Top five states with highest number of juveniles serving life without parole.

Pennsylvania - 444

Michigan - 346

Lousiana - 335

Florida - 266

California - 250

~Human Rights Watch

One in forty-three children have a parent who is incarcerated. ~ (BJS)

Either we are the most evil people in the word or something is wrong with our system of 'justice'.

Yesterday, I taped an episode of Another View. The topic --Family Life and Incarceration. I appeared representing the group Prisoners’ Wives, Girlfriends, and Partners and I was the only member of the panel whose husband was incarcerated.

My purpose for going on the show was to bring awareness to the group and let women like me know there are resources available to them. Well…I didn’t mention the group; nope, not one single time, not one single word. It was my first televised interview and to say I was nervous would be putting it mildly.

It turns out I didn’t have anything to be defensive about. The host was great and asked relevant questions. As I think about my responses, I’m concerned that I came across sounding as inarticulate as one could. I filled negative space with umm and so, as I searched for a coherent thought.  Pretty much, all of my Toastmasters training escaped me with each pause filler.

It is the morning after. I tossed all night with thoughts of how ridiculous I must look and with regrets of not speaking the more intelligible, articulate phrases that didn’t come to mind yesterday. Where were the good words when I needed them? I'm over-analytical, sometimes to my own detriment.

Am I my worst critic? Probably.

Do I wish I could do it over again with my better phrases? Absolutely

Is it time to let it go? Undoubtedly

Another View, Family Life and Incarceration, will air February 26, 2010 at 9PM, on PBS.  

Ahhh Valentine’s Day. Love is in the air. It's a time for couples; a time where single people are made to feel less-than human for being, well…single.

As for prisoners’ wives and partners, no one really thinks about how we deal with Valentine’s Day. After all we are in the unique position of being a part of a couple, yet living (for all intents and purposes) a single life. Whether you are a fan of Valentine’s Day or not, you can still share in its sentiment.

Valentine’s Day wouldn’t be Valentine’s Day with conversation hearts. Short, sweet, colorful messages, such as, Love Ya, Be Mine, I Love You, and Hugs & Kisses, speak to the heart. Get out your construction paper and create your own collection of conversation hearts.

What’s a Valentine’s Day without kisses? Grab a bag of Hershey’s kisses and eat all of them. You are only interested in the tiny tags. Take the tags and create a heart shaped message for your sweetie. BONUS: A unique way to send a ‘box’ of chocolates. The tags will hold onto their chocolate-y scent.

And what about hugs? Take a photo of each one of your arms and send with a message that reads: “Wrap around you, when needed.”

At the heart of this holiday is the message of love. Continue to write, to answer calls, to visit, to support him, all of these things say I LOVE YOU, everyday, not just on February 14^th.

The state of Virginia using the failure rate of third graders to determine how many prisons to build. Think about that for a moment. The state gives up on these children after third grade. Are you outraged? You should be. Why not build schools?

In addition to not being able to get a driver's license, vote, get married, get a tattoo and numerous other actions, juveniles are also not permitted to purchase video games that have been rated M.

The Entertainment Software Ratings Boards (ESRB) states that "...m-rated games can not be purchased by anyone under the age of 17 unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.

The Supreme Court is currently hearing a case on whether or not juvenile offenders should receive life without the possibility of parole for offenses other than murder.

Juvenile offenders being sent away for the rest of their lives is not a game. One can only hope the Supreme Court will see this and take a page from the ESRB.

Life without the possibility of parole should be rated M for Mature Audiences.

LWOP, The Wheel, The Letters, are all euphemisms to describe the daunting sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

Our criminal justice system has handed out LWOP for almost every crime imaginable. Tough on crime have created mandatory minimum sentences giving the judges no discretion in sentencing. LWOP is so ubiquitous that the mention of this sentence no longer carries the weight it once had, at least not for society. The person who receives such a sentence in many cases is squashed under the weight of what life without the possibility of parole really means--death on an installment plan.

Imagine you are child, punished by your parents, in time-out. You can not participate in activities nor play freely. You do not have access to those things which make you happy. Imagine you are in time-out for the rest of your life. As a child, it would have killed you to be in this perpetual state. Children are being given ‘the letters’ as well.

We all want people who commit crimes to be punished but we have become so desensitize to the LWOP sentence, pushing for something stronger.  Sentences are run consecutively--looped together to ridiculous amounts of years or in all to many increasing cases, one receives death because LWOP is not sufficient. While I am not a proponent of capital punishment, I do understand the idea of it as some crimes are so heinous, death is a logical choice, but make no mistake, when a person goes to prison for LIFE, with no opportunity to ever come home, it is a punishment. It is sufficient. Living as an eternal prisoner for some is more devastating than a death sentence.  An LWOP sentence is a death sentence--death of spirit for those who have received this sentence and as long as judges are bound by mandatory minimums without taking each case on an individual basis, “the wheel” is the death of common sense.

LWOP- Life without the Possibility of Parole

The Wheel – refers to prisoners never getting out, much like running on a hamsters wheel

The Letters – refers to not being giving a set of numbers (3 to 5 years), but LIFE (letters).