http://fundamentalists-anonymous.org/inmate_profiles/jackson_ga_james_andrew
s.html
---
James D. Andrews wrote back...
On February 8, 2004 I transferred another letter by James D. Andrews to his
thread located at:
http://fundamentalists-anonymous.us/usa/index.php?s=47ba07994e161a471eac3812
df267cca&act=ST&f=13&t=33&st=0#entry186
He elaborates on his beliefs as a Universalist Christian.
--
However, I felt I must ask James Andrews these following questions which I
am certain many others are asking themselves.
http://fundamentalists-anonymous.us/usa/index.php?s=47ba07994e161a471eac3812
df267cca&act=ST&f=13&t=33&st=0#entry187
QUOTE (James D. Andrews @ Feb 8 2004, 05:58 PM)
In conclusion I write, I am on death row; and since I arrived I became a
bona fide Christian. Therefore I am now forgiven for my sins and justified
in Jesus. To my Christian brethren, prosecutors, judges and legislators I
ask, why not lobby for my life to be spared now that I am in Christ as
vigorously as you lobbied for my life to be terminated when I was a child of
the Devil?
James D. Andrews (UDS)
EF# 305136, UNO#329215
G.D.C.P. (#G4-109)
P.O. Box 3877
Jackson, Georgia 30233 USA
--
Dear James,
I am going to publish my response for everyone to read, so third parties
will understand how I feel about your situation (the overall situation), and
death row inmates in general (prisoners in general)... there's no denying
this is a sensitive issue. I'm sure you understand what I speak of. I
understand your fears, your awareness of how fragile and finite your life is
if they do follow through with execution. I understand you're afraid... and
it's only normal for any human being to want to fight for their life. (And
there will be a million critics, who will be saying the same thing for your
victims --- why didn't you consider how they wanted to live before you
snuffed out their life/lives?) People wonder about your conscience... the
conscience of people on death row/ in prison. Carla Faye Tucker was put to
death not only for the crime she committed, but despite her beliefs, how can
society know for a fact, she would never choose to do such a hideous crime
again? Her beliefs did not spare her. The Lord did not spare her from
Justice. Right now at this moment, there are killers walking loose... they
have not pulled the trigger yet, but they will. Society needs to know MURDER
is unacceptable, and it will be punished. Men are less likely to kill their
fellow man, if death is a potential consequence. It will stop a killer cold
in his tracks if his own life is threatened. People in society, want to know
WHY didn't you consider the consequences BEFORE you committed the crime?
Please, don't bring religion into this discussion...
I remember a few years back, when the church was pleading the case for Carla
Faye Tucker, the female death row inmate who had converted to Christianity,
and the church plead her cause all in the media --- but in the end it did
nothing to change her fate. She was put to death by lethal injection all the
same, despite her religious beliefs.
The Lord will not save you from this fate James. There's ONE HOPE you have,
and that savior is James D. Andrews.
I do not know if you have exhausted your appeals process. I do not know when
your execution date has been set. But if you're going to be spared, it will
be done between this moment, and the moment you have when they put you to
death. However long that is... that is the time you have, to show society
NOT WHAT JESUS can offer society... but what can James D. Andrews offer
society?
That is one reason I began writing inmates again. I am especially interested
in EDUCATION above all things. We are Secular. IF, if James, IF you came out
of that prison -- a free man, what will you bring out with you into the
world, to make it a better place for mankind. This is HUMANIST thinking I
speak of James, not very far removed from Universalist beliefs.
What education have you pursued, or have you already made up your mind, your
situation is hopeless; that you are going to die. If you chose to believe
that, then you can blame yourself, as well as society for that death penalty
you're facing right now.
Tell me this, what can you offer society? If you were given freedom, what
would you do to be a different person James? YOU OWE THIS to the family and
friends and loved ones of whomever's life you took. They have reason to want
to see your death sentence carried out.
This is how little I know about your situation. I do not even know what the
circumstances of your crime was, or who was murdered, when, how... that's
important to people... what was your crime?
And if you could speak to those affected by your crime, what would you
say... from the heart James. People in society, just don't really know
what's in YOUR heart. Never mind the Holy Ghost, it's good if religious
beliefs can soften the heart of a person, but all too often, people who
claim to be Christian are not, the name of Jesus, and the doctrines of Good
Will have been taken in vain, and spoken without sincerity. It will take
more, than your spiritual beliefs, to convince society you deserve a second
chance. I hope you get a second chance, if your heart indeed has changed
since you were sentenced to death.
I feel compassion for your situation, but I also feel equal sympathy and
empathy for the victims of these crimes committed by those who sit on death
row. Whomever was your victim, cannot now ask for their "second chance" at
life James --- you took that from them.
I'm sure you above all people, have considered these things. I welcome you
to openly discuss these things. A relative of mine, was very bitter about my
transferring death row inmate' testimonies/bios to the web for people to
read. Very bitterly they said "They should take those death row inmates out,
and put them to death... they don't deserve to live!" Of course, there are
innocent people in the prison system, and there are monsters in the prison
system James. I feel as if I have a right to speak, my ex-husband is also
sitting in prison, after the rape and murder of 3 innocent people, including
having sent myself an explosive. I do not hate my ex-husband, but I am fully
aware, if he were set free, he would kill again, and I do not want him set
free! He is dangerous.
What makes you different than my ex-husband James?
Since you have been behind bars, James... you've became a Christian. But
have you taken the time, to begin a correspondence course in a solid
education? What can you offer society if you're released from this pending
death sentence? That's what people would rather know, than your spiritual
beliefs... your position on an education and career... what value can you be
to society? With what you were, when you went behind bars, to be truthful,
you are sitting where you belonged. Your future, greatly depends on you, and
not others to plead your case, your worth, your value as a human being. YOU
ALONE DECIDED THAT YEARS AGO, but you can turn it around.
I am one of many in society that would question, how sincerely regretful are
you for what crimes you committed... the pain and suffering you cost the
loved ones of your victims... not only those, but your family, your friends,
your loved ones... they too were surely made to suffer. I cannot think of
any thing more heart breaking to a mother, than to have a son, which has
been sentenced to death, and their life is beyond that mother's reach. (If
your mother is a decent person and is alive today... my sympathy is with
her.) So many people have suffered because of your actions, and you have
been your own worst enemy. Don't ask for the church to plead your cause,
they have NO POWER in these modern times to do much for anybody. You're
going to have to ***** your own row, to prove to society you're worth saving.
What degree are you pursuing ? engineering, electronics, auto mechanics? --
have you taken up a Correspondence Course to get an education?.. that when
you would possibly be free, society would not need to fear you returning to
a life of crime, but rather, having the survival skills you need as an
intelligent, self-sufficient individual who's able to provide for themself
within the law. THAT is of far more interest to society, than your beliefs
as a Christian.
These are the things, people are interested to hear about James... to know
you are taking control of your situation, and your life... and are turning
things around. Maybe then people would feel more sympathetic for you.
Society / the Government, did not feel remorse when they put Carla Faye
Tucker under --- but when a man is using his time, his life, his mind, to
gain an education to contribute to society (rather than tearing it down),
it's a little harder for a Governor to allow that execution to go through...
when James Andrews has been making every known possible effort to gain an
education for one example maybe in medicine/nursing assistance ... if for
nothing else, to be able to become certified to work as a trustee in the
medical sector right there in the prison. ANY EFFORT to show people, you
want to become an asset to your community, to society vs. a liability.
I have an article which was given to me, and I felt it needed to be shared
with you, and I am not going to participate in bringing more pain on the
loved ones of victims, by these web pages I make. You can plead for your
life, but your victim cannot have their "second chance". Their loved ones,
are no doubt bitter when they would read you pleading a second chance at
life. For this cause James, you owe society back more than you may be able
to give, and it may be too much, to ask it to forgive you... but at least
you can try to give it all you can... prove to the victim's loved ones, you
*deserve* that second chance. Plead for their forgiveness... by convincing
them, you are now a changed man.
Wilmington Morning Star, January 14, 2004
Associated Press, By Jay Reeves
Excerpt from KILLERS WEAVE PAINFUL WEB FOR FAMILIES OF VICTIMS
BIRMINGHAM, ALA. - Mary Kate Gach thought she had heard the last of Jack
Trawick when he went to death row for murdering her daughter in 1992.
Instead, Mr. Trawick's twisted writings about how he beat, strangled and
stabbed Stephanie Gach and killed other women are available to anyone who
wants to read them on the Internet. Many of the writings were put there by a
one-time pen pal and admirer of Mr. Trawick's.
The killer even taunts Mary Kate Gach by name.
"Those people don't even have a right to speak my name or my child's name,"
.... "There's got to be a way to keep them from funneling this stuff out of
prisons."
Around the country, dozens of death row inmates have letters and artwork
posted on the Internet, a practice that torments the victims' grieving
friends and relatives.
"It's going on all over," said Nancy Ruhe, executive director of Parents of
Murdered Children in Cincinnatti. "People say to me all the time, 'When are
these (victims) going to get over it?' They can't."
Typically, material from inmates makes it onto the Internet through an
intermediary. Prisoners send letters to people or companies on the outside,
where it is then posted online.
Alabama prison officials say it appears Mr. Trawick stopped sending out new
stories about murder after Ms. Gach's mother and others complained last
year. But Mr. Trawick's old writings are still on the Web, along with
gruesome drawings of murdered women.
In one letter posted on the Internet, Mr. Trawick reveled in the Gach
slaying. "I would do the whole thing again knowing death row was waiting for
me," Mr. Trawick, 56, wrote from Holman Prison.
Mr. Trawick confessed to kidnapping Ms. Gach, 21, from a Birmingham-area
shopping mall in 1992. He took her to an isolated area where he beat her
with a hammer, strangled her and stabbed her through the heart. Ms. Gach's
body was thrown off an embarkment, where it was found the next day. Mr.
Trawick was convicted in 1994, and he was convicted the next year in the
slaying of Aileen Pruitt, 27, killed about four months before Ms. Gach. Ms.
Gach's mother avoids listening to anything about Mr. Trawick. But it hurts
her to know Mr. Trawick has a world-wide platform for his sadistic prose.
Free-speech protections prevent prison officials from blocking inmates'
outgoing mail unless it presents a security risk or involves a crime in
progress, said Amy Fettig, an attorney in Washington with the American Civil
Liberties Union's National Prison Project.
In one test of inmates' rights, a federal judge in May struck down as
unconstitutional an Arizona law that made it illegal for state inmates to
send out material to be posted on Web sites. The judge ruled the law was not
"rationally related to legitimate penological objectives."
In Alabama, Ms. Gach's mother and other victims' relatives met with the
state prisoner commissioner last year to protest inmate Web sites.
Corrections spokesman Brian Corbett said Mr. Trawick's mail was screened
extra closely for a time, but his writings have reappeared in new postings
in recent weeks. "I'm in shock. I feel like I have been here before," said
Ms. Gach's mother.
--
Seattle Press guest editorial
Educating Inmates is Worth the Investment
By State Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles
http://www.seattlepress.com/article-9751.html
Here's something else to think about: It costs about $25,000 to jail one
inmate for one year. In contrast, it costs only $1,000 on average to educate
an inmate for a year. And if correctional education helps prevent former
inmates from committing more crimes, that means fewer victims - which means
less suffering for our fellow citizens and less money spent on enforcement,
prosecution and incarceration.
Building more prisons and jailing more people has not deterred crime, as
evidenced by a recent U.S. Justice Department study. On the contrary,
recidivism rates increased by 5 percent during a time when our national
prison population doubled. I believe that continued investment in education,
particularly post-secondary education, is the fiscally and socially
responsible alternative. One of the bills I have been working on would
prevent the elimination of educational programs that are cost-effective in
reducing recidivism. I have also been working to increase offenders' access
to on-line learning, including secure ways for inmates to use our state's
K-20 Educational Telecommunications Network, a high-speed telecommunications
backbone that enables the use of the Internet and videoconferencing in all
of Washington's public educational sectors.
---
.
|
