The Quad City Times and Quad Cities Online report that in Davenport, Iowa last Wednesday, Scott County Associate Court Judge Christine Dalton sentenced Pachina Tehran Hill, as part of his probation, to attend the men's counseling program at Third Missionary Baptist Church in Davenport and to attend church services there for eight consecutive weeks. Easter services yesterday was the first mandatory service. Hill's attorney proposed the counseling alternative, and prosecutor Marc Gellerman requested that the church attendance requirement be added. Hill agreed. Rogers Kirk, pastor at Third Missionary Baptist, will report to the court on Hill's progress in the program. Hill has been arrested more than 60 times and has been in and out of jail since he was 14. The latest sentence grows out of a prosecution on a number of charges after police tried to stop Hill for traffic violations. He led them on a chase from Rock Island to Davenport, where he stopped his car and tried to flee on foot. At the time he was already on probation for similar violations.
Monday, March 24, 2008
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8 comments:
I think the judge has 'way overstepped her authority.
Never mind that this guy has been an habitual offender for fifteen years, and never mind that he has never shown any signs of reforming his behavior in the past -- what does that judge think she's doing to the congregation of the church by dumping him in there and telling him he has to stay? What about them?
She needs to have her head read. Right after her idiotic "sentence" gets overturned on appeal.
Can this case be appealed? Since the idea was the defendant's attorney, I have trouble seeing how they could complain:
“Let’s give it a shot,” Dalton said of the counseling program plan presented to her by Hill’s attorney, Brenda Drew-Peeples, and supported by Rogers Kirk, pastor at Third Missionary. “I’m all about one more chance.”
The recidivism rate of criminals who go through the Christian Prison Fellowship program --and their one private prison in Texas --is considerably less than that of the general prison population. Society should always be interested in giving religious rehab programs at least as much support as secular rehab. He's not a Muslim or a Jew, or some other faith, apparently, so why not give Christ a chance to redeem a lost soul who is headed down the wrong path?
As for the church, Jesus told them to
visit prisoners --and to love sinners as He does --not for their sin, but inspite of it. This sentence gives the church the chance to be The church.
I've looked into these faith based prisons a little bit. It's arguable whether the prisoners receive any benefit from the spiritual side of things. All of them that I've looked at offer MUCH MORE support than a traditional prison in terms of one on one counselling, helping to find a job when released, help with housing, etc.
If we could get society in general to offer this type of support, I rather imagine the recidivism rate would be much lower. But of course, it's expensive.
Are the faith-based institutions more expensive? considering that much that they do would be out of a sense of compassionate mission?
I would guess that much of the help that comes to the ex-con is through the church laymen who volunteer to be supportive to them, helping them find the housing and the jobs. Prison Fellowship does that sort of thing as well as ministry to prisoners' children and spouses.
The counseling would be Biblical --there's no better incentive to turn your life around than an awareness of God and Eternity --and the saving, redemptive love of Christ --knowledge of the Word of God --which is a "lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." "narrow is the road that leads to life and few there be that find it, but broad is the way that leads to destruction and many there be that go that way." "Thou shalt not steal, kill, bear false witness, covet." There is nothing more motivating to goodness than a knowledge of God and His standards, His Eternal life, and the punishments.
It was certainly more expensive but all the costs were born by the religious community, which to me seems unfair. I have to live in a society where those released from prison also live. I think the costs of rehabilitation should be born by all, myself included.
The other problem I found with this type of program is there didn't seem to be any follow-up. It wasn't clear that there were any long lasting benefits once the support system was removed. If not, then the time and money was wasted.
Of course, having the society bear the costs was Bush's plan of "compassionate conservatism" --to let religious groups compete with gov't and other private groups for public funds in the process of rehabbing criminals or turning around the lives of the poor. To be in the religious program, the prisoners have to agree to the religious nature of it, the Bible study, etc.
Christians provide follow-up and the friendly support group of churches; the loving, helpful community, helps alot to keep one on the higher road of life. I would think it would be part of the probation process that the rehabbed person stays into church life. But I'm sure there would be some setbacks to report to the parole officer.
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