I'm sorry to say not too long ago I never gave the death penalty a thought. What! It didn't concern me. God, forgive me I was so very wrong.
Then the unthinkable happened. My own son was wrongfully arrested for Capital Murder. And the Asst.D.A. told me she was going after the death penalty. It was a nightmare. There was no evidence supporting the arrest. But that didn't seem to matter. In the beginning I thought it would be okay. I knew my son did not kill anyone. It was just a terrible mistake. Again, I'm aghast, at how stupid I was.
At no time did the police really even try to find the real killer. Why should they. They had my son. So What he was innocent. At one time I spoke to the Asst.D.A. begging her to listen to me. "My son is innocent". Her reply was,
"Lady, I don't care whether he did it or not, he is the one going down for it."
I learned very quickly the system really doesn't care about the truth. That is not what it is about at all.
My poor son spent nearly a year in Harris County jail, Texas.
We were ruined financially.I had two heart attacks. My son had already decided he would kill himself rather than let the state kill him for something he did not do. Therefore, I was really in bad shape. I thought I was going to loose my child either way.
Then God gave us a miracle. Six days before the trial was to begin, the actual killer told the truth. All charges were dismissed My son was sent home. But, what if?
What if the actual killer hadn't told the truth?
And what of the heartache we suffered. Not to mention the horrors my son was put through in jail.None of us will ever be the same. And I have dedicated the rest of my life to see that more people are made aware of the terrible things that our system is doing to people, without a moments hesitation.
Since I began this campaign I have met more wonderful people
than I have ever met in my life. If not only through writing to them and talking to them on the internet.
Most of these people are on death row awaiting to be killed by the state. And many of them are innocent. Some of them are mentally impaired. Some of them have been on death row so long, they are different people. But, they are all children of God.
Bonnie Caraway
bonnie2@txucom.net
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