April 11, 2010
Dear family and friends and supporters,
I want to let all of you know that I have been transferred to Bayview Correctional Facility in Manhattan. I have been fighting for this for the past two years. The transition is both wonderful and difficult. Wonderful to be in New York City and difficult leaving behind friends and acquaintances. Still, it was not as difficult as the transfer out of Bedford after twenty years.
Getting off the bus in NYC was surreal. The busy traffic, the noise. I was shackled and handcuffed and chained, shuffling to and from the bus with my belongings while people were walking past me on the sidewalk in both directions, without any outward signs of confusion or fear. That’s New York City, always welcoming. I have not been in the city since New Year’s Eve on Times Square in 1985/86. I have such fond memories here.
For the past twenty-three years, I have been touring New York state, and I am glad that I will no longer be subjected to the brutal snow storms upstate. The staff would often comment on my accent, “You’re from New York, aren’t you?” As if I were from another planet. They would even ask me to repeat words. So here I am in the city again, and, yes, I am excited.
In regard to legal matters, my petition for re-sentencing, I have learned that the March 17th court date was the deadline for the district attorney’s opposition. I received a copy of this fact on March 24, and I am disturbed not by its content, but rather by the lack of it.
Legal rhetoric can be confusing, so, quite simply, my legal struggle in recent years has been founded on the fact that the law which I was sentenced under, depraved indifference, no longer exists. The Honorable Judge Rosenblatt correctly predicted unjust outcomes under the ‘register’ definition of depraved indifference.
“…Moreover, by diverting the jury to consider depraved indifference, trial courts (unwittingly, but nonetheless) will mislead jurors into believing depraved indifference is a milder charge readily available either when intentional murder has not been proved, or as means of extending a measure of leniency. The result is predictable: If and when a trial court in an intentional murder case erroneously authorizes a jury to consider depraved indifference there is a real probability that the jury will find the defendant guilty.”
The district attorney, in opposition to my re-sentencing petition, simply stated all the dates over the years that I have petitioned the court, and was denied, and proclaimed that this petition should also be denied for that reason alone. Compiling a petition requires many forms, supporting affidavits, and memorandum of law, all of which is time consuming and very expensive. For the district attorney there is obviously little required. As always, I remain hopeful.
I feel great, in mind and spirit. I am less stressed at this facility and for that I am truly grateful. Free or not, a person can build a prison for themself, and if one occupies it for a period of time, they can easily become accustomed to ‘their prison’ and accept the false reality that they are imprisoned for life. Then even hope can become lost, or the ability to do more with life, or bringing dreams to fruition. Then we could say, ‘It’s really not living at all.’
Anyone can posess a new life, if we try. As for me, I feel that I am doing all that matters now, in these precious moments. I strive to be a channel through which some measure of kindness and joy and love reaches those with whom I come into contact, regardless of where I am.
Sincerely,
Mona
