Oh my goodness. I just got a call from a board member who will be determining if my son will be granted parole or not. He has given my husband and myself an opportunity to meet with him personally on Friday. I am so nervous.

Can anyone please tell me what it is I should say or perhaps more importantly what NOT to say? I know I am wishing against all odds because this is my son's first review but the way I see it, is if I can get them to allow us to meet with them the first review, I can still hold out hope it will be granted.

I want to do this right and NOT say anything that will reduce his chances. Anyone who can offer ANYTHING I would more than appreciate it.

Thanks in advance...

Jan..

Jan,

They are looking for several things...they want to know that you have residence, support and work potential. Probably the biggest thing they NEED to know, is how can they insure that the person will not be a threat to society.

Which board are you meeting with? There may be people on PTO who have encountered different members and can give you insight. I have personally interviewed with Juanita Gonzalez and I've met and interviewed with Bert Reyna....both of the Gatesville board.

Let me know if there is anything else you need! Be yourself, and speak from the heart...you will do fine!

kath

We will be meeting with Chuck Speier on Friday morning at 9 A.M.. He is one of the three board members here in San Antonio. I guess I should look his bio up and read some about him, no?

Should I dress like I'm going to the office or casual or how? Should I bring any of Jerry's letters where he has hopes and plans for the future or where he expresses his sincere remorse? I'm not really sure. We live very close to a community college and he wants to attend school there. He's already a dsmall vehicle mechanic by trade with the Marines but he wants to enhance it. We are well established in the community and his bedroom is ready for him. The only problem is that he is technically still in the Marines and I don't know how that will affect any decision. He did sign papers back in June agreeing to an administrative discharge but has yet to hear back from the Marines. What can I say that will assure them he's not a danger to society? I am so very nervous. I almost past out when he said, you made a request, how can I help you?.. I feel like I have my son's fate in my hands at this point and I would forever regret anything that I said wrong.

I honestly never thought this would happen. Mostly because evryone I have spoken with, friends, family, parole and review, lawyers, everyone has told me it would be highly unlikely that I would get a personal interview on his first review. Now that it's happened I'm like an infant in need of her mother and mine passed away ten years ago.

Jan--this is so great! I thought though that he had gotten his release papers from the Marines. Maybe I misunderstood. Anyways, I don't know anything about the Texas system or anything--but I wanted to wish you luck and everything. As you know Jerry has become a good friend of mine, I hope only the best for him! Love and Respects--Helen

ONE THING...you have to keep in mind...your interview will NOT HURT YOUR SON!!! It may not help, but standing in his defense could never hurt him. The board will make their own decisions their own way, and they like to see support. You can imagine with all the inmates we have here in Texas, support isn't an always-present thing.

Tell them what you've typed here to me...be honest and genuine, and you will be fine. It sounds like you have a solid plan moving forward, provided the board sees this, and if they feel his parole will be handled successfully, it gives them tremendous foundation to make their decision.

You can get member member bios off the BPP webpage. Skip's first review was voted on by the San Antonio board, but I think Mr. Spier joined them after Skip was already moved. (so I'm not too familiar with him).

http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/bpp/

Let me know if there is anything else I can do for you!

kath

Hi Helen and thanks. He may have gotten his papers. I just don't recall him mentioning it and we haven't discussed it in a couple months. Either way, I hope so. Thanks for your kind words and good luck. He speaks highly of you everytime I go to visit and wishes the best for you as well. Maybe some day we can meet or at least you and he can meet. You're a good kid. Not many would bother to send wishes to their friend's parents. As I tell him in every letter, Hang in there. You'll one day look back on this time in your life with good memories. We tend to remember the good but never forget the bad times in our lives..

Trulykath, thanks to you too. And thanks for the link. I'm just a bit anxious right now but hopefully I'll settle down before Friday. I will let everyone know how it goes... keep your fingers crossed.

Jan..

We visited with the voting member this morning and expressed our feelings and reassured the member that we are standing by our son and do support him. I brought pictures of all of my children and explained about the make-up of our family. I told him that Jerry would be in a stable enviornment and will be expected to follow our rules as well as the state, etc. I told of his plans and how we plan to assist him in achieving his goals. My husband spoke about his change in attitude and his sincere intentions to make better of his life and how he planned to overcome his obstacles.

In the end the nice (and I mean that sincerely) gentleman indicated that he thought our son needed to go through a drug program before being released. Even though his conviction is not drug related, he felt that he had a history of drugs enough that he should be treated. And we agree. So I really don't know what to expect. But the best scenario is to be released upon some kind of treatment program. I would be elated if that were to happen. At least he'd have a goal and some kind of time frame to work toward. I am to call down to the local office here about next Thursday and he said they should be able to tell me something. I have a lot of praying to do between now and then...

I will keep you posted.

Jan..

Jan,

I started to say "they may know sooner", but with the holiday, it may be delayed until later next week. I talked to the 1st member on a Monday, 2nd member on Tues and by Wed at noon, they had already voted it and told me Skip was approved when I called in.

It sounds like you did an awesome job, though the wanting to put him in a treatment program confused me, if his charge is not drug related, and he has no history of drug usage. I DO KNOW, the cirriculum for the DWI class Skip was put in over at Mineral Wells deals a lot with behavior modification. Maybe they will direct him to something like that....?

Hopefully, you and your family won't have much longer....keep us posted......

kath

You are correct. Jerry does not have a legal drug history. And by that I mean that he has never been charged with a drug offense but in the course of his interviews, etc. and having had a positive test with the Marines once, the member indicated that he thought there was enough there to suggest a program. And he did indicate behavior modification when he told us that just because Jerry's mind and attitude may have the full intention of turning his life around, sometimes the body will say different and he thinks he needs to understand what these symptoms are and how to deal with them if they occur. I wish I had a better indication of what he may do but he spent an awful lot of time talking about his need for treatment. I'm not really sure if I should even expect it but the guy did not say anything about thinking he needed to stay in prison longer or anything along those lines. He took a few minutes and explained what kind of stipulations Jerry might expect upon his release. I mean he did not indicte to us in any way that Jerry should stay in prison longer. Only that he thought he needed a treatment program. I have to tell you, I am hopeful but not so much that I don't realize that we are dealing with the state of Texas.

How long did Skip have to wait before being taken to the facility and starting his treatment program if you don't mind me asking? Jerry is still at Garza East.

And gee- I wasn't even aware that you could request to talk to each member individually. I was told to ask for an interview with the 'voting member'. Oh well, I don't know if I could go through it again anyway. My heart skips a beat at the thought a decision is very close. And you're right, this is a holiday weekend and we will be waiting an extra day. I may call on Wednesday just in case.

Skip was at Garza East too.....they denied Round 1 parole in April, and in May, he began the treak (5 units in 4 days) to Mineral Wells.

I talked to 2 voting members QUITE by chance...(had my interview one day...caught up with the 2nd member at a TIFA meeting that nite, gave him my card, he called me back the next day to talk - it may never go that way again...I was lucky).

IF HE WAS talking stipulations....I would take that as a good sign. You know Skip won't even finish this class, right?

The more you fill me in....the better it sounds for Jerry....I can't wait to find out how they decide....may be precedent-setting for others in TDCJ.

Let us know as soon as you hear!

kath

i just wanted to wish you and your family well with the outcome of your son coming home i hope all goes well for you and it sounds like that everything went fine for him at the interview that you all had good luck and i will keep you in my prayers..

I wanted to let you know that you and your family our in my prayers as well. Keep us posted!!