Archive for March, 2012

Very Sad News — Mary Halsey Has Passed Away

Saturday, March 10th, 2012

Dear Friend of Justice,

I am saddened to inform you that Mary Halsey, wife of Robert Halsey has died.

Bob Halsey was a school bus driver, who was falsely accused and wrongfully imprisoned by the same Berkshire County crew who railroaded Bernard Baran. His judge was Baran’s unethical prosecutor, Daniel Ford.

You can read about Bob’s case here:  http://members.shaw.ca/imaginarycrimes/halsey.htm

I met Mary Halsey only twice. Early in our fight to free Bernard Baran, Carol Weissbrod and I visited her in her home. She and Bob were preparing for retirement. Then their lives were destroyed by the sexual hysteria that has wreaked so much havoc here in Massachusetts and elsewhere. And which has benefited so many powerful Massachusetts politicians, such as Attorney General Martha Coakley.

I met Mary again at a party celebrating Bruce Clairmont’s parole. During most of that party, Baran’s mother, Bertha, sat next to Mary, holding her hand. The two women quietly consoled each other for the terrible suffering they shared.

Not long after that, Mary’s health took a turn for the worse. She lost almost all of her eyesight and could no longer live alone. She could no longer visit Bob in prison. She spent the rest of her days in nursing homes.

Daniel Ford still sits as a Superior Court judge. In Berkshire County, he is considered a pillar of the community.

I waited over a week to post this news. I wanted to make sure that Bob had been informed before sending him a sympathy card.

If you wish also to send him a card, the address is:

Robert C. Halsey
W-55045
Bridgewater State Hospital
20 Administration Road
Bridgewater MA 02324

-Bob Chatelle

Mary Halsey

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Mary Jane Halsey 1933-2012 LANESBOROUGH Mary Jane Halsey, 78, a longtime resident of Lanesborough, died Wednesday, February 29, 2012, at Hillcrest Commons. Born in Pittsfield on August 9, 1933, the daughter of Roscoe B. and Helen Bartels Losaw, she was educated in Lanesborough schools. Mrs. Halsey worked as a housekeeper in private residences for twenty five years. She was a member of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. Mrs. Halsey was also a member of the Lanesborough Ambulance Association. She enjoyed crafts and rock gardening. She is survived by her husband, Robert Halsey. Mrs. Halsey also leaves a daughter, Lorraine M. Halsey of Castleton, N.Y.; two brothers, Howard R. Losaw of Lee and Lawrence L. Losaw of Clinton, North Carolina; a sister, Laura V. Sheldon of Longmeadow; three sisters-in-law, Madeline Miller, Patricia Losaw, and Arlene Losaw; as well as many nieces and nephews. She was pre-deceased by three brothers, Sonny, George, and William Losaw. FUNERAL NOTICE: A memorial service for Mary Jane Halsey will be held at a later date at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. There are no calling hours. In lieu of flowers, contributions in memory of Mrs. Halsey may be made to St. Luke’s Episcopal Church or to HospiceCare in The Berkshires in care of DERY FUNERAL HOME, 54 Bradford Street, Pittsfield.

New Prisoner Pen Pal Site

Tuesday, March 6th, 2012

Dear Friend of Justice,

Yesterday I had my friend Michael Waterman post to this blog.

There is another way in which you can help Michael.

For a while, when Michael was still in prison, I was his only support person. I knew he needed more. So I bought pen-pal ads for him in some magazines and web sites. These proved very helpful. From these ads, he met his principal supporter and also his girlfriend.

When Michael was freed, he told me he wanted to start his own prisoner pen-pal site. I told him he could do this cheaply. The site could reside in my personal web space, and I would lease him a domain name for one year.

Michael looked at a number of sites, and decided upon what he believes is a reasonable and competitive price for an ad.

Here is the site:  http://www.mtprisonpenpals.com/

Michael has been trying very hard to find subscribers to his site. This is not easy. There are a huge number of prison pen pal sites on the internet, and some of them are very well established.

Perhaps some of you might be willing to buy an ad for a prisoner friend.

Or perhaps some of you could link to Michael’s site. This would increase its rank with Google.

It would be nice if his venture could succeed. He could use a little extra money of course. But mainly Michael would like to be of service to those still behind bars.

-Bob Chatelle

My Friend Michael is Looking for Help

Monday, March 5th, 2012

Dear Friend of Justice,

Michael Waterman was a good prison friend of Bernard Baran. While I had some correspondence with Michael while Bee was still in prison, we became closer after Bee’s release in 2006. We wrote each other; I took his phone calls about once a week; and I visited him when I could. Over the years, I learned his story.

My personal belief is that Michael was most probably falsely accused and wrongfully convicted. But when he was a naive 18-year-old, he was bullied and tricked into taking a guilty plea. He was told his options were a year in the county jail or life in prison.  He wasn’t told that after his year in jail he would be locked up as a sexually dangerous person and kept there until the courts declared him no longer dangerous.

Last May, with the help of an excellent public defender, a jury unanimously found Micahel not sexually dangerous. (Unanimity is not required in civil cases.) But while still in prison, at a hearing in which he had no representation, the Sex Offender Registry Board (SORB) classified him as a level-3 sex offender. (The SORB gives very little weight to the rulings of the Courts.)

Michael asked me recently if he could post a message to this blog. The content is his, but I worked with him on grammar and phrasing.

Michael’s girlfriend corresponded with him while he was in prison. Until Michael gets a job (he has training and experience in printing and silk screening), he is living on food stamps and disability. His girlfriend, however, has a good job which she has held for several years. If they can’t get a place together, Michael could probably only afford a rented room.

Here is Michael’s message:

Dear Friend,

My name is Michael Waterman and I am a good friend of Bob Chatelle. We have known each other for six years. I am fresh out of prison. I have been living in a trailer that’s on the property of another supporter. The trailer is half-owned by Bob – he and another supporter bought it for me so that I would have a place to live. But it’s not working out. It’s not meant for year-around living. And it’s in an area of very high unemployment. It’s not easy for a registered sex-offender to get a job to begin with.

I have a terrible label on my head: level 3 sex offender. I’ve been trying to find a place in and around the Boston area, but no landlord will take me. I have a girlfriend near Boston and I hoped I could live with her. But her landlord and neighbors don’t want me there. When I registered there, the police came to my girlfriend’s house and harassed and scared her. They said things like, “Why are you with a sex offender?” and “You can do better than that.” They said they’d make her life hell if I moved in.

I am hoping that a good-hearted and caring person will find it in their hearts to help me. I want to live a life out of prison that’s better than what I am living now.

I am now 26 and I was locked up at 14. (I was out for just a few weeks after I turned 18.) I have learned a lot and I hope I get the chance to live and learn more. If I can only get the chance. If you think you can help me in any way, feel free to contact me or Bob. My email address is mikewaterman4.21.85@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

Michael Waterman