Thursday, May 28, 2015

Letter to Rick Snyder: I hope society has the mercy and compassion they said we were lacking as young people...

Rufus Williams
#169702
Gus Harrison Corr.
2727 East Beecher St.
Adrian, MI 49221


June 31, 2011

Gov. Ricky Snyder
State of Michigan
Office of The Governor
PO Box 30013
Lansing, Michigan 48909

Re: Maturity and rehabilitation of lifer’s

Dear Sir,

How are you? A few weeks ago I met the new Director of the Mich. Dept. of Corrections and we discussed the budget a little. I want to make you aware of a proposal that I am sharing with the Parole Board, Director of the MDOC, and a few state officials. I wish to focus on the maturity and rehabilitation of some residents who are now elderly, with failing health, but! are also college educated with various vocational skills. Many participate in positive programs such as the National Lifer’s Assoc., religious, and other outreach programs that we ourselves have organized. Also, charity programs that donate to battered and homeless shelters, coat drives during the winter -- we actually raised $2,000 while at NRF in 2009 to help rebuild the Childrens’ Center which was damaged in a flood on Detroit’s east side.  Some of us are ready, our work is documented, and we want to make a difference.

The state of Mich. has invested millions in us through pell grants and other programs during the late 70’s and 80’s, so residents such as myself can have a reasonable chance at succeeding once we are released. The transferable college credits in Business Management, Accounting, Computer Technology, and vocational skills such as Mechanics and even a license in Automotive with electrical specialty (all of which I have accomplished while incarcerated) provide a tangible foundation for employment upon release.

Therapy and Seminar Programming for Re-Entry are helpful indeed, that is why I’m seeking help in combining the Re-Entry program for Mature residents who have received some college education and training for the world of work, and have served 25 years or more. Statistics show that the recidivism rate for these lifers is less than 1%. I am a first time offender, but a lifer with 29 years in. Correctional staff often credit elders with being more reserved and more mature. Findings from reports in Lawyer’s Weekly, newsletters, MI-Cure, and from Mich. State University have been submitted to your office, Gov. Snyder.

For instance - from January 2011 Criminal Defense Newsletter Vol. 34 No. 4:  Corrections Coalitions Report offers Suggestions to Gov. Snyder.
~~~
The Correction Coalition, a group formed in 2008 from representatives of business, non-profits, education, and local gov., issues a report in Dec. 2010, highlighting areas for prison reform and cost savings. The report noted the current annual cost of housing a prisoner, key ways to reduce cost, etc., namely the residents of the 70's and 80's whom now need medical tretment.  "If released on parole, their meicare would be shifted to the fed. gov, but there are gov. programs that pay 50% of wages for tax reduction." Therefore, these residents who now have a college education can pay their own bills, etc., through jobs provided by businesses participating in these programs. Public work programs for these inmates to rebuild our roads, parks, and communities through cheap labor with a big incentive for good workers who would have the opportunity to keep jobs with that business upon release. It's a win-win for the state of Mich. Re-Entry program and resident placement.  These residents can be managed the same as those on furloughs with tethers because this program is for the older more mature lifers who are being prepared for re-entry.

While Michigan is not welcoming the necessary cuts in jobs, we all agree that the cost of these prisoners is an ever increasing budget consumption.  Meanwhile, may first offenders who truly realize we made a terrible mistake, some of us were truly misguided, but most importantly, some of us are truly remorseful, and we are ready to do or part, just as we have been doing from prison through our charity programs and humanitarian acts.  I feel no one understands the problems society faces better than we do, since we have lived it, and managed to salvage ourselves from it.  Some of us have prepared ourselves for a successful re-entry into society.  I hope society has the mercy and compassion they said we were lacking as young people, and allow us to help heal some of it's wounds, now that we have been healed.

I thank you for your attention in this matter, and I sincerely hope we can make a difference.

Sincerely,

Rufus Williams

Friday, May 22, 2015

The Herald Palladium is owned by The Paxton's of Peducak, Kentucky

The Herald Palladium Newspaper, St. Joseph, Michigan was built on the backs of slaves. The Paxton family of Paducak, Kentucky, at the junction of Tennessee and the Ohio river is well known for racism and slavery. The Paxton family, owners of the Herald Palladium newspaper which prints racist, one-sided news about the black residents of Benton Harbor, still believes in slavery. The Paxton's built their fortune during slavery times.  

The word 'slavery' means, a person has absolute power over the life, fortune and liberty of another;  the practice of keeping individuals in such a state of bondage or servitude. Slavery was outlawed by the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution. The Herald Palladium newspaper has continued the practice of keeping black people in such state of bondage or slavery. 

Slavery was a big problem for the Constitution makers, those who profited by it insisted on abolition so a compromise was reached. The words 'slave' and 'slavery' would never be mentioned but the constitution would safeuard the peculiar institution from the abolitionists. 

Slaves are property and can be sold, traded, given away, bequeathed, inherited or exchanged for other things of value. The status of a slave is inheritable usually through the mother, formal legal structures or informal agreements regulate the capture and return of slaves to their owner. Slaves have no legal rights or protection in America. Slaves maybe punished by slave owners with no limitation. 

The slave masters may treat or mistreat slaves as they wish, the very same as today in Benton Harbor

The Herald Palladium hypocrisy has no limits. They would do anything to keep blacks as slaves in Bentom Harbor, Michigan. The Herald Palladium newspaper has no credibility. The Herald Palladium is known as a lying newspaper with no substance and openly practices racism. 

It is up to you, the people, to make your fellow citizens see the other side of America. In great numbers lies great hope. We must protest the news media which acts like the Herald Palladium. We must move from words to deeds. We must organize against racism in our communities. Blacks, poor whites, brown, red, yellow, and all others must began to organize for control by the people and against exploitation. 


Exploitation and racism do not exist only US foreign policy, but right here in the streets of Benton Harbor. The Paxton family of Paducak, Kentucky are just one of many who made their fortune during slavery and continue to practice slavery. 

We the people must stand up and say, No More - Enough is Enough.
 
Rev. Edward Pinkney

Coldwater Prison

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Request for help from an innocent prisoner in Coldwater

My name is Terrance Lonzell Williams. I have been incarcerated since October 2004 for a murder I did not commit not do I have any involvement in or knowledge of.

Sept. 6, 2004, I was arrested for a CCWMV, plead guilty and as a result received one year probation on Oct. 22. On Oct. 28, I was rearrested, charged, and after 2 trials (one hung jury mistrial), was sentenced to 30-60 years in prison.

Since then my family and I have contacted several individuals and organizations, beginning with WCPO (Wayne County Prosecutors Office) Kym Worthy via e-mail, letters, and by phone; Detroit Police Dept., MSP, FBI agents, NAACP reps and several Innocent Project organizations in and out of state, etc., explaining to them that the evidence in my case has been tampered with, switched, lost, and destroyed between my time of arrest through 2008. But to no avail; we failed to receive any or limited response or assistance.

The State Appellate Defenders Office (SADO) contacted me stating that their office was reviewing all Wayne County shooting cases from 2004 and in light of the problems with the Ballistics Unit of the DPD Crime Lab, my case featured as one that raised serious questions and they reopened my case.

After a lot of empty promises, SADO relied on "the integrity" of the WCPO to investigate into the ballistics evidence, which resulted in them dropping my case.

This shooting/case happened July 2004. The DPD destroyed the firearm (380 auto) in my case in March 2008 according to SADO and Ms. Worthy's office, while I was and still am fighting my case in the appellate courts.

August 2009, at the request of Ms. Worthy's office, MSP was asked to get involved. Ballistic testing conducted by DPD Firearm Examiner (David Pauch) and the "reexamining" of the evidence conducted by the MSP lab were in contradiction. Due to the fact that the firearm was destroyed in 2008, MSP lab could not retest fire the firearm, but could only conduct a reexamination of DPD conclusions/opinions. What DPD Lab concluded was a 380 bullet, MSP lab concluded was a 9mm bullet. F.A.E. Pauch also used a different brand ammunition than that recovered at the crime scene when conducting his test-firing to compare evidence (RP vs. Win) which is said to be "unreliable."

On Oct. 20, 2010, by letter, Ms. Worthy confessed and admitted that the evidence had been switched from new bullets to corroded old bullets and casings. Ms. Worthy's explanation was that the evidence was switched at some point "after trial." My family and I have said this since 2006 after conducting our own study and investigation into the evidence presented against me, i.e. lab report, Wayne County Medical Examiner reports, trial transcripts, and MSP lab analysis reports as spoken of above. (There is so much more involved in this case.)

I really need outside help to manifest my innocence and expose the evil and corruption of the DPD, WCPO, and the injustice and unfairness of the Michigan court system. The courts are not being just, family is fading off and losing hope. I have watched the show "Vindicated" and this is what I need, to be vindicated and exonerated from a murder I have no involvement with, nor do I know anyone involved with it!

PLEASE HELP!!!

All records are at your disposal as this is an ongoing investigation.

Contacts:
Mrs. Erika Williams
Mrs. Nancy Lewis (retired DPD Sergeant)
three-one-three-eight-three-six-two-eight-one-six

Respectfully submitted,
Terrance L. Williams #511599
Currently located at:
Lakeland C.F.
141 First Street
Coldwater, MI 49036

Saturday, May 16, 2015

This Prisoner Died Twice

A inmate in the Michigan Department of Corrections was having issues using the restroom.  After reporting this to the P.A. (physicans assistant)  the inmate was told that the medications he was taking were causing him constipation. When the doctor was told that it was taking any where from 7-9 days to have a bowel movement with excruciating abdoninal pain  The doctor insisted that it was constipation. 

After suffering with the pain several more weeks the inmate had to be rushed to a local hospital where a (CT) scan was performed. It was revealed that the inmate had a cyst the size of a golfball in his intestinal track. It was necessary for this inmate to be rushed to a major hospital to undergo treatment for a severe case of diverticulitor. 

The infection was so severe that the inmate had to be given a number of different antibiotics for almost two weeks before the surgery could be performed.  The gastro-enterlogist informed the inmate that there was a possibility that he may have to wear a colostomy bag for 6-8 weeks to allow proper healing of the intestine. 

This inmate still wears the colostomy almost five (5) years later because the health care in the M.D.O.C. and Lansing refuse to reverse the surgery. As of today this inmate is still trying to fight to get a reversal surgery to remove the colostomy but with limited resources.  

It's a losing battle and a constant struggle not receiving proper health care in the M.D.O.C.

Just last month the same inmate had blood in his stool with severe abdominal pain. When the health unit was contacted by the unit officer, the inmate was told to put in a health care kit and they would get to him and several hours later, he had to be rushed to the local hospital. The issues
behind this are still pending through the grievance prodecure.


Keith Swift #202475

               

Saturday, May 09, 2015

Sepic based his charge against Pinkney on deeply held prejudice

Imagine:

-Being charged, convicted, and given 30 months to 10 years in prison under a law that never existed.

-That prosecutors could create any law they wanted for criminal prosecutions without any legislator ever voting on them, any governor ever signing them into law, or any court ever ruling on their contitutionality.

It’s happening in Michigan and I am serving time.

How could this happen?  A prosecutor, Michael Sepic, created a “legal fiction.”  A body of people:  judges, prosecutors, the sheriff, etc. were used as a basis for defining the charges.  

The felony charges against me were a grave injustice. Sepic creating laws independently was never addressed by any branch of state government.  The “legal fiction” still exists.

Sepic alone can define the language, parameter, and punishments.  No state law exists to stop him, and precedent has been set and seemingly approved by acquiescence of state gov.  As bad as all this sounds, it gets worse when examined in context. There has never been a felony for a recall petition in Michigan.

In short, the arrests and all that followed were illegal.  

Sepic violated the rule of professional conduct.  He engaged in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, and misrepresentation.  Such conduct reflects adversely on his trustworthiness, honesty, and fitness as a lawyer.

Sepic ignored the law and evidence in charging me.  He based his charge on unrevealed, deeply held prejudice.

We must fight against corruption inside the Berrien County Court, a criminal enterprise led by Whirlpool Corp.  The corporation is sucking the blood from Benton Harbor and installing puppets like James Hightower as mayor.  There are more of us than them:  We must say Enough is Enough!

Rev. Edward Pinkney
Coldwater Prison

Tuesday, May 05, 2015

Rev. Pinkney and the struggle for a new society



From the Editors of the People’s Tribune     May 2015


Rev. Pinkney speaking at a rally for water rights in Detroit, Michigan. PHOTO/DAYMONJHARTLEY.COM
Rev. Pinkney speaking at a rally for water rights in Detroit, Michigan.
PHOTO/DAYMONJHARTLEY.COM
On the morning of his April 14 hearing, Rev. Edward Pinkney entered the courtroom in prison garb, handcuffed and shackled. His attorney asked the judge to remove his handcuffs, but the judge commented that it was up to the guard and the guard said no. In addition, Pinkney’s supporters were warned against showing any sign of emotion during the proceedings. (At a previous hearing a supporter was threatened with removal for making eye contact with Pinkney.)
These were the ominous conditions that set the tone for the sham hearing. Pinkney was denied a new trial; the juror who allegedly lied about her acquaintances with officials who had a stake in convicting Pinkney was let off. Pinkney was ordered to pay restitution for “psychological injuries” to James Hightower, the mayor who the community had sought to oust.
This travesty of justice has many features: the conviction with no evidence, the absence of a jury of one’s peers, and felony rather than misdemeanor charges. This is occurring under fascism, the unity of the courts, police, and public officials with the Whirlpool Corporation, the giant that rules the area.
Rev. Pinkney has been thrown into the bowels of America’s oppressive prison system because he is a spokesperson for the downtrodden. As a revolutionary, he understands that today’s changes in the economy make a new society possible—where poverty, oppression and racism will end, and where the billionaire ruling class is a thing of the past, but the new society has to be fought for. For this reason, Rev. Pinkney focuses on educating and bringing into the leadership of this struggle the most impoverished workers, those who have no stake in the system and nowhere to go but forward.
At the root of the attack against Rev. Pinkney is capitalism; an economic system based on the private property of a handful of billionaires who control the government.  Under capitalism it is okay for people to die from a lack of water, food or medical care, while billionaires profit from private ownership of these resources.
What is new today is that capitalism is a dying system. We see it in Michigan, and in other former industrial states in the “Rust Belt.” There, millions have permanently lost their jobs, primarily due to production with computers and robots. Without workers who can buy the commodities the billionaire class owns, the system comes to an end.
It is not possible to go back to what we once had. As Dorothy Pinkney stated at the rally outside the Courthouse, “A system that cannot provide for its people must and can be overthrown and replaced with one that will.”
The ruling class strategy is to keep us fighting one another. We have to counter this. For the first time, a section of workers are becoming equally impoverished, regardless of color. If educated, they can be united into a powerful force. The fight to free Pinkney must be taken to these workers, and their struggles for survival must be brought to the struggle to free Pinkney.
Let’s emulate the courage and sacrifice of Rev. Pinkney. Let’s fight for a new society. Free Pinkney!
We encourage reproduction of this article so long as you credit the source.
Copyright © 2015 People’s Tribune. Visit us at http://peoplestribune.org

Monday, May 04, 2015

The Paxton family and the Herald Palladium

The Herald Palladium newspaper is the "paper of record" for Berrien County, Michigan, located in St. Joseph, across the infamous bridge from Benton Harbor.  

The Paxton family of Paducah, Kentucky own the HP, and are well known for racism and slavery.  The HP prints racist, one-sided news whenever reporting on the Black residents of Benton Harbor.


The Paxtons built their fortune during slave times.  (Slavery: A situation where a person has absolute power over the life, fortune, and liberty of another; The practice of keeping others in a state of bondage or servitude. Outlawed by the 13th amendment to the US Constitution.)


The Herald Palladium has continued to do it's part in keeping black people in a state of bondage. And many in Berrien County believe all they read in it's dishonest pages.


Slaves have no legal rights or protection.  They may be punished with no limitation.  Masters may treat or mistreat slaves as they wish.  The very same as today in Benton Harbor.


It's up to you, to the people, to make your fellow citizens see the other side of America.  In your great numbers lies great hope.  We must protest the media, especially the media which behaves like the HP in St. Joseph, Michigan.  


We must move from words to deeds and organize against racism! For control by the people and against exploitation.  Racism and exploitation do not exist only in US foreign policy!


The Paxton family are just one of many who made fortunes during slavery have figured out ways to continue modern day slavery.  They are anti-revolutionary, anti-poor, anti-black.  We the people must stand up!


Rev. Edward Pinkney

Coldwater Prison

Sunday, May 03, 2015

Anonymous inmate writes of prison "healthcare"

The standard policy of the Dept. of Corrections is to deny the prisoners proper health care. This is a grievance filed by "Harold Davis."  We assign an alias to protect him from retaliation by the Dept:


The underlying attitude of MDOC admin. and staff regarding the medical treatment of prisoners can be described as reluctant and obligatory. It is set in a foundation of forced obligation rather than a foundation of compassionate care.  The lack of humane health care when prisoners have no other option for obtaining healthcare, because of their punishment, is a violation of basic human rights. Deliberatly harmful, deliberate indifference, or negligent physical and psychological harm at the hands of insensitive decion-makers is not part of a prisoner's sentence!

We grieve PHS (Dr. Johnson, etc.) for the deliberate indifference in deferring treatment of Hepatitus C, a life-threatening disease, for providing inadequate and inconsistent healthcare. Healthcare so deficient that it amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. Allowing suffereing from a treatable disease, allowing health to deteriorate for lack of proper care - a violation of the 8th amendment.

A liver biopsy was performed at Foote Hospital in Jackson. The result showed my portal infiltrate and mild piecemeal necrosis (grade 2) with enlarged fibrotic tracts (stage 1) causing ineligibility for pegylated interfreron in combination with rebetol treatments.  

I was transferred on 9/27/14 to KTF. Since arriving I've been scheduled twice for a telemedicine conference with the infectious disease specialist, Dr. Hutchison. However, on 10/16/14 I received notice that I'm currently experiencing episodes of pain, shorness of breath, night sweats, bruising easily, and spider angiomas by deferring treatment of Hep. C, my health is being placed at greater risk. There is only one resolution: Begin HCV treatment immediately.  


Even though Michigan does not have a death penalty statute, serving time in a Michigan prison and getting sick while serving time could very well be a death sentence.