Lives of the mentally ill matter, too!


One of our prisoner correspondents has chosen to focus on inmate stories that could and should have been handled differently.

Readers of this column know that we have repeatedly and strongly advocated for the mentally ill, especially those who live here in Michigan where our care is so inadequate. Well, here’s the story of Mr. Brown (his real name), and how our system in the State of Michigan failed him every step of the way. Mr. Brown is 72 now, although he sounds like a child. His peers say he cannot function properly, and insist that he needs help.

1978

Three guys arrested in Detroit when a person is killed. Mr. Brown’s two co-defendants take advantage of his mental illness, and place the blame on him. Following short prison terms, they are free.

1979

Though seriously mentally ill, Mr. Brown receives a life sentence in prison, rather than assignment to a mental institution.

Over the years in prison

Mr. Brown’s health deteriorates: bronchitis, asthma, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

2020

Mr. Brown contracts Covid 19. “There is no way he could make it through a second wave of infection.”

Our correspondent Jamie Meade, who represents the National Lifers Association chapter in his facility, is begging for help for the man: “Mr. Brown can safely be released to a senior living facility. His age and mental illness require continuous care. It is a social injustice to keep him in prison another day. If Mr. Brown does not receive help he will die in prison.”

Here we have an elderly African American man, severely mentally ill, who has spent the past 43 years behind bars. Now he’s physically ill, eligible for parole but obviously having trouble catching a parole, and no place to go if he does get out. What a sad, sad story!

The system has failed him from top to bottom, from beginning to end, from start to finish.

Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight fades into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?

Oh, yes, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.

I’m convinced that Jesus cares.

Do we?






Comments

Wflower2001 said…
I care, I care immensely. The problem is our government does not.
June 19, 2020 at 4:38 PM
Unknown said…
I care however Whitmer and Hiedi Washington clearly have show they do not. Please Lord Jesus give these 2 individuals a heart.
June 19, 2020 at 7:35 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Half-a-race!

The HFP Drag-Racing Fund-Raiser had the potential of being extremely successful, and could have raised several thousand dollars. Let's just say it was partly successful. For background purposes I'll explain that I was racing a 1963 supercharged Studebaker Lark that has a reputation of being one of the fastest stock Studebakers in drag racing today. The engine was built by one of the finest Studebaker engine mechanics in the country, and the car many times has achieved quarter-mile runs in less than 14 seconds! We promised to make at least ten passes in the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drags at Mid-Michigan Motorplex in Stanton, Michigan, this past weekend, and we asked for pledges ONLY ON THOSE RUNS REACHED IN LESS THAN 14 SECONDS. On Friday, here's how we fared: Run #1 13.936 @ 101.24 mph Run #2 14.027 @ 101.30 mph Run #3 14.091 @ 100.88 mph Run #4 13.805 @ 102.84 mph Run #5 14.058 @ 101.26 mph By the 5th run we discovered that ...
Read more

Gregory John McCormick: 1964-2008

Itchy is dead. The lifeless body of this talented rock musician, whose band Shock Therapy was a popular group especially in Europe, was found in a field in Detroit last Wednesday, November 5. The Wayne County Coroner's office informed father Glenn McCormick that the body of his son Gregory, better known to all of us as Itchy, bore no signs of trauma. Glenn said that Itchy, who had been living at his father's dental lab in Detroit, had been drinking to excess for some time. While the toxicology report has not been released yet, the general consensus seems to be that he drank himself to death. Our agency, while still named INNOCENT, first got involved with Itchy in 2005. The Detroit native, who called Germany his home, got involved in some unfortunate activity that placed him in the Michigan State prison system on a charge of arson of a dwelling. It was really just a bonfire in an alley, but an alleged parole violation placed him in prison for 1-20 years. I personally sat w...
Read more

Three lives, connected by a divine thread

My kids say it should be a book! The Doug, Pat and Mark story is a doozie!   About 25 years ago, while fighting to free Maurice Carter from prison, I read a newspaper column written by Pat Shellenbarger of the Grand Rapids Press on the topic of eyewitness identification. I contacted Pat re that story. That led to a friendship between Doug and Pat that continues to this day.   In subsequent months, Pat would go on to assist me in an investigation into the Maurice Carter case that eventually led to solving the crime.  That particular episode became a chapter in my book about the Carter case, SWEET FREEDOM, published in 2006.   Fast forward to 2009, A New York businessman claims wrongful conviction, and while serving time in a Michigan prison is handed a copy of my book. Mark Hartman, who was also convicted in Berrien County, was amazed at the similarity of these two stories and tried to reach out to me. His letters bounced.   Persisting in his efforts to c...
Read more