The public should know about the fraud going on in this state’s prison and parole system, by design, to keep prisoners incarcerated longer than their sentence.
By Troy Baxter
There is a direct conflict of interest and implied incentive among local judges, prosecutors and law enforcement to keep the prisons at maximum population for maximum profit.
Timothy Baxter, my son, is a victim of this system beginning with a wrongful conviction/extreme sentence that did not match the crime for which he was tried in Madison County, (Jackson) Tenn.
He’s been incarcerated nine years. He was sentenced to 15 years. Six years of that term is a sentence for a “failure to show” conviction/sentence for a hearing about which he had received no notice.
Although recommended for parole in both Aug. 2018 and Aug. 2019 by the same parole hearing officer, Timothy was denied parole in 2018 citing a previous “writeup” from 15 month’s previous (he was not aware of any such write up).
Timothy was granted parole after the 2019 parole hearing with the stipulation that he remain incarcerated to complete a 12-month drug-related program called “T-Comp” before being released.
Timothy had been sentenced for aggravated assault and not a drug charge. However, the Tennessee legislature in March had put into effect that “all” prisoners are to complete the T-Comp program.
My understanding of this program is that the state pays CoreCivic about $70 per day per prisoner for the class. That’s quite a boost in profits for shareholders.
How many public officials own stock in these private run prisons?
The incarceration for the completion of the program resulted from what is called a “Strong R” report which stated that he had tested positive for a controlled substance within the last year.
When Timothy informed his attorney of this, a CoreCivic employee admitted the fraudulent report as an “error” on her part.
There was a hearing on this on March 6th in Davidson County regarding my son. But now the courts have been shut down because of the coronavirus, so there are no results from the hearing, which we are praying would be Timothy’s release.
Timothy Baxter is still incarcerated.
After the whistle was blown on CoreCivic, Timothy was transferred from Turner Trousdale to South Central at Clifton, Tenn.
Yesterday we found out a “dentist” who knew he had tested positive for the virus failed to self-quarantine and now several of his patients from this past Friday are now in quarantine at SCCF.
I have been trying to expose the corruption, denial of civil rights and the coverup by local officials involved in Timothy’s case for almost nine years.
My intentions have not changed, only the urgency. And you may feel free to forward this letter to the governor on behalf of Timothy Baxter, and all other prisoners and their loved ones who have suffered at the hands of this corrupt and unconstitutional system.
If you had a caged animal in your possession and a storm was approaching, wouldn’t you free that animal so that it could at least have a chance to protect itself and survive?
