Reentry to Society

Progressing along with the Pardon/Clemency process

2012-02-08T15:41:00.001-05:00

I received the following letter today from the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons. Herein are the highlights"

"This letter is to inform you that your clemency application has been filed by the Board of Pardons.

Please be advised that agents from the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole conduct investigations for the Board of Pardons. ...you will be contacted by a Parole Agent to arrange a meeting in your home...

As soon as all pertinent information has been compiled, the application will then be reviewed by each Board member, and a public vote will be taken to determine if you will be granted a public hearing. You will be notified of the results of the Board's review.

Please be advised that the clemency process is very lengthy and complex. It currently takes approximately three (3) years to complete..."

And so the wheels of a government agency slowly begin to grind. It took nearly two months to get to this point, but the fact that the application has been filed is good. At least I got the initial paperwork right. I wonder how many applications don't make muster in this first step? Anyway, I will wait for the next step and so on and so on, looking forward to each one to hopefully come to positive resolution.

The fact is the main purpose for this was employment issues with background checks and even places where I am currently prohibited from working for having a felony conviction. By the time the process is complete and a Pardon is granted I will be 68-years-old. I am not sure how to express my view regarding the initial goal being relevant at that point, but I can tell you that I want this Pardon nonetheless.

I didn't think it would be a three (3) year process and was thinking more like one year. Government agencies I guess don't move at breakneck speed. With my application I provided many attachments to be reviewed and considered. I suspect that most if not all of these will be checked to verify authenticity and gather more information. I welcome that because I have nothing to hide.

Taking it all into consideration, I reiterate that I really want this Pardon. I want the state of Pennsylvania to review my application, look at who I am as a person right now today. Isn't that what this is about? I also want the Board to look at my past lifestyle and recognize that it is not, and never has been, a lifestyle of criminal thinking and intent.

This of course would involve having them believe that the likely hood of my ever acting out again is basically non-existent. I word it that way because is there ever really a "never" for anything in life. I can believe in myself that the actions I took will not happen again but the Board has to evaluate it from the perspective that if it happened once it could happen again. I get that.

I will do the interviews, answer the questions, jump through the hoops, etc. and in three years I want the governor of the state of Pennsylvania to grant this Pardon to me which in effect says I recognize that you are a good person. I am doing and will continue to do all the right things to earn this. This may be melodramatic, but in the end I want my children and grandchildren to be proud of a father and grandfather who does not have the label of ex-offender attached to him in the fine print and in the eyes of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Keep you posted, but it will probably be a while.

Excessive Sentencing

2012-02-07T22:50:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

The following letter to the editor to the Vietnam Veterans of America magazine appeared in the January/February 2012 issue:

"A grassroots movement is underway to dismantle Missouri's 85 percent mandatory minimum sentencing laws on first-time offenders, a law that affects many veterans, is unjust, and is an unnecessary tax burden on Missouri citizens.

There is a petition to get it on the ballot for revision as soon as possible. This petition can be endorsed by anyone of voting age in any state. In no way are we attempting to minimize the acts for which these men and women have been responsible. However, administering nearly a life sentence in first-time non-homicide cases - and even in some cases of non-injury - and to have no incentive for rehabilitation is truly counterproductive to everything out nation stands for.

We have endorsements from a multitude of lawmakers for this change, and the NAACP and Missouri CURE are devoting their resources to revamp this policy. This is not a "get out of jail free card." It is for first-time violent offenders who have completed positive behavioral programs and have remarkable institution records. These men and women were caught up in the "get tough on crime" one-upmanship of political campaign promotions. The proposed change will lower the basic mandatory minimum of 85 percent for first-time offenders to 50 percent mandatory sentencing - based on past and current behavior, personal rehabilitation, and parole board discretion.

Information on the petition can be found on the Missouri CURE website, http://www.mocure.org/. If you wish to contact the CURE concerning this information, call 877-525-2873 or email missouricure@hotmail.com."

George Kniest
Jefferson City, Missouri

Here in Pennsylvania there was a belief when I was in prison only a few years ago that there is an 80 percent rule but the authorities and the Pennsylvania Parole Board deny this. Even in the face of this non-existent rule the feeling went that the Parole Board used its discretion in the matter.

In cases like mine, I completed all the required programs and more, had no misconducts, and had a job, got good work, housing and program reports that resulted in having full institution support for parole five times, and I was denied parole five times. There were other similar cases I knew of while incarcerated.

It would seem the Pennsylvania Parole Board overstepped its use of discretion. Of course there are two side to that story and they can be arugued forever without resolution. As for Missouri, this would be a positive start to prison reform that is sorely needed across the nation even as I have an issue regarding allowing discretion.

Our nations prisons are overcrowded. The prisons in Pennsylvania are so overcrowded the state has taken to housing prisoners in county prisons and also other states at a great expense. From experience I can tell you that there are a great many people in prison, even violent offenders, who do not need to be there.

Don't get me wrong, some people belong in prison. Their behavior has shown them to be a danger to the community so these people need to remain in custody for the safe guard of society as much as for their own safety. As bad as some are, no one should be put at risk of injury or death and the lifestyle these people choose subject them to that.

I only received the VVA magazine today and I haven't had time to look up the statistics, but I do know that past statistics did not have the Keystone State in good standing in regard to the number of people in prison and the time they spend in prison. It is a list of states in statistics that you want to be on the bottom of. Pennsylvania was on the top.

But this is getting off track. The point I want to make is that prison reform is needed and talk about it needs to be acted on. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett just slashed the budget in regard to money for education for a state in debt. The Philadelphia Public School system is restricting use of the schools to save money. Why can't we reform the prison system, mandatory sentencing, and Parole Board discretion and take the money saved and put it back into education?

My final word is a call for across the board flat sentencing. To the state legislatures I suggest that they act on reform and stop talking about it.

Pardon Me

2012-02-06T22:51:00.003-05:00

by Steve Gordon

I have not written on this site for a long time. I have been wrapped up in getting things back together and writing on a golf related blog and working. Yes, I found a job even if it is a minimum wage part-time job doing prep work and related jobs in the kitchen of the Chick-fil-A in Newtown, PA.

But I am not writing about that. I applied for a Pardon last fall. It is as the letter accepting my application described "a lengthy process." I have to state up front that I am not looking for absolution for my offense. What I am looking for is to clear my record for background checks.

This is a big deal for anyone trying to enter the job market these days. Jobs are hard enough to find let alone being labeled as as ex-offender and going against similar or higher qualified people who do not have a criminal record. And here is a new insult. I wanted to sign up to be a volunteer worker at the Merion Golf Club for the 2013 US Open golf tournament but I couldn't because you have to pass a background check.

I recently got a letter from the Board of Pardons for some more detailed information. I filled out the information they asked for and returned the original and five (5) copies as requested. Next step is for the application (and the numerous inclusions I provided) is to be reviewed positively and have a public hearing scheduled. For this all the authorities and victims would be notified and would be given the opportunity to provide their thoughts.

This pardon is a long way from being approved and sent to the governor's desk to be signed. I just wanted to put this out there and urge anyone who does not have a long record of criminal behavior to apply for a Pardon. Worst case scenario is they say no and nothing lost. Best case would be to have the Pardon granted and be given a clean slate to compete in the job market and other things.

Do it.

Special Day

2011-04-19T19:35:00.000-04:00

By Steve Gordon

Today was a special day. Last week I received a letter from the Pennsylvania State Police that I was to report for my yearly registration update for Megan's Law. To begin with the whole spirit of ML has been distorted and many people are being registered as sex offenders in the name of protecting society when their offenses had nothing to do with children or random sexual assaults that would have endangered the community in the first place.

OK, enough of the soap opera.

So...I went to the local State Police office in Trevose to turn in my form. I didn't expect to be welcomed warmly or with open arms but the receptionist (or whatever her title is) was very cold and impersonal, but stopped at the point of being rude. In this situation you learn to cope with these kind of closed minded people. For the entire time I was there I was never called or referred to by name by anyone.

I went in and announced why I was there and turned in the form completed that only needed my signature and the signature of a registering official. Then it was being called to the counter and being asked for a copy of the letter and told to go sit down; go to the counter to give them your drivers license and told to go sit down; go to the counter and asked if I had a job, if I owned a car, if I went to school and then told to go sit down. These were all questions on the form I did not fill in because I have or do none of those things.

It took about 1/2 hour in all and there was no one else there being attended to. Why would filing a simple form and having your picture taken with a hand held digital camera take so long? While sitting on the hard wooden bench in a cold lobby I could hear through the glass and I am pretty sure I heard some conversation that I showed up on their computer as unregistered. That is funny because someone clearly knew where to find me to send me the letter to report to re-register annually as required.

To tell the truth, the longer I sat there the more uneasy I got. Paranoia is a funny thing and I didn't know if I should expect Corporal C.P. Tavernier and/or some other trooper to come out and handcuff me believing I had been unregistered for a year or if a Bucks County Sheriff would appear to take me to the county prison for not being registered. For the record I was registered and even looked myself up once.

Upon completion of this process and signing three copies I was asked about treatment and if I was a sexually violent predator. If they looked my file up, which clearly they did, they would have known that so why ask?

This was a totally a humiliating experience, but I should come to expect that I suppose. We live in a world of people with so many (unfounded) paranoia's that it is the rule, not the exception. The good news is I only have to do this eight more times - unless they change the law again to make most everyone a lifetime registration. At least they don't have special license plates on the cars as I understand some places do. They tried a while back but it didn't get passed in the legislature. But...I don't own a car.

I think I will go sit down now, in a comfortable chair, and read my book, Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand about an American Olympic miler, Louis Zamperini, who was first stranded in the Pacific for 40 some days and then a POW in Japan until the end of WW II. It's a good story, and a good book will always divert your attention away from stressful situations.

Phladelphia Inquirer, Monday, March 28, 2011

2011-03-31T22:14:00.000-04:00

JANE M. VON BERGEN / Staff

Steve Gordon of Southampton hasn't secured a job since his release from prison despite decades of work experience.

Ex-offenders hope Philadelphia passes 'ban the box' bill this week

By Jane M. Von Bergen
Inquirer Staff Writer

Sometimes the facts are easy:

A 39-year-old mother of four raising her family on welfare and food stamps finds a check next to a Dumpster. Her monthly welfare payment is days away, and there is no food in the house. She signs it, committing fraud.

"I went home and told my kids, 'God sent me a piece of paper that says we're going to eat tonight.' "

That happened to Evelyn Houser, now 70, of North Philadelphia in 1981. In 2010, that conviction - her only brush with the law - meant she wasn't considered for a temporary U.S. Census job.

"It's like a slap in the face," she said.

Sometimes, though, the facts are hard:

Distraught over his dissolving marriage, a man flips out when his estranged wife visits. He ties her up, beats her, and tries to rape her before slashing himself with a knife. That was in 2000, a repeat of a less serious offense in 1972.

In May 2010, Steven Gordon, now 64, was released from prison, and no one will hire him despite decades of experience in food service that includes managing cafeterias providing hundreds of meals a day.

"I'm living with my parents," said Gordon, of Southampton, Bucks County. "If it weren't for them, I'd probably be living in a refrigerator box under a bridge somewhere.

"I put myself in this position. I recognize that. But I have the skills. I know how to do things, but I can't get my foot in the door."

The foot in the door is what City Council is hoping to accomplish Thursday, when it will likely pass a "ban the box" ordinance.

The box is the one on applications that candidates check when asked about arrests or convictions. The box would have to disappear, whether on paper or online.

Also, most employers in the city would no longer be able to ask applicants about their criminal backgrounds until after the first interview. After that, employers could run any checks and ask any criminal history questions they wished.

If Council passes the ordinance, Philadelphia will join many other cities - including Boston, Chicago, and New Haven, Conn. - with similar laws.

Philadelphia's proposed ordinance "doesn't force employers to hire to anyone," said William Nesheiwat, director of legislation for Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, a Democrat, the sponsor.

"It requires the employer to give candidates the opportunity to be judged strictly on their merits during the application and the first interview, because everyone understands the value of a first impression," he said. "Our goal is to create something that helps the individual with a record but does not hurt businesses and their clients."

Groups such as Community Legal Services and the National Employment Law Project favor the measure. The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce opposes it.

"Our members remain concerned that the legislation still poses significant challenges for employers," chamber vice president Joseph W. Mahoney Jr. wrote in a letter to Miller. "The bill presents liability problems for potential employers who may become targets for antidiscrimination litigation."

Michael Aitken, director of governmental affairs for the Society for Human Resource Management, the nation's largest professional HR group, said employers should have the right to do criminal checks. But, he said, most wait until later in the hiring process because those checks are expensive.

Philadelphia's proposal is broader than those in other cities because it is the only one that would apply to most private employers. Elsewhere, the laws apply primarily to city employees, and sometimes to companies that do business with the city.

But some cities provide more protections to ex-offenders.

Boston sifted through its jobs to determine which ones required background checks. It determined that criminal checks would be necessary for government jobs involving money-handling or caring for the young, but not for collecting trash.

The applicant's criminal history is usually not checked until after a conditional offer, and if the applicant is turned down due to the record, there is an opportunity for appeal.

"Where we need a criminal-background check, we're going to run that background check," said Boston's assistant director of human resources, William Kessler. "Then we look at the nature of conviction, how old the conviction is, any evidence of rehabilitation, and we'll make a determination."

Pennsylvania already has a law, rarely enforced, requiring employers to consider only relevant convictions when hiring. New Jersey is considering ban-the-box legislation.

Meanwhile, Rob Hill, 30, of Philadelphia, hopes the city's proposal passes. He grew up in a chaotic home with a dying mother and two younger siblings. As a teen, he became addicted to drugs and then sold them, winding up in jail. "I remember feeling a sense of accomplishment that I could give my mom money when she needed it."

Hill was released in 2006. Now he's a college graduate with a degree in sports management who can't get a job.

"No one is giving me a chance," he said.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact staff writer Jane M. Von Bergen at 215-854-2769 or jvonbergen@phillynews.com.

To learn more about this issue, read Von Bergen's "Jobbing" blog: www.philly.com/jobbing

Interview

2011-03-21T18:48:00.000-04:00

By Steve Gordon

Today (3-21-11) I got a phone call from Jane Von Bergen of the Philadelphia Inquirer. She wanted to interview me about the recent proposed legislation in Philadelphia to eliminate the box on job applications that asks if you were ever convicted of a crime.

Of course I had an opinion and spoke my peace as I kept her on the phone too long and potentially made her late for a meeting. My apologies Jane.

My position is basically that this is a good thing but only a first step to ex-offender employment. It creates a better opportunity to get a job interview on a more level playing field without the stigma being in place and having the job application tossed without the applicant being given a chance to present himself or herself. It shouldn't matter whether it is a job for an entry level blue collar job or something more advanced.

At this point I refer you to the March issue of Graterfriends as published by The Pennsylvania Prison Society. There is an article I wrote earlier this year and they felt it was relevant to publish in the issue.Employment is a problem all over, but it is more of an issue with those who may not even have enough money for their next meal let alone a place to sleep and call home. Can you spell potential for re offending?

The article published reiterates a lot of what I have written before, but now it is getting out for more people to read. I would like to think it instigated the legislature but this has been a problem long before I came on the scene. However if it helps push along the issue then perhaps I have made a mark for positive reform for ex-offenders.

Back to the legislation that Mayor Michael Nutter has said he will sign. Why just Philadelphia? Why not other cities like Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Scranton, or Allentown to name a few? The problem with that is it is just thinking small. This should be statewide and put in front of Governor Tom Corbett. NO, NO, NO. That is still thinking small. This is a national problem. This should be national. No job application anywhere for any kind of job should have that box on it. It should go the way of the question of a persons date of birth.

Further, no first interviewer should be able to ask the question. The problem there is that in a first interview when work history is talked about there will be a gap in the work history that will have to be explained.

One reality is that there will always be discrimination. A criminal history, black, white, asian, man, woman, young, old, etc. It is a long list. However, how much of this discrimination is relevant to any particular job? It is supposed to be who is most capable of doing the best work for the job being hired for. I am willing to bet that there a plenty of HR people out there second guessing hiring the best dressed, sweet talking applicant with the best resume when someone else, perhaps even an ex-offender, would have fit into the company and done the job better.

Look at it from another point of view if you are an employer. Here is a chance to put an ex-offender back to work and allow that individual to prove themself and then the company can lay claim to helping the community by helping this part of it be productive and useful.

I pursued an issue I had with Applebees managed by a company called The Rose Group. Eventually I got a name and number for someone in HR. I phoned Paul Trzaska and we had a nice conversation about all of the above. I have seen flyers on employment boards that Applebees is ex-offender friendly so I pursued a job as a Host. One facility is within walking distance from my reisdence.

The bottom line is that there is no hard definition except for some restaurtants in certain areas. The ones I applied to are not in those kind of areas. Your neighborhood bar and grill with a family atmosphere is in some way ex-offender friendly. It does get stickey when you get into the area of felony convictions, but again there is not a no hire policy. It seems to be a store-by-store decision. It is a gray area loophole, but at least on paper this company is open to the idea.

The legislation in Philadelphia needs to be expanded and in the process employers need to see that as a group, ex-offenders have a lot to offer and can be productive. A friend who has position in the county calls my offence "a moment in time" and says it does not define who I am. As I try to move on with my life I think the nations employers, big and small, need to do the same and look beyond the glitter and to the meat and potatoes of what a potential empoyee can do for them.

Hire an ex-offender.

New hope

2011-02-15T13:31:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

All we can do is push forward and hope for the best. I had what I thought was a very good interview with the Summerwood Corp. this morning. Remember they dismissed me quickly after a phone interview several months ago. This was different and my ex-offender status is a hurdle but not a barrier apparently.

I was told someone would be in touch with me in a couple days. I am guessing (hoping) it would be to set up a second interview. We will see what happens.

Summerwood is the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, Long John Silver and I think they have some association with Pizza Hut.

Footnote: A week after the interview the letter came from Summerwood that they did not have a position to offer me at this time, ya da ya da.

News Release

2011-02-07T12:51:00.000-05:00

Friday, February 4, 2011

GENERAL MEDIA NEWS RELEASE

TO: Local broadcast afflilates of ABC, NBC, FOX and CBS news departments.
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Bucks County Courier Times

FROM: Steven Gordon
300 Cushmore Road
Southampton, PA 18966
home phone: 215-357-9145
prepaid cell phone: 215-666-3174
email: nevets10@comcast.net

I am a 64-year-old veteran of the US Navy (submarine service) with a solid work history and skills. However I made a mistake and put myself in state prison. I served my entire 10 year sentence and now I can’t put it behind me. I have heard over and over, “We don’t hire convicted felons” even as my offense had nothing to do with the type of employment sought.

In 2000 I did something that was criminal and it was very wrong. I took responsibility. However the generalities and merely reading a file throws the shadow over it. The files do not show that it was not born from criminal thinking and further it does not automatically make me a bad person. It seems the latter gets overlooked.

The Philadelphia Inquirer is currently doing profiles of unemployed workers in this very tough economy and tight job market. The problem is from what I have seen is that it seems all warm and fuzzy stuff, and safe, with people who have college degrees and high qualifications unable to find work. In my estimation they would seem to be missing the mark all around.

My WIA counselor, Irene Dnistrian, at Career Link, Bristol Office in Bucks County answered a request to submit some names for consideration and mine was one of them. I realize not all the people who are submitted get selected but while I cannot be certain, I have a strong feeling my being an ex-offender played a part in it. I also don’t know if the Inquirer or someone at the Career Link squashed it.

Friday, Feb. 4th I attended a Civil Service workshop at the urging of Ms. Dnistrian and the veteran advisor at the Bristol Office, Mr. Rodney Wyatt. It wasn’t long into the workshop when the question came from me about having a felony conviction and being eligible for civil service state employment. The answer was no. There was no need for me to stay for the completion of the workshop.

Here us a question no one answers. If the offense has little or nothing to do with the job being sought, why is it an issue? Even if there is a concern, there is a Federal Bonding Program (FBP) to protect employers. Call the State Bonding Coordinator at 717-787-6915 for verification.

There is an entire segment of our society who are without college degrees, but they are hard workers and yes, some are ex-offenders looking for work. Thursday, Feb. 3rd I went to a Aldi location advertised in the classified ads hiring cashiers. The line was very long. I walked away without putting in an application with the mindset of the reality that the odds of getting a job were slim to start with and how many hundreds of people did not have a “history” who would be placed in front of me even if they hire ex-offenders.

Working with the Career Link I am taking free computer labs and programs like resume writing and how to find a job. I am doing everything asked of me and checking the classified ads and online job boards.

An interview is hard to get, but when I have gotten them I don’t get called back for second interviews. It usually goes ok until the “history” comes up. I listen to friends and counselors and even people who deny me a job say I have a lot to give and good luck. It is getting old and hollow even as those people are trying to be supportive.

All I ask for in my cover letters is to be considered based on my work history and accomplishments and not be judged on the basis of my “history.”

My personal situation is that I live with my elderly parents ages 86 & 89 on fixed incomes. I have nothing because I lost it all in divorce while in prison and my ex-wife holds a $500,000 personal injury judgment over my head such that I cannot even own anything if I had money to purchase it. One lawyer told me I might not even be able to buy a car free of the judgment. Great, when I do find a job I won’t have transportation to get to it.

The reality is that with a couple of missed heartbeats I am potentially another of Americas homeless veterans. I can’t even inherit anything. So I jump through the hoops, live and help out at home and remain unable to self sustain myself in spite of my collecting early SSA and Food Stamp benefits. Fortunately this country takes care of its veterans so I get medical care from the Veterans Administration because I am under the poverty level.

I write two blogs: Reentry to Society at www.restartingalife.blogspot.com and Thoughts from an Idle Mind at www.thoughtsidlemind.blogspot.com. I have talked to and met with local state and federal politicians about the issue. The president (I wrote him from prison before I was released) and politicians make speeches and talk about job plans to put America back to work. What exactly are these plans and where are the jobs?

In Pennsylvania the prison system is overcrowded. Guys getting released have no idea what they are facing upon release. I knew it would be tough, but the definition of this kind of tough borders on nearly impossible. Look at the statistics of how many people in Pennsylvania’s prisons are returned for parole violations or just committed other crimes.

I wonder if anyone has bothered to find out how much of that is related to being beaten down by society. Put these people back to work and the budget would not have to include billions of dollars for new prisons and perhaps we could put money into education and potentially keep people from going to prison on the front end.

Where are the second chances?

Cc: Mr. William DiMascio, PA Prison Society

State Civil Service

2011-02-05T11:18:00.000-05:00

By Steve Gordon

I went to a state civil service workshop to explore potential civil service employment. It was suggested I do so by people at the Career Link. If you are an ex-offender with a felony conviction, don't bother. The person facilitating the workshop told me anyone with a felony conviction is not eligible to work in a state job in Pennsylvania..

You hear that Tom Corbett? More limited opportunities for ex-offenders by the state of Pennsylvania. Where are these job plans and who gets the jobs? Why can't we make an effort to get ex-offenders back on their feet, people who have nothing, a priority and take the money for building new prisons and put it to better use up front?

Pinch yourself for a reality check

2011-02-02T18:58:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

I started writing this a couple weeks ago and didn’t finish it and then it became neglected. Sorry.

A big pinch of reality tweeked me today. If you have followed this blog you know that my situation is that of having lost basically everything in divorce, I owning nothing, I am coming out of prison at 64-years-old, I don’t have a job, and ...you get the idea.

Lost in between the cracks is the fact that my ex-wife, Patricia Gordon, holds a $500,000.00 (yes, a 1/2 million dollars) personal injury judgment on me. This is even after I turned over basically all of my claim to marital property to her in the divorce settlement in 2003 while I was in prison.

On a bigger scale however it becomes an issue because now it involves the family. Here is/was her mindset. In answering derogatories (a list of questions for the court) for the divorce she put down in her own handwriting that she thought she should get “everything” in regard to the marital property. Well, she pretty much did.

Here is the kicker. All of our marital property together didn’t add up to ½ million dollars.

Trying to figure out the logic of going through the motions on the civil action is fruitless. It is likely she went in the hole financially to pay the attorney for paperwork, research, phone calls, letters, consultations, and time in court. That part wasn’t my fault. No matter, this judgment can (will?) be held over me for the rest of my life. The thing is there is nothing to get.

Those are the facts.

This is becoming an issue now for my parents planning for the family estate because obviously I can’t inherit anything. Some think this was her plan. You know, an attempt to get whatever I might inherit or at best keeping me from having anything.

As you know my situation is that I live at home, collect food stamps, don’t have measurable savings or a job, and have only some Social Security as income. With the stoppage of a couple heartbeats I potentially become another of America’s homeless veterans living in a refrigerator box under a bridge somewhere. My income is below the poverty level and definitely not enough comes from SSA to rent an apartment.

I understand laws are written to protect people, but people take advantage of the law and sometimes courts get it wrong. We are a litigious society. Bankruptcy was suggested as a remote possibility, but I do not owe anyone anything except for the judgment. However the judgment is bankruptcy proof.

There are provisions in bankruptcy for support and alimony where if the debtor can show extreme hardship on him or her and that the party being owed is not in dire need that it is taken into consideration.

Here I am trying to reestablish a good credit rating and yet I can’t own anything. I have a couple credit cards that I use and then pay the balance off each month so as not to accumulate interest.

The car I was driving before it died was a 14 year old vehicle owned by my brother. It was the only thing I saved from the marriage. Pat had two other cars at the time of the divorce and asked for the Blazer as well but was denied. At least the Master for divorce used common sense with that.

She could, and some think she will, come running waving the judgement around when I find a job. A bankruptcy lawyer (here I thought I was finished with lawyers when I got out of prison) said he thought that wages would not be liable but he didn’t give me a definite answer on a free advice phone call. He did say that if I bought a car she might be able to take it. Great, if I get a job (we know it won't be at Applebees) I won’t be able to get to it.

OK, I am done venting. I wish I could get someones attention who could do something to correct inequities in things but as usual, ex-offenders are afforded little standing in society. Then “they” wonder why the prisons are so full and why people go back to prison.

I don’t know. DUH

Applebees

2011-02-02T17:26:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

I don't know which is worse, not getting a call back from an interview or doing a telephone followup and being told "we don't convicted felons." I have heard it before, but at some point it gets really old when all the people around you see you doing all the right things and participating in programs at Career Link and stuff. And the people at the Career Link say "you have a lot to give" only it seems nobody is interested in what I have nor will they allow me the opportunity to prove myself.

Add Applebees to the list of companies who don't give ex-offenders a chance. I applied for a $6.50 and hour Host position at the restaurant that is literally down the street from where I live in Southampton, PA. But it wasn't to be. I won't say I didn't feel a little optimistic, but I let it happen. Now I am down a little. Does it ever end? Maybe the Red Cross will come through and hire me to be a cook at a local shelter?

Background checks

2011-01-21T20:19:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

Here is an ironic twist of things. I had a job interview with a company called Vertical Screen. It was to do Human Resource Research. VS is contracted by companies to do background checks of potential new employees where education and employment history is verified and criminal background checks are done.

I am sure in my cover letter I made mention of being an ex-offender but apparently someone did not read the second paragraph.

The interview was going good until we hit that speed bump. The interviewer said it would be a major problem but did not say it was insurmountable. The only other thing he had issue with is my computer skills as compared to the many others applying for the positions available. I rated myself above average but I guess others rated themselves higher. If there is a second interview I was told there would be testing. I have been taking free computer labs to get up to speed but even with that I do recognize that I am below the curve with other job seekers.

When I got home I took my one suit off and replaced it in the closet. After some quiet time I dressed casual and drove up to the local Applebees and walked in and put in an application for a Host position. I saw the job posted on their web site and I applied online. But on this day I thought making personal contact with the local managers would not be a bad thing.

It wasn't. They are hiring and the manager I spoke with was very pleasant even as we discussed my status of being an ex-offender. Perhaps Applebees is the company who will give this ex-offender a chance to prove himself?

Applebees hasn't called and it has been over a week. I think I will check in tomorrow after my interview with the Red Cross for a head cook at a nearby facility. People keep saying I have a lot to offer only in this very tough economy and job market an ex-offender isn't where employers are looking to pull people from.

I will keep trudging along and continue with the free computer labs. There is no other reasonable choice.

Job interviews

2010-12-16T10:10:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

I have not updated much lately being involved in many things as winter and the holiday season approaches. I have had two job interviews in the past week which is a break through of sorts because getting to talk to a real person about a job is not commonplace these days. Companies prefer to screen applicants using email and Internet applications.

It must be a massive job to go through hundreds...thousands of applications and resumes. I really do understand that from a HR point of view. On the other hand from the job seekers perspective, it takes the human touch and the ability to sell ones self away such that the best qualified person may not be the person getting the job. How wonderful it is to shake hands with a computer key board and say hello and how are you and then sit down and talk? The one with the prettiest or most impressive resume could get the tap on the shoulder, but they may not be the best person for the job.

Here is where the Pennsylvania Career Link comes into play, for me anyway. They have a 3-day resume writing program with the Bucks County Opportunity Council. At first I thought what can be so interesting about three 1 1/2 hour sessions taking about writing a resume. I was surprised and having done it I recommend it even to persons who do not have a long job history.

My new resume? I love it. I can't say that it got me the two interviews, but I can't say that it didn't. I believe it did however. Even as it includes my extensive work history as the old resume did, it is all about presentation. You actually can sell a piece of yourself on paper (or electronically if you will) with a resume. I am ready to take on a new program now, Ace the Interview.

About my interviews now. One was with Bottom Dollar Food, a new grocery chain moving into the SE Pennsylvania area. To be honest I can't remember how I made initial contact. It was either online or by a newspaper classified listing. It doesn't matter really because I got an interview.

HR people from BDF set up shop in a conference room at a local hotel and conducted generic interviews for all positions for a new store expected to open soon. After filling out some paperwork the interview was a series of questions read from a paper. I suppose they were in someones mind relevant, but it was very mechanical if you get my drift.

Yes, I get that it was a screening process, but while there was human contact it was still very sterile. To be honest I am not sure I put my best foot forward in that situation. That is not to say I tanked the interview, I just think it could have gone better, or differently. I am waiting for a call back telephone call but my mindset is to hope for the best and expect less. It would be a job I have the ability to perform so I hope the interviewer saw that through the interrogation.

The second interview was at an Old Country Buffet by their management company. While the interviewer quipped, "Welcome to the table of hell" as we walked to the interview booth, it was far from that. Rick was personable and friendly and very real. It was late afternoon and I think I was his last interview of a long day. It turned out I was only the second qualified person he spoke to with another day of interview to follow. The unfortunate part for me was that the other person was much more qualified in one important area of experience.

Not to lose hope however, because there are various OCB locations in the area and the interviewer spoke of one opportunity that was potentially only months from opening up. Even with that one hole in my work experience, there is a chance I could eventually land a good position and get back to work. Remember, hope for the best.

I have not mentioned the ex-offender and age issues. With BDF the interviewer did not know if the company had an ex-offender barrier or policy. You would think a properly trained HR person would be aware. As I explained how my experience would translate into retail grocery sales the age issue did not surface. In the interview with OCB we talked about both and neither seemed to be a major barrier.

It is good to know that some companies in corporate America are not so paranoid as to exclude qualified individuals based on such things. I have been quick to jump on corporate America and all the proposed job plans the politicians espoused about during the recent elections. I am still waiting to see where all these jobs are going to come from to put people back to work, so I have not let corporate America off the hook. I just want to say that the management company for OCB seems to be more open minded than some. There is a huge valuable resource of work experience in ex-offenders and at some point somebody is going to have to recognize that and tap into it.

May the best person get the job is all I ask.

The ultimate insult

2010-12-02T01:44:00.001-05:00

By Steve Gordon

In the newspaper there was an announcement for a job fair at the Career Link office in Bucks County. An unnamed sanitation company was hiring 40 people. I called my counselor and veterans representative about this and the reply was short and simple just as this post will be. As an ex-offender I am not qualified to ride the back of a garbage truck and dump trash cans. I am a bit surprised the Career Link, who some have said is trying to work with ex-offenders, permitted this in their own offices. If I knew anything about the law I think maybe legal action would be appropriate, but that would be falling into the litigious society mentality we live in.

The positive news of the day was I got a phone call to set up an interview with Bottom Dollar and a local bakery I applied to also phoned today. Could this be the result of my revamped resume courtesy of the Resume Writing program at the Career Link?

The interview is Dec. 11th so stay in touch for the outcome on that. I returned the phone call to the bakery but did not get a call back. I will call them tomorrow. Could I go from no job to two job offers to choose from? Now that would be a trip?

People vs technology and Veterans Day 2010

2010-11-11T20:44:00.002-05:00

By Steve Gordon

Today is Veterans Day and as a Vietnam era veteran it has meaning to me. My dad is a WWII veteran and it is always a circled day on his calendar.

It started with optimistic promise as I prepared to attend a veterans job fair at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. It was put on by a company out of Ohio called Recruit Military. Optimism always is the feeling on the way to these things. On the way home pessimism becomes the empty feeling that invades you. For my particular case with a criminal history doors slam shut rapidly, and often, and that was basically the case today.

I was emailing a friend and I told him I am not even acceptable to be a driver to deliver Herr's potato chips to vender's even as I once was in food service and in a position to purchase them for the places I managed. I told my friend that I feel like I am not even acceptable to ride the back of a trash truck and dump garbage cans (no offense to anyone intended) but if someone offered that job I would take it even turning 64-years-old in two weeks.

I was at one table and the question of what was he looking for was asked to a fellow veteran next to me. He said, "I am looking for a job." Congrats to that man for saying it like it is. The emails tell you to bring resumes and you get to the tables and they mostly didn't take them and instructed people to apply online. How can anyone ever sell themselves to an employer without seeing or speaking to a real live person?

Do we blame technology or accept it as that's the way it is these days? It makes you wonder if technology offers us advantages. For this instance it takes the humanity out of the picture. The guy with the prettiest resume, not necessary the best skills or abilities or intangibles gets the job. Pffffft!!!!!!

I recovered from the disappointment of the job fair once out of the building. I have experience at it.

On the way home my 14-year-old Blazer put its two cents into the mix and started making unusual noises. Just what I needed, but it got me home. I need to spend some of my Social Security income and take a golf day to unwind but now I have to wonder if my vehicle will get me there, and home? Also, if I do find a job can I say I have reliable transportation to get there? I will call my brother who is the car guy in the family and get the rust bucket looked at. Pfffft!!!!!!

Now it is late afternoon and we have a 5 o'clock reservation at Applebees for the free meal for veterans on this day. It is a great gesture by that company. Dad uses a walker and he doesn't get around very easily. We packed ourselves in the car for the short drive to the neighborhood Applebees and it was packed with people everywhere. Glad we made a reservation.

As I usher dad toward the door 86-year-old mom (not sure she would like that information too public) played point man and tried to make a path through the crowded entry. People were rude and not wanting to give up their spot AND it turned out many of those people did not have reservations. Pffft!!!!

I understand with the big crowds things would be slower than usual. We were seated a little late, but it wasn't a long wait and we all were ok with it. We understand, like people are supposed to act. The meal was fine, the food was good as it usually is, and the service was fine as well. After a nice meal the day wasn't a total loss.

But, the trials of the day make me wonder about people and technology and how they affect our lives. The job fair could have been more people oriented and those people outside Applebees, they could have been a little more people orientated as well.

One last note of regret is that I did not have the opportunity to attend any services held for Veterans Day with all the other activities. This is something I should have paid more attention to and it is something I used to organize when I was in prison serving as president of the incarcerated Vietnam Veterans of America James A. Crew chapter 359 at SCI-Cresson.

It's just ironic, or a coincidence?

2010-10-23T08:24:00.000-04:00

By Steve Gordon

I just wrote a post about getting over it and...

Thursday I came home from playing golf to find my estranged son Jim here. He said he came to see my parents, not me. He also brought some news that I would be a grandfather - or rather that my parents would be great grandparents. It would be his first child. Chrissy, who I have never met, was not with him. When I came in mom said he had some news and his response was, "You can tell him when I leave."

They are expecting next month, which is a month Crissy and I share a birthday (the 26th). Mom mentioned that and Jim he said they don't want to have it on or near her birthday. He made light of the fact that it would be my birthday as well. I have to mention that this is my only son and he wrote in a Fathers's Day card he sent to me at the county prison, "I will not forsake you."

During the short visit mom brought up to him about burying the hatchet. He basically threatened to walk out and said something like things will happen in time. No one knows what "in time" means. It could be an indefinate put aside thing that his mother was so good at when convenient. Anyway, he also brought up a pair of fireman's boots my dad once had because as Jim works for a fire safety system company and frequently has to work standing in water. The boots are long gone having deteriorated over time, but dad did still have a pair of hunting boots that fit and he took them.

We aren't sure why he came. Was it for the news he could have revealed before 8 months had passed, or was it for the boots? One thought is he has driven by before but would not come in if my car was outside. There was a recent baby shower but mom was not invited. When told of our mini family gathering today and invited he made excuses why they couldn't come. Why can't people be more honest? Not that he wasn't, we don't know, but it is just how it sounded. He learned making excuses growing up not from me.

He specifically told me not to try to contact him or send cards. Two weeks before my release he drove four hours to the prison where I was, he never visited me there before then, to tell me that. I have not driven by his house or tried to contact him directly. Mom was of the understand he didn't want her to call either. He never answers his phone or calls back anyway she says. He came here a couple months before that he came by here to tell them he wouldn't be coming around because I would be here. He hadn't been here on over two years.

I just thought I would relate this as I had just address the "get over it" factor. His forgiveness is not for me but for him. The longer he carries this around the more it will affect his life. That is how I see it anyway. Do I want contact, meaningful contact, with him. YES. I have come to accept certain things, like them or not, I wonder if he has?

Get over it

2010-10-20T12:07:00.000-04:00

By Steve Gordon

As many know, the legal/judicial system is not necessarily fair. But them life is not fair and nobody ever guaranteed that it would be.

Recently I received notice from the PA Supreme Court. I had filed for two days unlawful incarceration due to a paperwork error from Bucks County. I had all the evidence to show when I was arrested and taken into custody and then the faulty time credit from Bucks County to the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. This is all on the county as the DOC was only following what it was ordered from the Common Pleas Court.

Here is what the order read: "AND NOW, this 5th day of October, 2010, the Application for Leave to File Original Process is GRANTED, and the Petition for Writ of Mandamus is DENIED." What is interesting is that Bucks County submitted no objections to my filing except to say that it was not their responsibility, it was the DOC's. I guess the court agreed, but there was no written opinion.

To further the issue, there were those who thought my serving the full 10 years was not right. The DOC wanted me out of the overcrowded prison system and deemed me no threat. The Parole Board, fueled by a (vindictive) ADA, who lost his job recently for allegedly being too hard lined, never paroled me. It is water over the dam or spilled milk or whatever other cliche you want to use.

The fighter and rebel inside of me wants to challenge all of this, but it isn't that easy going up against the system. I have the fight but I don not have a law degree nor the legal knowledge. Another consideration is to consider the likely hood of succeeding. I just can't do it. I have to move on and as the Eagles sang in one of their many hits, Get Over It.

I am still waiting on a ruling from the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania on the issue of Megan's Law as I outlined in a previous post. One one hand the longer it takes could mean a favorable ruling or a split decision and writing of an opinion and a dissenting opinion. On the other hand, it could be just that they shuffled it to the bottom of the pile. Stay tuned.

Pennsylvania HB 2742 - Internet censorship for all sex offenders

2010-10-09T01:07:00.002-04:00

This is an article I wrote and am distributing after attending a public hearing in Lower Makefield Township, Pennsylvania regarding HB 2742.

My name is Steve Gordon. I am a registered sex offender under Megan’s Law and I live in Lower Bucks County. When I read in the newspaper last Thursday morning that there was going to be a public hearing on a proposed bill to further the tracking and registration of sex offenders in the form of HB 2742 I changed my schedule for the day to make a point to be there.

I figured I would be the only sex offender present but that did not deter me. I delayed a shrub trimming job for another day, had a meeting with the Veterans Rep at the PA Careen Link and checked out a Job Fair at Bucks County Community College before committing the rest of the day to attending the hearing.

As I sat and listened to hours of somewhat repetitive testimonies, I was hoping the hearing would open the floor at the end to hear anyone present their view. I don’t think anyone expected a registered sex offender to attend to stand up for himself in what could be described as a potentially hostile environment. Unfortunately the hearing went long and time did not allow for this.

At the conclusion of the hearing I had a nice conversation with Rosemary Wuenschel, Chair of Staff to Pennsylvania State representative Steve Santarsiero. Subsequent to that conversation I am writing this article. I may post this, or a version of it, on my personal blog, Reentry to Society at www.restartingalife.blogspot.com.

The first person to speak, Carolyn Atwell-Davis of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children spoke about the dangers of the Internet. She very competently spoke of sex offenders and sex offenses against children and how predators can use the Internet, specifically social networks to lure children into bad situations. She also spouted statistics about sex offences and sex offenders.

One of the last speakers was Karl Baker representing the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Mr. Baker shot down nearly every stereotype Ms. Davis, Michael Pesce of the Network of Victim Assistance (NOVA) of Bucks County, Ken Coluzzi, Chief of Police of Lower Makefield Township, and Colleen Klock, parent of four children spoke about. It visibly upset the panel, most notably representative Santarsiero. I understand that, he spent a lot of time writing this bill.

In between Ms. Davis and Mr. Baker there was a large hole that nobody filled. For starters, what was glaringly left out of all the statistics presented was the percentage of sex offenders who committed crimes involving children. I would have like to address that question to Ms. Davis before the panel and representative Santarsiero.

One of the things I emphasized to Ms. Wuenschel in our chat was the generalization of groups of people, of sex offenders. I am a registered sex offender but my offense did not have anything to do with children therefore why should I be subject to this 1984 type of witchhunt this bill seeks to impose?

With the panel and Ms. Davis and company on left and Mr. Baker on the right I was smack dab in the middle. My younger brother has four step-grandchildren under the age of 9 and if anything happened to them it would be a terrible thing for the family. It would be a terrible thing for anything of the nature of what was discussed to happen to any child and it would devastate any family.

I think it was Chief Coluzzi or maybe representative Santarsiero who brought up the issue of protecting the children and implementing locally restrictions on where sex offenders could live. These municipalities in Pennsylvania or anywhere are draconian in these kinds of actions. A number of states have repealed these restrictions. Nonetheless, the mentality is the same that drives this bill, and it is misguided in my opinion.

Actually, it is not just my opinion. On July 3, 2007 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published an editorial titled “Harm’s Way – Limiting an offenders residency won’t help children.” The editorial cited a 2005 study published in the Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice that concluded in part “…there is no evidence that housing restrictions achieve this goal (of preventing sex crimes).”

It further said, “Most sexual perpetrators know their victims. A study by the Bureau of Justice Statistics found that 93% of child sexual abuse victims knew their abuser and that 34% of them were family members.”

I conclude that a lot of what was said at the hearing was playing to public paranoia, a false paranoia. I do believe the intent to protect our children is noble, it is just in my opinion that the vehicle being ridden towards that goal has a flat tire.

Consider the follow published reports:

 The USA Today in 2004 or 2005 wrote that Justice Department statistics showed sex offenders had a 2.5% recidivism rate. The only recidivism rate lower was homicide at 1.2%. For the record it reported Drug offenses at the top of the charts at a 41.2% recidivism rate.

 The Wall Street Journal on January 14, 2005 wrote an article which stated that “Sex offenders were less likely than others to be rearrested for any offense – 43% sex offenders verses 68% non sex offenders.” It listed the source as Department of Justice.

Lets consider those findings. Testimony alluded to a low recidivism rate but it soft pedaled it and made light of it as the numbers were presented. I would like to have asked the panel if they were considering a bill to register drug offenders from social networking on the Internet and on their phones. You know, the same drug offenders that are selling drugs to the school kids? It seems that would be a lofty goal.

How about the notion that the Internet plays up to child victims knowing their abusers in relation to the pooh pooh thrown at Mr. Baker when he brought up statistics to that fact. I think from what I have read, “Uncle Charlie” is the guy that needs to be watched more than the guy that just got out of prison and lives on the next block. Mr. Baker did not make up nor manipulate those statistics.

I read an article in the Altoona Mirror when I was in prison about parole. It was probably 2005 but I didn’t date the article to be certain. It read, “The purpose of parole is to reintegrate individuals back into the community and give them a chance to live a conventional lifestyle. If an individual has served his sentence for a prior wrong act, his past should not be held against him.”

The fact is that this bill does exactly that, it holds a persons past against him. It also violates my First Amendment rights with its generalization of all sex offenders, as I have no history of a child sex offense.

For the record my offense was private in my own home and it was domestic in nature. It was wrong, I regret it, I am sorry my ex-wife became a victim. Nothing can change that. All parties have moved on. Please explain to me how I, or others in my position, who do not have offenses against children, is a threat.

Generalizations are dangerous. There were two state troopers present who gave a very good presentation of the dangers of the Internet. They were sincere and seem to be very honorable men. But in light of other police officers and officials who have committed wrongs and broken the law, would you generalize those two men and enact legislation geared toward censoring all law enforcement?

Anyone who knows anything about government knows that bills are amended many times over coming out of committee even before they hit the floor for a vote. I hope HB 2742 undergoes this scrutiny because it is flawed in the nature and for its being too wide open making generalizations of all sex offenders in an effort to protect children.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I hope you consider some of the things I have presented.

55 and over job fair

2010-10-05T14:03:00.002-04:00

By Steve Gordon

I went to a job fair today (Tuesday, 10-5) at a local senior center. It was sponsored in part by the Career Link and I had high hopes of something positive. I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up, and fortunately I did not get them too high. I should say upfront that there were a lot of people there because there are a lot of seniors that need some extra income.

When I got home mom asked how it was. My first response was that it was basically a waste of time for me. For starters I think having a felony conviction excluded me from about 90 percent of what was available. I left a cover letter and resumes around at several places and I got business cards and online addresses to make contact with that I will follow up on.

There were a lot of services for seniors to help seniors to talk and listen to them, some driving opportunities, and a variety of insurance and real estate companies that seemed to be there more for PR than to offer a job. Even as I cannot get a license to sell insurance, the rep of one company seemed to be trying to talk me out of a job. Maybe he was looking out for his job security?

There were volunteer positions there which I would be up to, but I personally am not ready to take on being a friend and a listener for older seniors or disabled/disadvantaged people.

One company was a temp agency that finds work on a day by day basis. Construction work, landscaping work, warehouse work, and some other things. How much construction work do they think seniors are capable of doing?

There were local news people there with cameras and this will be played up on the news as a great thing. I think they will miss the mark and just be promoting PR. It will be interesting to see what they put on TV tonight on the news. I really would have liked to have spoken with one of the reporters (off camera and nameless) but that opportunity didn't present itself. They need to know the whole story because I am sure there are other senior ex-offenders out there in the same position as I am.

It was a shot and I took it. The problem with older ex-offenders is not only do they have two strikes with the economy and their age against them, they have a third strike because they once made a mistake. It is tough to get a hit when you walk up to the plate with three strikes on the board.

What are your values?

2010-09-23T14:11:00.001-04:00

By Steve Gordon

Breathe deep in the gathering gloom

Watch lights fade from every room

Bedsitter people look back and lament

Anothers days useless energies spent

Impassioned lovers wrestle as one

Lonely man cries for love and has none

New mother picks up and suckles her son

Senior citizens wish they were young

Cold hearted orb that rules the night

Removes the colors from our sight

Red is gray and yellow white

And we decide which is right

And which is an illusion

This month started out pretty good. I signed up for a membership at a nearby fitness center for only $10 a month. My brother had a birthday and last month my mother had a birthday and it was my parents anniversary. I got a lot of work done around the house in putting in a new tile floor in the laundry and continuing to work around outside.

So, yes, you can say I have been productive and it makes you feel good to be able to do useful things.

In August the house next door was receiving new occupants after being empty for many months. They are really nice people and Bill is very outgoing. I have been helping them out with some things from unloading some boxes from a truck to working outside with Bill on his property which had been neglected over time.

Yep, things are shaping up…except for one big thing. I still have not found a job.

I also spoke with some lawyers last month (consultations aren’t free) about some unresolved issues related to prison that I have filed pro se in three different courts. It seems lawyers are a totally different breed and the law isn’t always just. One issue is that I was held in prison for two days longer than my sentence and nobody wants to take any responsibility. That doesn’t surprise you does it?

It was ironic that one of those telephone conversations with a lawyer came on a day when an issue on the TV show Friday Night Lights was about what is legal and what is reality. One of the main characters was talking with her lawyer and he told her, “There is the law, and there is life.”

Raise your hand if the law has frustrated you. Actually raise your hand if you have ever been frustrated by something you know is right but can’t prove or get anyone to recognize it, and if they did there was nothing you could do about it?

Things were pretty good until I spoke with the lawyers. That is where that day went to hell. The feeling of helplessness, unable to correct what needs corrected and unable to get others to follow the rules when that is expected of you. Yes, lawyers are a strange breed – no wonder they only seem to have lawyer friends. Well…I guess that’s an unfair generality, they are people too.

One lawyer listened and pretty much agreed I had a point with one issue and then said “Good luck proving it.” Another lawyer (same firm) listened, questioned me, came close to dismissing me and then said she would put it before the partners. The return call was basically that I am on my own.

I talk about golf a lot because it is part of my life. It is more than a game. There is a program call The First Tee that has nine Core values. They are Honesty, Integrity, Sportsmanship, Respect, Confidence, Responsibility, Perseverance, Courtesy and Judgment.

The First Tee is a program to teach underprivileged children about golf and life. Reading those Core values you can see how the two are interchanged. As we go through life we should think about the values we want to display and follow on our path. What does this have to do with lawyers? Nothing, they have their own values…in my opinion.

Reaching Out

2010-08-30T09:01:00.001-04:00

By Steve Gordon

Saturday morning, August 28, 2010, I had a 15 minute meeting with US Congressman Patrick Murphy (8th District) in his Bristol office. I talked with him about my concerns for ex-offender employment from my experiences in trying to find a job since my release from state prison after 10 years in May, 2010. He listened and we discussed some specifics.

I appreciate his availability to meet with the people in his district and I am sure there are many concerns beyond my specific problems. I know the president talks about job programs to put America back to work. I see these as looking to corporate America, but from where I sit it does not appear corporate America is ready to step in on the ex-offender employment issue.

There has been openings in the Pennsylvania Career Link (Bristol office) which I have applied for that would give me employment, but beyond that perhaps I could put myself in a position to help other ex-offenders who will go through what I am going through.

Recently I wrote to three local state representatives (Bernie O'Neill, Frank Farry, Scott Petri), two local state senators (Robert Tomlinson and Stewart Greenleaf) and the governors office. Only Senator Greenleaf responded saying he recognized my concerns. Here is what he wrote in part in that Aug. 16 letter:

"Thank you for contacting my office about ex-offender employment. I agree that we need to do more to connect ex-offenders with job opportunities and your suggestion that employment offices have individuals who specialize in finding jobs for ex-offenders is a good one. I introduced Senate Bill 1198 to improve the State's re-entry programs. I would like to see educational and vocational training in prison better coordinated with job opportunities available upon release from prison. I would also like to see the Department of Corrections and the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole make better use of community and faith-based organizations in facilitating the successful re-entry of ex-offenders."

I don't expect miracles or someone to knock on my door tomorrow and offer me some great well compensating job. I am willing to take whatever job I am capable of doing, but if I can get a job where I can help someone else who will be where I am, that would be the best scenario. How much more comfortable would an ex-offender be going into an employment office and speaking to someone who has been where he has been and walked the path he has walked and show that there is hope and be able to provide some help?

That's all I have for today. Stay tuned for potential undates.

Megan's Law

2010-08-15T16:20:00.005-04:00

By Steve Gordon

Yes, my crime involved sex offenses. It was against my wife of 23 years. It was wrong and she or anyone does not deserve to be a victim of that. I will make no excuses nor get into the nature or circumstances of it. That said, Megan's Laws around the country, at least in Pennsylvania, are too generalized.

I am not trying to justify anything for myself or anyone, but the basis of these registration laws is to protect the children and to prepare the community for the return of a sex offender to society. I get that and there are sex offenders who need to be tracked and watched. I did the Sex Offender Program in prison and it was interesting that the staff group leader told my group before I disclosed that he did not view my offense as a sex offense.

My position is that just being an ex-offender is a "collateral consequence" as the lawyers for the state put it in their brief against the pro se filing I made. Registration is a punishment to many, clear and simple. For my type of offense and other kinds of specific sex offenses, we are not a danger to society, to the children, and the community needs no preparation for our return from prison.

Specific to my case is that trial court did not follow the law. It did not order an assessment before my sentencing as the law requires and it did not inform me of my registration requirement, also specifically stated in Pennsylvania's Megan's Law in as per law. Let me make it easy and provide a copy of my complaint:

IN THE COMMONWEALTH COURT OF PENNSYLVANIA

Steven R. Gordon
Petitioner

Vs. NO. 477 MD 2010

Pennsylvania Department of Corrections ,
Pennsylvania State Police
Respondents

AMENDED PETITION FOR REVIEW FOR MANDAMUS RELIEF

TO THE HONORABLE JUDGES OF ABOVE SAID COURT:

AND NOW comes Steven R. Gordon, pro se petitioner, who asks this Honorable Court to exempt him from any/all Megan’s Law registration with the Pennsylvania State Police and related subsequent notifications, public postings, etc. as a case of first impression and represents:

Factual and Procedural History

1. Petitioner was sentenced to a term of a minimum of 60 months and a maximum of 120 months on December 8, 2000 in CCP Bucks County with no stipulations for a domestic offense in the confines of the marital home.

2. While Petitioner’s sentencing sheet (See Exhibit ‘A’) shows Aggravated Assault, his Pa. DOC status sheet lists Criminal Attempt Rape (See Exhibit ‘B’).

3. At Petitioner’s sentencing trial court made no mention of Megan’s Law and the required registration and notification requirements thereof as per 42 Pa. C.S.A. §9795.4.

4. On April 12, 2010 Petitioner was called to the Records Office at SCI-Cresson by xxxxxxxxxx, Records Specialist II, to sign Megan’s Law registration papers for the Pennsylvania State Police.

5. Petitioner’s failure to sign and register an address would have potentially affected his release on May 8, 20101 and potentially subjected him to felony charges for not registering as a sex offender.1

1 There is an outstanding time credit issue in the PA Supreme Court for two days unlawful incarceration as Bucks County declined to act on Petitioner’s filings twice to correct the error and Petitioner should have been released on May 6, 2010.

Issue For Review

6. Whether the Pa. DOC (Respondent) has the authority to impose statutory provisions upon prisoners for Megan’s Law registration without a legal order from the trial court on sex offenses.

Jurisdiction

7. This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 42 Pa. C.S. §761.

Argument

8. Petitioner contends that the DOC erred in having him sign to register an address, etc. for Megan’s Law registration before his release on completion of his sentence and further has no authority to have any prisoner sign for Megan’s Law registration without an order from trial court.

9. Megan’s Law, 42 Pa. C.S.A. §9795.4(e), states in part (emphasis added):

“Following conviction, but before sentencing, the court must order a person convicted of a sexually violent offense to undergo an assessment by the Sexual Offender Assessment Board. This order is required to be sent to the Board within 10 days from the date of conviction.”

10. There also was no Pre-sentence Report by trial court and the only assessment that was done was a psychiatric evaluation. (See Exhibit ‘C’)

11. Megan’s Law, 42 Pa. C.S.A. §9795.4(a)(b) also states in part:

“The court is also required to advise the offender of his requirement to register his address with the Pennsylvania State Police.”

12. As per ’s 9 & 12 above, trial court did not comply with the rules as set forth and required at the time of sentencing, or at any other time. Comm. V Baird, 856 A.2d 114 Super. 2004. (See Exhibit ‘D’)

13. Further, Petitioner was sentenced under guidelines for Aggravated Assault and trial judge declined to impose a second consecutive sentence requested by the prosecutor for the sexual assault. (See Exhibit ‘E’)

14. In the notes of Decisions under 42 Pa. C.S.A. §9795.4, it states in part:

“An offender must show a “likelihood of engaging in such a sexual offense in the future.” Comm. V Howe, 842 A.2d 436 Super. 2004

15. On January 2, 2001 at a hearing for sentence reconsideration, trial judge said in part:

”We do not know under the circumstances and we think it is substantially unlikely…those acts you took…will ever happen again.”

16. Petitioner also avers that Megan’s Law as it exists today is too general and further requirements of registration with notification to the community, employer, vehicle registration, etc. constitutes a significant imposition that threatens employment and other opportunities of persons who may not truly pose a risk to the public. Comm. V Maldonado, 838 A.2d 710, 576 Pa. 101, Sup. 2003.

17. In Comm. V Williams I, 557 Pa. At 311, 733, A.2d at 607, it says, “Ones livelihood, domestic tranquility and personal relationships are unquestionably put in jeopardy.

18. Petitioner avers that by trial courts statement, he does not pose a threat to public safety and thus Megan’s Law registration, etc. should not apply, especially considering that Petitioner’s victim was an adult (his ex-wife of 23 years) and not a random act committed upon a stranger, or a child.

19. Megan’s Law was originally enacted to protect children and Petitioner’s offense was not one that victimized a minor.

20. Megan’s Law application to Petitioner therefore is arbitrary and ambiguous based on impermissible factors and it is wholey irrational and unreasonable to profile all released offenders with a low risk of offending as Justice Department statistics confirm. (See Exhibit ‘F’).

21. Since Petitioner’s offence on May 6, 2000, Megan’s Law has been revised ex post facto changing registration requirements and the period of time for registration.

WHEREFORE, Petitioner prays that this Honorable Court will exempt him from any and all Megan’s Law and subsequent registration by the facts shown herein with errors by trial court and the general application to low risk sex offenders, bar the Pennsylvania DOC from registering sex offenders without court ordered applications and grant an immediate temporary injunction on said registration of Petitioner.

DATE: June 15, 2010

* * * * * * *

Briefs were submitted and now I wait for the decision. As I said, a favorable ruling is not expected even as it is the common sense thing. I did this not only for me but for those behind me in the system to try and correct a flaw in the system. At best I am hoping for a dissenting opinion which would cause a written opinion to be issued. Then perhaps someone with more legal knowledge than I can pick up from there and carry on.

If you read my original post about reentry not being a picnic you may get a better feel for where I am at with this. Here is a question: How is the community going to prepare for a person with an offense like mine or other offenses such as a 16 or 17-year-old in a consentual relationship with an older person? I am not condoning or condemning that kind of relationship, I am just questioning how the community will prepare for someone with an offense of that type. I have been living in this community for five months now and people wave to me when they walk, ride a bike or drive by if I am outside and they wave when I ride my bike or drive through the neighborhood. I guess they don't feel threatened?

However I am labeled and my picture is on the Internet for anyone to see and the lawyers argue that I am not being punished in that I cannot even find entry level work and that it is a "collateral consequence." As for the courts failure to do it's part the lawyers argue that the court does not have to say the "magic words," to provide the colloquy it is required to do by law.

I counter that they cannot have the law both ways and uphold the registration part and ignore the colloquy part. "Magic words?" Are they serious? My purpose to to bring to light the generality in classifiying not just sex offenders, but all offenders. Parole is supposed to be decided on a case-by-case basis, so should any "collateral consequences."

I will keep you posted.

Relationships

2010-08-10T17:19:00.000-04:00

By Steve Gordon - August 5, 2010

I haven't written about relationships, personal relationships, before now. One thing many counselors will tell you in prison is not to get involved in a personal relationship (assuming you are not in one or have continued one while in prison) right after getting out of prison. Physically there is a natural pull to want to be close to someone when you have been incarcerated for a lengthy period of time.

Generally people are not solitary creatures, we are social creatures so we seek the companionship of others. The issue however is that getting readjusted to society is hard enough without having the pressures of a relationship and someone else in your life to think about and share their problems. Yes, they could help you but not all situations are conducive to that.

While in prison I wrote to a woman, a school teacher I had known before I went to prison. She was smart, caring, attractive...all of that. In brief, after several years I wrote and she wrote back and after we exchanged a few letters she made some visits to see me in prison. It developed into more of a serious relationship and while no specific plans were made there was talk about after prison. All was good for about two years but after a couple parole denials when there were hopes for release that didn't happen...people move on and things don't always work out the way we plan or want them to.

I still have contact with her by email (she lives an hour plus away) but there are no interest like there was. I send an email and now less than half the time she responds. She has obviously moved on beyond me even if she never said or wrote it. Life happens that way. Then again maybe it is better that it worked out the way it did. We're friends long distance and maybe I'll see here and spend some time with her one day, and maybe not.

One day I would hope to be about to have some kind of relationship with the opposite sex to have someone to go places and do things with and who knows where it would go from there. For now I need to concentrate on the matter at hand and that is getting my own life in order and getting a steady job.

I bring this up because going on line for job searches and the like, or just "playing" there are a lot of pop ups and several of them are dating sites. They show you pictures of attractive women and say there are 592 (an arbitrary number) women interested in you in (fill in your home town). It is a wow factor to get you interested in subscribing to their "service" that I would describe as an electric meat market. Anyway, this is a temptation that you cannot be drawn into at least until you can sit down and look in the mirror and consider the reality of what do you have to offer to a relationship, because any kind of personal relationship is a two sided affair and anything other than that cannot be healthy.

Out of curiosity I listed my profile on two of these sites. You can do that without subscribing. I got a number of "views" as they call it. Who wouldn't want a good young looking guy with a sense of humor, etc. My profile was accurate but I did not put in having been in prison even as I put in the address to this blog to research. I took a free trial on one and sent a couple emails where I gave more info being upfront and honest, and said I was looking for a friend. These were with people in late 50's, early 60's. The results yielded the obvious the "We are not a match" email as one person wrote. Of maybe a dozen contacts I made there were only two replies.

I am still trying to find a job and I am waiting to see if I get a call back interview for one job I applied for. It should come this week.

Stay on the Right Track

2010-07-14T17:15:00.001-04:00

By Steve Gordon - July 14, 2010

It has been nearly a month or more since I wrote the home page even as it was only posted on July 1st. I was out on the porch tonight reading a book about World War II that is riveting and very good stuff and it occurred to me that I had something more important to do. I can read later. I can be impulsive like that.

It is likely with this blog being new little of this will be read immediately, but I am working on trying to get the blog out so people will find it. There is a link on www.prisonforum.org that I recommend for anyone interested in prisons and reform. I would like to get a link with The Pennsylvania Prison Society and I plan to work on that.

In the mail yesterday came a letter from the Summer Wood Corporation. They provide management for Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Long John Silvers. I applied for a manager or assistant managers job with them. I have over 20 years of food service management experience so it is logical I look for work in that field. I have been straying and applying for jobs outside that realm however not wanting to limit my options.

Please understand that I am not putting Summer Wood out there as bad guys, I am just using them an example of the “establishment” that contributes to making it hard for people released from prison, who have skills, to get steady jobs with established companies. To their credit they did give me a phone interview at least, but the letter was mailed the same day as the phone interview and took only a shade over 24 hours to arrive here in the mailbox.

Actually one of my answers to the phone interview question of why I wanted to work for them was that I wanted a stable company where I knew I would have a job (where I could contribute) as opposed to a smaller privately owned operation that could go out of business in today’s economy in short notice and leave me searching again. But then every college kid and unemployed worker is probably looking for the same thing, and they haven’t created a felony record for themselves. This searching for a job thing is very stressful and it taxes your every fiber.

Many of you probably know how it goes with these letters. “Thank you for your interest in our company and for taking the time to interview with us.”, it read and then continued, “ I’m sorry to say we are unable to offer you a position at this time.” Of course mostly there are no letters or even email replies to the hundreds of job applications and resumes I have sent out.

Mom said today that she felt I must be getting bored with nothing to do. Of course the reply is obvious – yes, I am. I find things to do and there are things to fix and work on around here, but I feel uneasy about the whole situation. I get out like when some friends invited me to play golf with them and paid for the initial round of golf. It’s good to have kept friends through my 10 years in prison that are supportive of me even if they cannot help my employment situation.

Now you might say playing golf is frivolous and not responsible, just as some have criticized our nation’s presidents over time for playing golf in the face of this or that crisis. I will make this brief. You have to have something to go to that allows you to get away from the stress and pressure of life’s woes. This works for me now as it worked for me before I put myself in the jam I am in today. Without that I believe any normal person would eventually cave under the weight and the constant looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.

I think it was Will Rogers who once said something like, “You can be walking down the right side of the train tracks and still get run over.” It kind of puts it all into perspective to consider that you are doing everything right and there are still footprints up your back. I will take those trips to the golf course and even as I have exhausted all the favors people might bestow upon me, I might have to dip into the savings for a round or two from time to time until I start collecting income from a job.

One final note on the golf. I used to do some freelance golf writing and get as much as $200 for one story. I lost those contacts but not all of them and I did earn a few dollars and got free golf for doing a course review for http://www.golfbuckscounty.com/ .

I also went to the place where my 89-year-old father works part-time. His boss actually offered to give me a job when I was released and had I been released on parole years ago when eligible it could have been a full-time job with benefits. But it is a small place and the economy has slowed things down and that is no longer available. It is an example of how the games played by the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole affect people succeed because they were aware of this.

Dad is still proud to introduce me as his son on an equal basis with my brother who did not put himself in prison. My internal problem is that I have thrown dirt on the family name and yet the family continues to be behind me. Well, all except my son who has his own issues and will be 27 years old next week. That is another internal problem, but I won’t go into that today.

Today I just wanted to tell you about how things are progressing and emphasize how no matter how hard those doors get slammed in your face, one will crack open and maybe the next one will let you in. Giving up and doing something stupid is not the way to go. You have to stay on the right track and you have to keep walking in the right direction.

For me, I will be out on the porch tomorrow night with my book, The Steel Wave by Jeff Shaara. It’s too dark to sit out and read this Wednesday night but it is never too dark to keep your head up and keep your feet and mind moving forward.

Reentry is no picnic

2010-07-01T20:45:00.004-04:00

By Steve Gordon

I was sitting on the front porch one quiet night thinking about my day. I am living in a nice suburban neighborhood of houses built in the 1960’s. As I sat out there on a late Spring evening, alone, enjoying the breeze, looking at how the trees have gotten so big and watching cars and people walking or on bicycles go down the street, etc. I reminisced on the afternoon where I was told, “We can’t hire people who have been convicted of a felony. It’s the law.”

It was a slap in the face and back to reality. The thing is you cannot let these kinds of things on reentry after prisons get you down. You have to take the bull by the horns and be proactive and keep thinking positive. If you let it get you down, you might as well never have left prison. I am sorry if that is abrupt or sounds harsh or cold. The fact is that it is the truth.

Isn’t it funny how one bad thing can overshadow an entire life of doing good things? I had a home with my wife and son and I kept the house maintained while working to make improvements. I had various ornamental garden areas I planned and planted over the years and as they grew they were something to enjoy. I had a family and a comfortable family life and a good job. All of that is gone now – all of it.

I am now 63-years-old, divorced, my 27-year-old son doesn’t know if he wants a relationship with me, my home is gone (to the ex-wife), the gardens went with the home, and I have no pension or money as well as a place of my own to call home. I basically have only a 14-year-old car, some personal things retrieved by my family while I was in prison, and I live with my elderly parents. I am thankful for what I do have however, because many released from prison have less – like nearly nothing.

Life on reentry for an ex-con on parole isn’t easy. I completed my sentence and was released without parole, probation or any other supervision, but it is still tough facing the same day-to-day challenges as a parolee. Being on parole is a whole different animal with restrictions, but the bottom line is you have to do whatever it is you have to do. It is actually that way for everyone in life, but it is exaggerated for people coming out of prison.

I like to compare life to something that has been said about golf. Yes, I know golf is a game, but a lot about sports – about golf – is like life. It is played on the honor system with rules. Life is played on an honor system with laws. If you break the rules or law then you are penalized. So here it is, plain and simple. I don’t think any statement can simplify life better than to say you need to have a short memory.

If you hit a bad shot you have to forget about it and move on the next shot.

So I had one (failed) job interview even before I hit the state job center. SO WHAT! It was not unexpected and at the time I knew it probably wasn’t the last time I would here those words. I hadn’t been out of prison for two weeks yet. Geez… Nobody ever said life was easy and of course nothing is guaranteed in life. If you believe that then you are due for a big attitude adjustment. You want to hear a good line. Shortly before I was released my mother, who is in her mid 80’s, wrote to me about things with her and dad (late 80’s) aging. She said, “Growing old isn’t for sissies.” Think about that one for a minute. I think the same could be said about reentry into society and toeing the line.

Anyway, a few days later I borrowed mom’s car and drove to a 9:30 orientation at the Pennsylvania Career Link. It used to be called the State Unemployment Office but over time they freshened up the name and expanded the services available. I talked to several people who were positive in talking to me even as I disclosed my situation of having spent the last 10 years out of the job force and behind razor wire fences and barred windows. I saw an intake representative, a veteran’s representative and assigned a counselor I would talk with. The problem is in today’s economy the employers can be picky and so far they have refused to pick or even interview this ex-con. That isn’t to say I won’t find a job, it says the issue cannot be forced.

Patience is important in life, but none more important than dealing with the adventures of reentry. It was around 1 PM when I walked out of the Career Link office and headed home to go with mom to the grocery store. There were a lot of people for me to see and it involved some sitting and waiting in between. Having a short attention span and impatience doesn’t work and it will not serve you well ever, reentry of not.

Here’s another tip. Have goals but don’t make them too lofty. You want to be a manager of a store. GREAT! But accept you might have to be a warehouse or storeroom worker, shelf stocker or cashier first. Rome wasn’t built in a day and your successful reentry won’t come about overnight. It is a process that has to have a solid foundation that will allow you to build on in the future. A light warehouse job the veterans representative at the Career Link office called about didn’t even yield an interview. Think getting our of prison is tough, try being older to boot and trying to find work.

Regarding that bad shot of that first job interview, I put it behind me (call it experience) just as I have put those 10 years away from the world in my back pocket. IT HAS TO BE DONE! I don't mean it gets forgotten – it doesn’t. It never does. It stays there, but it is up to you to keep it behind you and not to let it shade where you are going. Where you are going is out of the darkness and into the light. NEVER FORGET THAT!

Will it be easy? I will not lie to you, it will be hard, and it could be very hard and harder for some than for others. Some will struggle with finding a place to life and having three meals a day. I cannot speak on that because I have a lot of family and friend support. I have a roof over my head and eat my meals with my parents. I am here helping them maintain as much independence as possible and as they have not forsaken me as some others have like my son Jim and 37-year-old daughter Diana (from a first marriage when I was in the Navy).

The Official Word

Prisoners are up against more than just society and attitudes when they get outside the razor wire and locked doors. It is about being prepared, but how do you do that? Being prepared of course is what life is all about and not living just for today day after day. Eckert Tolle wrote a book called The Power of Now. I haven’t read the book but someone I know has and from what I gleaned from her talking about some things, I do not buy it totally. You have to live for the now at first but while it is about now, it goes back to preparing for now and doing it yesterday. It can start slowly in your mind before the gate slams behind you and there you are, outside.

How do you get prepared? I think I can honestly say there is little you can do to prepare for physically without outside help for facing the free world after incarceration. Each situation is different for every individual from personal attitude to simple logistics of support of family and friends, finding support groups, and having or finding a direction. Even with the optimal situation however, it’s no piece of cake. What you need to prepare for is having a tough skin and be mentally strong for the bureaucracy you will face.

Here is what the public knows of the situation. The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections has a section on its web site about reentry and it reads:
“The Department of Corrections does not focus solely on keeping inmates behind bars. Over 90 percent of the inmates incarcerated in PA state prisons will eventually be returned to the community. One of the most important ways that the Department can fulfill its mission of protecting public safety is by adequately preparing inmates for community reintegration.
"Planning for reentry begins upon admission to prison. The first step is to conduct a through assessment of inmate risk and needs. Accurately assessing an inmate’s risk of reoffending and treatment needs allows the Department to better target treatment resources. During incarceration, inmates are then afforded the opportunity to gain the knowledge and skills they will need to increase their probability of success upon release. The Department understands the importance of providing a continuum of care and appropriate aftercare services. Aftercare services are provided primarily through community corrections centers and contract facilities. In addition, the Department recognizes the crucial road that community resources play in preparing offenders for transition from prison to home.”

Excuse my language, but bullshit.

I don’t know where to start with this statement. From my experience there are well meaning DOC staff who want to help and genuinely believe in all of the programs designed to accomplish the above. There are also that many more DOC staff who are just there doing a job and could care less if anyone learns anything and succeeds outside of prison. For them it is a paycheck and job security.

In Pennsylvania the community corrections centers are full. My understanding is that they were designed as a transition for people coming out of prison for reentry whether on parole or completion of sentences. I remember a few cases where inmates were sent to these centers a month or two before completion of sentence so they could prepare for the shock of transition back to society. Not today!

Today there are thousands (my estimate) of prisoners behind bars who have been approved for parole but have been given no release date and they have no place to go, so they stay in prison. We need more halfway houses, not more prisons. I wonder if Pennsylvania will ever figure out why the prisons are so overcrowded and why the problem is growing and not being alleviated? I wonder if the PA DOC and the Parole Board will ever work together?

There are organizations willing to help with reentry starting with The Pennsylvania Prison Society, but they are scattered and localized. There are a lot of faith based people and organizations willing to step up and help as well. You have to find them and you have to work with them and you have to listen to them. None guarantee success, but without trying there can never be success. A great piece of advice I got from The Prison Society was to go out and do volunteer with my time and perhaps word of mouth will result in a lead for regular employment. Plus it helps someone else out in the meantime.

I read a newspaper article (The Philadelphia Inquirer?) earlier this year before I was released that said Pennsylvania spends out of pocket every day $124,000 to house prisoners in Michigan and Virginia. Imagine how much good that money could do for the schools, roads, state run or sponsored reentry programs, etc. Pennsylvania wants to spend billions of dollars to build four more prisons. By my personal estimate you would need at least one of them for all the paroled prisoners still being held and another one or two for the prisoners transferred out of state. Then consider that there are still more coming into the system and more being retained. Where does it end?

Here comes one of many no win Catch-22’s. If you are paroled and have an approved ‘home plan’ (by the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole) you can go straight home or to a center for a short time. It’s more likely that you will go home because the centers are overcrowded. Those people who go home likely have outside support to help them along as I do.

For the record I was ready to be paroled in 2005 when I was 58-years-old having fulfilled all the prerequisite requirements for parole consideration with an approved ‘home plan’. However, the DOC (who supported me five times) and the PBPP didn’t see eye to eye on that was basically due to objections from my prosecuting attorney. I know this because the Parole Board told me so. Now, going on 64 the difficulty is magnified for employment and health insurance and the whole nine yards. Also for the record, my prosecutor, T. Gary Gambardella, was fired after 20 years in the District Attorneys office in Bucks County, allegedly for being too hard lined.

Back to the Catch-22. Those who have been approved for parole have to get an approved ‘home plan’ before they can be sent to a community corrections center. The frustrations lie in that many of those people could find a place to go from the centers, but the centers are full of people who haven’t done that. Secondly, the problem gets compounded by the DOC who approves people for pre-release to go to centers before their minimum date and without parole before those who have been paroled. Imagine sitting in prison approved to be paroled or reparoled and watching people leave taking your bed in a center who aren’t even eligible for parole yet?

But I’ve gotten off target here and the focus in this article is about reentry. The point I wanted to make is that in Pennsylvania there is little preparation of prisoners for reentry.

You Can’t Change Some Things

Now, as tough as it is making the transition, here is another lesson. You cannot change many things so you have to deal with them. You are in charge of only things relating to you and you are forced to go with the flow if you will.

For example, as much as I want a relationship with my children, I can’t have it. Not now anyway. Maybe in time, or maybe never. I hope not the later but there is nothing I can do about it because it is on them. I cannot let this add to the burden I bear and get me down. It may sound cold, but I am just facing reality and reality is that ice cube slipped down the back of your shirt that gives you a chill.

But I have family and friends support and when I got here people had left so many clothes for me there were boxes to donate to the needy after I weeded out the things that fit and the things that didn’t. There is generally no luxury of picking out all the clothes you like and don’t. I have a goal to drop 20 pounds so I kept some of the maybe items I might be able to wear in time. Then there were the phone that calls came in from family and friends to welcome me home.

The PA DOC web page goes on to say, “Offender reentry is a local process and is most successful when the offender has the benefit of being connected with agencies and organizations in his or her own community.” It goes on about developing partnerships with community and faith-based groups who will work with the offender assisting reintegration back into the community.

Just leaving prison is an experience in cooperation to help you on your way. In Pennsylvania you get nothing but a set of clothes to wear out the door only if someone doesn’t send in or bring clothes for you. Also they will freeze your inmate account months before your release date so there is money to pay for a bus or train ticket. Even in the Shawshank Redemption they got a suit and a bus ticket. I know, it’s a movie, but it is more than you get in Pennsylvania. I am not sure what happens if you don’t have enough money for a ticket (some inmates don’t work and/or are disadvantaged without outside support and have little funds or income for their inmate account). I heard you have to sign a paper agreeing to pay it back but I don’t know that as fact.

For me, my brother came to pick me up and brought some clothes mom put together. It was a 4-hour drive each way to the prison where I was so we had a nice talk about stuff in the car on the way home and mom and dad were waiting for me.

Shelter, Meals, Clothes and Finding a Job and Adjusting

Where are you going to live? Do you have the support of family and friends, but can they provide a roof over your head and meals to help get you back on your feet. There are homeless shelters and if you are a veteran there are other options. There also is a public assistance office that can provide food stamps and maybe some form of medical care. For veterans, if you didn’t explore what your benefits might be, do it now. You could be eligible for 100% medical through the V.A. while unemployed and even co-pay coverage if you fall under the poverty limit after you get a job. On the public assistance thing, if you have more than $250 officially in the bank or anywhere (even in an IRA) you get squat.

DO NOT listen to rumors and expect anyone to put cash in your hands and give you a job making a lot of money. You have what you have and you are looking for a job to pay your way for housing and food and other necessities and you of course aren’t eligible for any unemployment benefits because you haven’t had any earned income. Get used to going to Thrift Shops and Dollar Stores. FYI – a cell phone, cable TV, etc. are not necessities for you at this time.

Let me tell an interesting story about a cell phone however. Mom went on a trip with a cousin to Wyoming for a few days and she asked me to pick them up when they came home and said the airport has a special area for waiting for arriving flights. Guess what, it is a cell phone waiting area. I found them after driving around and ending up at the gate for baggage pick up for the airlines they flew on. Good thing it was 1 in the morning and the traffic was light. Old school still works, but it is tough.

The hurdles of a place to live and meals are the biggest initial obstacles but I can’t write more about that because I was fortunate enough that I didn’t have to face those hurdles. I am living with my elderly parents and back in my old room from when I was in high school and helping around the house with routine things (cooking, cleaning, gardening, etc.) and in general things that have been neglected. Dad isn’t ambulatory.

Frankly after only a couple weeks I was bored without a job to go to. I fully plan to contribute to household expenses (call it rent) once I have income. I also want to get back out and be able to play some golf eventually, but that is a luxury I will have to have a job to support. FYI - I have been to a driving range and the old equipment works just fine given my physical limitations of age and rust.

Ah…finding a job. The biggest change I noticed in that regard, after adjusting for a week and then heading to the Career Link is that the world is so computerized that going out and knocking on doors looking for a job is old school. Oh, you can still do that if you have transportation to get around, but I have found some things are very different, even after 10 years.

It seems employers mostly only want a resume and a cover letter by email or fax and then they review it and get back to you. Isn’t technology wonderful? You are limited somewhat to where you can’t sell yourself as a person and have a two-way conversation with a potential employer. Of course it all depends on what kind of job you are seeking and your job experience. One key thing to remember is not to set expectations too high in regard to finding a good job nor should you have a time expectation for finding a job, any job. It is a recipe for failure where patience will serve you better.

It all starts at the Career Link with the aforementioned orientation where they will point out the available resources. Veterans have top priority, so use that. You may be the only one there who is just out of prison and there is no need to disclose that in a group setting and you have to try to fit in with the unfortunate people who are out of work just like you are. Nobody cares why because they have their own problems. This is an attitude you have to learn. You may be an ex-con, but now you are out in a free world and you have to think like that. Few will feel sorry for you having been in prison and it won’t open any doors for you. It is there and you know it and a potential employer will ask and will know and beyond that it is nobody else’s business.

Depending on whether you live in an urban or suburban area, transportation is a very important issue. A car is a necessity if you live outside of an area served by public transportation. If you have a car there is the cost and gas to run it and insurance. You will find ways to work around this in your personal situation, but don’t readjust your focus from the important things.

Technology will be all around you and even some things with the stores and shopping will be different. The first time I went out to get gas after I got my drivers license I frustrated the people behind me (yes, there are gas lines at times). I didn’t know how to use mom’s GIANT gas discount card for $0.40 a gallon off and get the pump started and the guy perched in the glass booth could have cared less to help. Eventually I got it. Frankly it was a little embarrassing. Geez…$0.40 off on a gallon of gas; I remember when you could get a dollars worth of gas and go for days. I must be getting old.

Let me make this one comment about technology. From what I have seen it is really good and makes some things easy to do. But it is a love it or hate it relationship. As I gradually try to adjust and learn about it I sometimes find myself getting so frustrated and overwhelmed that I absolutely hate it.

It seems everyone has a cell phone, blackberry and all kinds of stuff and everywhere you go they are using them. A friend showed me his little device that fit in the palm of his hand and how he could text, talk on the phone, and connect with the Internet with it. I just shock my head like I understood it all, but is was overwhelming to be honest. It’ll come in time for me maybe. Walking around the streets and in the stores people have conversations with unseen people and it is commonplace. Do people really need to stay in contact so much and what is so important?

Cash is something people have and they use it but it is so easy to swipe a credit card or a debit card that is what I have seen (and caught myself doing). Then there are the prices of things and using the plastic it is easy to lose track of the cost of things not having been out in the world for a while. Coming home from the orientation at the Career Link I needed to get gas. I told the guy in the store (it seems every gas station has a store now) I wanted to fill up and offered him $20. He put it in the cash register and looked at me funny. When the pump stopped feeding the precious liquid out of the nozzle into the car and registered only 6.7 gallons of gas I got it. Yes, gas is that expensive.

I have written about the physical things that need to be dealt with but have left the public acceptance stuff for last. People don’t know who you are, where you have been, what you have done. Mostly they don’t care from my experience. I got a bicycle and started riding it around the neighborhood after a couple weeks. I am sure the neighbors notices I was living in the neighborhood working outside the house, going in and out, walking to the nearby shopping center, etc. As I started to take short trips around the neighborhood on my bike for exercise people nodded and waved or said hello. I was one of them in their eyes. Here is a vivid thought. I wonder if they would be so friendly if they knew where I had just come from?

I have to tell you that initially it is akin to having PTSD in a way where you are afraid and very careful where you go and what you do and how you do it. On the way home from prison I wanted to get a Mother’s Day card for mom because the next day was the day and I resisted buying one of the cheesy cards available in prison to have when I got home. My brother pulled into a shopping center and parked the car and pointed to a card store and pulled out his cell phone to make a call.

What – I could go into the store by myself? I got out of the car and walked slowly across the parking lot and into the store with people inside buying cards. I don’t know how to relate to you how uncomfortable I was and how I felt like every eye was watching me walk the aisles of cards and then stand next to someone else looking at cards. And then…and then…and then after I found one I had to go pay for it. You know, with money to a cashier. I had money, even if it looked different from what I remember, and I managed that and got out of that store as fast as I could. It was like a claustrophobic feeling you might say.

It got easier each day and it took over a month to get more comfortable. I went in K-mart the other morning to get a pair of shorts and a belt and did OK. I even used my debit card for the bank account I opened a few days after being home. I have to say that even after a couple months I still am a little self-conscious by myself in stores, but I am getting better at it. It was the same with my first haircut and my first meal in a restaurant. There are a lot of firsts.

As far as the public acceptance part of it. It is like the adage about “Hot Dog” football players after he scores a touchdown. Just give the ball to the official like you have been there before. Remember, you have been there before and as you gradually ease back into the swing of things and all the changes. Do that and the people you come across won’t care who you are, where you have been and about your past as long as you blend in to become one of them.

The last selection on the Eagles “Hell Freezes Over” album is playing now, Desperado. Remember some of the lyrics? “Come to your senses…” and “Let somebody love you before it’s too late.” The first selection was Get Over It. Ah, just a great song by a classic group.

I am going to go out on the front porch now and enjoy the breeze and fresh air, relax, and read a little. If I notice someone walking by or on a bicycle I may wave or nod to them as they pass by. While things aren’t ever ok in the world with oil spills and such, I am doing pretty good with some things even if I don’t have that job yet some two months out of prison. But I can sit outside and look forward to what life might have in store for me knowing there are things I can control and things I have to accept that I can’t control. I’ll find work, it just is going to take a while.

And as one legendary stalwart newscaster would say, “And that’s the way it is.”