Recidivism: Part 1

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12/22/2018

Off Camera

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It’s late December and all over creation people are preparing for the holiday season.  It’s a joyous time to spend with friends, family, and loved ones.  It’s a time of exchanging gifts of love and gratitude with one another as a way of showing that you care.  The holiday season is supposed to be a happy time of the year, perhaps the happiest time as the year draws to a close and we proceed to embark on a new year; a new beginning.

Unfortunately, the holidays are not happy and joyous for everyone.  It can be difficult for those who have lost loved ones.  For them, holidays are a painful reminder that their deceased friends and family will no longer be coming home for Christmas.  Still others find it challenging to appreciate the holiday season for other reasons.  One group in particular that often get overlooked, neglected, and forgotten are those who are incarcerated.

The truth is, were it not for the occasional visitor, inmates in state and federal prisons would have no contact with the outside world at all whatsoever.  While some prisons will try to make things at least a little easier on the inmates, many inmates spend their entire sentence with no contact from any friends or family during the holiday season.

This is what brings Marie Annabelle Jones out to Massachusetts Correctional Institution in Framingham.  This place is a prison for female offenders and the Boston native has a friend who is currently serving time here.

“What’s this chick’s name, anyway?”

“Melinda Jade.”

Marie isn’t alone for this visit.  She’s bringing her identical twin sister, the sometimes unhinged but never dull Kimberly Williams, along for this visit.  Kimberly has changed for the good in recent months but in Marie’s mind a visit like this will do Kimberly well to see where she could end up if she were to fall off the wagon and revert to her old ways.

The sky is a bright light blue and the sun shines glowingly overhead.  Marie is wearing a long sleeve red sweater and a pair of denim jeans with simple black flats.  Kimberly is wearing her torn denim jeans, plain white tennis shoes, and a “SCW” t-shirt.  They walk closely together down the sidewalk, approaching what is called the Gatehouse, the entrance to the prison.

“You’re cramping my style, sis.” Kimberly complains.  “I just wanted you to know.”

“You never had any style, Kim.”

“Maybe, but come on, the tennis shoes?  You know I like my flip flops.  And why can’t I wear my favorite shirt?!”

“It’s called a dress code, Kim.” Marie remarks stoically. “No open toed shoes, skirts are discouraged, and you would have been thrown out for wearing your ‘STABBY’ shirt or the one that ‘proudly’ declares you groped Mr. D.”

“Yeah, well, I still don’t see why I have to be here anyway.”

“Are you going to whine like a child all day?”

“Maybe I will.” Kimberly smirks knowingly. “I mean, why not act like the child when you’re clearly acting like mom?”

“Someone has to take care of you, Kim.  You’re clearly not taking care of yourself and mom damn sure isn’t.”

“That’s debatable.  But how is this taking care of me?”

“You need to see the serious consequences of any illegal actions you take.  Besides, I have a friend in her who has no family and no other friends to visit her.  It’s the holiday season.  Someone should visit her.”

“Awwww, that’s soooo super sweet of you!” Kimberly exclaims in a high pitch voice.  Marie simply rolls her eyes at this.

“Whatever, just try and act like a normal human being.”

“Sure, no prob!” Kimberly playfully salutes Marie.

“Good.  Now we’re about to enter the gatehouse.  Just do what the officers tell you to do.”

“What if the nice officers tell me that they want to have wild animalistic sex with me?”

“Shut up, Kim.”

Marie and Kimberly approach the Gatehouse.  The door to the Gatehouse is of a heavy metal, perhaps iron or steel.  Around it is brick.  The twin siblings wait patiently outside until they hear a clicking noise from within the door, signifying that it has been unlocked.  Jones pulls on the door to open it and then steps inside.  Kimberly follows suit and they let the door shut behind them.  Inside the gatehouse are three officers, one of whom is a male behind plexiglass operating the controls of the Gatehouse.  Two other officers, one male and one female, are standing on the other side with Marie and Kim.

Marie knows the process.  Unbeknownst to Kimberly or any other member of the Jones family, Marie has been keeping up with Melinda.  She has been visiting her on a regular basis.  So she’s had to enter this facility before and knows what to expect.  The first thing is that the male officer approaches them with a bucket.

“Please empty your pockets, ladies, especially of anything metal, and then walk through the metal detector.”

“Darn, I left my shank at home!” Hearing Kim say this horrifies Marie.

“KIM!”

Marie is concerned that Kim just ruined their visit and that they may be asked to leave. Luckily the male officer just chuckles.

“No worries, ma’am.  It’s good to have a sense of humor like that.  You have to have some sort of sense of humor in order to work at a place like this, right?”

“I suppose.” Marie responds with a sigh before emptying her pockets in the bucket.  Then she walks through the metal detector.  After going through the metal detector Marie knows that it’s time for the frisking…

The female officers only can check other females.  So the female officer approaches Marie and checks her up and down for any hidden items.  But finds nothing.  Marie then steps over to the plexiglass that separates her from the other male officer.  He passes her a visitor’s pass and then a sign in sheet.  Marie signs her name and takes the visitor’s pass.  By the time she’s done Kimberly has already gone through the metal detector (taking time to twirl around a few times for good measure, getting more laughs from the officer).  Kimberly then signs in and retrieves her visitor’s pass.

“Visiting I assume?” The male officer behind the plexiglass asks.

“Yes.” Marie states.

“Well they haven’t started yet but the other visitors are already here.”

“It’s my  fault we’re late, nice officer man!” Kimberly declares. “Marie and I were fighting because I didn’t like the clothes she made me wear.”

If Marie could sink into the floor she could.  Kimberly is thoroughly embarrassing her right now.

“I don’t think they need to know that, Kim.”

“Well, if you hurry you should get there before they begin.” The officer behind the plexiglass states.  He pushes a button and the clicking sound is heard, signaling the other door has been unlocked.

“Thank you, officer.” Marie pushes the door open and exits the Gatehouse.  Kimberly follows suit as the two siblings begin their march up to the main prison.

It amounts to another sidewalk, longer than the last one they just walked across to reach the Gatehouse.  On either side is lush greenery, almost as if to deceive you into thinking that this is a warm and welcoming place.  But far from it.  The people here do not wish to be here, whether it be the inmates or the staff.

“So this chick…”

“Melinda.”

“Right, Melinda, what’d she do to get locked up anyway?”

“A little of this and a little of that.” Marie says absent-mindedly.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kim continues the pressure on her twin sister. “I mean, shit, you and your new pals Dark Fantasy did this and that these past few Breakdowns.”

“Fine…” Marie’s voice trails off; she sighs deeply “...it started with drugs.  But her parents were pretty well off and knew some influential people and got her off with a slap on the wrist.”

“Did they try to get her any help?”

“No.  In their mind, their little girl should’ve been a cookie cutter carbon copy of them.  They didn’t think she needed any help.  How could their little girl be this fucked up, right?  In their mind it was impossible.  So they let her drug problem go without treatment.”

“So she got arrested for robbery?” Kim suggests.

“How’d you know?” Marie asks, genuinely surprised that Marie would know this.

“Just a guess, really.  But as someone who lived on the other side of the law once upon a time I know that drug problems leads to bigger problems and worse crimes.”

“Well you’re right,” Marie nods her head “her supplier went up on the price and her parents were wise to how she was getting their money, so she decided armed robbery might work out.  She tried robbing a convenience store.”

“I take it that things didn’t work out too well?”

“She got caught by the police almost immediately.” Marie chuckles lightly. “It was a desperation move by a druggie desperate for cash.  She had no idea what the hell she was doing or how to do it.”

“Ok, wait a sec…” Kimberly’s voice trails off as confusion enters her mind “...I thought you said she had no family?”

“She doesn’t.  After getting arrested again her parents were so humiliated that they refused to help her.  Worse still they disowned her.  They did not keep in contact with her while she was incarcerated.  They did not visit or send letters.  It’s like they dropped off the face of the earth.”

“And how do you know all of this?”

“Her parents were friends of dad.”  Dad would be Sean Williams, father of Marie Jones and Kimberly Williams.  “Back when dad was still alive he would get to have me for some weekends.  I spent most of those weekends hanging out with Melinda.”

Kimberly is surprised by all of these revelations; many things she didn’t know about her twin sister.  She wants to press Marie for more information but the conversation is cut short when Marie and Kim reach the front door of the main prison building.  Marie, taking the lead, pulls the door open and steps inside, followed by Kimberly.

Once inside they are in a lobby area with three different doors, one of which is a sally port.  One door Marie can see leads to a very visible master control area that no doubt controls the sally port door.  Marie and Kim walk over to the sally port door and wait patiently.  It isn’t long before it opens.  Marie and Kimberly steps through the doors into another smaller area with two doors.  In this heavily controlled environment, the prison controls all activities so Marie and Kim yet again are at the mercy of master control.

Their wait isn’t long as the next set of doors open for them.  Marie and Kim step through these doors that leads straight into the visitation area.  They notice several inmates, all dressed in the same gray shirts and pants.  Seemingly all the inmates have visitors, individuals dressed in normal street clothes.  Melinda is not clearly visible yet.

Before Marie and Kim can do anything else they are approached by a female officer.

“Are you here to see an inmate?”

“Melinda.  Melinda Jade.”

“Ah yes,” the officer nods her head “she’s been waiting.”

The officer motions for Marie and Kimberly to follow her.  The officer leads her towards the rows and columns of tables and eventually to one with an inmate but no visitor.  The woman has blonde hair, pulled into a ponytail.

“You have one hour.”

The officer walks away.  Once she is out of earshot the blonde snarls. “Probably will be less…”

“Yeah, sorry about being late.” Marie apologizes.

“Nah, it’s not your fault.  It’s their fault.  I should get my hour regardless.  Whatever.”

“Wait, you only get an hour for visitation?” Kim asks quizzically.

“Four actually, four per month.”

“Oh, well that’s a little better; I guess.”

“Right, but...uh...wait, which one of you is Marie?”

“Oh, sorry again Mel!” Marie chuckles lightly. “I never introduced you to my identical twin, Kimberly Williams.  Kim, this is my friend Melinda Jade.”

“Identical twin?” She arches her brow. “I didn’t know you had any siblings.”

“How can you not know about the famous Jones family?” Kim asks with a wide grin.  “Although, I can sorta understand how you wouldn’t know about me.  I’m like the black sheep.  Marie keeps me locked up in the basement until she needs me for something.”

Marie elbows Kim hard in the ribcage.  Melinda chuckles.

“Yeah, well, I knew she was a wrestler but I don’t get to actually watch her on tv.  One television per housing unit and the other bitches choose stupid shit to watch.”

“Four hours of contact with the outside world per day and only one tv for everyone?”  Kim seems genuinely surprised at this. “Must suck…”

“That’s an understatement.”

“I brought Kim here so that she could not only meet you but also witness firsthand why it’s a good thing that she try to stay out of this place.  Kimberly used to do some rotten things herself until she changed her ways.”

“Marie’s right,” Melinda remarks to Kim, nodding her head “you need to stay out of here.  And I can tell you one thing, when I get out of here, I am damn sure never coming back.”

“That’s great to hear, Mel.  So I take it the classes are working?”

“The classes here at the prison are amazing.  I thought they were dumb at first but the anger management and the substance abuse classes did wonders for me.  The best was the human resources development class.”

“Human what?” Kim asks.

“Basically it’s how us felons can go about getting a job when we’re released.  Which is kind of important, considering no one will want to give people like us a chance.  I also earned a gold on my career readiness certificate.”

“That’s great news!” Marie exclaims. “You told me last month that you were working hard for that; congratulations!”

“I was shooting for platinum but, eh, what will you do?”

“Hey, gold is nothing to sneeze at.” Marie remarks.

“Says the girl who has been whining for how long about getting a world title match?”

“Whining?” Kim asks with a grin.

“Yeah, I may not be able to watch her but she’s told me plenty.” She shifts her attention to Marie. “Isn’t the US Title or TV Title good enough for you if gold is good enough for me?”

“Point taken.” Marie answers with a nod, conceding Melinda’s point. “But that may not be a problem much longer.”

“You mean you have a title match?”

“Yes, it was a fan vote to see who would get their first one on one shot at the World Championship.  I won the vote.”

“That’s great news, Marie.  That’s some damn fine news, actually.  But promise me one thing…”

“What’s that?”

“Win.”

“I’ll do my best.” Marie answers quietly and without much confidence.

“Bullshit.  I want you to win, Marie.  Whatever sucker you’re facing, make them regret even being born.  Do not settle for second best like I did.  Go for the platinum, kid.  And when you win the championship, I want to be able to say that the heavyweight champion of the world visited me in prison.”

Marie nods her head emphatically. “You got it, Mel.  I’ll bring home the title.  It’ll be a perfect New Year’s gift from myself to myself.”

“Wait, did you say New Year’s?”

“Yes, well actually December 31st.  It’ll be in Toronto.”

“Toronto, eh?  Damn.  Had it been in the states I could have seen it.”

“What does Toronto have to…” Marie suddenly figures it out “...do you mean to say you’re getting out within the next week?”

“I’m getting released the 28th.” Melinda answers. “But I’ll be on parole so I can’t go with you to Toronto to watch you kick ass.  Come to think it, I’m not sure I’ll be able to go anywhere.  Not like mom and dad will be pick me up.  Those clowns don’t want anything to do with me.”

It’s the problem that many inmates face when they get released.  The state of Massachusetts are done with them.  They’ve served their time and the state no longer has to care for them.  They are literally being kicked out on their own and in Melinda’s case she’ll have nothing but a check they’ll give her at the gate that might amount to forty dollars.  Many of them who are released have family to pick them up and help them out until they are back on their feet.  Not Melinda’s.  Her family has abandoned her.

“Tell you what, Mel, I’ll take care of you.”

“You will do no such thing.” Melinda shakes her head. “I can survive on my own.  And I don’t want to be a distraction to you while you’re trying to achieve your dream.”

“You are not a distraction, Mel.  And it will be my honor to help you.  I’ll pick you up, drop you off at my place in Boston.  You can stay with us until you get back on your feet.  You can even watch my championship match from there.  How does that sound?”

There is a pause as Melinda seems to be pondering the proposal. Eventually…

“You mean it?”

“Of course I mean it.”

“Then you got yourself a deal, Marie!”

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12/28/2018

Off Camera

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Supreme Championship Wrestling is taking a brief vacation for the holidays.  No house show, no Breakdown, the only thing left is the end of the year show and that, in and of itself, is enough of a challenge for one Marie Annabelle Jones.  This will be her first ever opportunity to compete for the SCW World Championship since signing with the company back in 2016.

In Marie’s mind this is long overdue.  She has put forth the effort, she has busted her ass, and competed with the best SCW has to offer.  She’s taken on world champions, beaten a few and others took to their limit.  She’s been a former Television Champion and United States Champion.  She’s now ready to take the next step and become World Champion.

This is also the moment of truth.  She left UWA for SCW because not only was she not granted her rematch for the UWA World Championship after losing it to Vanilla Skyy, but she was pigeonholed into the tag team division, despite her desire to be World Champion.  Marie’s fervent hope since jumping ship from UWA to SCW was that the change in landscape would prove to be flourishing with new and better opportunities.  Now, nearly two years later, that one singular opportunity she wanted more than anything is hers; a world championship match.  An opportunity is all she wanted.  If she fails it’s on her; she recognizes that.  She just wanted the opportunity and now that she has it she is going to make damn sure that she is ready.

That word carries a great deal of weight with it.  Opportunity is just a chance to do something.  It isn’t a guarantee.  It’s just a chance.  Many in society are granted opportunities but fail to overcome the many obstacles that stand in their way.  It’s humbling for Marie to recognize that with her opportunity the playing field is quite level.  You don’t get much more of a level playing field than two competitors battling it out for the title.  Either Sienna Swann or Marie herself will leave as the champion.  Simple as that.

Not everyone is granted an even playing field.  In the case of Melinda Jade, Marie’s soon to be formerly incarcerated friend, it isn’t an opportunity with an even playing field.  There are many obstacles for her to overcome.  Outside of Marie Jones, Melinda has no real support system to speak of after being released from prison.  Her felony will forever be a black mark on her record, a stigma that will keep her from being hired by most employers at most jobs.

But everyone deserves a second chance.  Everyone deserves an opportunity to redeem themselves and turn over a new leaf.  Marie truly believes in this concept and will do what she can to assist Melinda.

It’s been six days since Marie visited her in Massachusetts Correctional Institute and now the redhead finds herself sitting in her red Ford Fusion, parked out in front of the Gatehouse, awaiting on the arrival of her friend.

Today is her release date.

It’s overcast out, it looks as if it might rain.  Marie keeps checking her watch impatiently.  She hopes they get Melinda out here before it starts raining.  She’d hate for her friend to have to make that long walk outside in the rain, even if it is a walk to freedom.

She’s been sitting here for nearly thirty minutes but she knows going up to the Gatehouse is not the answer.  She needs to be patient and wait.  She was told she would walked to the car.  Lucky for Marie, the wait is about to end.

The Gatehouse door opens and a female officer is seen escorting Melinda Jade outside to freedom.  Melinda is no longer in the drab gray uniform of the inmates but instead is wearing denim jeans, plain white sneakers, and a New England Patriots t-shirt.  Her long blonde hair is left to hang unrestrained to shoulder length.

Marie can no longer contain herself.  She opens the driver’s side door and exits the car.  After shutting the door she bolts over to her friend Melinda.  The two friends meet one another and exchange a tight hug.  The loving show of friendship is enough to bring a smile to the officer’s face.

“So who is this, Ms. Jade?  Family?”

“Nah, but she may as well be.” Melinda remarks after breaking the embrace with Marie. “My real family don’t give a shit about me.”

“Hate to hear that.” The officer remarks.

“It’s all good.  I can get by without them as long as I got people like Marie backing me up.”

Marie finds it difficult to hold back the tears that are welling up in her eyes.  It doesn’t get old and it always feels good for her to make a difference in people’s lives like this.  It is good to know that she is appreciated by someone.

“Well it’s a good thing that you have someone to help support you.  I have walked so many people out of this place and none of them have had anyone.  I hope you realize how lucky you are to have her, Ms. Jade.”

“I know, officer.  I know.”

“Now get out of here,” the officer remarks with a smile “and don’t come back.”

“Don’t worry, officer.  I’m done with this place.”

With that Melinda heads to the passenger’s side of the car and gets inside.  Marie turns to the officer and sighs.

“Thank you, officer.”

“Don’t mention it.  But seriously, make sure you look out for her.  I do worry about people like her.”

“How do you mean?” Marie asks, cocking her head to one side.

“I have worked out here as an officer for over ten years and in that time I have walked so many people out of here.  I say the same thing to all of them; don’t come back.  And all of them sound sincere when they say that they plan to change their ways and never return.  But sadly enough, most of them end up coming back.”

“Why do you think that is?”

“Some of them just can’t break their old habits.  Some back in with the bad crowds that influenced them the first time.  Others still have no support group to help them when they get out.  Or it can be a combination of the three.”  The officer points to Marie’s car, specifically at Melinda who sits inside.

“Melinda, I think, truly does want to change and truly does want to do better.  But without a support system I fear she could go back down the wrong path.”

“Well you don’t need to worry about her, officer.” Marie states definitively. “I’m going to stand by Melinda’s side to the bitter end.”

“That’s good to hear.” The officer says with a genuine smile. “A girl like her deserves the opportunity.”

With that the officer and Marie shake hands.  Marie then turns and makes her way to the driver’s side of her Ford Fusion.  She opens the door and enters.  Immediately Marie is met by a curious, almost interrogating glare, from Melinda.  It’s not quite your typical death stare but it is enough to leave Marie slightly rattled.

“What’s wrong?” Jones asks.

“What did you and the guard talk about?”

“What do you think?”

“Me.”

“Bingo.” Marie says with a wry grin.

“Yeah, I thought I was the subject of conversation.  So what’d you two gossip about?”

“No gossip.” Marie shakes her head. “She just said she genuinely hopes you succeed now that you’re released.  That’s all.”

“Hope?  Heh, I’ll need more than hope.  Hope doesn’t pay the bills.  And all they gave me was forty one bucks and twenty five cents.”

“Forty-one twenty five?  That’s kind of an odd amount.”

“Well the forty is standard.  The extra dollar twenty-five comes from the money left on my card that I didn’t spend.”

Marie furrows her brow in confusion. “You had money?”

“Yeah, state gave us cards with a small amount of cash on it.  We could purchase some small shit like sodas, snacks, or whatever.  Inmates had a convenience store like setup called the canteen.  I think it was the state’s idea of helping to get us reacclimated with how things work in the real world.”

“Interesting.” Marie nods her head with a look of surprise on her face.

“But seriously, Marie, thanks for your help.” Melinda says, dropping her tough-girl routine for a moment and showing genuine emotions.  The ex-convict softens her expressions as real tears form in her eyes.  This sight causes Marie’s own defenses to break down and her tears start to flow down her cheek.  Melinda immediately points it out.

“Look at you crying!”

“You started it!” Marie responds.  Immediately the two friends laugh before sharing yet another tight embrace.

“But yeah, thanks Marie.  I mean it.   God knows I’ll need all the help I can get to straighten my life out.  Shit, how will I even get a job?  Who is gonna hire me?”

“I know a few people, I can pull a few strings, but there’s no need to worry about it right now.  We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.  You just got out of prison after how many years?”

“Ten years…” Melinda states, her voice trailing off.  Even she can hardly believe it’s been this long since she’s seen freedom.

“Ten years of no freedom.  Don’t you want to have fun for just one night before we start worrying about the problems you face?”

“Well…”

“Look, Mel.  Your problems will still be there tomorrow.  Let’s take today to just have fun and celebrate you being free.”

Melinda has to think about it for a moment.  But not for a very long moment.  A smile creeps across her face.

“I like it, babe!  Let’s party!”