Well it's D-day today. I woke up and
started off the day drinking coffee. I wanted to be sure I was awake
when they called me down for my staffing. I needed to stay alert and
prepared for any questions that may arise throughout this interview.
I also went over my Personal Accountability & Goals form to be
sure it was filled out the way it should have been. I actually
filled out two of these since arriving at Dodge. One before knowing
their staffing procedure and one after hearing about the procedure
from other inmates. I filled them out until there wasn't any space
left to write anything, then added more on an additional sheet of
paper also. I just want to be thorough when doing this because I
only get one shot. After looking over my paperwork and feeling
satisfied with it, I just read my book and waited...
I went to my meals throughout the
day, and did cell cleanup at 2:00PM. Still nothing. Every time the
telephone rang down the hall, I'd get this nauseous feeling deep in
the pit of my stomach. Over and over again it rang throughout the
day, but not for my appointment. Sometime in the afternoon I even
commented to my cellmate that along with testing my patience and
making me wait this long to be staffed, they're now calling the unit
and telling the Sgt. That they're just calling to torture me and will
call back in ten more minutes to do it again. I knew this wasn't
true, but it sure seemed like it!! Around 3:00PM the Sgt. Finally
came to tell me they called for my A & E appointment. So here I
was, going to go find out my destiny, or at least what it was for the
next fourteen months.
Once I got to the A & E office I
gave the Sgt. Working there my pass. He told me that Erin Monroe's
office was around the corner and fourth on my left. What I walked in
and saw, I was completely unprepared for! She was an unbelievably
gorgeous tan-skinned girl in about her early to mid-twenties,
probably Native American. My mind immediately went blank as to the
speech I had informally prepared in the back of my mind. I said
hello and introduced myself and she introduced herself in return.
After asking me to take a seat she asked for my Personal
Accountability & Goals form. After I gave it to her, she asked
me how I got two copies of it. I told her I requested a second one
from her about a month ago as some of my answers differed from right
after arriving to then. She copied some things down on another piece
of paper, then said I was eligible for the Earned Release Program
(ERP) and the Challenge Incarceration Program (CIP). I then went
into explaining that I had been told by my attorney and my District
Attorney that I would be classified at a minimum security level due
to my non-violent criminal history and the level of my current felony
status, and that I would be eligible for work-release. She told me
that even though I have a history of successful treatment in AODA
programs, due to my current offense, she will have to recommend AODA
treatment anyway. So, all in all, I got the choice of doing
recommended treatment and staying in prison for my whole sentence, or
doing treatment in the ERP or CIP programs and going home early. I
chose the obvious choice, and signed up for ERP. She said that there
should be openings almost immediately, but as soon as she gets a “bed
date”at either DACC (Drug and Alcohol Correctional Center) or MSDF
(Milwaukee Secure Detention Facility), she will let me know. She
estimated having the projected date by Monday, March 7th.
So now it's a matter of waiting again.
I would have liked to have had a
chance to pay my student loans off while I was here, but this is the
next best thing I suppose. It's only a six-month program too. So
after signing some papers and showing me the locations on a state
map, she said it was nice meeting me. I told her the pleasure was
all mine. Then I was off to my unit again. When I got back the Sgt.
gave me my mail. One letter from my douche bag lawyer talking about
dropping my appeal on another case of mine, and a letter from a
friend back home that I least expected to get one from. I was
honestly delighted when I read her letter too. It made me smile a
number of times. I'll have to get around to writing her this
weekend. But for the majority of the rest of my night, I kept
thinking about where I'd end up going, trying to keep in mind all of
the benefits to doing the ERP program aside from going home slightly
earlier. Besides letting my mind wander and reading my book, I
didn't do much of anything else.
Until tomorrow......
~J Doe
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