Bearing Witness

I have been blessed to receive several letters of support on Troy's behalf that have been sent to the Parole Board and governor's office. They have warmed my heart and inspired me profoundly. I thought our supporters might like to share in the inspiration, so I am including some passages below.

If you have yet to write your letter, please don't use any of the following verbatim. But please do take the time to write from your heart.

From an "outside" volunteer who attends the Kinross Ethics Program that Troy developed:
"The most profound and emotionally touching experience is the open sharing and discussion of past failures that Troy promotes in the class. He encourages the analysis of decisions through the lens of integrity, character and fairness that causes the participants to evaluate past actions and come to grips with the consequences of those actions. In that process I sense genuine remorse and acute awareness of the depth and breadth of the hurt caused not only to the victim and the victim’s family, but also their own loved ones and society in general.

"Troy’s leadership in helping men change lives is not restricted to the classroom. Troy is well known and respected by fellow inmates and officers alike in the compound as a guy who “walks the talk”. In all aspects of his life he inspires others prisoners to change thought processes and behaviors by applying the principles of ethics. He challenges himself and others to not let past failures limit their ability to be a beneficial presence in all relationships and interactions, whether it is with an officer, a fellow inmate or a family member.

"I would estimate that in the four years the KCF ethics program has been in place nearly 100 men have positively impacted. The success of the program is due to Troy’s passion to help others, leadership ability and keen interpersonal skills. He has developed a succession plan with a core group of likeminded men trained to continue on with the program."

From a former fellow inmate:
"I arrived at the Kinross Correctional Facility in Michigan's upper peninsula in the spring of 2007. ...

"I heard about the Ethics program that was being offered by one of the inmates on the compound and I soon learned that that inmate was Troy Chapman. Initially I was skeptical, what could a convicted felon know about ethics? I kept hearing more and more about this “Troy” guy and his band of ethical thinkers and, intrigued, I signed up. That action opened up doors that up until that point I did not even know existed.

"In Troys class, actually discussion group is a more apt description, I started on a whole new way of thinking about myself and the world around me. Under Troys tutelage I came to realize that I was part of something much bigger than myself. Up until then I had been acting in a very self serving manor, even in my pursuit of self improvement. He introduced me to the concept of being what he called a “Beneficial Presence”. In a nut shell this means to consider every action and every situation and calculate the most loving response to that situation and then act upon it. It is not always the easiest thing to do but it is always the right thing to do.

"Thank God for Troy and his altruistic ways. He was able to lead me down his chosen path, selflessness and concern for others before himself. Troy is an exceptional human being and has come a long way from the person that committed the ultimate selfish act, homicide, some 26 years ago. I was fortunate never to have known that individual and therefore my opinion and judgment are not clouded by his past. I only know the Troy of today and I am grateful for the friendship that was fostered inside the fence and continues today. ...

"His continuing community support, preparedness for transition, and deportment while incarcerated should all, in my humble opinion, make him an exceptional candidate for parole."

From a Friend of Troy in Michigan who has personally corresponded with Troy:
"Punishment is a concept with diminishing returns, and prisons spit out brittle, angry men. But Troy Chapman stands as proof that change is possible, even in the harsh environment of the cellblock. For a willing few, incarceration is a wake-up call – a chance to start life over from scratch. When I asked Troy how he became what he is now, he wrote back that he came to a place where he could no longer live as he was, and he had to find, or create, some kind of meaning in his life. “Grace” took it from there. I saw then, a man willing to take the risk of seeing himself for what he truly is – imperfect - and then set out to learn from his mistakes and evolve into who he was meant to be. Part of this journey involved sharing the special gifts he discovered. He has since, struggled heroically in his unique community, creating a small island of calm in the center of the insanity that is prison life.

"Daily, Troy leaves his mark on the world, but it is a small world, limited by razor wire and locked doors. And daily his life says by example: 'This is what I’ve accomplished. You can do it too. I’ll help.'"

From Friends of Troy in Pennsylvania who have also corresponded with Troy:
"During the past 24 years Troy Chapman has had a lot of time to think, to pray, to study, to learn, and to create. He has written music, created art, taught classes, and become a writer. Some of his articles were published, which is how we became acquainted with him. His philosophical questions about life, about our relationships with one another, and about God have resulted in more writings that have enriched the lives of those of us who have become aware of his story. His goal in life now is to be a good citizen in the world today, making positive contributions as opportunities which use his strengths present themselves. To that end he is currently teaching Ethics to other Kinross prisoners. If released from prison we have every reason to believe that he would continue his quest to make a positive difference in a world that surely can benefit from his example of personal transformation.

"Today Troy Chapman has made friends with men and women outside the prison who will continue to be his friends whether or not he is released. He now has positive role models, as well as people willing to be mentors and people willing to support him through the transition from prisoner to good citizen and working member in society.

"Troy Chapman has become an introspective, mature, and wise man, committed to nonviolence, who now has the education and skills to teach and to be a role model for others. We hope you will look more deeply at his record in prison and his potential for being a good citizen out of prison. We feel that he has, increasingly over the past 24 years, demonstrated that he has been rehabilitated and is prepared to assume a positive and productive role in society should he be given the opportunity to enter it again. Should his case again come across your desk for reconsideration, we ask you to look with favor upon him."

From Friends and correspondents in The Netherlands:
"In his remarkable process he imagined himself in the place of that other young man he killed, cut off from life. He felt guilt and deep remorse. Then he tried to reflect and to feel what it meant for the parents and relatives. To lose in such way your son, brother, your friend.

"That is not an easy and common thing to do for a criminal. But Troy Chapman realized that if he did not feel in the most deep way possible what his deed signified for the victim and other people, then there would be no way to live his life in the years to come.” He understood the laws of life, taking responsibility and having the courage to feel what he had done, asking himself: 'What does my decision, my acts in life mean to that other human being?'

"From that moment on we are deeply involved in Mr. Chapman’s beautiful writings about his inner experiences. He has developed himself as a great teacher, doing lovely work for the people within the prison and for many people outside.

"As teachers to adult people, searching for the meaning of life, establishing qualities like peace, friendship and spiritual awareness in the life of our students, we are using quotations of Troy regularly. They are of great wisdom and at the same time so adaptable. That’s how Troy helps us all to transform ourselves as he did."

From Friends in France:
"We visited Troy Chapman in 2003 and in 2006 and can only express, that we met a very well educated person, sensitive, intelligent and very alive. His interest in others makes us think that he probably would be very useful in helping others such as socially disturbed youngsters. All his experiences in life, especially the difficult ones, may be particularly helpful on one hand to understand these youngsters and on the other to show them how one can transform oneself.

"It must not be an easy task to evaluate the transformation of a person. How does one evaluate the transformation of a person like Troy Chapman who worked hard on himself in jail for 24 years after having entered as a very young man of only 21?
Do you think it is still possible after 40 years in jail to integrate into the wider society? Perhaps it is better not to wait for too long, especially for the ones who have worked in a remarkable way on themselves, because everybody should have an interest that the transformed prisoners find their way back into society."

From a Friend and correspondent in New York:
"Troy has accepted full responsibility for his crime, made no excuses and rejected the errors of his youth. He has become a mature individual through his strong effort toward atonement. There is strong evidence that he has succeeded in becoming a valuable, caring, wise and productive person.

"In view of all this I feel that he has served enough time to deserve being released as soon as possible and hope the board will see fit to show him clemency. He would not be a danger to society but a great gift to have among us.

"I would be delighted to have Troy live in my neighborhood or in my apartment as a kind of half-way house. He is an honest and inspiring person who I would feel privileged to socialize with. I would be very happy to testify futher in his behalf if asked."

From a Friend who is a corrections employee in Minnesota:
"I have been deeply touched by Troy’s inspirational communications from prison, his blogs and his artwork which show incredible insight and depth. This is especially astonishing in light of the conditions in which he lives his life. I have worked in the corrections field since 1985 and have been inspired by many of my clients. However I have never seen this kind of commitment to the development of the human spirit. I have been an avid reader of books on spirituality from many traditions for year and you rarely see this kind of insight in people outside of prison. Given the extraordinary commitment Troy has given to creating a positive presence to people both inside and outside prison I hope someone soon sees fit to commute his sentence."

I am so grateful to everyone who has taken the time to write and those who have promised to do so. You are lights in the world.

—Maryann Gorman

A Letter-Writing Campaign!

Now that I’ve had time to recover somewhat from the sad news that the Michigan Parole Board and Governor Jennifer Granholm have denied Troy’s application for commutation of his sentence, I’ve decided it’s time for a letter-writing campaign.

A group of supporters of our size should not take this decision lying down. It would be an absolute pity if we were not heard from, en masse. The Parole Board and Governor Granholm should know there are many people, within the prison population, in Michigan, around the United States, and around the world, who know — by having been touched by his wonderful writings and beneficial presence — that Troy is not a threat to the public and should be freed.

Will a letter-writing campaign result in a changed decision? I'd like to hope so but I just don't know. But it will definitely have a practical impact by creating a sizable file, at the Parole Board and in the governor’s office, of correspondence about Troy and drawing attention to this particular decision. It was in December 2007 that we applied for commutation. Prisoners have the right to request review of their sentence through this method every two years. That means our next filing will be in just seven months. So writing letters now is well timed. My point is that this is not just an exercise in venting our frustration.

So this campaign can have great impact, but we need you. Please be part of this.

Here are some tips:

1. If possible, write your letter in the next month (this is my attempt to create some coherence; if you can’t write in that time-frame don’t let that stop you when you finally can write).

Address it to the Parole Board:

Michigan Parole and Commutations Board
Michigan Department of Corrections
P.O. Box 30003
Lansing, MI 48909

And cc and mail to the governor’s counsel:

Steven C. Liedel
Executive Office
111 S. Capitol Ave.
Lansing, MI 48933

Please send me a copy by email for my records.

If you don’t want to include your full address, please at least sign with your city/state.

2. When you first refer to Troy, mention his inmate number, 169076, so they can be certain what case you’re talking about.

3. Expressing anger won’t help. :-) Express your disappointment, puzzlement, sadness, etc. at the decision, but don’t go venting anger.

4. I suggest you discuss variations on the following, as long as they’re your personal convictions: that Troy is not a danger to the public, his service to fellow prisoners, the fact he’s served over 24 years for second-degree murder, his remorse and life of atonement and transformation since then, and his impact on your life or thinking.

For background on what Troy has accomplished, you can go here. Scroll down to “Kinross Ethics Project” and “Accomplishments,” which is about 2/3 of the way down the page. The rest of the info on that page may also be helpful; it’s most of the text of his commutation application and includes his statement about his crime.

Please feel free to contact me if you want me to look at your letter before you send. If you wrote a letter to support Troy’s commutation application and would like to see your wording in that, I have it and can send it to you as a PDF scan.

If you know anyone else who reads Troy’s work and cares about his case, please send this post to them.

I know so many of you have given so much to Troy for years. I humbly ask you to please give just a little bit more. With thanks from the bottom of my heart (and Troy’s),

—Maryann Gorman

Message from Troy

I received a letter from the governor’s office reading:

The parole board has completed its review of your self-initiated application for pardon or commutation of sentence and forwarded its determination to the governor. Based on the parole board’s recommendation the governor has denied your application.

I’m not sure what they’d want me to do to increase my chances. I thought about writing the governor’s office with this question, but will run it by our lawyer John first.

As to how I feel? Well, certainly disappointed. Dispirited is probably a more accurate description. Determined also, though, to keep living to what I hold true.

We will file again with them once the legal time limit has passed. Meanwhile, I will try to rubberize myself so I can bounce. We’ll discuss where to go next. I need to do the same with my personal work as I’ve been sort of floating on that as I’ve been awaiting the decision.

I want to thank you all for your prayers and support. Never underestimate what that means to me and Maryann and know that it makes a world of difference.

Other than that, it’s rainy and cold here today and for the next few days. Weather to match this mood, I guess. Of course, to continue this metaphor it is spring, and after the rain, sun and warmer days and renewal will come. Are coming, even now. More later.

—Troy Chapman

Governor Rejects Troy Chapman's Request for Clemency

It is with great regret that I report that Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm has rejected Troy's application for commutation.

We will move on from here by requesting a resentencing hearing in the jurisdiction where Troy committed his crime. So his journey toward freedom is not over. If that should fail, prisoners are permitted to file for commutation every two years; the two years since Troy's last filing will be up this December. (It took over 16 months for this one to play out.)

I have few words at the moment, but we couldn't have gotten as far as we did without the dozens of you who sent spiritual, financial and letter-writing support. My gratitude to you all is as profound as my grief at the outcome. Troy feels the same way. You'll be hearing from him soon.

Peace,
Maryann Gorman

An Honor at University of Michigan

First of all, for anyone who's curious, to the best of our knowledge Troy's commutation application is still in the governor's office.

In other news, I visited Troy last week and on the way up to see him, I stopped in Ann Arbor, at the University of Michigan. The university has a prison creative arts program which last year solicited prisoner creative writing. Troy submitted three poems that made it into the first “On Words: Michigan Review of Prisoner Creative Writing.”

I went to the university on March 26 because they were hosting an event featuring the editors and formerly incarcerated writers reading selections from the book. The guest editor, Joseph Bathanti, named Troy’s poem “The Knitting Birds” as a first honorable mention. Two of Troy’s poems were read, “The Knitting Birds” and “The Prodigal.” (The third that was published, “Awakening,” was published here.)

There were about 1,000 entries and only 30+ writers made it into the book. As Bathanti said in naming his choices for winning entries and honorable mentions, when you get to the level of the writing published in the book, they are all winners, and that is so true, but I have to admit I was proud as a mama bear to be there and see the little extra attention Troy’s poetry got.

—Maryann Gorman

Video Inspired by Troy's "This I Believe" Essay