Recompense

He was one of my brightest students, and he made a bad decision. Driving while intoxicated had landed him in prison. He caused a bad accident which killed the driver of the vehicle he hit. He was only 17 years old at the time and he killed a successful executive whose now large family had lost their father and wife, her loving husband. He was tried as an adult and the judge gave him the maximum sentence. Fifteen years for vehicular homicide, driving while intoxicated , and a minor in possession of alcohol, added up to roughly 20 years in prison. If he behaved himself while incarcerated, he could be paroled in fifteen years, and would be on probation for another five years. I respected that he took full responsibility for his crime and was trying to make amends .My students didn’t always share what landed them here. He was one of the exceptions. After he finished his Horticulture assignments for the day, he began working on the technical math programming I was able to get from our academic school, and load on my classroom computers.

While working on his math assignment he informed me that my student who was arguing with the level four prisoners was in a drug gang. I had heard the same thing from our yard sergeant who informed me they were “riding him out.” He would be sent to another prison to finish his sentence. Vocational programming would be off limits to him now that he’s been designated belonging to a gang. I felt the MDOC policy was short sighted, and guaranteed his membership. Education administrators felt it kept those really interested in rehabilitating themselves, (through vocational programming), from joining gangs once incarcerated. It was a dumb policy, and I had no problem pointing out its’ short comings. Once branded with gang membership, getting a GED was no longer an option either , and their incarceration would be about becoming a gladiator in prison to protect their members. This only increased gang membership, and assured violence. My arguments fell on deaf ears. In my 25 year career teaching I would not see this student again.

It didn’t surprise me that my students new more about their comrades than I did. I was trained not to look at inmate files. Seeing what they had done to land in prison might prejudice my approach to teaching them. I pretty much followed that percept. I didn’t have the time to look up their files anyways. I accepted what ever they told me about their cases. My feelings were they aren’t angels, their peers put them behind three barbed wire fences, and my job was to show them a better way. So I was surprised when my bright student shared with me a letter he had received from his victims family. They expressed the shock of losing their father, and husband in such a needless and senseless way, but after all these years, they had forgiven him. Ten years to the date of the accident, they had written him to forgive him. He informed me he would write them immediately and thank them. It meant a lot to him and with teared filled eyes he left the classroom, in a way, feeling redeemed, I’m sure. Something we could all use a little of. TO BE CONTINUED…

What popping a gasket looks like. Slava Ukraini God bless the heroes.