow BCF teacher, Dave Haggy,
pressed him to apply for the
position. In September, 2006,
Pastor Curry was the new chaplain.
He brings to San Quentin 22
years of service, and he set about
to make the incarcerated church
no different than the outside congregation. “Everything is done
decently and in order,” he said.
Moving forward, he is developing ties with churches who are
interested in meeting the needs
of those about to parole. A major project is the “Meet Me at
The Gate” program.
He sees himself as pastor for
all of San Quentin, he has a vision of the many Lifers leaving
prison and going on to be of service in their communities. Pastor Curry ran for mayor of a city
in Napa County, but lost to the
incumbent.

Forgiving
By DOC CHILDRE and HOWARD MARTIN
The incoherence that results from holding on to resentments and
unforgiving attitudes keeps you from being aligned with your true
self. It can block you from your next level of quality life experience. Metaphorically, it's the curtain standing between the room
you're living in now and a new room, much larger and full of beautiful objects. The act of forgiveness removes the curtain. Clearing
up your old accounts can free up so much energy that you jump
right into a whole new house. Forgiving releases you from the punishment of a self-made prison where you are both the inmate and
the jailer.

Testigos de Jehova
Las Reuniones en espanol para los Testigos de Jehova, son cada
Segundo Sabado y cada cuarto Sabado del mes.
El horario para dichas reuniones es de 12:00 P.M. del medio dia
alas 2:30 p.m.
Lugar de reunion es dentro de la Liberia de la Iglesia Protestante.

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

Opinion
In America Slaves
Have No
Voting Rights
By LAMONTA McBROOM
Participation in the electoral
process has always been important for many reasons, but more
so now. November 4, a black
president was elected and we
are being thrust into a historical
event, but none of this would be
significant without the right to
vote.
Have you ever wondered
why in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq
prisoners are allowed to vote
whereas in the majority of the
states of this Union prisoners
have no voting rights, even
those on parole?
Some would cry, Saddam’s
voting rights are a meaningless
ploy, a ruse, a hoax. I say,
whatever you call it, they got to
vote; what’s your excuse America?
To deprive individuals of the
right to vote is to silence them,
to prevent them from obtaining
representation, and to keep
them in a status that is less than
human.
We think slavery ended
somewhere in the 1800s, but
the truth is slavery never ended
in the United States of America.
We all know, during America’s slavery period, justification for maintaining slavery is
based upon social economics
that elevates some to think they

are superior to others. That
never changed. Prisoners are
commodities and an economic
factor where the penal system
becomes a corporate fact.
The United States Constitution, 13th Amendment § 1 says;
“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as punishment for crime whereof the
party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the
United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”
As you can see, there is an
exception where slavery is permitted even today. The 13th
Amendment removes slave ownership from the private citizen
and places it exclusively in government hands.
In other words, when you
become a prisoner you are
also a slave. While you are on
parole, technically, you are
still a prisoner but are housed
at your own home, at your
own expense and still pay
taxes, still slaves. Less than
human, because parolees have
no right to vote.
The mock election conducted at San Quentin reminds
me of my slave status, the
importance of the right to vote
and the reasons for which
prisoners are treated as less
than human, but also a commodity.

The Son of My Strength
By E.P.KIE
Somehow this year has
managed to slip by, one day
at a time.
Birthdays &
many other special days.
Some that hurt more than
most. Father’s day is a biggie for me, not one single
word mutually shared this
year. It’s not like we didn’t
think of each other on that
special day, In years past
we sent letters and words to
each other.
Some good, and some
not so good. But letters and
words - none the less. My
son, is my son - the son of
my youth and my strength.
Number two he was born in
the family.
Baseball &
catch – fishing & camping –
building that all-important
fort! Times of imagination
in an attic over the garage.
Trips to airports and visits
to space ports. Satellite’s
made in our shop
And
opened together upon their
return to earth.
Building model airplanes
& crashes of those that didn’t fly all that well :) Bird
feeders & rabbit cages –
fixing cars, trips to see
fishes in a huge tank
–
Disneyland and birthdays

some of my memories we
did share. Sweden that land
way up north that hangs like
a cluster of grapes. To the
north of Europe beckoned
the soul of the son of my
strength. Will he be able to
remain strong and continue
his fight? To the head of
the stream? Or will he succumb to the lack of language,
Dollars or fear of
the unknown or the yet untried?
I have seen his sheer tenacity in the land down under years past. I’ve witnessed his ability to hang in
there in a foreign land. It’s
this dad’s observation that
the son of my strength will
succeed in the putting of his
hand to the plow. You’re in
my prayers my son, stay the
course, keep your vision,
it’s your time to till the
ground.
Make every step count
and remember to keep your
focus on the goal not on
the past. This - the story
of the son of my strength,
‘tis truth that I now have
brought to light
- take
wings my son of my
strength & FLY !

Page 7

San Quentin……..
Yesterday and Today
…..a biographical, historical and introspective look
at our world behind the walls, the way it is, as well as the way it was.
By DAVID MARSH
The newly formed Legislature of the fledgling state of
California authorized the state’s
first prison in 1852, and the
merchant ship, Waban, was
purchased by the state for the
princely sum of $850. Anchored in the waters off Point
Quentin,
the
13-year-old
wooden vessel was outfitted
and remodeled to imprison up
to 40 inmates in its dark, dank
hold. Within months the state
was to encounter its first prison
overcrowding as the nightly
total of inmates chained in the
Waban’s hold regularly exceeded 60 men. Four men at a
time typically occupied each of
the Waban’s tiny 8’x 8’ cells.
San Quentin today sprawls
over 432 acres of prime real
estate at Point Quentin on the
shores of San Francisco Bay.
The average daily population of
approximately 5,250 inmates is
housed in a variety of accommodations from cells to dormitories. California’s Condemned
Row, as well as its execution
chamber, are located behind
the walls at San Quentin. With
an annual operating budget in
excess of $ 210 million, it is the
world’s most expensive prison
to operate.
By January of 1853, 150
cons were packed in deplorable
conditions on the tiny Waban,
and the state’s first prison expansion project was undertaken.
The Legislature authorized the
purchase for $10,000 of 20 bayside acres near Mission San
Rafael. An additional $135,000
was set aside to build a new
prison designed to hold 250
inmates. Inmate labor was to be
used during the construction
process. Also in 1853, the first
warden’s residence, also utilizing inmate labor, was completed at a cost of $14,453.75.
State prison expansion pro-

jects are alive and booming in
our state as Gov. Schwarzenegger signed a 2007 bill providing
$7.9 billion to add one prison
and 53,000 additional beds to
the system which currently consists of 34 prisons housing approximately 153,000 male and
female inmates.
By 1854, the newly constructed prison, christened
Corte Madera Prison, already
exceeded its designed capacity
of 250 inmates. They were
housed in 48 small 10’x6’ cells
and one long room on the
prison’s bottom floor that was
designed for overflow inmates.
An original cell description
described them as “8’ to 9’ feet
high in the center with an
arched ceiling, tapering to a
height of 5’ at the sides. A solid
iron door featured a small slit in
the center to allow the cell’s
occupants their only chance to
gulp fresh air or peek thru to the
world outside their tiny cell.”
The Waban, which had by now
been towed to Marin Island in
the Bay, was still used to hold
the worst of the convicts, as
was the island itself.
In the early days of the
state’s new prison system, the
average con was a 25-year-old
serving about a two-year stretch
behind the walls.
Today’s inmate population
is aging noticeably, and the
recent “tough on crime” era
has resulted in legislated sentencing enhancements that have
significantly lengthened the
average inmate’s stay behind
bars. Excluding the inmates
housed on Condemned Row, the
average con at San Quentin is
much older, an average of 37
years old, and serving a term
that is considerably longer in
duration than at any time in the
state’s history, approximately
48 months.

December 27, 1854 witnessed the prison system’s first
major prison break when 22
cons stole a boat and fled from
Marin Island. A number of the
fleeing inmates were killed in
the running gun battle which
ensued.
Records reflect that the new
Corte Madera Prison was a coed facility, with the women, of
course, housed separately from
the male inmates. In 1855, amid
allegations of drunken guards,
well-heeled inmates enjoying
daily excursions outside the
prison grounds, and charges of
cohabitation between guards
and female inmates, the state
stepped in and took back operation of the prison from its contractor/operator.
The accepted practice of
allowing inmate trustees to venture off the grounds to enjoy
cocktails in nearby San Rafael
was curtailed under the state’s
tutelage, much to the trustee’s
chagrin.
In 1858, over 500 inmates
were crowded into the state’s
only prison. Recognizing a need
to get a handle on the overcrowding problem, the state
agreed to construct a new
prison in the small town of Folsom. Actual construction at
Folsom was not to begin until
20 more years had passed.
DOES THIS SITUATION
SOUND FAMILIAR?
In the next issue: a mass
prison break of 200 inmates,
the advent of striped uniforms,
construction of the new prison
at Folsom, and a closer look at
the daily routine of a San
Quentin inmate.
Also, in 1860, the first
JOINT VENTURE program
utilizing private contractors
and inmate labor comes to San
Quentin.

Songbirds

prison for second-degree murder, "I've known you for
about one-and-a-half years
now, and I've never known
your story. I live a life of restitution. I never know if my
restitution is being paid out to
Kevin's family. When you
come in and share your story
and play your music, it makes
everything I'm doing worth it.
It's beautiful. Thank you."
The prisoner who requested
anonymity holds the microphone for Karroll while she
plays a Leonard Cohen song.
When she finishes, Manuel
Nieto, 47, who has been behind bars for 24 years for a
drunken-driving homicide,
says, "I'm very touched by
your story. Do you have any
nightmares?"
The two talk about their
nightmares.
"I think lives are turned in
the midst of these acts," Kar-

roll says. "My life was turned
in one direction, and the men
who hurt me, their lives were
turned in another direction."
"What happened to those
people who were so awful to
you?" the inmate who held
the microphone asks.
"I don't know," Karroll answers.
"You never went to [the]
police? So you let them have
a free slate?"
Karroll fires back, "It's not
free."
Reprinted by permission
of the Pacific Sun

Continued from Page 4
When she finishes, Robert
Frye, 38, who has spent 20
years incarcerated, asks,
"How did that feel?"
"I was a little bit nervous,"
Karroll responds. "I could
hear it in my voice."
"Why did you like that
song?" Seiler asks.
"I was drawn to that song
because I was in a cage," Karroll says. "But how does it
feel to you guys to be in a
cage?"
"It's different for you," says
an inmate who requests anonymity. "You're innocent.
How long were you in a
cage?"
"A lifetime," Karroll says.
"Jaimee," says Pat Mims,
46, who has spent 20 years in

If we practice an
eye for an eye and a
tooth for a tooth, soon
the whole world will be
blind and toothless.
―Mahatma Gandhi

Page 8

NOVEMBER 10, 2008

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

State High Court: Governor
Erred in Parole Denial

Parolee Arrested
in Carjacking
By ALY TAMBOURA
A man recently paroled from
San Quentin is accused of stealing a truck and crashing it into
another car, killing one woman
and injuring two others, while
being chased by the Richmond
police, say officials.
The suspect, Jordan Taitano,
took police on a high speed
chase which ended on San
Pablo Dam Road in El Sabrante
where the crash occurred. The
truck, which Taitano was driving, smashed into a Mercedes,
hurtling it into several parked
cars.
The rear seat passenger in
the Mercedes, a 57-year-old

woman, was killed from the
impact of the crash. The driver
and front seat passenger were
both seriously injured.
A woman who tried to get
away from the suspect before
the chase started was also seriously injured, said the police.
Taitano is accused of robbing a husband and wife at a
local inn were the couple was
staying. Police said the husband
fought with the suspect while
his wife escaped by jumping
though a closed window. The
woman suffered significant
injuries from the escape.
Police said the suspect left
the scene of the robbery on foot

Behavior in prison wasn't considered

and carjacked a passing motorist. The Richmond police recognized the carjacked vehicle
minutes later and gave chase.
The chase began at relatively
low speeds but eventually progressed to very high speeds
prior to the crash.
Taitano fled the site of the
accident and was apprehended
shortly afterward.
He was
booked into the Contra Costa
County Jail on suspicion of
vehicular homicide, carjacking
and robbery, said authorities.
Taitano was paroled from
San Quentin one week before
the incident, according to authorities.

Condemned Inmate Found Dead
By GARY KLIEN
A condemned inmate at San
Quentin State Prison was found
dead in his cell Thursday in an
apparent suicide, authorities
said.
Edward Dean Bridges, 55, had
been on death row since 1992,
when he was sentenced for a
kidnapping and murder in Riverside County. Bridges was
found unconscious in his cell
early Thursday morning in an
apparent hanging, said Darrell
Harris, a Marin County coroner's investigator.
"Our pathologist didn't have
anything to indicate it was anyth in g o th er th a n s elf -

Edward Dean Bridges
Photo provided by California
Department of Corrections
asphyxiation by suicide," Harris
said.
Bridges was housed in a
cell by himself. He left no
suicide message and had no

history of suicidal behavior,
Harris said.
Since California reinstated
capital punishment in 1978,
41 condemned inmates have
died of natural causes, 15
committed suicide, 13 were
executed in California, one
was executed in Missouri and
five died of other causes, according to the California Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation.
There are now 677 inmates
on California's death row,
said Terry Thornton, spokeswoman for the CDCR.
Reprinted by permission
of the Marin Independent

We Want to Hear From You!
The San Quentin News welcomes and encourages inmates,
free staff, custody staff, volunteers and people and entities
outside of the institution to submit articles for this publication.
Please use the following criteria when submitting:
• Please limit your submitted
articles to no more than 350
words.
• Articles will be edited for con-

tent and length.
• The newspaper is not a medium to file grievances, use the
prison appeals process.
However, we do encourage
submitting stories and/or articles which are news worthy.
and encompass issues that will
have an impact on the prison
populace.
• Please do not use offensive
language in your submissions.

San Quentin News
USPS 4870-700
The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily
reflect those of the Administration, nor the inmate
population, and should be considered solely the
opinion of the individual author unless specified.
Permission is granted to reprint articles appearing in the San Quentin News provided credit is
given the author and this publication, except for
articles reprinted herein from other publications.
Administrative Review……………....R. Luna
Principal…...……………………..T. Roberts
Vice Principal….. ………...W. Reeves, Ed. D.
Print Shop Supervisor................. ..J. Wilkerson
Inside/Outside Advisor…………… J. Eagan
Executive Staff:
K. Brydon …………………… . Chief Editor
M. Harris ………………….Managing Editor
A. Tamboura ………………Technical Editor
D. Marsh………………………..Staff Writer
This publication is printed by the students in
the San Quentin Vocational Printing Program.

• Art work is welcomed (i.e.
poems, songs, cartoons, drawings, and photos).
• Letters to the editor should
be short and to the point.
• Submissions need to be copies that don’t require to be returned..

Send Submissions to:
Education Dept. / SQ News
San Quentin, CA 94964

H-Unit MAC COUNCIL
A. Parker
L. Haskins
M. Andrews
D. Mairs
M. Le Melle
A. Setzo
M. Fowler
S. Maiden
G. Pineda
S. Byers
R. Henderson
P. Shields
D. Ansted
D. Hartley
J. Harris
J. Phillips
H. Hopkins
M. Brooks
D. Kaiban

5-H-42L
4-H-17L
5-H-09L
1-H-12L
5-H-29L
5-H-17L
2-H-60L
2-H-47L
3-H-33L
3-H-56L
3-H-98L
4-H-55L
4-H-46U
4-H-71L
4-H-72L
4-H-66L
4-H-68L
4-H-24L
4-H-06L

Chairman
Vice-Chairman
Secretary
Parliamentarian
Sgt at Arms
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Rep.
Stand Up Rep.
Food Serv. Rep.
Canteen Rep.
Rep.
Medical Rep.

North Block Executive MAC Members
Johnson, S.
Sefeldeen, K
Mancinelli, T.
Tindall, M.K.
Pena, E

2-N-81L
1-N-96L
5-N-87U
4-N-37L
3-N-24L

Chairman
Vice-Chairman
Secretary
Parliamentarian
Sgt at Arms

East Block Advisory Council
J. Van Pelt
D. Carey
K. Lewis
B. Williams
R. Marshall
P. Henderson
W. Noguera

1-EB-75
4-EY-17
2-EB-76
4-EB-71
1-EB-65
4-EB-79
4-EB-77

Chairman
Yard 1
Yard 2
Yard 3
Yard 4
Yard 5
Yard 6

By PAUL ELIAS
The Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO – A divided state Supreme Court has
ruled Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was wrong to deny
parole to a murderer who was a
model prisoner during the more
than 23 years she served behind
bars.
In a 4-3 decision, California's
high court said the governor
must consider more than just the
nature of the crime when he
overturns Board of Parole Hearings' decisions granting parole.
The majority decision, written
by Chief Justice Ronald George,
said the governor must show
“some evidence” the parolee is a
danger to public safety.
The governor's legal affairs
secretary, Andrea Hoch, said the
ruling “adds an inappropriate
level of review, which unnecessarily limits the governor's discretion to decide the parole of a
convicted murderer based on ...
the best interest of public
safety.”
The court's ruling stems from
the board's decision to grant
parole in 2005 to Sandra Davis
Lawrence, 61, who after rejecting a plea deal for a two-year
prison sentence was convicted of
first-degree murder in 1983 and
sentenced to a life term for killing her lover's wife 12 years
earlier.
In August 2005, the parole
board for the fourth time in 12
years granted her parole because
it found her to be a well-behaved
prisoner who accepted responsibility for the killing, expressed
remorse and showed no signs of
being a danger to the public.

Lawrence volunteered for many
prison organizations and earned
a master's degree in business
administration.
Still, Schwarzenegger reversed the panel's decision as he
had done previously, finding the
killing to be particularly egregious. Lawrence shot and
stabbed Rubye Williams to
death in 1971 and then spent 11
years as a fugitive before turning
herself in to police accompanied
by the late Los Angeles attorney
Johnnie Cochran.
Schwarzenegger said in his
2006 veto that Lawrence's crime
was “a cold, premeditated murder carried out in an especially
cruel manner and committed for
an incredibly petty reason.”
Governors Pete Wilson and
Gray Davis made similar reversals when they were in office,
likewise determining the nature
of Lawrence's crime made her a
danger to society.
In a second, related case, a
unanimous court upheld
Schwarzenneger's denial of parole to an El Cajon murderer it
said remained a danger to public
safety. Using the legal standards
spelled out in Lawrence's case,
George wrote that Schwarzenegger was right to deny parole to
Richard Shaputis because the
prisoner failed to take responsibility for killing his wife, and
there was “some evidence” he
remains a danger to society.
Shaputis was convicted of second-degree murder in 1987 for
shooting his wife, Erma Jeanne
Shaputis, 47, and was sentenced
to 17 years to life in prison.
(Reprinted with permission
from The Associated Press.)

Remembering
Matthew Solomon
Matthew Solomon, a former
student in the San Quentin College Program, was shot and
killed in San Francisco on
Thursday, September 4 while
standing on the street, talking to
his friend Noel Espinoza, who
was also killed. Matthew was
23 years old. He was an extraordinarily kind and creative
person who had been building a
life and working hard to support
his two small children. Articles
about his death (and the overwhelming number of shootings
that have occurred in San Francisco) appeared in the SF
Chronicle and in the Goodwill
Industries newsletter, where he
worked and had recently received a promotion. Those who
knew him will always remember his sweet smile and his
stunningly brilliant spoken
word poetry.
In case any one would like
to send a donation, Goodwill
has established a designated

account at Wells Fargo to help
defray burial costs and provide
support for the children:
Matthew Fund
c/o Goodwill Industries
1500 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
Attention: Vince DeVictor
By Prison University Project

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