As a child growing up my son, Jeremy, was very hyper and impulsive. He was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 6. All through school he was constantly in trouble and spent his entire school years in a contained classroom. He took 20 mg of Ritalin 3x a day just to be able to function in life. He was a friendly child and knew no strangers.
When Jeremy reached his teen years it seemed the medication made him angry. He always complained of headaches and an upset stomach. When he reached 17 he made the decision to not take his medication any longer, and shortly after had charges against him for burglary.
At 19 he and a friend were charged with receiving stolen property and unlawful taking. Although his friend was out after only serving a 2 year sentence, Jeremy is still in prison 8 1/2 years later. He served most of his time at EKCC, until this year, when he was transferred to a minimum security facility. After a few months there he had a seizure and was consequently transferred to North Point in April 2009.
When he arrived at the prison he was in a dysfunctional state. The guard in charge later claimed in court documents that my son had told him he was on drugs. My son refused to take a blood test (due to an extreme life-long fear of needles) and instead offered to submit a urine sample, which he did. It came back negative for drugs, and so It was discarded.
As a result Jeremy spent 60 days in SMU. Before his release he was given a write –up for refusing the blood test, and he was subsequently found him guilty on drug related charges. He appealed and took it to district court.
Although there was no evidence to either prove or disprove his innocence, the judge chose to go on the word of the reporting officer and found Jeremy guilty on all charges. After that, my son received numerous petty write-ups, causing him to lose all of his earned "good time". From June until August he lost a total of 456 days.
When the riot occurred Jeremy was in his dorm, along with several other inmates (who have also been falsely accused). All were in dorm 1, which was not burned. According to published reports dorms 6, 3 & 2 were the only instigators and participators in the riot. All of the 1200 prisoners were sent out into the prison yard, where they were tear gassed AFTER being subdued. Not only was my son (along with many others) falsely accused, but also was beaten severely after the riot ended. Outside officials left the prison on August 23rd, and on the 24th is when inmates report that their abuse at the (hands of guards) began.
I have since contacted many officials about this incident and asked that my son be transferred from that prison. Several conflicting statements regarding my son and his involvement have been made by officials of both the DOC and Northpoint Prison itself. For instance, several inquiries were made into Jeremy's involvement, and I was told he didn't have any investigations against him for the riot. I was also told that he needed to file a grievence of his complaints (of beatings and false accusations).
So he did. Then, the grievance somehow disappeared from the system for 57 days, during which time Jeremy was told that as he had "never filed a grievance", his time had run out to do so. As a result, he received a write up for assault on an officer, and 60 days later he has received 2 more write-ups related to the riot. One of these "crimes" Jeremy has been charged with was made by the very same officer that beat him.
There are also conflicting statements from the officers regarding Jeremy's alleged involvement in the riot. In their statements, different officers have placed Jeremy in two different parts of the prison on opposite ends of the yard at the very same time (which is obviously impossible). None of the officials seem to care about the fact that there is no evidence against my son, except for the inconsistent statements of prison officers.
Many other inmates are asking that the video tapes of the riot to be viewed to prove their innocence. This has been denied, as the prison and committee claim it to be a security risk. As a result, a lot of innocent prisoners will be spending about 20 extra years in prison for a crime they didn't commit. All stand to be convicted on the sole testimony of one to two prison guards.
As there is no one else who can or will save my son, I have started a petition to be sent to the Interim Judicary Committee asking for an investigation into these matters. Because these are serious charges, the petition is simply requesting that someone above the DOC make sure that there is undisputed evidence before quite possibly convicting large numbers of innocent men, who will have to serve 20 years in a maximum security prison, locked down for 23 hrs a day.
Please read and sign our petition. So our son's don't die in prison - falsely accused. http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/save-our-husbands-fathers-and-sons
To contact Suzette Raybeck send an email to:
salexis45@yahoo.com
For more info:
Save Our Husbands, Fathers, and Sons
Prison Talk
Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary
Courier-Journal
Kentucky.com
So who is Eddy Metal and what is Rock for Kosair? Tell us a bit about yourself and your charity.
I'm just a guy who plays music himself, guitar & singing, for a long time in this music scene. And I like booking shows featuring talented upcoming bands. It's a lot of fun & it makes the bands happy. And the crowds certainly seem happy enough as well. I've had the longest running and most popular original music concert series in Louisville history! I'm rather proud of that fact.
Was there anything in particular that initially inspired the idea for Rock for Kosair?
Well, I was working doing construction in the summer of 05 at Frazier Rehab downtown right next to Kosair childrens Hospital. I saw all the sick kids coming in and out everyday, and I thought about the ones who werent doing too well. It made me want to help, maybe cheer a few kids up, or maybe bring a little happiness to some kids who are going through a rough time. So I invented the concert for toys/rock for kosair idea. And decided to do it right before xmas to help the Kosair people out when they most needed it.The show was a hit and everyone had a blast. It's been "the" original show of the year every year since then. And we do our famous guitar giveaways every year too. So come early to get a free numbered ticket with paid admission, while they last! We have 4 guitars to give away this year...
How many years have you put on the charity event?
This will be the 5th year! And I hope the best one yet!!!
What kind of musical line up have you arranged this year?
I have arranged a super-phat lineup of top bands to entertain you - including a reunion of Louisville rock legends SPANKY LEE, PLAN OF MAN, CHAMBERFLOW, NOVA RED, BURN TO SHINE, BONEJINN, SOME KIND OF SAINT, 16 BONES, 13TH LEVEL ( my band ), DELIVER US FROM EVIL , MAGNETIC FLUX, PROJECT SOVEREIGN, THOMAS MEDICINE, ADAPTIZE, HICKS ROAD & TWO PUMP CHUMP.
Are you anticipating a large turn out?
I'm expecting a good turnout, everyones been talking about this party and the great cause it is for. It's a can't lose situation. The Phoenix Hill is behind it 100% and has graciously given us the door for the event, and 93.1 the Fox has been an excellent sponsor as well. Whatever the final tally is - it is better than nothing. At least we as a rock scene can say we gave a crap and showed the city that us rockers have hearts, too.
If someone is unable to attend the event, how might they still be able to donate to the charity?
If you can't make it to the show, please donate to Kosair Charities. They are very good people. So there it is folks. Please attend the Rock For Kosair Benefit Concert at Phoenix Hill Tavern on Friday November 20 at 8pm! Free drawing tickets while they last! It's $7 to get in.
"Very Young Girls" (2007) by David Schisgall and Nina Alvarez presents a bleak but honest portrayal of teenage prostitution in the United States. Although many issues affecting the family and our nation are touched upon, the one message that stands out in the film is the desperate need for legal reform for these victimized young women.
Set in New York City, the documentary chronicles the lives of former teen prostitutes, many of whom were still adolescent when the film was made. Their heartbreaking journey back into the lives of "squares" - the name given to "normal" people by one young girl - is both difficult and unfortunate, in large part due to not only the emotional scars left on the children, but also because the majority are left with legal blemishes as well because of former prostitution convictions.
According to the film, "the average age of entry into the commercial sex industry is 13 years old". The most eloquent and moving statements of the documentary are made by Shaneiqua, who states that she, "got into the life when (she) was 12 years old. (She) was still entering into high school at the time". Shaneiqua paints a disturbing picture of how a negative family life plays a large role in driving young girls like herself out into the streets, where they are in turn prayed upon by pimps and johns because most have no one else to turn to and nowhere else to go.
The two pimps included in the film, Anthony and Chris Griffith, decided to get rich by forcing very young girls to street walk for them, and also shooting home-movie footage of the girls plying this trade. The Griffiths planned to increase their wealth and fame by creating a cable-TV programme based on this footage, some of which shows up in the documentary. Grinning smugly, the Griffiths cheerfully admit that they consider the girls to be mere merchandise, the property of the Griffiths as pimps.
Individual girls, telling their stories before, during and after prostitution are presented throughout the film. It's no surprise that some of them, like Shaneiqua, had absent or abusive fathers. Often, the leering attention they received from pimps like the Griffiths was the nearest many had ever experienced to male affection. The Griffiths, as with most other pimps, bait their trap with sweet talk and presents, getting the girls hooked on drugs (and therefore dependent), then terrorizing them to make sure they obey.
Viewers also catch a brief glimpse into a class meant to reform "johns". Men arrested for soliciting sex in New York City, if they have no previous conviction, have the opportunity to clean their records after attending a lecture on the dangers of prostitution. The johns shown in the film appear to be doing little but going through the motions, as one man arrogantly asks, after only a few minutes of class, when they can take a break.
Fortunately, instead of making fame for their pimp documentary, the Griffiths instead currently call prison home. The two were ultimately convicted, and their own amateur footage was used as evidence against them. Yet, oddly, they were only nicked on a variant of the Mann Act, for transporting a prostitute across state lines. This is one of many facets of U.S. law that seems contradictory: why is a felony across state lines considered so much worse than a felony that stays in one state?
The documentary also raises many other unanswered and disturbing questions. How, for instance, can a minor, who is not legally old enough to consent to sex, able to be prosecuted for underaged prostitution? Why are "johns" allowed a chance to clear the record? Are prostitutes afforded similar opportunities? The list goes on and on.
Although these girls all fell into the clutches of men like the Griffiths, they were also fortunate enough to cross paths with Rachel Lloyd, founder of the Girls' Educational and Mentoring Services (and also co-exec producer of this documentary). GEMS is an outreach group dedicated to rescuing young women from the sex industry, and stabilizing their lives.
The film shows Lloyd graciously accepting an award on behalf of GEMS, while denouncing the industry that gave an Academy Award to the song "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp". Elsewhere, Ms. Young (lawyer to Nicole, a teen prostitute being prosecuted for her "crime" in the film) points out a cruel irony: these girls are below the age of consent and therefore cannot legally agree to have sexual intercourse, yet they are regularly arrested for prostitution.
If you'd like to watch "Very Young Girls" visit:
Showtime on Demand
Netflix
That is an excellent point... About underage girls being legally disallowed to consent and still be charged with this crime. That is just sad and ridiculous.
Carolina Forest High School in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina was placed on lock down this morning after a school resource officer was stabbed by a student, who was in turn shot as a result of his actions.
According to Teal Britton with Horry County Schools, the incident happened inside the school shortly after 8:25 a.m. An 11th-grade-student assaulted school resource officer, Marcus Rhodes, with a knife and the officer then fired his gun and shot the student.
Conway Hospital Public Information Officer Julie Rajotte said that the 16-year-old male that was brought to Conway Medical Center from Carolina Forest High School this morning died at approximately 9:34 a.m and has been identified as Trevor Varinecz. Officer Rhodes is still being treated in the emergency department but is listed in good condition.
Britton says that shortly after classes began this morning the student asked to speak with the resource officer and went into his office. Fortunately, no students witnessed this attack because the door was closed.
She said Rhodes has been the school's resource officer for more than 10 years, but that there is no information at this time as to whether or not the student had recently been involved in any disciplinary action at the school.
Students are aware that something happened at the school this morning and have been praised for “behaving beautifully” in following the school's emergency action plan.
Britton also stated that the situation is under control and the campus of Carolina Forest High School is secure. She referred to the situation as “bizarre and unexpected,“ but says classes will not be canceled for the day.
Parents are allowed to pick up their children with proper identification. Students who drive are able to leave campus if their parents have faxed in permission for them to do so.
SLED agents are on-scene at the hospital and assisting in the investigation.
***I formerly taught at this high school and am acquainted with Officer Rhodes.
As a child growing up my son, Jeremy, was very hyper and impulsive. He was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 6. All through school he was constantly in trouble and spent his entire school years in a contained classroom. He took 20 mg of Ritalin 3x a day just to be able to function in life. He was a friendly child and knew no strangers.
So who is Eddy Metal and what is Rock for Kosair? Tell us a bit about yourself and your charity.
GREENEYEDQUEEN