Letter to My Friends

  View from Abroad, 10th July, 2006

Prison Reform

Justice Reform

Three major fields of our social life combine with each other which are; Economy (securing man's earthly life), Law and Order (in our relations), and Spiritual / Cultural life in our development. It goes with Fraternity, Equality and Liberty, the ethos of the French Revolution.

We focus on the organization of Law and Justice by individual cases in their social relevance, taken from the self-titled leading nation, the United States of America. The Government of this nation distributes, if necessary by war, (a so-called unending war, against terrorism) to societies from its own imaginative form of Democracy and Freedom. Europe is seen as 'old' while they themselves remain - especially in this field - as traditional as one could imagine. Though not 'stoning' women (John 8,5), the states still murder in the name of the law in its Expression Of Inhumanity.

The U.S.A. has the highest prisoner rate among civilized non-dictatorial societies. Whose democratic participation is withdrawn when it becomes a prisoner. Some reasons come to our understanding when we have a look at individual cases. Everybody is invited to recognize and discover what is visible in its disguise -- under the cloak of truth and justice -- common sense can be discovered as follows:

- To make known to the public individuals, the fate of God's children regarding the typical procedure of cases taken in the US courts.
- To give an opportunity to individuals to support and help (Christian's duty given by the Lord) their fellow citizens on Man's Earth, and find understanding and attention even to those who failed.
- To give an opportunity to other people/nations to learn and take preventative action in this time so that more of these inhumane and unacceptable developments of injustice behaviorism may not overflow to less critical governments and political leaders who are proud to express "unrestricted solidarity" (e.g. Merkel) for whatever reason.
- To place a closer eye on a field, mostly unwatched, and its development expressing as well our understanding of culture (leading culture?).

Today the individual has greater access and knowledge of such systems. They are no longer the sole property of the professional. We are aware that many stones come together in forming such a system from mankind's beginning. We try to see the general within the individual case. Cases have been randomly selected. We make no claim that this is an academic work. We are merely Non-lawyers watching the lawyer's fruits.

These lines were written as a preface to my website (http://www.manipulatedtrial.de/). Apart from the three cases presented there, exemplifying weaknesses of system in question we recognize
- there is within the system a high percentage of injustice,
- the extreme length of sentencing has become a habit, and
- there has been a move to extended what constitutes a criminal offence.

Worldwide, the example is delivered and named Prison Nation ' an excuse to contradict the stated process of humanity and civil rights in the United States of America. It seems as if this system is incapable of inner reform; it appears that it prefers an illegal attitude in international affairs proving Goethe: 'Nothing is inside, nothing is outside; for what is inside, which is outside' (1), so let us discuss instead of reason, some of this phenomenon.
 
 Frank D. Russo (June 26, 2006 California Progress Report): 'It took a scathing report to a Federal Judge, threats of contempt, damning editorials of the states major newspapers laying the problem at his doorstep, and the resignations of two of his appointed chiefs of the states prison system, for the Governor in this election year to realize that action is needed on prison overcrowding and the failure of the prisons to protect the public. In his absence, the legislature had already begun to act'.
 
 Who would write similar to other Governments? America is now a Prison Nation! Perhaps they need to understand reform should start questioning:

High percentage of injustice.
Injustice is a special form of corruption when the basic feeling of right and wrong is and remains underdeveloped or, in most cases, is governed by unrelated interests of other and higher priority. Bases for this are (a) wrong organization in the fact-finding process, (b) wrong understanding of duty from cop to top and (c) wrong interpretation of Catch As Catch Can. Exoneration by DNA is but the tip of an iceberg.

I may refer to the examples given on my website concerning defense. The integrated and embedded Public Defender (PD) system prevents a truth finding process to a great extent, extorting the accused, the unequal part to a deal: Plea Bargain, often like a plot with the court in order to save money they claim. The PD is often referred to by American victims of injustice as the 'Public Pretender'. The PD's personal priorities ' apart from insufficient payment ' is let them walk along a dark path in the US courts where justice shall not prevail and wrongful convictions are easily procured when the accused is poor and when the public cries out for 'someone' to pay for a crime. In this system, the guilty may never be sought as long as 'someone' is convicted of a crime. More qualified specialists shall discuss the matter of jury selection  (http://www.patrickcrusade.org/nullify.htm). Finding a fair trial is an expensive matter. American Society has to decide on where their tax money is spent. Billions are spent on building new prisons which are quickly filled with poor people and people of color who are the primary victims of the American injustice system.

The other day I contributed to Patrick Swiney's Forum http://www.topix.net/forum/state/al/THPEL56KFPGEMAR8P as follows: '
'I feel compelled to add another aspect into the necessary discussion on justice re Patrick's innocence. While Jeremy Rifkin, Washington, DC, recognized the economic aspects on United States high prisoner rate, Harvard's honorable colleague Samuel P. Huntington missed reality so far in his book WHO ARE WE (2004). He emphasized instead American's were a religious folk. In fact: Injustice and high prisoner rate don't fit together with religious education.

In the case of Patrick Swiney, he has enough evidence to prove his innocence so why is this case being quashed by the state of Alabama? Why are they afraid of the truth coming out to set an innocent man free? In the ancient scriptures it is written: "Consider carefully what you do, because you are not judging for man, but for the Lord, who is with you whenever you give a verdict. Now let the fear of the Lord is upon you. Judge carefully, for with the Lord our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery. (2 Chronicles 19:6-7")

Apart from 'a religious folk' to which justice officials also subscribe, they would have probably heard of John 1,17: 'God gave the Law through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ'. Permit me to invite them to read John 8, when assembled for decision: 'Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone' Where are they? Is there no one left to condemn you? ' No one, sir, she answered. ' Well, then, Jesus said, I do not condemn you either. Go, but do not sin again.'

Can we conclude then that Government consultant Huntington just blanked out incarcerated people (and the many ex cons) teaching they ARE NOT WE, they belong to 'a world apart from society'(2) - in favor of his society's judges? Blanked out from U.S.A. and its national interests. Consequence: No need to reform anything. WE NOT, we are the good one.

A real religious community would have gotten an education of modesty, not judging upon another individual but to support everybody's fight against the inner evil. Of course this would naturally include not executing human beings under Death Penalty. Of course never exclude even those who failed. However, we should clearly differentiate between religion and church as a social institution existing on donations rather than teaching real spiritual values.

So I do not count Mary and Johnny running to church on Sunday: The Spiritual Kingdom is not of this world. Still, the earthly church unites the Religious Folks' inner church. And it has nothing to do with any national borders. We recognize them by their actions rather than their words. Even if a judge - and his well-united colleagues were Bishops - at the same time, we doubt that he belongs to The Lord's folk when he is biased and idle with no intention of conducting fair judicial practices and procedures.

Extended criminal offence definition
This has two main sources:
- Continuously feeding disinformation in the form of propaganda to the American public to prevent crimes and felonies by increasing the population of the penal system with non-violent offenders when it is already known that community work for these offenders works far better than imprisonment. While it is not the penal system that prevents crime, but fast and proper work of police (CSI film alike).
- It is similar to poisoning the ground and surrounding it with chemical products to destroy unwanted plants, which filters to the groundwater and poisons the people and animals that drink that water. I refer here what John Kenneth Galbraith labeled in his last booklet's title, 'Innocent Fraud'.
Without religious education ' official's inner control of their own doing -, without social sciences and spiritual fairness economy becomes dictator. Extended criminal offence then becomes necessary for the other one to cover up their own wrongdoing.

The faculty of law is one of the oldest fields of state's life: the Organization (like a body's organ) of Justice is part of that and it is embedded into man's social life. Officials of law should beware of their responsibility to the social body of a society. When reading: 'Awkward moments abound in penis pump trial' (by Shaun Schafer, AP Writer, Jun 28, 06) it came to my mind, figuratively spoken: The whole system seems to do likewise, and by that enjoying extraordinary sentencing lengths to Capital Punishment (known and described from public executions since the Middle Ages), and the whole nation pump for getting higher and higher prisoner rate. Alternative to Monica?: A masturbating Justice System that continues to prostitute the lives of the society's children.

Judges and officials turn their own opinions into The Public Opinion. In the People's Name order is spoken. But a few judges who willingly followed Nazi/Fascism dictatorship retired after World War II by free decision (only public peoples' voice prevented former judge Filbinger (3) from continuing his political career, however, he never regretted his death penalty sentences which were handed down even one a few days before the end of the war). Judge's general excuse of their dubious doing at any time is: judged within the present legal framework In The People's Name.

New upcoming awareness of social understanding guided by scientists from Schools of Social Sciences (perhaps in future supported by church's representatives) can give a better outlook to man on Man's Earth, our Global World. These new guidelines shall be given to a recalcitrant Justice System unless there is economic incentive to do adopt them. The judicial system and its affects on society are dictated by economic interest rather than common sense and what may be beneficial to society.

'Patrick Swiney's case is another typical and outstanding case of injustice in a civilized nation with the highest prisoner rate and opens serious doubts about society's essential thought processes regarding fairness. Obviously there is more interest in 'JAILS, PRISONS, and BONDS. Research explaining how living souls are made prisoners for the making of Billions of Dollars for the slave making Governments and their Banking henchmen through incarcerations'. (4)  Or: "BOOM OR BUST: The High Cost of Running a Prison Nation" (5)  And: '...the Halliburton company has secured a $385 million no-bid contract to build a new large-scale detention centre in case of an 'emergency influx' of immigrants'. (6)  The simple reason for these economic crimes is to fulfill the interests of the state in the name of justice.

Because society is constituted by every individual we must reconsider our own development in becoming a better human being (though incomplete or living within sin) while incarnated and/or incarcerated, and by that, we are all fellow prisoners on Man's earth.

Beginning or end of a circle? Mirror of a society? But three voices. Early voices? No, no: too late already because the trend started 20 ' 25 years earlier. Still, from your fellow citizen, outstanding citizen, we hear Words! We do not see Actions!

Tony Fabelo 'examines the factors that have accelerated the growth in the elderly inmate population in Texas prisons' in a report 'prepared for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, January 1999'.

The U.S. Department of Justice published Joan Petersilia's article: When Prisoners Return to the Community: Political, Economic and Social Consequences, in Sentencing & Corrections, Issues for the 21st Century, November 2000.

Margaret Talbot followed, February 2003 (The Atlantic Monthly), and headed her article Catch And Release with the following introducing statement:

'The inevitable consequence of America's high incarceration rate is a high prison-release rate '  and the prisoners getting out are more often more violent or antisocial then they were before.   It's time to think ' and rebuild rehabilitation and parole.'

Consequence of an ineffective circle? Managers with such results of their doing would have been fired. Mark, Arnold, the Schwarzenegger, Governor and Terminator, spoke to the Congress on Monday 26, June, (Los Angeles Times)

                                  ''the state must build more lockups soon'.

Did he take 'the time to think'? Has 'rebuild rehabilitation and parole' been considered?

In fact nothing happened, apart from few private activities like Delancey Street Foundation, San Francisco, and similar so far. 'Time to rethink'? No. 'Rebuild Rehabilitation and parole'? No.

Return to community: a loss product in the Prison Nation's profit oriented machinery labeled Justice.

Footnotes

Correction and Rehabilitation

Letter to My Friends II Prison Reform.pdf August 2007

Letter to My Friends III September 2008

Prison and the Character of Nations August 2010

Dear Mr. Jefferson:

What a Xmas gift finding actual articles on my screen sent from the US! Thank you and greetings from abroad.

Following US author's diagnosis lately:

- Ralph Lopez; Dec 16, 2010 : We Are Bradley Manning

- Joshua Holland, Dec 23, 2010: Bradley Manning Suffering Extreme Isolation Prison Torture by Our Goverment -- Courageous Whistleblower 'Physically Deteriorating'Bradley Manning is suffering   inhumane isolation in prison that numerous experts say is a form of real torture.

- Ewen MacAskill, Dec 23, 2010, UN to investigate treatment of jailed leaks suspect Bradley Manning

- John Grant, Dec 25, 2010: They're "Slow Torturing" Bradley Manning Right Under Our Noses
- Mary Shaw, Dec 27, 2010: Bradley Manning's Pre-Trial Punishment

I recently distributed my considerations and included in a postscript my opinion related to Bradley Manning (see enclosed). It pleases me when I read that some US citizen think similar to myself on these matters. Meanwhile even thoughts become global players! - Right, when Ralf Lopes in his heading writes WE ARE one may understand it as an answer on Samuel P. Huntington's question in book WHO ARE WE from 2004.

From Reforming Statements and Letter to My Friends to Prison and the Character of Nations to new The Awful Framed Americans find my walk viewed from abroad.

Go on and bless with your enlightenment more and more distinguished US citizen. Contemporary Goethe commented: "Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough. We must do." From this I deduct that the above statement 'we are' is derive from generations.

Following Matthew 7 I could imagine your successors better keep quite with reference to Russia's Michail Borissowitsch Chodorkowski trial at the present.

Best for the New Life Circle.

Franz Kurz

Germany

                                        Enclosure:                          The Awful Framed Americans

In memoriam of Gregory-John McCormick aka Itchy I publish some of his pictures made in MI prison. Finally released on parole he was unable living under continuous pressure and said good-bye to Earth of Man within short.

~       Having sex was not sex with Monica, was "improper relationship"[1]

~        War is not to defend the U.S.A. because Iraq had nuclear weapons, was to bring Democracy and world wide detention experience to Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.

~         Attacking Afghanistan and bombing mountains was used as a selecting process of willing international allies to keep shut when torture was practiced and people kidnapped (El-Masri e.g.) for Guantanamo or hidden detention facility until they confessed what was asked to confess for US justice.

~         Correction and Rehabilitation is common fraud for warehousing fellow citizen for the benefit of corporation's economic interests.

~         Prolonged incarceration is not a matter of justice but used for blackmailing or but another way of torture in order to get acceptance for wrong conviction. *

~          Waterboarding is no torture when G.W. Bush and Dick Cheney stand behind supported by happy sentencing voters and will not named a crime.

~         Corrupt Governments are partners for a country's security excuse in Oregon and Afghanistan e.g..**

~         Separation of Powers is not necessary for very and true home made democracy.**

     *    I am referring to the Diane Downs' case of Oregon:

 James Claire Haynes was paid $25,000 by then LCDA Pat Horton to shoot the Downs' family. I am informed that Ms. Downs saw Mr. Horton at a 'drug-party' at Lionel Johnson's house, described in the 2.24.98 affidavit by Clayton Nysten. Former Lane County Deputy DA Fred Hugi and Lane County Circuit Court Judge Gregory Foote collaborated in framing and falsely convicting Ms. Downs for the Pat Horton-financed hit on her family by James Claire Haynes.

According to Article IV of the Oregon Constitution, the Governor appoints vacancies in Circuit Court Judges, Court of Appeals Judges, Supreme Court Justices, Justices of the Peace, and District Attorneys. As early as three weeks after the crime in which one child died and Ms. Downs, although having been shot herself, took her injured children to the hospital.  Juvenile Court Judge Gregory Foote took these children from Diane Downs and their grandparents and placed them in questionable 'State care'. There they stayed there until one year later when the same Judge Foote (who by then had been transferred to the Criminal Court) was asked to reside at Downs's criminal trial.  Although this was Judge Foote's first senior criminal trial it nevertheless represented a conflict of interest.  Not to mention a violation of legal integrity.

A further incredible facet of this case was the eventual adoption of these children by Attorney Fred Hugi, who was prosecuting this case, (and incidentally whose wife could not have children). Moreover, this (adoption) involves the only eye witness to the crime, Christie Downs, who at the time of the crime was eight years old, and who testified against her mother after what appears to have been if one looks at the methods used to have been some form of brainwashing by the authorities.

Ms. Downs has been wrongfully imprisoned for 25 years for a crime financed by former Lane County District Attorney J. Patrick Horton and committed by James Claire Haynes, Mr. Horton's colleague in the Free Souls motorcycle gang/Lane County drug cartel. Former USDC-OR Chief Judge Ancer Haggerty, USDC-OR Judge Malcolm Marsh, USDC-OR Magistrate Thomas Coffin, US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kozinski and dozens of other taxpayer-financed lawyers . . . have colluded to repeatedly and intentionally violate the fourteenth amendment and other constitutionally protected civil rights of Ms. Downs.

Governor Kulongoski, you were Oregon Attorney General during at least one of the half dozen habeas corpus petitions/other civil suits filed by Elizabeth Diane Downs in the United States District Court of Oregon. (cit medley from two letters to the governor)

In: Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, Malcolm F. Marsh, District Judge, Presiding, Argued and Submitted July 10, 2007, Portland, Oregon. Page 4: 'Notably, Downs has not accepted responsibility for her crimes of conviction, and maintains to this day that the state authorities framed her.'

     **        Notorious child killer Diane Downs must wait 10 more years before she applies for parole again

December 10, 2010 By Lynne Terry, The Oregonian

 'Lane County District Attorney Alex Gardner singled her out in a recent letter to the parole board, saying that "offenders such as Downs are precisely why" the law was amended by the 2009 Legislature, the Statesman Journal reported.'

      Downs Up For Parole This Week - Heather Roberts, December 07, 2010   

BEND, OR -- Diane Downs is scheduled for another parole hearing this week, and this could be the last one for a long time for the notorious child killer. Under a new state law (emphasis by FK), Oregon's Parole Board can lengthen the gap between parole hearings, on a case-by-case basis, for up to 10 years. The Lane County District Attorney recently wrote that offenders such as Diane Downs are the reason for the 2009 law. http://www.mycentraloregon.com/news/local/1303576/Downs-Up-For-Parole-This-Week.html

Diane Downs is fully aware that if she accepted responsibility for the crime, the Board of Parole would by chance look upon her situation in a more positive light perhaps. With that in mind, does it not give you 'some' indication at least, that this woman will not submit to what is, in reality, institutional blackmail. Considering that it may be of some benefit to her. Her denials also establish an integrity and determination not to be bullied into accepting a lie that has reigned for over twenty years.

December 16th, 2010

FK

Received already comments. Just one for your attention:

There is a parallel situation in your country regarding a non-event of history about which the powers-that-be want to prevent people learning. The evils force laws to be written so that nothing can be done in situations like Diane Downs. In my humble opinion, this was why the law was passed in 2009 so that she will never be free.
The only thing that can be done in situations like this is to EXPOSE them to all who will listen because EXPOSURE is what the evils fear. Indeed, if you log onto my site, http://www.truedemocracy.net you will see an icon that says Circus Murders. It was written by another innocent person, namely Paul Fisher, a man who could not have committed the crime because he was in prison in another state at the time the murder was committed.

PS December 18th:

While "National Religious Leaders Strongly Support Independent Torture Investigation" http://www.nrcat.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=71&Itemid=101

I feel need to add a Postscript to what I've sent the other day: 

US justice's executing alike methods at the present with Bradley Manning who is being kept in solitary confinement for seven months so far "without a pillow or sheets on his bed, in weak health and wracked with anxiety at the prospect of a prison sentence of 52 years. . . awaiting a decision from the American Attorney-General, Eric Holder, on what form of plea bargaining they should offer to Manning in return for him incriminating Mr Assange as a fellow conspirator in disseminating the classified information."

Kim Sengupta, 18 Dec 2010 : Assange begins mansion arrest, but his 'source' feels the heat http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/assange-begins-mansion-arrest-but-his-source-feels-the-heat-2163607.html)

+++

Letter to My Friends V - Easter 2011

The Importance of Learning to be a Good Looser - April 2015