Pubdate: Tue, 18 Sep 2012
Source: Albuquerque Journal (NM)
Copyright: 2012 Albuquerque Journal
Contact:  http://www.abqjournal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/10
Author: Teresa Cunningham

IS IT REHABILITATION OR JUST PUNISHMENT?

I AM THE mother of a son who did 18 months in Santa Fe State Prison. 
He was addicted to meth for 15 years, and I had all but given up hope 
I would ever have my son back. Methamphetamine is a horrific drug 
that destroys all those in its path.

I stood by and watched as a judge told my son there was no hope for 
him, and the only place for people like him was prison. I am happy to 
say as long as there is breath, there is hope. My son has been clean 
for over three years. He is now vice president of Phi Beta Kappa, has 
a 3.98 GPA and is about to enter engineering school.

His biggest concern now is the fact that in the state of New Mexico 
you are punished for life for making bad choices, no matter how much 
you turn your life around. He is worried that with a felony on his 
record no one will hire him after he earns his undergraduate degree 
in petroleum engineering.

Convicts have a scarlet letter on them for the rest of their lives. 
This is so unfair. I know many, many people have given up after being 
released from prison because they can't get a good job due to their 
record. Many feel they have no choice but to go back to what they 
know, using and selling drugs. And we wonder why we are losing the 
war on drugs?

I am not referring to violent offenders but those incarcerated for 
nonviolent crimes. Recently our governor issued a freeze on all 
inmates about to be released from any state prison in New Mexico. 
Evidently this freeze is the result of several inmates being released 
too early. Once again we are treating those who have done their time 
as if there is no hope for them.

The reason inmates earn good time is to encourage good behavior while 
incarcerated. It is not their fault our government will not hire 
enough staff to appropriately take care of things like parole dates. 
The case workers have huge case loads because our government refuses 
to finance the hiring of enough people to do the job correctly.

There are those who were scheduled to be released and have had to 
call their loved ones and inform them they are not being released and 
the extra time spent behind bars will go toward their parole. Tell 
that to a 6-year-old boy waiting for his daddy to come home, tell 
that to a mother waiting for her son to come home, tell that to a 
husband waiting for his wife to come home. These people deserve 
better than this. They have paid their debt to society. Come on, 
people, have some compassion.

TERESA CUNNINGHAM

Carlsbad
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