So What is Next?

Yes, they celebrate Christmas in prisons. Some have a not too bad family Christmas, but to many it is just another day. So what happens after 18 years inside? Derik has had that and it is now more than half his life spent behind those bars. He does not have regular family type Christmases. His father has not been allowed to see him for over 4 years now.

As I said in previous posts, he sits in prison wrongfully convicted of two counts of first degree murder. Because he will not confess to a crime he did not commit, he stays there. After 2 years of fighting with the system, he was finally moved to William Head Prison where he successfully completed his first year apprenticeship training in carpentry. He has a certificate in house framing, a first aid ticket, training in building foundations, framing walls, installing floors, constructing roof trusses, finishing the roof and putting in doors and windows properly. He has done insulation, siding, basic plumbing along with that. He is gaining some hours in the trade working with the onsite carpenter. He also is getting skidsteer loader esperience.

He will be gaining very few hours if he stays at William Head. So he heard about a large construction project starting at another prison. There he would get the hours he needs to complete his first year of apprenticeship. So, upon completion of his course and getting his grades, he applied to transfer out to the other prison.

Surprise!! Well, not really. As you have seen in previous postings, transfers for him have been particularly difficult. This one is no different. His Internal Parole Officer, IPO, has informed him that she will not support him for a transfer. She will not support him for family visits with his sister. She will not support him for escorted passes to the college to continue learning. She refused to even speak to him for at least 2 years. She has refused to do the paperwork that is her job. So, there he still sits. Again the system failed!

I tried to call her to get her point of view on this and perhaps a reason for her not to support him. She hung up on me. She told me that she does not speak to parents of prisoners. Why she won't use such a valuable resource to reach him I don't understand. What is she teaching him? That his views on the abusiveness of authority figures are well founded. Teaching him that if he bends over to be fucked, he might get something. Teaching him that women who work in prisons hate men. Teaching him that the system needs him for continuation of the jobs created by his incarceration.

You would think that a system basing its mandate on rehabilitation would be trying to educate, socialize and generally prepare men for re-entry into society. Instead, the system relies on continued incarceration, so any attempt at improving a prisoner's ability to earn a living, get along with people, control his anger, or anything else that might help him succeed is quashed. This young man, having gone from high school to prison, has never lived on his own. Should he not be offered as much education and life skills as possible? Apparently not, the system is concerned about job security and keeps him locked in.

Please write to the Deputy Commissioner of Corrections Canada, Ms. Anne Kelly, to offer your opinion on this.



Regional Headquarters - Pacific
32560 Simon Avenue
PO Box 4500
2nd Floor
Abbotsford, British Columbia
V2T 5L7
Phone: (604) 870-2500
Fax: (604) 870-2430

Deputy Commissioner: Anne Kelly

Tel.: (604) 870-2501
Fax: (604) 870-2430


Contact me:

Skype: coach_elouise
email: lordelouise@gmail.com

By the way, the other boy convicted at the same trial made up a confession and has been out on parole for 8 years now. He works as a cleaner at a local hospital.