San Quentin News
THE PULSE OF SAN QUENTIN

VOL. 2009 NO. 3

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN, CALIFORNIA 94964

POPULATION:5,214

‘ There is an
opportunity to
do something
extraordinary
in San
Quentin’

Their Exodus
Three Lifers are on their way
to start new lives outside
The exodus of Lifers from
San Quentin to freedom is no
longer a rare occurrence. Yet,
the parole of a Lifer is still worthy of celebration as it encourages all of us to persevere. Lifers Patrick Mims and Edward
Payton were paroled in March
2009. Jerry Elster’s parole date
has been approved by the Governor. We offer their insight on
their years of incarceration and
imminent freedom as a way to
give hope to those of us still
struggling for parole.

Edward Payton
Edward Payton was 33 years
old when he was imprisoned for
a murder he describes as the
shooting of a 22 year -old man
who “tried to take advantage of
my 13 year- old daughter.”
He recalls that he reacted emo-

tionally after he confronted the
young man who answered him
roughly.. Payton regrets to this
day, that action he took 33
years ago.
Payton emphasized that we
should try to surround ourselves
with “thinkers” rather than people who are emotional. He took
a man’s life because he reacted
angrily to that person’s remarks.
“If a person is not capable of
thinking for themselves, they
can not think for someone else.
And that’s for male and female,” he said.
“If I was thinking instead of
allowing emotions to take over,
no matter what was said to me,
this would never have happened,” he added. “Nothing
was worth me taking someone’s
life. That’s what happens when
you don’t allow yourself a
chance to think or are incapable
of doing so. Thinking is an art.”
Originally from south New
Orleans, he anticipates rejoining his two sons, two daughters
and 11 grandchildren and adjusting to freedom. Payton said
what he missed most was “the
love and affection of my family. I regret that I was not able
to lead my family spiritually
from prison.” As the eldest of
five children he feels a responsibility to demonstrate to his
family the kind of love and affection he was shown as a child
growing up.
See Exodus Page 2

‘...to leave
from these
walls and go
out and
repower and
retrofit
America’
―Van Jones
Van Jones speaking at San Quentin (Photo by Troy Williams)

Obama’s Green Czar Seeks
The Help of S.Q. Inmates
By MICHAEL R. HARRIS
Managing Editor, and
STEPHEN LIEBB
Staff Writer
“The President and the country need your help.”
This was the message from
Van Jones to an audience of
more than 150 inmates in the
San Quentin Protestant Chapel.
On Friday, March 13, 2009,
three days before reporting to
begin his job at the White
House as President Obama’s
Special Adviser for Green Jobs
and Enterprise and Innovation,
Jones said, this was one of his
last public appearances where
he could give his unvarnished
personal views. “Today I can

say what I want to say, what is
important to me and what is in
my heart,” Jones said, explaining that beginning at 9 a.m. the
next Monday all his remarks
would be prefaced by, “the
President says.”
“This moment here at San
Quentin can be a turning point
for the whole human race,”
Jones said. “San Quentin can
take healing and recovery to a
different level.”
Jones explained that San
Quentin inmates are in a unique
position to help because they
are individuals that have gone
through breakdowns and recovery. Some of the top minds in
this country “never had a bad
day or a bad year, he said.
“Crisis is something that is

new” to them, but not new to
prison inmates, he explained.
“Sometimes a breakdown is
what is required before you can
have a breakthrough. The country is going through a breakdown, it can lead to a breakthrough, Jones said.
Jones argued that it is useful
to “talk to people who have
walked through the process of
recovery. Sometimes it’s not
easy, not always a straight line.”
The “Green Agenda” that
Jones described means giving a
second chance not only to
things, through recycling, but
also to people. “If a soda can,
can have a second chance, can a
human being? he asked.
See Obama’s Green Czar
Page 4

The Man in Black Is Back: Cullen Selected
Johnny Cash Tribute Concert As Chief Deputy
By DAVID MARSH
From the very first raucous,
rollicking, foot-stomping guitar
chords that rolled forth from the
band’s introduction, it seemed
quite certain to everyone gathered in the Garden Chapel, inmates, guards and free-staff
alike, that somehow the legendary “Man In Black” had accomplished the impossible.
That somehow the country music icon had managed to find a
way to cheat the hands of fate
and come back to perform one
more time for the appreciative
prisoners of San Quentin. To
celebrate that long ago memorable performance, 40 years to
the day, when his by now wellknown ballads had reached out
to rock the walls for an appreciative audience in the venerable prison-by-the-bay.

Dyann Mazzeo &
David Stone
With a performance that
seemed indeed worthy of the 40
long years of wait, the looming
specter of the late country music giant virtually lit up the
stage in the dynamic person of
Philadelphia native David Stone
and his three-piece band, The
Johnny Cash Experience. Accompanied beautifully by the

powerful melodic voice of
Dyann Mazzeo (June Carter
Cash) on each of the notable
Cash duets, the polished impersonator/showman from the City
of Brotherly Love moved his
band smoothly through song
after lively song in the 24-song
set in two nearly flawless performances.
During both a matinee and
evening performance Feb. 24,
the celebration of Cash’s original performance at S.Q., Stone
and his band proved to over 500
people in the audience, including wardens both past and present, that he can produce on a
promise to deliver “accurate,
authentic, note-for-note representation of the Johnny Cash
Show.” And deliver is just what
they did!
See Johnny Cash Page 2

By KENNETH R. BRYDON
Editor-in-Chief
The certainty of change came
to San Quentin on Feb 2 when
the new Chief Deputy Warden
(CDW), Vince Cullen, arrived,
and he’s indicated that he will
be “…heavily involved in the
effective delivery of institution
programs.”
The duties of a Chief Deputy
Warden, are the day to day internal functions of the institution.
Cullen began with the CDCR
in 1990 working in Sacramento
for its Institutions Division. In
1992, he transferred to California Medical Facility, where he
began as a Budget Analyst. In
the next 15 years, Cullen went
from Plant Operations Supervisor to Manager, the Correctional Business Manager, an

CDW Vince Cullen
Associate Warden of Business
Services, Central Services, Special Programs and Mental
Health.
See Second in command
Page 2

Page 2

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

Johnny Cash
Continued from Page 1
From the characteristic Cash dip
of the head, the stiff neck, the lip
constantly lifting at the corner of
the mouth in the trademark outlaw sneer, the deep-south style
flourishing bow to “June Carter”
on the duets, to the unquestionably Cash-like baritone backed up
by the simple chords that so
many in the audience grew up
tapping a foot to, the show was
typically Johnny Cash!
‘BROADWAY QUALITY’
Stone approached the administration of S.Q. with the idea of
a tribute concert to celebrate the
appearance by Cash at the
prison, during which he taped a
“live” album. He bills his show,
“The Johnny Cash Experience,”
as total authenticity and Broadway quality, and none in the
audience could doubt the veracity of Stone’s claim. Stone
agreed to assume all expenses
incurred for the performances.
Stone estimates that he has
played over 1,000 shows since
2001, in clubs, casinos, fairs and
small theaters primarily up and
down the East Coast. From
Philadelphia to Maryland, Boston to Miami and all points in
between, and now all the way to
S.Q., this man in black has
wowed audiences like ours with

Exodus
Continued from Page 1
After serving in the Marines,
Payton went to Detroit from
New Orleans to live with his
brother, Lawrence Payton, and
his family.
“I liked the city of Detroit so
much I did not go back to New
Orleans. What interested me the
most was that as a master barber, I was able to open my own
business and make a lot of
money doing hair styles and
cutting hair.”
Payton’s brother, Lawrence,
was a member of the Four
Tops. He died of cancer in
1997, which still saddens him.
Payton said he never gave
up hope of being released. Two
days before his release, Payton
said, “I have clear thoughts.
Now I can see positive change.
Before there was doubt that I
could do the things I wanted to
do.’
He said imprisonment restricts our thoughts and keeps
us from being the complete
“you, that you can mentally and
spiritually be. It’s like being a
scientist without the use of a
laboratory to do experiments.”
His advice to others is to
educate themselves and maintain a positive outlook on life.
“The only people I have seen
fall by the wayside are people
who have given up on themselves.”
Over the past 33 years he
has educated himself,
“something I may not have
done on the streets.”
Payton said the reality that

excellent country-western entertainment. He formed his current
band three years ago.
Drawing from a set-list of
tunes which included many
taken from the 1969 album
Johnny Cash At San Quentin,
the polished showman held the
appreciative audience captive
while doing his part to cement
the legacy of the original “Man
In Black.” The presence of the
country music legend continued
to hover in the chapel throughout each show.
In a crowning moment that
was typically vintage San Quentin, North Block inmate Richard
Poma took the stage with Stone
to share with the audience his
own unique talent. As Stone
broke into the opening chords of
the Old 97, Poma cut loose with
his distinctive locomotive imitation that had the folks in the
chapel thinking the old train
engine was indeed barreling
down on them. And with that,
the crowd roared it’s approval.
On the evening prior to the
concerts, Stone was given a
walk through of North Block to
allow him to meet some of the
inmates. He was approached by
Sgt. O. Nollette who inquired of
Stone if he would be doing any
of Cash’s old train songs. When
Stone assured him that indeed
that would be the case, Nollette
told the singer that he had just
he was going home struck him
when he received a letter from
the governor declining to review the parole board’s decision to grant him parole. He
removed the letter and read
from it. Contemplating the fact
that his cell would no longer be
home, he said, “I feel good
about that. I’m feeling freedom.
Once your mind opens up to the
manifestation of the reality of
freedom, now you know that
you have the ability to put your
plan in action.”

Patrick Mims
After more than twenty
years of incarceration for second-degree murder, Patrick
Mims acknowledged his victim
was “a fine young man named
Kevin” and he expressed
“feelings of joy for the reality
of going to live my life. At the
same time I’m feeling sadness
for the good men I’m leaving
behind.”
He recalls that he had a
“distorted perception of reality”
and after about “four years into
my incarceration my transformation started.” He expressed a
desire to reunite with his family
and “honor Kevin and his fam-

Second in Command
Continued from Page 1
In March 2007, he returned
to Sacramento to be Chief of
Office of Project Management,
and then to CSP Solano to be
the Project Leader for the rollout of AB 900. “CSP Solano is
the pilot prison for developing
rehabilitation programs,” Cullen said.
Richard Poma on Train
THE NEW TITLE
the man for him. Poma was
summoned, an audition was
given, and the result was some
truly
memorable
moments
which only served to hi-light an
afternoon and evening of truly
unforgettable music.
‘COMMITED’ OPENS
Stone mesmerized the audience with his self-written ballad
“Back Again”, a song of Cash’s
return to a venue that he had
performed long ago, S.Q.. It was
a song that could have easily
been written by the late, great
country singer himself.
The S.Q. band, Committed, a
seven-piece funk and jazz band,
opened both shows for Stone
and used their mellow sound to
set the stage for things to come.
It was truly one more in a long
line of memories for a prison
that has so many.
ily by doing good work and
serving my community.”
Twice the Board of Parole
Hearings found him suitable.
The governor reversed both
dates. At his last board hearing,
Mims received a three-year
denial. A successful challenge
in the state courts to the governor’s reversal of his second date
resulted in his recent parole.
Mims stated: “My faith in
God sustained me through it all.
The obstacles were challenges;
I looked forward to facing the
challenges. I found hope in my
successes while in prison, the
more I achieved the clearer it
became to me that I would become a ‘physically’ free man
someday.”
Mims was chosen as one of
the first nine men to participate
in the Victim Offender Education Group [V.O.E.G.] of San
Quentin.
He said, “V.O.E.G provided
me a safe place to talk about my
crimes against society, my personal history in regards to my
relationship to others and the
impact all of this had on my
life. This in turn helped me to
understand how I got to the
point to where I could commit
the horrible act of murder.”
His belief in the effectiveness of the program led him to
become a co-facilitator in the
program and develop an 18month curriculum for a continuation program called The
Next Step.
He says he is proud that he
has developed from an
“uneducated substance- abusing
child into a mature, responsible,
compassionate, loving and caring man.”
Mims offers this advice to
Lifers still awaiting their day of
freedom: “I would suggest that

When Cullen was asked
what adding the title of
“Rehabilitation” meant to him
he stated: “True rehabilitation
programs are a mix of education, work, and other related
programs that prepare an inmate to successfully integrate
into society.”
Asked what changes he
would like to see, Cullen said,
“The short-term inmates won’t
see changes. People need to
understand patience in the rollout of rehabilitation.”
He indicated that Solano
will be the pilot, testing out
what then will come here.
Cullen continued, stating,
“San Quentin won’t see any
immediate change in the near
future, perhaps late 2009 or
2010.”
SQ News pointed out how
some policy changes tend to
individuals who have made a
sincere change within their
hearts, keep in the forefront of
their minds that they are not
their crimes of 20- plus years
ago. The shame, the guilt, and
the self persecution are not a
healthy way to live the rest of
your life.”

Jerry Elster
Jerry Elster’s life sentence of
more than twenty-five years
ended in March 2009. He has
several months of a consecutive
sentence left to serve but still
experienced the joy of having
the governor agree with the
Board that he was suitable for
parole.
Elster spoke about “the awesome power of God, who was
able to forgive me and look
aside from my shortcoming.
God took a gang member and
thug and gave him a spiritual
heart.”
He awaits a joyful reunion
with his mother. He overcame
the disappointment of being
found suitable for parole on two
prior occasions, only to have
the governor reject them. He
states that he and his supporters

have a negative impact on prisoners’ programs, Cullen responded: “Any time you have
a pattern of security breaches,
the inmate population should
expect that temporary restrictions of some facet of our operation is necessary whatever
the issues that arise.”
Asked to name his top objective, Cullen said, “To make
incremental changes so from
one week to the next we’re
constantly improving in the
over-all institutional operations
and the delivery of effective
inmate programs.
Warden
Wong and myself believe in
taking small steps toward
change rather than radical
modifications.”
CAROLE HOOD’S ROLE
Cullen indicated that Carole
Hood, Chief Deputy Secretary
and her staff in Adult Programs would be very involved.
SQ News asked Cullen how
this all might impact and involve Lifer prisoners.
“There’s a lot of external interest in how AB 900 will postive
impact them terms of their
participation,” he said “Lifer
populations will be a part of
our focus, and they may find
some interesting results of
such.”
felt “devastated” after the governor rescinded his first date in
2005.
“I had to really put my trust
in God, because the world
seemed to have turned their
back on me,” he said. He faces
freedom with “no fear but
plenty of anticipation of how I
will learn to maneuver through
life as I’ve learned to do inside.”
He feels that the parole process “forces a man to take responsibility, not only for the
crime, but for practically every
questionable area of his life.”
“I think that more emphasis
should be placed on rehabilitation and restorative factors
rather than politicizing the
process, he added.”
A key figure in the creation
of numerous self-help groups,
Elster has mentored inner city,
at risk youth in programs such
as No More Tears, Real
Choices and S.Q.U.I.R.E.S. An
articulate spokesman about
gang violence and how to help
young people avoid its snares,
Elster was featured on a recent
Dr. Phil program that was taped
at San Quentin. He said that a
major goal for his life to trying
to reverse the pain he caused by
his former life of gang violence.
Elster reminds all of us to
“never stop believing in second
chances.” He credits his wife,
Miki, as being a source of
strength and stability. Her patient resolve and belief that he
would be free helped him endure the arduous parole process.
―Michael R. Harris
Managing Editor,
Stephen Liebb
Staff Writer and
Julian Glenn Padgett
Contributing Writer

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

Page 3

Finding Peace
Through Yoga
By JW WILSON
Contributing Writer

Volunteers watch as a sea lion is released on its way to freedom

Rehabilitation
Another Place Where It’s High on the Agenda
By LEONARD RUBIO
Vocational Machine Shop
Leadman
No, I am not writing about
the California Department of
Corrections and Rehabilitation
(CDCR) and the Federal Receiver appointed to oversee the
medical conditions within the
CDCR. I am writing about the
collaboration between San
Quentin’s Vocational Machine
Shop and the Marine Mammal
Center (MMC), a non-profit
organization located in the
Marin Headlands. In 2004,
these two organizations began
a collaboration to help the students of the Vocational Machine Shop and the Vocational
Sheet Metal Shop gain real
world experience while helping the MMC to rescue, rehabilitate back to
health, and then
release
marine
mammals to their
freedom.
The collaboration between the
two organizations
has been mutually
beneficial.
The
MMC has been
able to have three
seal
carriers
manufactured and
a couple of seal
carriers repaired.
Leonard Rubio,
the leadman in the
Vocational Machine Shop, reengineered the seal carrier to
create an improved design utilizing Autodesk Inventor Professional 9 computer-aided
design software that was donated by Autodesk, Inc., a software company located nearby
in San Rafael.
The MMC
donated a new Gas Tungsten
Arc Welder (aka: TIG and Heliarc) to the Vocational Machine Shop as well as all of the
materials required to manufacture and repair the various projects.
In addition to the donated

welder, the Vocational Machine Shop has had a wonderful opportunity to give back to
the community while gaining
experience with a “real world”
project. There has also been
great pride in knowing that we
were manufacturing something
to help another life gain it’s
freedom from captivity!
MARIN HEADLANDS
This past year the Vocational Machine Shop delivered
a repaired “Seals-On-Wheels”
carrier to the MMC. This carrier is utilized to move seals
and young sea lions that are
being rehabilitated at the MMC
in the Marin Headlands. The
carrier was almost completely
rebuilt due to its original construction from mild steel that

deteriorated from corrosion
caused by salt water. The carrier was rebuilt using stainless
steel and aluminum that are
more resistant to corrosion
from exposure to salt water.
BUILDING THE CAGE
The rebuild consisted of
reverse engineering most of the
carrier, redesigning the doors,
disassembly of the carrier, creating a new parts list for the
MMC to purchase all of the
necessary materials for the
rebuild, receiving the pur-

chased materials from the
MMC, manufacturing the new
Sheet metal doors, gas tungsten arc welding various parts
of the carrier, and reassembly
of the carrier.
The carrier was rebuilt
through the efforts of students
in both the Vocational Machine Shop and the Vocational
Sheet Metal Shop.
William Branson, Robert
Markrell, Jeff Langnese and
Leonard Rubio were the students that manufactured the
project within the Vocational
Machine Shop.
Hector Oropeza, Noel Valdivia, Felix Lucero, and Bert
Boatman were the students that
completed all of the Sheet
metal forming of the project
within the Vocational Sheet
Metal Shop.
The “Seals-OnWheels” carrier was
the second carrier
repaired for the
MMC. Three other
brand new carriers
have been manufactured for, and delivered to, the MMC
between 2005 and
2007.
The MMC has
been so pleased
with the quality of
workmanship that
they requested that
the Vocational Machine Shop design
and manufacture a larger carrier for transporting and rehabilitating mature (large) sea
lions. Leonard Rubio is working on the design for the sea
lion carrier as well as developing prints for the manufacture
of a net for rescuing injured
seals.
The partnership between
the two organizations has been
wonderful.
On March 10,
2009, the Marine Mammal
Center had a group of its employees and volunteers come
out to San Quentin for a visit
and tour.

Before I actually started
attending Yoga I thought of it
as some religious cult aligned
with the Buddha. That was my
truth then. I would see people in
weird positions in magazines
and or television, somehow I
knew that laying on a mat in
those positions had to be painful and could never be good for
me. So while attending a
weekly T.R.U.S.T. meeting I
heard about some members
attending Yoga sessions.
After much contemplation I
decided to give the Buddha and
Yoga a try. Now after almost a
complete year of Yoga I can
share with you these new truths
I’ve come to know:
1. Buddha, although he may
have meditated has nothing to
do with Yoga.
2. Yoga, as defined by Webster’s dictionary is not a religious-cult; it is a system of exercises for attaining bodily or
mental control and well-being.
3. Yoga has improved my mind
and body connection. I am now

more attuned and aware of not
only the condition of my body
but also to other things around
me. I have achieved greater
flexibility and have finally
learned to breathe and stay in
my mind while in relaxed positions like child’s pose, or in
more challenging positions like
downward dog or warrior.
Bringing my thoughts in line
to concentrate on nothing but
the moment – my breath and
the feelings in my body, has
been one of the most challenging things for me. Learning to
really focus and free your mind
from all other distractions except for the occasional voice of
our instructor, Katchie, who
encourages and reminds us to
always be “minding your business,” a mantra we’ve since
adopted is not an easy thing to
do. But I’ve learned to apply
this in my daily walk. I’ve
learned to think of the body as a
community, and when there is
something wrong in your community, you’d like to fix it.
I say Peace –Peace –Peace
to all the beings in the universe.
Namaste.

Health and
Wellness Corner
The San Quentin News “ Health and Wellness Corner” column
runs every month. A University of California, San Francisco health
professional student will answer questions that you submit about health
issues. Inquiries will be answered in the next month’s paper. Feel free
to ask us questions about any medical concern that you have, and it
may be answered so that everyone can benefit. If you have a question,
put it in a U-Save-Em envelope addressed to: “Health and Wellness
Corner,” UCSF Doctors (Dr. Shira Shavit) – Medical Box. If you
include your name and number, they will be kept confidential.
Note that this column is for general medical questions.
We would like to thank you for your submissions. This edition,
we will address the following question:
“Why is physical activity important for me?”
You have heard your health care provider tell you that physical
activity is important, but how many have told you why? The short
answer is that physical activity will improve your health. Since
“health” is so broad, let’s look at some of the specific ways that
activity is important. Physical activity will:
Lower your risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes, high
blood pressure and cancer.
Make you feel more calm and happy by lowering anxiety
and depression.
Help you control your weight down
Develop your muscles, bones and joints.
Help you maintain your strength and prevent falls as you
get older.
You should do at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity
at least five days a week. This may mean 30 minutes straight, or a
total of 30 minutes (for example, 10 minutes three times in one
day). “Moderate” physical activity means that your heart may beat
faster, you may sweat, your breathing may get heavier, and you
should be able to carry on a conversation while you exercise
whether you are walking, sweeping your cell or playing tennis on
the yard.
For those who like a more intense workout (during which you
are out of breath, you are covered in sweat, and your heart is beating really fast) you should be active for 20 minutes at least three
days a week. It you are already exercising this much, considering
increasing your routine. If you don’t currently exercise, start with
just 10 minutes and do more over time.
It is important to mix up your routine, with strengthening and
stretching. The next time you are out on the yard, mix up your
workouts! Play basketball, do push ups, run in place, do jumping
jacks, stretch, walk, play baseball, jump rope and practice yoga.
Remember that physical activity doesn’t have to be hard to do or
hurt to be effective. You will feel better and live a healthier life.

Page 4

Lawrence Decision
Offers New Hope
By HECTOR OROPEZA
Contributing Writer
Many Lifers hoped that the
California Supreme Court decision in In re Lawrence would
automatically open the door and
set them free. The Lawrence
case has invalidated the pattern
and practice of using the crime
itself to continually deny parole
without an articulation of, and
factual support for, a finding of
a "nexus between those factors
and the necessary basis for the
ultimate decision - the determination of current dangerousness."
A LONG HISTORY
However, on the same day it
decided Lawrence, the Supreme
Court held that there was some
evidence that another inmate
posed a current danger to public
safety because the inmate had a
long history of abusive, violent,
sadistic behavior toward his
wives and daughters, especially
after consuming alcohol. He
never developed an understanding of his alcoholism and had
difficulty discussing his daughter's allegation of rape, incest
and domestic violence. (In re
Shaputis ).
In most board hearing transcripts that I have read, where

suitability of parole is denied ,
it appears that the board is using the language of the latter
case as a template to deny parole. The board either ignored
the psychological evaluations
that determine that the prisoner
poses a "low threat" to public
safety if released, or disagreed
and replaced it with their own
findings. Lifers need to do more
work and continue to push the
door open.
Lawrence is only a roadmap
to follow in seeking parole
through the board and courts. I
recommend that everyone read
this case and use it to prepare
for the board and courts. Although it would be nice if everyone could afford to hire an
attorney to prepare a petition
for writ of habeas corpus, several Lifers in North Block and
beyond have succeeded in filing
their petition for writ of habeas
corpus without an attorney.
The Judicial Council has
prepared an application for petition of writ of habeas corpus
with the nonprofessionals, or
lay person, in mind. The form,
MC-275, can be found in the
law library and has straight up
questions that can be answered
with a simple sentence, or yes
or no. The instructions are
clear. For example, on page
one, the petitioner must put his

name and address, the name of
the court, the title of the case
(petitioner's name vs. the warden's name).
On page two, check the box
that says "Parole" and state
your name, where you are incarcerated, what is the nature of
the offense, what penal code
violation you were convicted
of, etc. On page three, you state
your claim (Who did what,
when they did it, and how the
court should remedy the violation). For example, using the
Lawrence case, one can claim:
"The board of parole hearings
violated petitioner’s state and
federal due process when they
failed to provide a nexus of his
current dangerousness when it
denied him parole for three
years.”
SUITABILITY FINDING
This is just an example. You
will then explain briefly in part
(a) "Supporting facts:" That on
the date of the hearing, petitioner
appeared before the BPH for his
nth subsequent hearing and was
denied parole for x-years.
The board stated the reasons
are as follows .... The record or
state and federal law do not support the board's findings. The
psychological and petitioner's
prison behavior supports a suitability finding and the board did
not provide any evidence that
petitioner is a current threat to
the public if released on parole.
In part (b) submit supporting
cases which a current listing of
can be found in the law library.

Obama’s Green Czar
Continued from Page 1

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

and the “whole of the earth is
holy land.” Colonizers are responsible for imposing a different view of the earth than the
one the indigenous peoples had,
he explained. Colonizers said
that the earth can be bought and
sold and that only things above
are holy. Colonizers referred to
indigenous peoples as savages
for considering trees, rocks and
rivers as sacred. Colonizers
“put a price tag on everything,“
he said.
He said, “because of Barack
Obama American is back for
the very first time. We will take
America forward.”
Jones described the green
economy as a fiscally conservative approach to money. Spending on green lowers energy
consumption, creates jobs and

len.
Describing Jones as “Yale
Jones said there are no throw
trained and community tested,”
away children, people, commuHarris said, “This is a special
nities or nations.
“We need
day. We have a distinguished
genius. We need entrepreneuspeaker. He is about to change
rial brilliance, people who can
the world. I know that’s a powre-imagine possibilities -we
erful statement. But when you
need you,” Jones said to the San
hear him speak, I think you’ll
Quentin inmates assembled in
agree with me.”
the Protestant Chapel. “Some
Jones, a 1993 graduate of
of the wisdom and genius we
Yale Law School, is the author
need is not going to be found on
of The Green Economy: How
Wall Street, it’s going to be
One Solution Can Fix Our Two
found in this room.”
Biggest Problems .He is the
Declaring, “There is an opfounder of Green for All, which
portunity to do something exaims to create jobs and opportraordinary in San Quentin,”
tunties in the green economy
Jones proposed building a cadre
for those in economically disadof people who could “re-power
vantaged neighborhoods. His
and retrofit America.” He exlong time involvement in the
plained that the stimulus bill
civil and human rights movethat Obama passed provides
ments includes the co-founding
between
$100of Oakland’s
$150 billion for
Ella Baker
“We need genius. We need entrepreneurial Center for
renewable energy
and to create new brilliance, people who can re-imagine possibili- H u m a n
industries.
Rights.
ties -we need you.”
Describing
Harris
Obama as the
proposed the
“first green President,” Jones reduces pollution through retro- creation of a Green Technology
urged that we should build a fitting, he explained.
Learning Center in San Quentin
green economy that provides
Jones’ appearance at San in honor of Van Jones whose
equal opportunity. “You should Quentin was sponsored by a ideas for uplifting the disenbe able to access the opportuni- council consisting of San Quen- franchised will be part of
ties,” Jones stated.
tin self-help groups, Keep’in It President Obama’s economic
Jones sees the green agenda Real; T.R.U.S.T.; M.O.M.A.S.; recovery program.
as “a return to wisdom. Every REDEEM and with the assisChief Deputy Warden Cullen
time they are saying the word t a n c e o f t h e N a t i o n a l said, “We are committed to this.
green, they are paying homage T.R.U.S.T. and Urban Strate- We are going to be involved.
to your great- great grand- gies.
We are going to make San
mother” who understood our
Michael Harris introduced Quentin the first institution in
relationship to the earth.
Jones to an audience that in- the country to go green.” He
Jones explained that every- cluded ActingWarden Wong asked for patience in accomone comes from tribal people and Chief Deputy Warden Cul- plishing these goals.

Freedom Gate
Warden Johnston’s innovative ideas
By R.E. CALIX
Contributing Writer
More than 60 years after
opening its doors in 1852, the
California prison system was
quickly becoming a breeding
ground for incorrigible and
hardened convicts. From each
corner of the state these men
had been cut off and sectioned
apart because they had become
a threat to the common welfare
of the state.
Former U.S. Supreme Court
Chief Justice Warren Burger
proposed: “We must accept the
reality that to confine offenders
behind walls without trying to
change them is an expensive
folly with short-term benefits
— winning battles while losing
the war.”
In 1912, as a “new man,”
Warden James A. Johnston took
charge of his wards with urgency and no time wasted. In
his book, Prison Life Is Different, he writes, “Already I had
come to the conclusion that
crime couldn’t be punished out
of individuals, but that probably
individuals could be educated
out of crime.” Johnston’s objective here was not to be soft on
crime, but instead to be smart
when dealing with criminals. In
1915, at his behest the office of
Educational Director was introduced.
He said, “It gave the Educational Department a definite
place in receiving and therefore
training inmates to go out better
than when they came in.”
Under Johnston’s reign, it
could be said that when a man
entered through the doors of
San Quentin and Folsom he was
in effect walking through a
gateway to freedom. In recent

times the precious benefits of
education were voiced by an
unknown inmate: “My involvement with college has opened
my eyes to all of the things that
were wrong in my life. Now I
have a sense of priority, a sense
of accountability, and have
made a legitimate promise to
myself on which to build. My
needs are still important, but
not at someone else’s expense.”
After retirement in 1925,
Johnston worked as chairman
of the California Crime Commission and as director of the
Department of Penology. Close
to 50 years later, San Quentin
continued the work of reaching,
teaching and changing the men
with a slew of independent
study and academic programs,
with over 65 percent enrollment.
In parting, the warden
quipped, “ Personally, I don’t
think we are suffering from any
lack of laws; we have enough
and to spare. I believe that our
greatest difficulties and our
greatest opportunities are in the
field of prevention, in a better
use of social, economic and
educational agencies.”
The term for a “new man”
who decides to take a stand and
act independent of his group is
called a maverick. It was true
for Johnston in the early years
of a 20th century prison boom.
His vision for the department
was connection in corrections,
and it turned many convicts into
productive men.
Johnston was consciously
conscientious in the quest for
reforming and correcting the
men who happened to be walking through the steel doors at
San Quentin and Folsom. His
ideals of bibliotherapy live on.

H-Unit Calm Class
Holds Graduation
By DAVID MARSH
In a ceremony held at the H
Unit chapel Thursday, March
5th, an additional 25 students
joined the over 300 inmates
who have successfully completed the course curriculum of
the Conflict / Anger: Lifelong
Management (CALM) class.
The course, a mainstay of
the STAND-UP program, is
designed to meet the needs of
inmates newly arriving in the H
Unit and, according to instructor Ms. D. Searle, is intended as
an initial safe haven for them as
they adjust to the structured
prison environment.
The 272 hours over 34 days
of classroom instruction feature
the use of intensive journaling
as a tool of introspective self
discovery intending to lead
each student to better self
awareness, says Searle. She
leads one of the two CALM
classes, the other is taught by
Ms. A. Sufi.
Each class, composed almost
entirely of volunteers, studies

topics which include: Anger
Definitions, Communication
Skills, Relationships, Personal
Health, Job Preparation and
Community Resources. . A variety of outside speakers are
brought in to share information
with the students throughout the
eight weeks of instruction.
“The goal,” Searle said, “is
to have each student better
equipped when they leave. To
have the tools.” If you get people to change the way they
think, according to Searle, then
in turn their behaviors will
change.
The brief ceremony, during
which the students received
certificates of completion, was
attended by Education Principal
T. Roberts, Vice-Principal D.
Sheldon, Distance Learning
Coordinator (STAND-UP) Dr.
V. Matheny and Lt. D. Dorsey.
From all appearances the
graduation was intended to signal a beginning, rather than an
end, for the students.

MARCH 2009

Page 5

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT THE BOOK CLUB
much time to read like I used to,
but I appreciate the reviews by
the other members and will
probably read some of their recommendations.”
Keith Lettier says he would
not have even considered a
quaint account of a circus in the
1930s by female author Sara
Gruen titled Water for Elephants
were it not for a review by another member. “It has definitely
expanded my horizons.”
Club operations always allow
the club to revisit a book once
all members have read it. For
example , Cormac McCarthy 's
The Road , a post nuclear war
account of man's inhumanity
towards man, was discussed
repeatedly. This writer appreciated the peer review of Khaled
Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, a
story of love, friendship and
redemption in warring Afghanistan. I eventually read it.
The membership is small and
limited. The only time it will
take up is the reading and the
monthly meeting.
If you are interested in participating, contact D. Sheldon in
the Education Department.

By RANDY MALUENDA

Poetry

Snippets

Acolyte

Arabic numerals, which are

One day, while wandering in the desert,
He found himself―developing his spirit;
And things were going well, until his hairshirt
Got ripped by a devil’s jealous fit.

the world standard (0-9), are
named because they were
brought to Europe by the Arabs.
The Arabs brought them from
India.

And then the universe offered this truth:
A woman chose this man to participate
In her delusion she could use her youth
A beauty to prove she’s Venus incarnate.

Gas chamber started as a

Unraveled totally, chose to weave
Her fantasies with his reality;
In poems where love was more than make—believe,
The Goddess grew into his totality.
Beware of metaphorical deserts―
It’s where the Muse hunts her converts.
—John O. Neblett

Fear-Less
It can't be about the outcome;
Because I have no control over the outcome
I can only be present for this moment….
and this moment…
and this moment.
It's about me. About how I am able
to be with my emotions;
my feelings;
myself.
About how I handle this situation;
and if I choose to continue to operate from a place of fear.
It can't be about the heart attack…
It can't be about the diabetes…
It can't be about not having health insurance…
It can't be about getting hurt…
It can't be about losing my home…
It can't be about dying.
It has to be about living.
It has to be about the experience of life.
It has to be about me.
It's not about the outcome.
It never was.
—Meeta

scientific term in the late 19th
century. The apparatus was
used in microscopy for studying
the effects gases have on organisms.

Raise Cain is a reference to
the biblical brother of Able,
conventionally known as the
world’s first criminal.

Excellent, amaze, bedroom,
and majestic are all words
which were coined by Shakespeare.

Gain knowledge and feel
pleasure at the same time ...
through books! How great is
that?
That’s the Variety Book Club
(VBC). Since 2003, the members—of whom this writer has
been one since 2006―monthly
review and discuss the current
booklist consisting mainly of
current New York Times paperback best sellers
Following a short roll-out by
a title’s “selector,” a book is
discussed by those who read the
book as well as those who did
not. “The small size of the group
allows for this unusual approach,” says sponsor Debra
Sheldon of the Education Department. “It’s not for everyone.”
Indeed! Members regularly
rotate one or two copies of a
dozen titles between meetings.
More books are read by more
people in the same amount of
time, and it allows more flexibility to every member.
Kamal Sefeldeen explains,
“Right now, I don’t have as

E

very 20 minutes the world’s
population grows by 3500 people.

Navy Beans got their name
because of their widespread use
by navy cooks.

Potatoes contain more chromosomes than human beings
do. A potato has 48, where a
human has 46.

Lettuce contains between two
to ten parts of morphine per
billion.

Annual average temperature
of Dalol, Denakil Depression in
Ethiopia is 93.3degrees Fahrenheit, making it the hottest place
on earth

Father

Named after Morpheus the

Father I already know how to shoot a gun.
Though not my biological, you are still responsible.
I watch the way you talk, the way you walk and the reason you
don't f_ _k with me somehow
I feel it's my fault.
Father, I already know how to be slick.
I watch how you get at my mother and them other chicks,
but I don't know what it is to be a man
How to deal with my pain.
See, me and my gang
is on promethizine being raised by Lil Wayne.
Father, I already know how to die
and how to lie.
But I need you to tell me that it's okay to cry
and it don't hurt to try.
Even though you are not my biological, I still follow you.
You are my only role model dude.
So I call on you
to help shape me,
but for some reason you shake me.
I heard you tell someone that you were married to the street, in
love with the block.
So I ask this question from upstate in a box,
do you care what happens? Father, show me something I don't
know.
—Marv Mitch

Greek God of Dreams, Morphine is a derivative of opium.

English spittle bugs are the
worlds highest jumpers. It can
jump 27.5 inches straight up,
the equivalent of a human
jumping over a 70-story building.

SUDOKU
2

8

1

4

T

he tongue of a blue whale
weighs as much as a full grown
elephant

5

3
4
9
7
1
6
5
8
2

6
1
5
3
2
8
7
4
9

4
9
8
1
7
3
6
2
5

5
3
6
2
8
4
9
7
1

1
2
7
6
5
9
8
3
4

9
5
3
8
6
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7
8
4
9
3
1
2
5
6

2
6
1
5
4
7
3
9
8

5
7

3
7

1

LAST MONTH’S
SUDOKU SOLUTION
8
7
2
4
9
5
1
6
3

By GEORGE LOWE

7
3

8

3
5

7

9

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Page 6

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

RELIGION
Ethics and the
Family Dynamic
By DARRELL C. HARTLEY
Staff Writer
Cultivation is key to reap an
abundant harvest. The dynamic
family structure is truly the
cornerstone of generational
existence. This key leaves nothing to chance in relationships
with our wives, children and
significant others. The family
dynamic is much more than the
attractiveness of one's mate or
their household and human talents. It is the sincere desire to
incorporate a sense of worth to
one another that will weather
any storm.
In a world swirling full of
deceit, suspicion, tyranny and
uncertainty, the burning question is: how are your ethics?
Ethics is defined as a discipline

in coping with loss and providing them with the encouragement, inspiration and motivation required to continue navigating their lives.
History teaches us that the
family dynamic is the mechanism of happiness, sadness,
reconciliation and closure, consistently connecting and continually learning the purpose of
this relationship. Consider appreciating the letters, cards,
subscriptions, telephone calls,
visits and packages: each are
done out of love, not necessity.
An ancient proverb teaches
that honesty is the best policy.
Ethics is a lifestyle that on a
personal level doing what is
right, even when there is no
one watching. We can clearly
gather all of the elements of

In a world swirling full of deceit,
suspicion, tyranny and uncertainty, the
burning question: how are your ethics?
dealing with good, evil, moral
duty, principles or practices.
Even in a place such as this,
one can remain a compassionate and honorable husband,
father, grandfather, son, uncle,
nephew, cousin and friend. Although we are in absentia, there
should be absolutely nothing to
interfere in our roles as parents
and mentors, such as assisting

our lives and in that moment,
begin designing our future. We
must be very firm in our own
ideas and considerations. Our
family dynamic will certainly
serve as an example for others
who are in relationships to
become a beacon of light, ray
of hope and safe harbor to all
that enter their presence now
and beyond.

‘Healing by Our Wounds’
The hanging of Jesus on the
cross represents many things,
but Father Richard Rohr, 65,
pointed out that not enough in
the Christian faith see it as the
example we should follow. His visit to the San
Quentin Centering
Prayer group was to
speak on “Men’s
Work,” the subject of
his book being released
in September: “The Naked Now – Learning to
See Like the Mystics.”
The path to real maturity, Rohr teaches, is
through the wounds inflicted upon us.
“There is nothing in
this society that forces
you to mature,” Rohr
said. He points to children dying of cancer as
an example, and how
they can achieve wisdom beyond their years
by the crisis in their
lives. The author of
over 20 books which he
described as “Social
Culture Analysis,” Rohr
came to SQ on Feb. 09, 2009,
to speak with the invited guests
and participants of the Monday
Night Centering Prayer.
“On every continent, it was
assumed that boys did not naturally become men,” Rohr explained. In the past, maturity
typically was accomplished by
age 19, as where in this era,
adolescence goes all the way to
32, he added.
Initiations were the key, and
societies around the world held
to a universal pattern that the
boy was initiated through
wounding that was either ritual
or literal. “Everything pivoted

SPORTS
TEXAS DOLLY
By: Minnesota Correctional Facility
Oak Park Heights
Reprinted with Permission

Trivia
What is the name of the arena
that was the former home of the
Los Angeles Lakers?
A.
B.
C.
D.

The Summit
Arco Arena
The Forum
Oracle Arena

Answer: The Forum.
Doyle Brunson is to poker
what Tiger is to golf, what
Jordan is to basketball, what
Gretzky is to hockey, what
Ruth is to baseball. He is
admired and respected by
everyone who plays his game,
not just for his ability, but for
being an absolute gentleman
whether winning or losing.
Daniel Negranu, a top professional player said, "Frankly,
without Doyle, there would be
no poker tour today."
Brunson has won two straight
World Poker championships
in Las Vegas, a World Poker
Tour championship, and 10
gold bracelets in the World
Series of Poker. He has written a book "Super System"
that every serious player has
read and studied.
Brunson was a gifted athlete in high school. He was

selected to the Texas AllState basketball team and finished first in the mile in the
Texas state track meet. After
college he was sought by the
professional basketball team
the Minneapolis Lakers. Unfortunately, Brunson injured a
leg and was unable to compete athletically ever again.
He took a job as a salesman, and after his first day's
work, played in a poker game
and won more than a month's
wages. Brunson had found
his niche. At age 29 he was
diagnosed with incurable cancer but miraculously survived.
In fact, his doctors had no
explanation for Brunson’s
recovery.
In 2006, Bluff
Magazine named him the
most influential force in the
poker world. Mr. Brunson is
a living poker legend.

Which was the first NFL
team to have cheerleaders?
A.
B.
C.
D.

Dallas Cowboys
Oakland Raiders
San Francisco 49ers
Washington Redskins

Answer: The Washington Redskins REDSKINNETTES in
1962.
Who was the first NHL
goaltender to wear a mask on a
regular basis?
A.
B.
C.
D.

Bill Durnan
Jacques Plante
Terry Sawchuk
Roy Worters
Answer: Jacques Plante in
1959 vs the New York Rangers.

around what he did with his
wound,” said Rohr. “If he didn’t turn the wounds into ‘sacred
wounds,’ he walked on in bitterness.”

Father Richard Rohr
Many in prison, Rohr pointed
out, have failed to take their
wounded state and make them
into sacred wounds. “It’s all
what you do with the wound,
and how it teaches you to deal
with your pain. ‘Life is suffering,’ is what the Buddha says.
If you do not transform your
pain, you’ll transmit it to others.”
Rohr also said that the crisis
of prison can be where a person
starts letting go and starts listening to wisdom. “We come
to God by doing it wrong,” he
said, adding that the key is in
turning our wounds into sacred

wounds. “You came to God not
by avoiding all failure and
woundedness; you go through
the wounds.”
“Meditation is not a new
thing,” he said. The
practice of the Monday night Centering
Prayer group is that of
quieting the mind to
hear the “still small
voice” about which
the Bible speaks.
The Bible has many
references to meditation, but the practice
has not become very
popular.
Asked if
that was a “good”
thing, Rohr stated,
“Perhaps, our society
tends to turn such
things into fads.”
Rohr is the contemporary of the founder
of Centering Prayer,
Father
Thomas
Keating. The practice
Father
Keating
teaches is meant to
quiet the busy mind so
that we can “hear” God speak
to us. Through this we come to
see the wounds we hold on to,
turning them into sacred
wounds from which we can
discover real healing.
We all do these things imperfectly, Rohr pointed out. “Even
the best things I do are for
mixed motives.” But he points
to the real message of the Bible,
and Who is there: “God does
not love you because you’re
good,” he said. “He loves you
because He is good.”
―Kenneth R. Brydon
Editor-in-Chief

Former Prisoner
Wins in Boxing Ring
By KENNETH R. BRYDON
Editor-in-Chief
Paul Nave, 48, boxing’s one
time WBF World Welterweight
Champion, who served three
years at San Quentin for drug
possession, stepped back into
the ring March 6, 2009, and in a
four round bout pounded out a
unanimous decision over a
much younger opponent.
Known as the “The Marin
Assassin,” Nave was a local
favorite who became a Golden
Gloves champion before turning pro in 1985. His once
promising career was derailed
by his conviction and subsequent sentence to a six year
term which he began in 1990.
Nave continued fighting
while here at S.Q. and was permitted to fight a bout at the
Petaluma Veterans Hall. SQTV
has the video of the fight that
shows Nave landing a devastating blow to his opponent that
put him on the canvas with no
doubt of where he’d be at the
end of the ten-count.
Nave paroled on July 4,
1993 and continued fighting,

eventually winning the welterweight title at the Marin Civic
Center March 3, 1998. Injuries
and repeated surgery on his
back led to his retirement. For
his current comeback, due to
his many injuries and age, the
boxing commission elected to
limit his most recent fight to
four rounds.
The crowd at the Marin
Civic Center was loud, screaming for their home-town favorite.
His opponent, Mikhail
Lyubarsky from Kiev, Ukraine ,
was 18 years younger. A banner for the fight declared: “It
Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over.”
In between his parole and
this last bout, Nave ran for a
state assembly seat, and even
put his hat in the ring to be
California’s governor during
the recall election which saw
Arnold Schwarzenegger elected
to Sacramento.
With the victory, Nave’s
record improved to 17-8-1. He
has indicated that he intends to
fight again.
-staff writer David Marsh contributed to this story

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

OPINION
Van Jones Shares
His Green Mission
By MICHAEL HARRIS
Managing Editor, and
STEPHEN LIEBB
Staff Writer
Van Jones, a Yale Law
School graduate and Bay Area
community organizer, uses
words to inspire, encourage and
educate.
Jones is the author of The
Green Collar Economy: How
One Solution Can Fix Our Two
Biggest Problems
The two biggest problems he
identifies are sociological inequality and the ecological crisis.
Jones writes that we need to
repair the earth, oppose racism
and uplift the disadvantaged.
He also expressed a belief that
“our sisters and brothers in the
developing world need the full
engagement and cooperation of
Western governments.”
The main principles of the
green economy are “equal protection; equal opportunity; and
reverence for all Creation.”
According to Jones, reverence
for all creation means no throwaway species or resources, children, neighborhoods or nations.
The problem-makers in our
economy are “the war makers,
polluters, and incarcerators,”
according to Jones. “It is
unlikely that the present high
lords of oil, coal and armaments
will reverse course or give up

their power without a struggle.
A new force must emerge to
realign American politics,
transform the political landscape and supplant the Texas/
Pentagon axis.”
Jones explains that his mission is for the “oppressed to
confront and defeat their oppressors.”
In an interview with us at
San Quentin, he said that he
became tired of confrontational
politics and sought ways to find
solutions.
Jones’ strength is his ability
to bridge differences between
people. He looks for common
ground and allies rather than
seeking targets to attack.
“Goals can be shared even by
people who disagree on many
points, “he writes.
Jones used to embrace the
role model of David confronting Goliath. Now, “I realize that
it requires that the protagonists
always be small and marginalized, and it requires a politics of
confrontation and opposition.
Such a politics may serve us
poorly as we confront the dangers that will demand cooperation on a massive scale.”
His new model is Noah and
his wife. They are leaders who
must make plans for a difficult
future while trying to save as
many people and fellow species
as possible.
Jones’ vision of politics

would focus on creating something new rather than confronting something old. It would be
more about “proposition” and
less about “opposition.” The
Government must protect and
benefit our most vulnerable
populations, he believes.
Jones is passionate but selfeffacing and in his San Quentin
appearance, he used both wit
and humility. He conceded to
us that there were some gaps in
his vision of a green economy.
Jones appearance at San
Quentin created a palpable excitement. He introduced himself
to many of the inmates seated
in the Protestant Chapel, approaching them with a smile
and handshake. During a question and answer period, he
asked for the name of the questioners, and was sincere in addressing any issues raised. He
was quick to admit when he did
not have an answer.
Jones inspires confidence
and trust. He acknowledged
Diana Frappier a criminal defense attorney who worked
with Jones for 15 years in the
Bay Area Police Watch and
introduced her to the audience.
She said that when you tell
people to make different
choices you need to give them
something to choose. She summarized the goal of the green
economy as “providing real
opportunities, decent job and
careers.”
Jones writes, “I pray that
this book will give hope, encouragement, and inspiration
to those who are working to
move our society along the
path to a green future.” I believe we can get there.”
To us, and many of those
who had the privilege of hearing Van Jones speak, he provided just that inspiration.

Letting Go of Anger…
By HELEN AMEETA
SINGH
Facilitator, Trust's
Wellness Group
"Holding onto anger is like
grasping a hot coal with the
intent of throwing it at someone
else; you are the one who gets
burned" -Buddha
Namaste my brothas. I
wanted to talk about a very familiar, comfortable, and common emotion we all experience
- anger. For all of us here in the
West, and in particular men,
anger is an acceptable, expected
emotion to have. More often
than not, anger is a defense
mechanism. Its job is to protect
us from the more painful, uncomfortable, sometimes scary
emotions that lie underneath.
Feelings like pain, hurt, rejection, abandonment, guilt,
shame, loneliness, confusion,
betrayal-the list goes on and on.
Anger helps to keep these painful emotions away - so I don't
have to feel them. Anger inevitably leads to violence. Think
of the countless video games,
movies, music and television
shows that glorify and promote
anger and violence.
In helping to keep other,

more painful emotions away,
anger serves the purpose of
psychological self-protecting
from those other feelings,
which I have most likely never
been taught healthy ways of
managing. Yet, it is a doubleedged sword, as the abovementioned quote suggests. In
being angry, I get the benefit of
not having to feel these other
painful emotions. Yet, my anger harms me psychologically
and physically. It also harms
others if I engage in acts of
physical, verbal and emotional
violence as a means of managing that anger.
A friend likened anger to
fire-it can keep us warm or it
can burn us up. It is okay to feel
angry. Anger is simply one of a
range of countless other emotions that we as human beings
experience. The problem becomes that we hang on to our
anger and it burns us up.
When we have spent a lifetime experiencing countless
injustices perpetrated against us
and our loved ones; when we
live in circumstances where we
have very little control over our
lives (like prison) anger can
easily grow, strengthen and
deepen. Our challenge is to find
ways to transform our anger so
that is not continually wound-

ing us so that I am not continually burning myself. Gandhi
makes the point "…as heat conserved is transmuted into energy; even so our anger controlled can be transmitted into a
power which can move the
world."
How can someone transform
their anger? Creative outlets
such as writing, art, making
music, et cetera are healthy
ways of transforming anger.
More importantly, perhaps, is
finding the courage to explore
what is underneath the anger. In
doing this, anyone will need to
learn to be with those other
uncomfortable feelings without
having to push them away with
unhealthy behaviors such as
violence or drug use.
Reflect on a recent time
when you felt angry. Why were
you angry? What did you do
when you were angry? What
were some feelings that may
have been underneath the anger
(e.g. feeling disrespected, dismissed, unheard, unimportant,
not valued, et cetera) that the
anger may have been protecting
you from? How can you find a
way to transform this anger, so
that you are not holding onto
the "hot coal?"
Until next time my brothas,
Peace and blessings……

Page 7

A Story of Violence
And Its Effects on
The Community
By Marv Mitch
We talk about how violence
affects our community, but we
never discuss how it actually
does. Here's a look at how intricate it really gets.
A mother who just two days
ago buries her son is not only
depressed but also very angry.
Still she gets up and goes to
work where her and a coworker (who is an older
woman) get into a heated discussion. The co-worker says
that all the young men in the
community should be locked up
and forgotten about.
This makes the grieving
mother very upset. The work
day is over and both ladies continue the conversation while
waiting for a cab. The coworker says to the mother that
her son was no saint and only
contributed to the violence that
was going on in the neighborhood. In a blind rage, the
mother pushes the woman
down just as she was about to
get into the cab.
The series of events that follow will change the entire community. Just as the cab driver
was about to get out and help
the lady, two youngsta's ran
across the busy street with
stacks of bills in hand flagging
the driver, telling him that they
will give him $400 to take them
a few blocks over. The cab
driver looks at the co-worker
and then at the money in the
youngsta's hand and decides to
let them in. He pulls off and
makes a quick right turn, but he
nor the two kids ever see the
guy they just conned out of the
money behind them. When they
make the turn, they run into
traffic, the jewelry store owner
who had just been conned pulls
alongside the cab in his Navigator and shoots the whole cab up.
The two kids escape unscathed, but the driver of the
cab catches a bullet to the head
and dies instantly. A witness
takes down the Navi's license

plate number and he is later
convicted of murder. His wife
sells the business and leaves
town with her kids and another
man. The cab driver who was
already working overtime, felt
he needed the extra $400 to
help pay for his son's college
tuition. His death left his son to
have to drop out of school to
help his mother with the bills
and his three younger sisters,
one of which was an "A" student up until her father was
killed. As a result, at 14 she
started runnin' the streets and
became promiscuous. She ran
into a cat that was 10 years
older than her. At 14, she
looked every bit of 19, so that's
what she told him. She ended
up getting pregnant by him and
her mom found out.
Mom had the man sent to the
penitentiary for statutory rape.
In the pen, he somehow started
indulging in homosexual activity. Years later he came home
not knowing he had contracted
HIV. A loaded gun back in your
community having sex with
your niece, your aunt, your sister. This is how violence affects
a community.
Now let's look back. From a
murdered son, a mom is mad
enough to push a lady down
who if she had' made it to the
cab, would have at least saved
the driver's life. Maybe the kids
would have escaped on foot
since they escaped anyway. The
jewelry store owner's wife and
kids would not have had a reason to leave him and the cab
driver’s son would have still
been in school. Had he not died,
his daughter would have never
gotten off track and gotten
pregnant at an early age, having
a fatherless child. And the man
who got her pregnant would
have never contracted HIV had
he not gone to jail. Thus he
would have never unknowingly
spread the disease through the
community.

Success is a ladder you cannot climb
with your hands in your pockets.
—Author unknown

NEVER GIVE UP!
By JONATHON COPE
I once read about a man who
refused to give up. Almost everything he did turned out bad. I
mean all bad. This man was
defeated at and by just about
everything.
He failed in business back in
1831. He was defeated for the
legislature in 1832, failed in
business again in 1833 and was
elected to the legislature in
1834. His sweetheart died in
1835.
He had a nervous breakdown

in 1836, was defeated for
Speaker in 1838, defeated for
land officer in 1843, defeated
for congress in 1843, elected
for congress in 1846, defeated
for reelection in 1848, defeated
for the senate in 1855, defeated
for vice-president in 1856 and
defeated for Senate in 1858.
And I mumbled to myself “I
would have quit.” But this man
never did quit. In 1860 he was
elected to the presidency of the
United States.
His name was Abraham Lincoln.

Page 8

MARCH 2009

SAN QUENTIN NEWS

Prisoners Air Concerns
With S. Q. Medical Staff
By DAVID MARSH
San Quentin health care is
improving, but there are still
serious problems, a group of
inmates reported at a meeting
with medical and administrative
staff.
The March 13 meeting included Acting Warden R.K.
Wong, Director of Nursing M.
Lupian, Chief Nursing Executive D. Beetham, Exectuive
Officer for the Receiver J.
Clark, Chief Medical Officer E.
Tootell, Associate Warden K.J.
Williams and Correctional Lt.
R. Luna.
Inmates were represented by
the entire East Block Advisory
Council (EBAC), plus representatives of North Block MAC
and H-Unit.
Problems reported by EBAC
representatives included the
delay of medical appeals
(602s), use of a needless triage
process for medication refills,
incomplete or missing prescription refills, waits of up to 2 ½
years for dental treatments,
medical ducats that conflict
with visiting times and, when

missed, result in a write-up,
failure of the escort staff to accompany inmates to ducated
appointments, lack of information and routine care for aging
prisoners, lack of routine maintenance on broken equipment
and improper charges of co-pay
fees.
On another matter, EBAC
asked about the possibility of
receiving medical marijuana by
prescription. Lt. Luna replied:
“Nice try.”
STAFF ADDITIONS
Clark said S.Q. has the highest back-logged and unanswered 602s but recent medical
staff additions should help
solve the problem.
She reported a new ombudsman position has been created
that will enable an inmate patient’s advocate to visit prisoners in their housing units to help
resolve issues before the need
for a 602 arises.
“The administration understands that medical issues are
the most important issues
among inmates across the

state,” said Clark, “We are
making every effort to resolve
problems with the new system.”
She
acknowledged
that
breakdowns in communication
have lead to improperly billing
inmates and insisted that solutions are coming.
Clark also said that broken
equipment will be addressed.
The medical staff stressed
that new record-keeping methods will enable staff to track
inmates better and prevent
scheduling conflicts.
For representatives of North
Block, the primary cause for
concern was the recent posting
that inmates holding lower
bunk chronos (informational
documentation) will be subject
to possible immediate transfer
to another prison. Council
members expressed the belief
that such transfers were punitive in nature.
“I’m left with no other alternative,” said Acting Warden
Wong. He said chronos exceed
the number of lower bunks.
“What else can I do?” said
Wong.
North Block residents share

We Want To Hear From You!
The San Quentin News welcomes and encourages inmates,
free staff, custody staff, volunteers and people and entities
outside of the institution to submit articles for this publication.
Please use the following criteria when submitting:
• Please limit your submitted
articles to no more than 350
words.
• Articles may be edited for

content and length.
• The newspaper is not a medium to file grievances. Use the
prison appeals process.
However, we do encourage
submitting stories and/or articles which are newsworthy and
encompass issues that will have
an impact on the prison populace.
• Please do not use offensive
language in your submissions.

San Quentin News
Current and past copies of the San Quentin New
are posted online at:
http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/Visitors/
San_Quentin_News/SQ_newsletter.html
The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily
reflect those of the Administration, or the inmate
population, and should be considered solely the
opinion of the individual author unless specified.
Permission is granted to reprint articles appearing in the San Quentin News provided credit is
given the author and this publication, except for
articles reprinted herein from other publications.
Administrative Review……………....R. Luna
Principal…...……………………..T. Roberts
Vice Principal….. ………...W. Reeves, Ed. D.
Print Shop Supervisor................. .J. Wilkerson
Chief Advisory Board Member… John Eagan
Advisory Member…………….....Steve Cook
Advisory Member……………....Joan Lisetor
Advisory Member…….…..Steve McNamara
Executive Staff:
Kenneth R. Brydon ……...…...Editor-in-Chief
Michael R. Harris……….….Managing Editor
Aly P. Tamboura………...…Technical Editor
David Marsh………………….....Staff Writer
Darrell C. Hartley………………..Staff Writer
Stephen Liebb …………………..Staff Writer

• Art work is welcomed (i.e.
poems, songs, cartoons, drawings).
• Letters to the editor should be
short and to the point.

Send Submissions to:
Education Dept. / SQ News
San Quentin, CA 94964
(No Street address required)
www.cdcr.ca.gov/Visitors/
San_Quentin_News/SQ_Newsletter.html

H-Unit MAC Members
A. Parker
D. Mairs
M. Andrews
P. Stelly
M. Le Melle
G. Pineda
S. Byers
R. Bennett
D. Marsh
D. Ansted
D. Hartley
J. Phillips
H. Hopkins
M. Barrow
W. Branson
D. Saxton

Chairman
Vice-Chairman
Secretary
Parliamentarian
Sgt at Arms
Representative
Representative
Representative
Newspaper Rep.
Representative
Healthcare Rep.
Food Rep.
Canteen Rep
Representative
Representative
Representative

North Block Executive MAC Members
Johnson, S.
Sefeldeen, K.
Mancinelli, T.
Tindall, M.K.
Pena, E.

2-N-81L
1-N-96L
5-N-87U
4-N-37L
3-N-24L

Chairman
Vice-Chairman
Secretary
Parliamentarian
Sgt at Arms

East Block Advisory Council
J. Van Pelt
D. Carey
K. Lewis
B. Williams
R. Marshall
P. Henderson
W. Noguera

1-EB-75
4-EY-17
2-EB-76
4-EB-71
1-EB-65
4-EB-79
4-EB-77

FIBER TAB ISSUE
North Block representatives
said inmates are dissatisfied
with the perceived ineffectiveness of the fiber tabs prescribed
as a replacement for Metamucil,
which is currently unavailable.
The primary concerns expressed by the H Unit MAC
chairman were medication being prescribed in improper dosages, which necessitates pills
having to be cut in half to
achieve the proper dose prescription, and bags of medication which do not contain the
full number of prescribed pills.
Medical staff said they were
unaware of these problems, and
that issues raised by the MAC
members would be studied and
properly addressed.
It was agreed that future
meetings would be on a quarterly basis and that the department chiefs of Mental Health
and Dental would attend.

News
Briefs
SAN FRANCISCO- 3-12-09
The latest Field Poll of 781
registered voters reveals 48%
would vote to repeal the ban on
gay marriages.
SOUTH CHINA SEA– 3-7-09
Five Chinese ships surrounded
and harassed an unarmed U.S.
survey ship in international
waters. The Chinese claim the
ship was spying.
EL SALVADOR– 3-15-09
Over two decades of rule by a
right wing conservative government, leftist guerrillas who once
fought the U.S. backed government have been elected to lead
the country.
WASHINGTON– 3-11-09
President Obama signed an
executive order ending the
Bush administration’s restrictions on stem cell research
.
CALIFORNIA– 3-15-09 In the
most comprehensive study of
its kind, researchers predict
global warming will cause the
ocean to rise 5 feet along the
state’s shoreline by the end of
the century.

PRISONER RESOURCES

San Quentin Men's
Advisory Council
5H42L
1H12L
5H36L
4H63L
5H29L
3H33L
3H56L
5H47L
4H06L
4H46U
4H30L
4H99L
4H55L
5H24L
5H74L
5H18U

the concerns and confusion
among inmates of East Block
surrounding the dispensing of
Keep on Person (KOP) medications. Staff responded that new
and clearer guidelines will be
distributed, listing which medications will be automatically reissued and which KOP medications must be requested on a
medical services request form.

Chairman
Yard 1
Yard 2
Yard 3
Yard 4
Yard 5
Yard 6

Designed and printed by the

(Publishes stories, poetry)
CALIFORNIA PRISON
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2940 16th St. #B-5
San Francisco, CA 94103

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PO Box 61619
Durham, NC 27705

(Writing Contest, Handbook)
PEN AMERICAN CENTER
Prison Writing Program
588 Broadway
New York, NY 10012

(Jewish Materials)
JEWISH SERVICES
PO Box 85840
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(Free Koran & Islamic Books)
ALAVI FOUNDATION
500 5TH AVE – STE 2310
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(Bible & Bible Studies)
“Pastor Melissa Scott” Ministry
P.O. Box #1
Los Angeles, CA 90053
(Christian Books)
HARVEST TIME BOOKS
PO Box 300
Altamont, TN 37301

(Buddhist Meditation)
UPAYA OUTREACH
1404 Cerro Gordo Rd.
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$18/yr or $9/half-yr.
(Free Pen Pal listing)
SASE Required
Prison World Magazine
P.O. Box 380
Powder Springs, GA 30127

Correction
In the February edition of the SQ News, it was reported that Acting
Warden R.K. Wong was going through a “confirmation” process.
The process is not a confirmation process, instead it is a “vetting”
process.

Hey SQ News!
What’s Up With…
Robert Frazier 2EB87 wrote
a note to SQ News asking
what’s up with the channels on
the cable system. He observed
that channels he used to pick up
in stereo sound are now only
mono sound.
Well, Bob, the good news is
that you’re not crazy; you really
don’t have stereo anymore.
SQTV Technician’s explana-

tion is that those channels are
being converted, and the converters being used don’t have
stereo.
The equipment being used to
transition over to digital signal
is being purchased in Sacramento, and they’re going for
the no-frills operation. Sorry to
share the bad news. Keep the
questions coming Guys.