Greetings:
My name is Charles Black. I am now a twenty-four-year old prisoner serving a life without parole sentence, currently at St. Clair Correctional Facility in St. Clair County,Alabama. At the age of sixteen, I was charged with two counts of capital murder: one count for shooting from a vehicle and the other for the shot going into another vehicle. The District Attorney did not ask for the death sentence, stating there were no aggravating circumstances. But, according to the law in Alabama, the judge's hands are tied---he must pass sentence of life without parole.
To go from a sixteen-year-old making the first big mistake in his life to life without parole is a step you can not appreciate until you are there. From being with the wrong crowd at the wrong time, to knowing you will never get a chance to see the world from the other side of the barbed wire... To watch your circle of family and friends grow smaller each year until there is no one left on the outside for you... To know that if you remain healthy and don't get killed in an incident in prison, that you will have nothing to look forward to but the same old, same old for maybe sixty years or better... To know that I can't improve myself, to show the world I could be something more than a joy-riding teenager--- because Alabama does not allow life without paroles' to go to the schools or take any of the programs offered to other inmates...
Of course someone must be punished for killing someone. But at the time of my crime, the state said I was not mature enough to purchase cigarettes, vote, sign for a loan, or even be outside after 10:00PM in some areas. But when it comes to the court system in Alabama, I'm suddenly mature enough to warrant this life without parole--- this life without any hope?
I've read of many murders commited--- not many get life without parole unless it was a heinous crime or their third time down. Why does Alabama mandate this for their juveniles? I was at an age, legally, where my lack or maturity and responsibility said that I could not make an adult decision. Yet the first crime I commited in my life gets me a sentence that does not allow me any chance of rehabilitation, or even a life---worse than the options for sentencing for the majority of adults.
Shouldn't there be a little more leeway in determining a human being's future, especially when dealing with a juvenile? If even a life sentence had been a viable option, I would at least have been eligible for schooling, programs, and the chance of someone in the future to look at what I'm trying to do right... A chance to want to live...
I pray that the people of Alabama think back to their younger days, of times when maybe their age and lack of experience in what the world is really about caused them to make a wrong turn. Would you have wanted to be warehoused---Iooking forward to nothing but death for a future?
Sincerely,
Charles Black
Truth VS Fiction
On the night of March 15,1997, it was Charlies intent to sell his gun. His girlfriends mother told him he was going to get in trouble with it. He was waiting for a certain person to show up for work so he could sell it. But nothing went right for my son that night. The gun kept falling into the wrong hands. A man in his early twenties purchased the gun for my son. He was sentenced to ten weekends in jail.
One of the young men with my son was brewing for a fight that night. His girlfriend called the police, the police stopped them in Russellville and told them to leave Russellville. ( Russellville is in Franklin Co.) When they finally did leave they went to Muscle Shoals where a confrontation took place with some other kids. During that confrontation my son fired a shot into the air to break up the fighting. According to the gentleman that was with the victim, the victim heard about the confrontation and came by to get him so they could go help their friends. When they arrived on the scene a chase in their vehicles took place. If my son did this, in the heat of the moment my son paniced and once again tried to fire a shot in the air. To me if this was an ordered, plotted, planned killing the way the D.A.'s office presented it, why didn't my son do the killing earlier? I believe the police believe it was a gang related killing because the victim had gang signs on his P/U, and yet they claim he was not a member of a gang. Also a ( at the time of the incident) 36 year old man was with these kids, the police had him under surveillance for having juveniles go out and steal for him. They say this man ordered the shooting, they plea bargained with him for a twenty year sentence. All those questioned that was with my son that night testified the shooting was not planned, ordered.
The attorneys moved for a change of venue during jury selection because so many had heard about the case, discussed it with colleagues, some even remembered crucial facts. It was denied.
Of the jury, one woman was the respiratory therapist that worked on the victim that night. One was the nephew of the former ( Frankin Co. sherriff?) At least one of them had a twenty year old son. Two were instuctors at the college the victim attended-when questioned these two responded that they had discussed the case amoung colleaques, THE FOREMAN of the jury stated one of his students stated that the victim was a best friend of his,and wrote an essay/speech about the case. And He the Forman of the jury remembered quite a bit about that speech.
The case ended when the judge decided not to let the defense call witnesses involved and charged in the case because they would envoke their fifth amendment rights. The D. A. also said he had two statements given by my son and was going to use one of them to impeach my son even though it was in violation with his rights. Then he suprised the defense attorney by telling him he had two letters written by the defendant to a friend. The letters were pleading for this friend to have people speak up and tell the truth about things they knew or heard.
The Defense attorney said he had the case pulled right out from under him. He handled my sons appeals by judges order. They all been exhausted and denied.
March 15,2006 will be the ninth anniversay of the incident. My son has been in jail or prison since. I would like to say though that in spite of everything, he has done well. He did get his G.E.D. and for a time was allowed in the rehabilitation program, known as one of the best in the country. I paid for him to take college courses through the mail.
While my heart truly does go out to the victims family, I have to say that he was a twenty year old man that made a choice. Not a good choice, for a twenty year old but he did make a choice. My son was even younger and also made a bad choice that night. He should not be expected to act with more wisdom than a twenty year old.
I also know that yes my son should be punished for his involvement, it was his gun. But under the circumstances of the case, his age, the facts of what really happened that night, the victims age and his actions, my son should not have been charged as an adult. Even if people out there believe otherwise, again under the circumstances the most he should have been charged with is manslaughter.
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