Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Lou Piccone — Case Dismissed

December 26th, 2008

This article appeared in today’s Berkshire Eagle. This time the bullies who run Berkshire County (and DSS) picked on someone who had the means and will to fight back.

I know that Lou is determined to fight on against the corruption that poisons our legal and child-protection systems. I wish him every success.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Innocents | 1 Comment »

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Operation Successful

December 17th, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

I spoke with Bee a little while ago. Yesterday his partner David had the follow-up surgery to reattach his colon. The operation went very well and David’s prognosis is excellent. He may even be home for Christmas.

The past four months have been very difficult for Bee and David. So this is good news.

Now if only the Appeals Court would uphold his new-trial motion soon. I will keep you posted.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Baran | Comments Off on Operation Successful

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Invite a Friend to Subscribe

December 9th, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

When I switched from the mailing list to this blog, I lost a number of subscribers. Perhaps some of them no longer wished to follow these issues. I have no problem with that.

But I would like to reach a few more people. Do you know someone who might be interested? If so, please send them the address of the blog and invite them to subscribe.

Many Thanks,

Bob Chatelle

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Invite a Friend to Subscribe

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Paul Litchfield's Birthday

December 7th, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

I recently posted an entry suggesting that people send a sympathy card to Paul Litchfield, who recently lost his sister. Another sister, Robin, emailed me to add that this coming Friday (December 12th) is also Paul’s birthday. So you may want to send a birthday card as well.

Paul’s address is:

Paul Litchfield
NCCI Gardner
POB 466
Gardner MA 01440

-Bob

Posted in Innocents | 1 Comment »

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Remember A Prisoner This Holiday Season

December 2nd, 2008

December is the darkest month of the year. It is especially dark for those cut off from the world behind prison walls.

Please consider sending a card to one or more prisoners. If you don’t know any, you may consult this list. If you spot errors in the list, email me and I will make the correction. You may also inform me of the correction with a comment.

I have also posted a page about my home town, Aitkin, Minnesota. If you have some time to kill and are curious about my roots, I invite you to read it.

Happy Holidays!

-Bob

Posted in Prisons | Comments Off on Remember A Prisoner This Holiday Season

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Bad — but not unexpected — ruling in the Shanley case

November 26th, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

I learned today that Judge Neel turned down the new-trial motion in the Paul Shanley case. While this decision saddens and angers me, it was what I was expecting. I attended the trial and the hearing on the new-trial motion. Neel made it obvious that he didn’t understand the issues involved, including the difference between repression and forgetting.

I have not read the decision and I am not in a hurry to do so. I don’t want to lose my appetite completely on the day before Thanksgiving. If you have a strong stomach, let me know and I will send the document to you.

Robert Shaw, Shanley’s appellate attorney, is intelligent, dedicated, and hard-working. I know that he will do a stellar job before the Appeals Court. My hope is that he will draw three fair, intelligent, and courageous judges.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Innocents, Memory, Shanley | Comments Off on Bad — but not unexpected — ruling in the Shanley case

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

More Pen Pals Sought

November 18th, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

Recently I asked for a few people to write to the prisoner that I’ve been calling “Kevin.” But there are a great many people behind bars who need correspondents. (I have a list here:

http://www.bobchatelle.net/please-write-to-a-prisoner/

There are three I would like to mention whom I think would especially benefit from some outside friends.

One is Elsie Oscarson, wrongfully convicted of sexually abusing her own children. You can read about her case here.

Elsie’s address is:

Elsie Oscarson
T80574 (Algon unit)
MCI-Framingham
P. O. Box 9007
Framingham, MA 01704

The other person is Ryan Smith, falsely accused at 13 and sent to prison at 15. (Read his story here.) Ryan is currently scheduled for release in June, when he turns 25. He needs help preparing for this transition. If you’d like to write to Ryan, please email me.

The third person is Paul Litchfield, another innocent person convicted in Berkshire County. You can read Paul’s story here. Last Saturday, Paul’s sister, Patricia, died after a long battle with cancer. It has been very difficult for Paul, not being able to be with his family at this time. You can send a sympathy card or note of condolence to him:

Paul Litchfield W80607 T103A
NCCI Gardner
500 Colony Road
PO Box 466
Gardner, MA 01440

In a couple of weeks, when the holiday season is upon us, I will post a message asking people to send cards to prisoners.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Innocents | 1 Comment »

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Greetings Again

October 19th, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

We still await the Appeals Court decision on the Baran case.

Bee is holding up quite well. His partner David is still recovering from his major surgery. Once he has recovered, a second operation will be scheduled. David, of course, will be unable to work for some time. Bee has returned to work, but he had to take a lot of time off to care for David. This has caused a lot of financial problems for them. Supporters and John Swomley, Bee’s lawyer, have been quite generous. If you’d like to help out as well, you can send a donation to:

The Bernard Baran Justice Committee
POB 190663
Roxbury MA 02119

David was well enough, I’m happy to report, to drive both of them out to western Massachusetts to attend the wedding of Bee’s wonderful niece, Crystal. Bee gave her away at the altar.

Jim and I, unfortunately, were not able to attend because we were still on our vacation in Europe. If you’d like to see some photos of our trip, click this link.

I hope to post again soon with good news.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Baran | Comments Off on Greetings Again

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Greetings

September 2nd, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

I haven’t posted to this blog for well over a month, for a number of reasons.

Primarily, Jim and I have been extremely busy all summer because we were forced to move. Packing was a major nightmare. Our lease on the new apartment began August 1st, but we retained the old place for the month of August as well. We had help from many friends during the early part of the month. And then, on August 15, we had five burly young professional movers, who took over seven hours to do the bulk of the move. We completed the move two days later and have been unpacking ever since. It appears a never-ending task.

No news in the Baran case. But Bee, unfortunately, is dealing with another very distressing situation.

Bee lives and works with a partner named David. A week ago yesterday David had to go to the emergency ward with extreme abdominal pain. He underwent a cat scan and was diagnosed with acute diverticulitis. The scan showed at least seven infected pockets.

The doctors tried to bring his white-cell count down before trying any procedures. But last Friday they did emergency surgery. He is having another procedure today. And eventually he will need even more surgery to reattach his colon. The recovery process will be long and he will need professional home health care. It is uncertain how much of the medical expenses will be covered by insurance because of the gross inefficiency of the new Massachusetts health-insurance system.

Bee hasn’t worked for over a week. (Their boss, however, has been extremely supportive.) They have no idea how they will pay medical expenses, rent, or buy food and heating oil. But I’m confident his friends and supporters will get him through this. Of course it’s always possible that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will decide to send him back to prison.

On a brighter note, while Jim and I strongly opposed the sale of our building, we did receive some money. (Not enough to buy another place, of course.)

I’m using some of the proceeds to go to Minnesota for a few days. My mother turns 88 on Thursday. And my niece recently gave birth to triplets. So there may be a family gathering to celebrate both events.

Later in the month, Jim and I will be taking a two-week vacation in Europe. (Barcelona, Marseilles, Paris, Avignon.) Long ago we had promised ourselves this as a reward should we lose our battle to save our prior home.

Should news break on the Baran case, I will post it ASAP.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Baran, Personal | Comments Off on Greetings

Friends of Justice is a personal blog. Here I speak only for myself.

Prison Legal News

July 22nd, 2008

Dear Friend of Justice,

A reader of this blog called my attention to the latest issue of Prison Legal News: http://www.prisonlegalnews.org/

I especially recomment the article by Marie Gottschalk, Not the Usual Subjects: The Politics of the Prison Boom.

-Bob Chatelle

Posted in Prisons | Comments Off on Prison Legal News

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