I had just gotten my car out of the shop from having a new motor put in it and i went to go have joe look at it, on my way there i blew a brake line and some other stuff went south. i had two kids with me and i was to say the least hystrical and running out of money VERY fast. he had like one hour to work on my car before he had to be back and rapha and he knew that the situation here at home was only getting worse cause i just cant do some things like fix cars. he said "babe i cant leave you and the kids on the side of the road like this, no money, no way home, no one to call i will have to take my chances with a judge." so with NO brakes, we drive up the street to rapha he told mr hayes what the deal was and no hard feelings he just wanted him to know that even though this seemed like a really stupid thing that it wasnt without purpose. and mr hayes said he would still have to report him (which joe knew) and that he wished him all the best. joe said his goodbyes and we left, took me twice as long to get home cause of the brakes but hes outside now working on them. yall i dont know what to make of all this it was a total surprise to me that he choose to do this but like he said he cant afford 1500 dollars to go through that, PLUS 100 a week to stay there...and all the while his family keeps being hit with all this break down this and that. i told him i didnt want him to do this but he said that there was little choice and that he felt confident that a judge could see that hes not doing it without justification...(i think we all know hes hoping) but thats whats been going on with me. hope all is well. anyone know if the judges in gadsden are good?

OH GIRL....I'M WORRIED ABOUT YOU TWO....((((HUGGS))) GOOD LUCK. i PRAY EVERYTHING WORKS OUT!!!

hes like that, he said he would rather go back to prison then to have to get a job only to have all the money taken from him and not to be for his family....hes never been too good at getting walked on

Well, what good is that going to do his family when he gets sent back? I don't see that his reasoning is very good. I'll hope for the best for you and him. The judge probably won't sympathise with him, but we can hope he will.

well i get what his point is, not saying i would have choose the same thing, but its costing us money for him to be at that place, and its money we dont have, and a whole lot of it. atleast in prison hes not having to pay out any money. he only has like 15 months left and would have to be at rapha for 6 months so there really wasnt any immediate help in site. BUT i agree that i wouldnt want to test the judge on how he felt about it. joes just allways been the type that would change the rules of the game if he didnt like how it was going, im the type that plays by what rules i have before me....as im sure most are. but not him, he had to change the rules so he felt he could play their game i guess

ragland...we haven't had much communication...but I wanted to drop you a message and say that I think it is very admirable of Joe to do what he has done...thinking of his family and all. But, if you want my unasked for opinion :), Have a great 4th of July weekend and then go back to Rapha and get back in somehow. I have found that Judges don't have a very good understanding of these kind of things...no matter how you try to explain it. Good luck, though.

Kay

OMG! I'm happy that he put you and the kids first...but, I don't like hearing that anybody may get locked back up! :( Girl...you know my thoughts and prayers are with you, Joe, and the kids!!! (so...I guess this means you won't be tryin' to break in my room tonight, huh?) :) Let us know what happens, okay!!!

HUGGS,
Selena

ragland i would have done same thing, no way i could leave my wife and kids in that situation. if a judge can't understand this problem then how can he sit on a bench and make common sense decisions

Ragland..I'm sorry hun! but Joe's a GREAT one-doesnt want to leave yall stranded. I will be praying for the both of you and the kids! I hope things work out well. :) Please let us know how things go. We are here!!

You have to really admire a guy who would do this! I have you guys in my prayers!

I'm a little confused at the rationale myself. I admire him for wanting to make sure his family made it home safe.........but what good is he going to be for the next 15 months in prison?? At least at this Rapha place he'd be home in 6 months right?? And have a jobe. Once the bid was done at Rapha that $$ would then go to HIS family right?? But if he's locked up for 15 months then where you going to get $$?? Sure he's not paying out to Rapha, but he also can't pay out to HIS family. I'm not downing the guy for his choce I just don't understand the complete process. What about the BIGGER picture?? Hope ALL works out for you guys. You'll definately be in my prayers.

((((HUGS))))

Stacy

well if there is one thing that brought the two of us together its chances! gamble on most things in life and we took a big one when we got together. his thinking is hard for me to explain but if you hear him tell it i swear it does make sense.....he IS gambling on the fact that the judge will only sentence him for some time in the county maybe a month or two then back out on the street. he cant go back to rapha thats just the way it is, they wouldnt let him if he wanted to....he doesnt want to, it was costing me money i didnt have for him to be there therefore other things were suffering. they put him to work somewhere for 7 bucks an hour and hes easily used to making 12-15 so you can just imagine how smallof a check that was. anyway that part of it isnt what made him walk, in his mind, the things he could do over this weekend to help get the kids and i back on our feet by fixing all this stuff, would be worth it to him if he had to leave again....they can only keep him so long and when you think about it he allready has SAP him getting out sooner than 14 months (his eos) is highly likely.....weve allways loved the casinos girls!!! we are betting folks...im working on a letter for the judge, does anyone know if the courthouses were opened yesterday. thank you all for your kind words of support, we really need you right now....oh and he IS cleaning the pool, should be working sometime today..*grins*

please proof read this and give me your comments....


Your honor, my name is Joesph T. T, I was paroled on May 24, 2004. When I was granted parole my wife and kids were in foreclosure of our home and we didn’t want to present our address for my home and job plan due to the fact that I didn’t know if they would still be living in the home when I actually got released so my wife went to work immediately locating a halfway house for me till we could salvage things with the house. She found Rapha ministries and Mr. Hayes, the director sent a standard letter to me and the parole board stating I was accepted to his place. Mr. Hayes knew that I had taken SAP while incarcerated and he saw no need for me to go back through treatment. He told me that my stay there would be around 7 weeks and that he would help me find employment during that time, which he did. Two weeks ago he informed me that on that Friday I would be leaving and could go back home. My wife had called my parole officer to give her our home address to do the transfer to Morgan Co. when she did so the parole officer informed my wife that under no circumstances was I going anywhere. She went on to explain that I was in treatment and that I wouldn’t leave there until said treatment was complete. Your honor, I never was in treatment and my wife couldn’t get anyone to see our point. The parole board granted my parole “via home and job plan”, not treatment. So there is no mandatory reason for me to be at the halfway house, I was there because my wife and I felt it was best for the time. I was informed by Mr. Hayes that the parole officer called him and told him the same thing that I could not leave and that the reason was that Mr. Hayes had stated in the letter, mailed to the parole board and myself, that I was accepted to a 6 month treatment facility. Mr Hayes has explained to us that the letter is just a standard letter and was in no way intended to be something that locked me in the program. Again, there was never any intentions on his part or mine to go back through drug treatment.
On Thursday July 1st , I had to make some very hard choices. I am hoping you will see my position and use your authority to put a stop to the confusion of what exactly my bounds are with my parole. My wife had been without her car for quite sometime and had just gotten a motor replaced, she drove it to where I worked to have me look at it and make sure all was well with it and to my surprise it wasn’t. There were numerous things that went out on the car with her drive from the shop to where I was most importantly the brakes, and she had very little money on her. I did not want to leave my wife and kids on the side of the road like that, I have done some horrible things in my life but that’s one thing I cant bare. She had zero brakes and three mountains to climb to get her back home, this was not a safe position to have her be in at the time. My wife and I talked briefly about what lie ahead of us and I made a decision to leave the Rapha and take my situation before you. I went back to Rapha and called Mr. Hayes and informed him that I had to leave and that it was not without cause. I explained the situation to him and he informed me that he would have no choice but to report me to my parole officer and that he wished me well.
Your honor, I am at your mercy. If you feel that I have done something unjustifiable or you just feel that I am wrong then I know I will have to face your punishment. I am asking you to look further than the fact that I changed my address without consulting my parole officer, I am asking you to see what my position as a father and husband was at the time. I have an opportunity to salvage our home, our car, our financial situation and most importantly our family environment. Our son is disabled and without a doubt that is weighing very heavily on our situation, she cant do all of this alone.
Finally Your Honor, The program at Rapha was costing me almost $100.00 a week, plus I would have to pay $1500.00 during the next 6 months there. That was leaving me no money to send to my family, which as you can see was something we were concerned with. The job they gave me was paying $7.00/hr, so as you can see it just wasn’t adding up. All I want to do is to finish my parole without making any waves. I have asked for instructions on how to do a transfer when I first met my parole officer and she said that she would do it when Mr. Hayes released me. As I stated before when Mr. Hayes went to release me she wouldn’t allow it. Please help us to make a clearer understanding of all this. I respect your position and pray over the decision you will make in this case.

Sincerely,

Mr. T

i omited his last name for privacy reasons his name isnt mr. t. lol let me know if this sounds reasonable or not.

Hey! I think that sounded GREAT! really it did. It explained everything thoroughly so there would be no confusion. I liked how you worded the situation and decision he had to make. that was nice. so if i ever needed a letter..i know who to come to! lol..but yea that was good. I also pray the judge sees what he had to do for your family and judge that action accordingly. Keep us posted! God bless!

That was a very detail letter nothing missing. I'm kind of concerned about if the Judge will feel how "we" feel. I Pray that all works out well. I will be Praying for and with you. Remember the bible says that "were two touch and agree it shall be done". And u have more than 2 touching to agree with you.

my prayers are with you and your family.
your letter is very good and I hope the judge takes everything into concideration.
sue

Sounds great, I hope it works.


Buddy

The letter sounded great, Ragland! You, Joe and the kids are still in my prayers. I hope and pray that everything works out for ya'll...keep us posted...okay?

huggs,
Selena

thank you all for your support, i have allways had a nack for being well spoken and well read.....so maybe it will actually pay off, im sure ill change the letter a thousand times before im finished that was just a rough draft but it helps to know that yall think it was a good start.....i really cant find the words to express my gratitude for having yall here with me through such trying times...we are swimming today, if anyone is in the huntsville area and would like to come hang out we would be DELIGHTED...its just me joe the kids and my ex husband and one kid that thinks she lives here...lol....but ANYONE is welcome at my home ANYTIME. hope everyone is enjoying the 4th and please dont spend it alone if you have the oppurtunity to stop by we have alot of entertainment for kids lined up, and big kids too...lol

Good letter, I hope and pray the judge sees this as a hard decision that Joe had to make. You might want to state that you had no money to get the car towed and noone to help gets you and your children home,(I don't think I saw that) he will probably ask if you have family or friends that could have picked you up so just make that point known too. Cover all the bases so they really do know he had no alternative but to leave you on the side of the road stranded or get you home safe. Praying for you!

Ragland....sorry to hear about your luck.....I know it must have been a very hard decision for him to make to not leave his family stranded....my lucks the same with cars thats why I cannot visit my husband in Bullock.....it is so hard to make it alone when you have kids so I sympathize with you..good luck and your in my prayers....Lisa!

I wish you both the best. i do understand both positions, i hope the judge does show some mercy and may since your iniating thhis before and not after punishment.

yeah i am not from alabama, i dont have any family to speak of anyway even over the miles....so i guess i should have pointed that out, thank you for the view point, ill be making sure to place that in there .....ty again for all the support

I have been thinking about this since I read it and I believe, that he should have returned after getting you home, and then wrote the Judge to get out. He may have excused him for being late in getting back, but not for continuing to stay home.I'm sorry, but I do hope the best for you.

Buddy

sweety, they wouldnt have allowed him to return or that would have been an option, they have rapha locked down like a prison, my driving up on the property was as good as him walking out the door....they are STRICT.....no one gets to return if you get what i mean.....oh and we got up yesterday morning to the camaro having a flat... yippie!!

there is no way to write a judge if you havent been charged with something....they would have just sent him the P&P route or to his PO. so for him to get assigned a judge, he had to break the law first, changing his address without notifying his PO was about the smallest thing he could have done wrong to get someones attention.

well joe finally called his PO. The very long story goes like this, all we know at this point is that he will spend no less than 5 days in jail awaiting a decision from the board. he told her that he had to handle some things first and it might take around 6 days, she said "dont worry im not coming to your home" she did sound a bit more sympathetic than in previous times. at this point joes not in a big hurry to go back so we will discuss it a bit further and keep yall posted as to what will happen.

Well I'm glad she sounded a lot more nicer to yall! Hopefully it wont be a long time he will be in jail. Girl, i'm praying for yall and thanks for keeping us updated!:)

Maybe it won't be too bad, but praying for you guys

I'm still keeping ya'll in my prayers. I'm also happy she sounded nicer than before. Keep us posted!!!!

huggs,
Selena

she did insist to joe that i HAD IN FACT LIED and that her and ms dillard agreed to that fact....this coming from ms dillard who stated she had never spoke with me before.....whatever

Hey rags what was you suppossed to be lying about?

first thing i was suppossed to be lying about is the fact that i had spoke to ms dillard a week prior (her forgetting our conversation means im a liar).....the second is that i "apparently" told the PO that the board said they could just let joe go....lol....which that never came up bettween the PO and i and so its a misunderstanding bettween her boss and her.....so im a big fat liar, like joe said if they lie its all in the name of the biz and if it makes sense to put it off on me then so be it....but in the end i still hold my head high knowing that they should be so lucky as to speak to someone like me...*Grin*

That's the spirit. God knows who's lying and not, and in their teensy hearts so do they.