Next Stop Albany, New York. Signed my furlough paper work and will be heading to Horizon House in Albany, NY the morning of January 16th. There is still much that is unknown. After reporting there I may be heading straight to home confinement as I signed paperwork to that effect. Being about 2 1/2 hours from my cabin in Vermont it is unclear why I would have a long stay in Albany. I could be there for a few weeks or even a few months but that is one step closer to resuming a normal life. Although camp life is not “hard time” or anything that you would imagine from the movies, I was removed from society and experienced a loss of freedom. Horizon is a Residential Reentry Center (RRC) or more commonly known as a half way house. I can have a cell phone, internet access and leave for extended periods for work and other activities but will have a curfew and will have about half my freedoms restored, hence the name. This next phase seems to be more of a litmus test for those who have been in the system to see if they can cope and live a productive life. I’m considered a short timer and I expect to pick up pretty much where I left off when I came here last April. The toll and effect of my absence on my children’s life was far greater than any punishment I received. The BOP uses metrics to determine your recidivism level aka the likelihood that you will commit a crime in the future. It is a number based on a laundry list of criteria such as age, programs participated in, number of previous convictions, disciplinary infractions, etc.. Any number zero to 5 is considered minimum risk. My number is minus 14. I came in at a minus 2 and participated in every possible program that gave credits towards lowering that number. I also maintained a perfect disciplinary record and played by the rules. This may seem like a great achievement for some but in reality I was just being true to myself. The restrictions while here in my opinion often incentivize people to break the rules. By example policy states that you should maintain close ties with your family and then they cut back monthly phone minutes and limit in person visits. At this particular camp they don’t provide the ability to make video calls when this would cut the use of contraband cell phones in half. I know someone who has a 5 year old daughter with autism. She does much better when she can not only hear but see her daddy and he does this with facetime. When he was caught using a cell phone he was sent to the SHU (solitary confinement) for a month, lost all phone calls and emails for 6 months, and it added about 4 months onto his sentence. Should his 5 year old daughter be punished for his crime? Is this what we set out to achieve when someone is sentenced or is it something else?
I have a long list of goals and achievements I’ll pursue and have been planning since I arrived on day one. One thing is certain whenever I set my mind to focus, I find success. This is how I have rolled my entire life and the system did not break my will as it so often does with others. Everything I put my hand to will have a definite purpose and meaning. It will be calculated, precise and for the greater good. Stepping out the front door of this camp is the first step. I’m not anxious, but excited knowing the opportunities that await and what the next chapter will bring personally and for those in my orbit.
7 nights and a wake up. So close but yet so far.
