| Submitted by: | Joe Richman | |||||||
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Press Release:
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This past year, 5 inmates, 4 correctional officers, and a judge were given tape recorders to document their own lives. These are their stories. | "Doing Time: John's Diary" John Mills is 20 years old. He's serving 7-9 years at Polk Prison for armed robbery. At 15 John held up his first convenience store with a bb gun. Then, he graduated to real guns. John's mother used to visit often but she lives far away and comes less and less. He's got all her birthday cards neatly displayed in his room and photographs on the wall. John comes across as a warm, semsetive guy. But he also talks about the thrill of putting a gun to someone's head and seeing the fear in their eyes. John is scheduled to be released in 2005. "Serving 9-to-5: Correctional Officer Diary" Officer Mamie Townes started on the job six months ago. Sergeant Furman Camel is getting ready to retire. Officer Shawn Fields was in trouble with the law as a teenager, and says if things had worked out a little differently, he could have become a convict instead of a guard. This story profiles some of the men and women who work at Polk Prison in Butner, North Carolina, including Warden George Currie. The officers use their tape recorders to document life on the other side of the bars: roll call, lockdown, fights, and the occasional one-on-one moments with inmates. "We're doing time just like they are," says Officer Fields, "we just get to go home at night." "Matthew and the Judge: Juvenile Court Diary" Matthew is 16. He's been sentenced to the Rhode Island Training School three times for dealing drugs. For Matthew, being locked up is just an unfortunate part of the job description of being a drug dealer. He treats his incarceration as a vacation, time off from his hectic work. Matthew is convinced that when he gets out next time, he won't get caught. Matthew just needs to convince Judge Jeremiah that he's ready for release. Judge Jeremiah sentences most of the juvenile offenders that end up in the Rhode Island Training School. He kept an audio diary of his daily life, his court hearings and his decisions that affect so many young offenders. (The Judge has granted rare access to family court and juvenile cases.) Judge Jeremiah has also documented his decision to release Matthew . It's a ruling the Judge felt comfortable with, until Matthew showed up in court just two weeks later, arrested for drug dealing once again. Now the Judge must decide whether Matthew should be sent to the adult prison system. "Going Home: Cristel's Diary" Cristel had been in trouble a few times growing up - drugs, fights. Then at the age of 15, she attacked a girl with a razor blade. When the fight was over, the victim required 300 stitches, mostly on her face and neck. It was - and still is - considered one of the most violent crimes committed by a young girl in Rhode Island. Cristel was sentenced to six and a half years at the Rhode Island Training School, to be released when she turned 21. For the first year, Cristel was angry and uncontrollable and had to be handcuffed inside her cell. Then things started to change. She got her GED, began taking college classes, started lecturing to youth groups. Now after three years, Cristel has become the most successful inmate at the Training School. She is considered by many to be a poster child for rehabilitation. Cristel has done so well that Judge Jeremiah has decided to release her three years early. Cristel was pregnant when she was locked up. Now her daughter is three years old. Cristel is looking forward to spending her first night with her daughter, and starting a new life on the outside. A one-hour Prison Diaries special will be broadcast on many public radio stations on Tuesday Jan 30th, 2001 (a collaboration with American RadioWorks). Prison Diaries will continue every Tuesday in January 2001 on NPR's All Things Considered.
Credits:
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Producer: Joe Richman | Associate Producer: Wendy Dorr
For More Information:
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Visit the home of Radio Diaries | To explore the stories in depth, visit Picture Projects' documentary website
Availability:
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Until 7 November 2000
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