Letter to Pat Lykos 30

It's the beginning of the month, time for another letter to Lykos! Election day is almost here, and Lykos will soon be replaced by either Anderson or Oliver. I hope she will take advantage of these last few months in office to secure justice for those that need it, and I would really appreciate some letters in support. You can send this one, write your own, or even just print out one of the flyers from the toolbar and send that in.

   
                                                                    
The Honorable Patricia Lykos
1201 Franklin St
Houston, TX
77002

Ma'am,
I'm writing to you about the case of Carlos Coy, #908426.

As election day approaches, I feel a little nervous about the future. I will admit, I'm hoping Lloyd Oliver will sweep the ballot box, mostly because he claims he will continue the reforms you have instituted. Although I am sure that Mike Anderson is an honorable man, his history with the D.A.'s office, and endorsements from both Johnny Holmes and Chuck Rosenthal worry me. Whoever wins I remain convinced that Mr. Coy did not receive a fair trial, and I will continue to plead with that person for justice.

However, I would still like to see you take steps to obtain a new trial for Coy. You have consistently assisted those who have been wrongfully convicted, and you have another opportunity to do just that. I know that the next few weeks will be very busy for you and your administration, but I hope you will take the time to investigate his trial, speak to the other trial officers involved in his case, and hopefully arrive at the same conclusion I have; namely, that Coy was railroaded by a system which placed a higher priority on expediency than justice.

Thank you for your time,

Me, my address, blah blah blah.

Weekend Reading 48

Young Jay sent me this link to a new blog that appears to have a new letter from Carlos Coy! Check it out here:
http://theprisonpensman.blogspot.com/

As far as I know this is not associated with the Son of Norma Facebook account, it looks like more of an independent interview.

Also, take a look at ths story out of Bandera: A 12 year old was convicted of molesting his sister; ten years later she recants, claiming her mother forced her to accuse her brother, when their stepfather(a schoolbus driver) is indicted for a string of cases. This mess is only beginning so there's no way to judge the truth of any of it, but just take a minute to look at the picture of the 12 year-old kid that went in, and the tattooed tough guy that is the end-result of being raised by TDCJ:

http://www.woai.com/mostpopular/story/Brother-wrongfully-accused/D1Zzm5nY-ku89dVaeHLMlA.cspx

Vote

Alright, ladies and gentleman; normally today's post would be another letter to Pat Lykos, but election day is coming up, and early voting has been going on for a while.

I had planned to make a list of which candidates I thought you should vote for, both in the state-wide elections and local to Harris County, but I'm not going to.

I've gotten multiple flyers in the mail, Republicans accusing Democrats of being soft on crime, and Democrats accusing Republicans of doing the same thing. Honestly, I couldn't tell you that either party is more interested in justice, and not many of the candidates are advertising that they'll give fair hearing to a criminal appeal.

Still, I'm going to ask you to please, just vote. Personally, I'm going to vote against all the incumbents. I'm going to vote for Mark Bennett of Defending People, even if I have to run through heavy fire to do so. It's not because I know him, or believe he has any interest in Carlos Coy's case, but because he comes across as a guy that is willing to take unpopular stands for the sake of true justice, which I appreciate. Check out his election blog here: http://www.bennettdissenting.com/

According to Life at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center, which is written by a former prosecutor, Judge Ellis is up for re-election. That's a local election so y'all Houstonians will have to figure out if he's worth keeping.

Mark Anderson is running as the Republican candidate for Harris County District Attorney, and Lloyd Oliver as the Democrat. A lot of people have claimed he's a joke, and apparently not even the Democrat Party wanted him as their candidate, but one major point in his favor, as far as I'm concerned, is that he claims he will continue the reforms that Pat Lykos has instituted.

I wish I had more for you, but to be honest I'm feeling pretty grim and disillusioned with the whole process. Everyone's catering to fear and trying to curry favor with voters that don't give two shits if 'The Other' is wrongfully imprisoned.

Still, I'm going to vote, and I hope you will too.

Comments 2

Today we have more from Eric, whom I first replied to in Comments. This is the first half of my reply to several of his posts. He makes a lot of points here, and he's kind of jumping all over the place, so if I missed one, let me know.

Eric said:

Sorry for returning so late.


I haven't read the transcripts, I'm also going off what I've found online. I'm still hoping Carlos will show us all of her testimony, but I have a hunch he won't.

Great, so we're working from the same information. The doubt I feel regarding his conviction is rooted in Harris County's history of false convictions; in the scandals of the Children's Assessment Center, the public humiliation they suffered when the crime lab was shut down. Where is your faith in their veracity coming from?

[The statement “news reports of her testifying, three times, that she couldn’t really remember the assault.”] is incorrect. I think what you are referring to is when the prosecutor asked her "Do you remember it clearly?", and she then said "No." There is a big difference between saying you don't remember something clearly than saying you don't really remember something at all. Do you see how you're twisting her words around to fit your agenda? Not cool.

Aw, gosh darn it. I work so hard to be cool, and then I go and screw it up. No, what I said was not incorrect. Here's the article: http://www.chron.com/CDA/archives/archive.mpl/2002_3544250/girl-says-alleged-assault-by-rapper-wasn-t-a-dream.html

Let me give you a play-by-play.

During the prosecutor's initial questioning, the girl states that she doesn't remember the incident and it could have been a dream. The exact phrasing of the question and answer are not quoted in the article, but it says she 'wasn't sure what had happened and thought it could have been a dream.'

That's statement number 1.

The prosecutor follows up with this: “Do you remember it clearly?”

The girl says “No.”

That's statement number 2.

From the article: Under cross-examination by defense lawyer Chip Lewis, the girl again said she was not really sure what had happened because she might have been dreaming.

That's statement number 3.

She wasn't sure what happened; she expressed doubt about whether it happened in reality, or in a dream. Show me where I said she couldn't remember it 'at all', because I don't think I've said that. The news articles are fairly clear about her statements that she couldn't remember it well, or clearly, and that she wasn't sure it had happened, so I'm going to go ahead and stick with 'she couldn't really remember the assault.'

Her testimony was obviously strong. She gave a step by step account of what happened that night. This is confirmed in multiple articles. To this day Carlos has not done that.

There are a few articles that mention how confident she was on the stand, how clear and precise her testimony was. How is that possible if she couldn't remember it clearly? If she couldn't remember it clearly, how could she testify about it so clearly? If she's fuzzy on the details to the point where she's saying that it might very well have been a dream, how was she able to give a concise, step-by-step account of what happened?


This is a very libelous assumption.

I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as a 'libelous assumption.' You can have a false assumption, which is what my opinion might be, or a libelous statement, which it is not. A very libelous statement would be “Such-and-such manipulated her into lying, and that's why she says she can't really remember,” assuming it was false. Truth is an absolute defense against libel. I pointed out that, generally speaking, coming up with details about an event you didn't experience can be difficult, which is non-specific and very true.

The inference that I make, that she was unsure of details because she wasn't assaulted, might be libelous, except that I'm assuming that she actually believed the story and, in good faith, simply admitted she couldn't remember it clearly. So instead of saying something defamatory (i.e., she was lying) I'm saying she was confused.

My question is, why jump straight to a civil suit? Are you going to sue me out of my decrepit house and all the crappy possessions therein?

Do you have proof that she was told to repeat a fabricated story? Of course you don't.

Of course I don't; if I did, the tagline of the blog wouldn't be 'Searching For The Truth Behind Carlos Coy's Conviction', it would be 'The Story Of How My Awesomeness And Insight Saved Carlos Coy From Continued Wrongful Incarceration.' or, alternately, 'How I Proved That Harris County Wrongfully Incarcerated A Famous Rapper, But Still Refuses To Admit Wrongdoing And Release Him, A La Michael Morton.'

A little wordy, perhaps. I'll keep working on it.

And she didn't just repeat the basic gist of a story. She gave a step by step account of what happened that night. Everything from the dinner, to playing with Carley, to Carlos ordering them to dance, to Carlos caressing her, to the assault, and to the drive home. She described the assault in detail, testifying what he was doing with his left and right hand, the licking, and she even testified she was covered in slobber afterwards. You need to ask Carlos for the entire transcript though. That would help clear this up even more.

You didn't get all this from 'South Park Monster'. Either you're embellishing what you've read in news accounts, or you have information I don't, so I can't really reply to it. How about sharing?

You go on to talk about neutral, untainted interviews. I agree, they are important, and as far as we know all of the interviews with this little girl were neutral and untainted. There is no evidence she was even asked any leading questions on the stand or in police interviews. Incandesio, it seems to me that you are assuming things that aren't even true.

“As far as we know...” I think it's mighty big of you to give the State so much credit when a man's freedom is at stake, but me, personally? I know no such thing. I know that the reason kids are supposed to have the initial interview with a trained specialist is because it is so easy to screw it up. I know that the reason they are supposed to be recorded is because it is so easy to misrepresent what was said, to lean on a kid, knowingly or not, to get the story you want to hear. I know that there have been a few high-profile cases, and even more quietly resolved, less-publicized cases in which these problems lead to wrongful convictions. You can read through the blog for a few of them.

The circumstantial evidence did indeed qualify as such, that's why it was allowed into Court. A child therapist who interviewed the victim is allowed to state her opinion on the matter. A police officer is allowed to do the same.

I already explained to you what circumstantial evidence is; it's evidence by inference. A + B could probably equal C. What you're referring to as circumstantial evidence is hearsay evidence, which is not allowed in any type of criminal case except molestation cases. Why? Because it's notoriously unreliable.

Just because the opinion comes from the mouth of a state-sanctioned expert doesn't make it reliable, especially when those experts are unfamiliar with what seems to be extremely pertinent aspects of the case, like the child's medical history.

Imagine if you or someone you love was sexually assaulted, and there was no physical evidence or witnesses. You would still want the perpetrator brought to justice, right? Would it be fair for you to be ignored? If you give an accurate account of what happened that logically makes sense, I'm sure you would want to be believed too.

No. No, I'm not going to imagine it was me, because I am willing to admit that I have no idea how I would react if I thought my child had been molested. I'd like to think I would calmly and rationally wait for the facts to come in, but I don't know that I would. I think it's very likely I would become completely unhinged, lose my grip on reality and abandon all pursuit of justice in favor of a burnt-earth campaign for retribution. THAT is the whole reason for an impartial, 'proof-beyond-a-reasonable-doubt' justice system to exist, to protect people from the blind fury of their fellow human beings.

But since you're obviously into cerebral exercises, imagine it was you being tried, just your word against that of a little girl, with “no physical evidence or witnesses.” Can you imagine watching as the state, with more money and influence than you'll ever have, tore you down piece by piece and took away everything that ever mattered based on the “accurate account of what happened that logically makes sense”, given by someone who can't even say with 100% certainty that it wasn't a dream?

Have you ever been punished for something you didn't do, Eric? Any event, even something from your childhood. Do you remember the feelings of helplessness and rage that resulted? Now, think of that undeserved punishment being meted out not just against you, but against your family, your children, your friends, your livelihood.

Imagine that, for just a minute, and then really consider if you're willing to give the state carte blanche to inflict that kind of suffering on an innocent person.

Ethical standards and laws being broken? Show me where in the Carlos Coy case where the prosecution broke a single law. Show me the underhandedness involved. You will not be able to.

Uh, no shit. Not yet, anyway. See the previous paragraph about proof & taglines.
So what do I have? I have a strong feeling, like Heidi Ruiz. I have an opinion based on incomplete knowledge of the child's symptoms and history, like Susan Szczgielski. I have inferred from the past behavior of the Harris County D.A.'s office, much like the inferrence drawn from witnesses against Carlos Coy by the jury, that there has been a miscarriage of justice.

If that's enough to justify the original court case, I'd say it's enough to justify the struggle for a new trial.

 ***

 

This will be continued in another post, as Eric wrote quite a bit more. As I mentioned in the last post I love talking about this case, so if you have a new argument or disagree with what I've written, please let me know!

Weekend Reading 47

Vote in the Facebook poll to choose a question for SPM: http://www.facebook.com/SPM.Aftermath

Also, check out this blog post from Simple Justice about the laws used to keep credibility-affecting evidence from juries in rape or molestation cases:

"The case against Halter was built solely on the testimony of his daughters, with no forensic evidence behind it. The basic "she said, he said," scenario, coupled with the prejudice favoring a child and against an adult, favoring a female and against a male. While this doesn't mean it couldn't happen, it also doesn't mean it did."

Quick Updates from Los (5)

Quick Update: Our Cancer, Our Cure

                                                                                                              10/19/12

 

Fam,

 

            Back in the mid-nineties, when I was coming up in the rap game, there were several other Mexican-owned rap labels in Houston. These guys made it more than clear that I was their competition, not the music industry. Other rappers were selling millions of albums, yet they were more concerned with what SPM was doing. The more I accomplished the more the tension grew. Honestly, I can’t think of one other label, of those mentioned, that didn’t have at least a few people hating on Dope House Records. Am I the only person who sees how fucking sad that is?

 

            Aren’t we supposed to be doing this so that our kids can know that anything is possible? It never had to be me at the top. I rooted for everyone, and wished everyone success.

 

            I guess these fools thought if I got hit by a truck, or a bullet, they would be able to take my place. Well, I did get hit by a bullet so to speak, and I’ve been in prison the last fiscal decade. Where are all these dudes at? I get every issue of Billboard and they’re not on the charts. My last two albums were the number 6 and 5 rap albums in America. I’m still the number one selling Mexican American rap artist in the nation, and some of these same dudes are still talking down.

 

            If you hate yourself, you’ll hate your own kind. I got a letter the other day from a homie who said, “Los, my little brother goes around telling people that he’s half black, but he’s a full-blooded Mexican. He’s nineteen years old and hard to talk to. Do you have any advice on what I can tell him?”

 

            I’ve met people like that. For whatever reason, it makes them feel more valuable to say they’re part White, or Black, or Siberian Husky. This is the state some of us are in, and it’s ridiculous because we’re a powerful race.

 

            Our enemy is hate. It’s a cancer. On my “Cages” update I spoke about how Mexican neighborhoods are infested with gangs, and how all those kids inherit enemies. The institution of gangs is a machine that takes kids and destroys their lives. The government knows that we’re killing each other, but they look the other way. For some reason they don’t want us to thrive, to be healthy so they appreciate the fact that we’re eliminating ourselves. The end result is a race with few accomplishments to be proud of.

 

            Our solution is simple, and at the same time, almost impossible. For those who have love, it’s just a matter of using it. For those who don’t, well, how can you make chicken soup with no chicken? Still, the answer is love. Do you have it? The Bible says that it’s easy to love those who love you. Anybody can do that. You get no reward for that. But when you love your enemies, those who curse you and hate you, that’s when you have love.

 

            I know you’ve heard people say, “As long as a person shows me respect, I’ll show him respect. But if he has no respect, he won’t get any from me.”

 

            Well, fuck, it’s easy to respect respectful people. Anyone can do that. That doesn’t mean you have respect. You have real love, real respect, real kindness, when you have those things without condition.

 

            There’s lots of hateful people, but most times it’s not personal. It’s more about who they are, rather than who they’re hating on. If we were never born, they’d be talking shit about someone else, trust me. Just like you drill a hole in hopes to strike oil, people hate in hopes to strike drama. It’s an addiction that doesn’t allow them to be happy with happy.

 

            Some of us won’t join gangs, we won’t be criminals, we aren’t hateful because we don’t want all the worry, the stress, and darkness that comes from those lifestyles. Other of us don’t mind at all because the drama is familiar to us. The feelings we experienced from being raised in chaos are no different than the ones we get from living foolish lives. Even in all the pain, we feel at home.

 

            A while back I was watching Divorce Court, and there was a Mexican American couple on there. The dude had tattoos on his face like the make-up of a clown and it caught my attention. As I listened in, I learned that he was a gang member who wanted to change his life. He and his wife had a baby girl, and he wanted a better future for his daughter. So the judge asked his wife, “Why do you want to divorce him?” She answered, "Because I married a gangster, and that’s what I want.”

 

            Peace and Happiness are treasures to those who know them, but they’re strangers to those who don’t. And people don’t feel comfortable around strangers. This chick didn’t feel satisfied in a sensible environment. She wanted a vato she could be worried about, someone who had dangerous enemies. She wanted to cry and be scared and do all the dumb shit that goes with that lifestyle. It’s not that she’s making herself want these things, they’re natural attractions, and people follow their hearts.

 

            It starts from the very first day you come into this world. In fact, during your first twelve months of life, your brain absorbs more information than any other year you’ll ever live. That’s why the first five years of life are so crucial, because you’re doing more than learning, you’re being made.

 

            There’s been people who have overcome a poisonous upbringing, but it’s not because they were better, they just had better resources. Maybe they were born with stronger minds, could communicate well, learn faster. Maybe they had talents that impacted people. This lifted them from a sad outcome, but they’ll still be troubled according to whatever degree of pain they were raised in. Other people may not have had those talents, same creativity, same creativity, same insight. But people like to be heard and felt, and if they can’t touch others in a positive way, they’ll just get good at hurting people.

 

            The other day I was talking to a guy on the recreation yard and he said, “I hear you, Carlos, but I don’t agree. I hurt a lot of people, and I stayed in trouble, but I wasn’t raised in poison or chaos. I had both my parents and all they did was love me. They gave me all they could. I was a fucked up person because I chose to be.”

 

            I asked him a few more questions, and we both agreed that his parents spoiled him. We can’t forget that spoiling a kid is just as chaotic as anything else. The kid grows up selfish and hurtful, which is a result of being allowed to raise himself. There’s two kinds of people in prison, the ones who weren’t given enough and the ones who were given too much. Let your “no” be “no” and show your kids who the parent is. A three-year-old couldn’t be the boss of a one-man hot dog stand, so why would you let him be the boss of his own life?

 

            I meet people all the time, and it’s hard to have love for them. They’re selfish, hateful manipulative. It helps to remind myself that there’s a reason why people do what they do. We’ll never know exactly why, but we know there is a reason. In heaven we’ll be able to watch films on people and be, like, “No wonder that motherfucker was a piece of shit!”  Hold on, I’m sorry. We’ll be, like, “Pore eso el puto le valio` madre!” Just make sure the angel who’s showing the film doesn’t know Spanish.

 

            I’m not saying that you should try to save every unfortunate person that comes your way, but don’t be one of the dumbasses who hates them.

 

            If someone is trying to get their fix of drama by fucking with you, don’t lose the game. Remember, this is about them, not you. All these people ever get is hate in return for their hate, and no one benefits from that. Firefighters don’t pull up to burning houses with flamethrowers. Those houses need water, and those haters need love. If you don’t have the time, just say, “Look. bro, I love you, and I have nothing to say. I’ll just get out of your way.”

 

            Exercise your love, and you do that with work-out equipment called “haters.” The more love you build up, the more powerful you’ll become. Does anybody know what God is, as far as what he’s made of? The Bible says God is love. It doesn’t say he has love, it says he is love. If that doesn’t tell you how powerful love is, I don’t know what will.

 

            It’s not our job to judge people, because that’s an impossible task. How the fuck do we know what people were made with? The more love you have, the more vision you’ll gain. Whether dealing with someone fifteen or fifty remember that those who were poisoned end up needing that poison just to feel complete.

 

            Here, in this prison, a funny thing goes on during football season. You’ve got these hard core Dallas Cowboy fans, then you’ve got what people call “Cowboy Haters.” The “haters” celebrate everytime the Cowboys lose. No matter who Dallas plays, they cheer for the other team. But do you really believe they hate the Cowboys? Did Tony Romo run over their puppy, then back-up and run it over again? Did Miles Austin take their parking spot then get out of his car and do a touchdown dance? Who they’re really hating on is the Cowboy fans. They know they’ll get a reaction which gives them the drama they’re seeking. One guy will yell out “Them Cowgirls got that pussy!” and all hell will break loose.

 

            It reminds me of the love you have for me, and I love you too. But these haters are using your love to get their fix. Do you really think they know me? They damn sure can’t say they know I’m guilty. You need to see what’s going on. Justin Beiber jumps on stage and the crowd goes berserk. A hater jumps on the internet, and the crowd goes berserk. They’ve got nothing to back up what they say because there was no evidence in my case. How could there be? The dumb bitch, Officer Ruiz, told Atlantic Magazine what a guilty person I was, yet she’s the same person who refused to collect, or ever try to collect any evidence. Why? Because she knew there would be none. All she’s doing is covering up for herself because the system knows they fucked me over.

 

            Like I said, most times the hate is nothing personal, but sometimes it could be. Ya never know, a few of these haters could be enemies I made somewhere down the road. Maybe someone who caught me on a bad day, and thought I was rude. Or someone who’s girlfriend ended up in my hotel room. I gave more hoes dick breath than a 1970’s porno star.

 

            Mostly, though, people just enjoy hurting people. Whether it’s politics, the Cowboys, SPM, they’ll do anything to pick a fight. The internet, I’ve learned, is a great place to spit-box all got-damn day. Don’t fall into that world. Next thing ya know, you’re sixty-years-old and didn’t do a fucking thing in life.

 

            I’m not saying you shouldn’t respond to hateful people but do it with love. They can tell if they’ve upset you by the way you respond. If you don’t have the love to deal with them, don’t worry together we’ll grow, and get to where we need to be, Lord willing.

 

            It’s funny because Incandesio has never heard me talk about playerism yet she handles haters so beautifully. Even when they call her names, she never stoops down to their level. She knows that when you hate them, you become them. She told this one guy, “It warms my heart that you would spend some time on my blog.”

 

            How true that is. We only have a certain amount of heartbeats, and after that number is up, our time on earth is up. If someone is spending heartbeats on us, we must be important to them.

 

            There’s an old song that says “There’s a thin line between love and hate.” There’s also a thin line between hate and love. These haters are spending time with us because they want to be a part of what we’re doing. Their part isn’t exactly positive, but they make the game complete. How can you run a touchdown without people trying to tackle you? To be a winner, there has to be a loser, and that’s why haters are so important. The guy who Incandesio responded to, called me a child molester, or a child rapist, or something to that nature. I don’t think it gets any worse than that, but this guy doesn’t know me. He’s basically just saying, “Hey, I’ve got nothing to do, so I’m hoping you guys will let me in the game.”

 

            I have no problem with that, because I’ve been getting hated on all my life. Way before these charges, way before my rap career, Carlos Coy has always been extremely loved by the player race, and extremely hated by the hater race. It’s kept me on my toes, kept my mind at work, and made me who I am today.

 

            When I was free, I would have put that hater’s brain in his lap because my understanding was average, at best. But, not only has prison saved my life, it’s encouraged more personal growth than anything I’ve ever faced. If I had the chance to respond to that guy today, I would say something like this: “I’m sorry you feel that way, little brother, and honestly, I’d probably feel the same way. I used to think that if you’re found guilty in a court of law, it’s because you were guilty. But I learned how untrue that is. I saw, with my own eyes, a courtroom operating like a corrupt, third world country. One day I’ll get a new trial and prove my innocence and I’d love for you to join us. Our movement is nothing complicated, it’s just about helping our youth stay out of gangs, helping those on destructive paths, and jammin to the dopest music on earth. For now, I’m sorry your role is to hate, but it’s all part of the plan. I need you just like I need those who love me. You keep me focused, and although it gets tiresome, it strengthens me more than you know. Just watch as I grow more powerful, and I say that with all respect.”

 

            Well, my people, we’ve come to an end, but I’ll be writing you more, shortly. Let me say that everything I wrote on this letter, I wrote for you and for me. I struggle and slip just like anyone else. On my last “SPM Responds”, I called haters every dick-lickin, nut-nibblin, bitch-born bastard in the book. I’m damn sure not as good as Incandesio, but, like I said, together we’ll grow, and get to where we need to be, Lord willing.

 

Con Amor,

Los

Quick Sixteen
"Ex-plain That"

 

Seven hundred cold days that my pen lay flat

first line slapped the game into a ten-day nap

second line was like feedin unfed stray cats

can't ya see that people tired of this ben gay rap

nigga snatch ya by the throat, twenty neck veins snap
 

every word that I write, let the death rate stack
 

Los tie compitition to some wet train tracks
 

fuck a steppin stone, make'em bloody flesh paved paths
 

ain't but one fuckin king in this chess game match
 

I am he, nigga hotta than a jet plane's ass
 

even laws tryna ask me where my webpage at
 

go to "S" to da "P" dot Mex SAVE SLASH
 

let the haters and the so-called best stay mad
 

just pulled it out the microwave, fresh-made crack
 

see I died a dark death, bitch, but then came back
 

next album is The SON, tryda ex-plain that....haha!

Questions for SPM

Got a question for SPM? Send it in to the blog! I'll put four up for voting on the Facebook page next week.

There will be no post on Monday, Oct 22. I'll see y'all on Thursday.