DAVID AN INNOCENT MAN
Dear Sir or Ma'am,
By way of introduction, my name is David. That was the name given me at birth, and yet I have acquired other names since that day - names which cause one to cringe at the very utterance of such titles. These names were set upon me by "Lady Justice" who was blind to the innocence of one human soul. And while the real criminals of the purported crime still roam free, I paid the price for their deception: now I am called convicted felon, ex-con, a dreg of society, a convicted sex offender, a registered sex offender, and the derogatory adjectives mount on a daily basis. In truth I was an innocent man/ I am now, yet that title is seldom used.
It might be hard to fathom the reality of going to prison in Utah an innocent man. On a bad day, one of the guards so eloquently screamed at me, "There are no innocent men in this prison!" Truth dictates, however, that innocent men and women go to prison or jail every year in this country, and the numbers rise every year. Many are put away for many years, or life...some are found innocent even after execution, long after it's too late.
In my case, I was innocent of the sexual abuse of a child. It was a game of scheming divorce control by a family of confessed pedophiles...who needed a scapegoat to hide their crimes. I had evidence to support my claims, but those duly appointed to win a guilty verdict, were not concerned with the truth of the matter. Sought after was the prized-conviction, and more than one innocent life was made to suffer. A drop of truthful evidence was considered, and in the end I grew tired of the fight for freedom, and plead no-contest, while never admitting guilt. I allowed myself to be led away an innocent man, because I had not the money or the power to stop the politically powerful in their zealous quest for a conviction against an innocent man, all to appease society.
The judge who presided over the case struggled with a conscience, where an innocent man was concerned. At sentencing, he seemed unsure of what truth was and what fiction was. "I don't know what's right in this case," he mused before the gavel fell and a guard hauled me away in chains. He spoke of truth that day when he further stated for the record, "We know that there are cases where people are punished for crimes they didn't do." He knew this, but sent me away nonetheless. From the high bench he defined the entire case with these words, "...a case where a person staunchly denies culpability and at every turn in the system pleads his innocence." I did plead my innocence, but not only can justice be blind, but deafness is a common malady in the court system. In the end, the judge sided with a society, who is so zealously fearful and hateful toward anyone so much as accused of a crime against a child...that he sent me to prison because, "Society would have a right to be rather unforgiving of me. And so I'm just doing the best that I can." His best wasn't good enough, for he failed to listen...and an innocent man was sent to the Utah State Prison for five years.
The horror that followed the conviction would make most grown adults vomit. My claim of innocence brought further abuse by therapists, counselors, guards, and from a host of judging humans who knew not where to look for the truth. Even with the expiration of my sentence in 2001, the abuse that I was forced to suffer did not end. Reality is this: there is no true expiration of sentence, because the cruelty that was heaped upon my shoulders in prison followed me home...and each year I am made more of a prisoner in the free world; I was seemingly less a hostage behind bars and concertina killing wire. The maltreatment reached far beyond prison walls to a soul who thought he'd done his time, and who suffered the ravages of the innocent.
Since my release, I have been awash in a sea of unforgiving and punitive citizens. Their hatred against those labeled as "convicted sex offenders" all innocence aside, is a burden in the mildest sense; a death sentence in the harshest logic. And each year, more and more politicians, legislators, and those with a thirst for perpetual hatred, cast a far reaching net, and sweep men and women...and the innocent into pools of retribution and ill-treatment.
The State of Utah sent an innocent man to prison, and there my blood was shed in defense of my innocence. And because we are so hell-bent as a society on the expanded punishment and abuse against those who are accused of hurting a child, or even those simply thought to have committed such an offense, society stands over convicted or registered sex offenders with whip and leash in hand, demanding that politicians pass law after law, to further restrict, track and punish them. Forgotten are the innocent men and women who were caught in the net of conviction, due to no fault of their own, because our current system of justice is not perfect...and is designed after the motto: "You are guilty now prove your innocence."
Now my sentence complete, I am required to register with the State of Utah for ten years following the expiration of my sentence. New legislation might have enhanced the registration to "natural life." Those who were actually guilty of the crimes will spend a lifetime of freedom...while an innocent man will spend a lifetime reporting for a crime he did not commit. If I move I must report. If I register for college, or affiliate myself with any organization, I must report. If I get a new car, I must report. If I go on vacation in another state for more than fourteen consecutive days I must report. My photo is plastered all over the world on the Internet for all to see. With 2006 legislation just imposed, I must now surrender my drivers license every year, prove to the state that I have an accurate address, pay a renewal fee, and mark a special box on the registration form...calling out the fact that I am a registered sex offender, all innocence aside. Each year I must pay a fee to register. This list of punishments is far short of the "master" list, of which I must bear. I am more a captive in the free world, than I was in prison at Point of the Mountain.
Each year, all across this great country of ours, we punish fellow citizens. I suppose many deserve what they get, as they commit crimes against humanity and must be punished; and is this not what this generation is about? However, the innocent and those who have paid their price should not be continually trodden down by the states in which they live. Those who have done their time should be left alone, to prove themselves, rather than being battered and persecuted for the rest of their lives. Such Christian values as mercy and forgiveness have long since drowned. It is cruel and unusual punishment to single out those accused of sex crimes and punish them for the rest of their natural lives. And in my case I was innocent, and the guilty in my case roam the streets...yet I am punished...why?
In 2006 I received several letters outlining the new ways in which society, politicians, and legislators are going to stalk and torment me in 2006 and beyond. I nearly took my own life. Sometimes the burdens that politicians place upon the backs of humans are very grievous. I was, and am tired of being haunted, harassed, hated, punished, persecuted, abused and victimized; because I was an innocent man who surrendered himself to prison, when he could no longer fight for freedom.
A call goes out to all those who have ears to hear. Repeal bills and laws that penalize the innocent and those who've done their time, and live law-abiding lives. Stop the unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment. How will the truly guilty ever become better than they were, under such oppression? Heed the words of the written legislation, 344 (c) "harassment...or threats against sex offenders or their families are prohibited." Practice what you preach.
Give this innocent man a fighting chance at life, free from the oppression of further abuse. Give this innocent man a chance to share what he learned about sex offenders, while forced to live among them as punishment, because I would not confess. Remember that anyone can be falsely convicted!
Respectfully Yours,
David...An Innocent ManPO Box 12976Ogden, Utah 84412-2976
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