Steven's thoughts for the day and wishes for 2009 ...

Those who have been wrongfully imprisoned will all tell somwhat the same story in the sense that they do not feel completely released.  The feelings linger and do not ever completely go away.  Recently, I was driving into the drive-up window area of my local bank.  A car came driving straight at me from the wrong direction, I hit my brakes and then the driver pulled into the lane that I was driving into - completely cutting me off.  He was yelling at me out of his window.  I was jolted and shocked by his absurd behavior and yelled back at him that he had cut me off.  He kept yelling back at me while he was completing his transaction through the "drawer" at the first window of the drive-thru.  He also had his hand held ldown low on the side of his car motioning me with a "come on" motion.  He finally pulled away and I drove up to the window.  As I'm completing my transaction, I can see that the guy was now inside the bank at the counter. When I finally pulled away, he had left.  The lingering feeling stayed with me.  I was not in the wrong, here was this guy driving erratically, yelling at me, and motioning for me to come like he wanted to fight.  All the time, I'm feeling like if I react or get into a big argument with him, that I could end up in jail.  It's wrong to have to feel so vulnerable.  I went back to the bank the next day for another transaction and felt like I should say something, because I don't want the people in the bank to be left with their impression of me to be whatever this guy had said to them when he went inside the bank.  The assistant manager happened to wait on me and she chuckled and said that the guy had "smelled like a brewery."  It made more sense to me now, but at the same time, I never should have had to feel like I was doing something wrong or that I was subject to being accused of something.  Unfortunately, this is what those who have been wrongfully accused have to live with in their lives every day.  The feeling like they are always walking on thin ice.  It is so important that those who are in power take the timeto investigate and that they respect the power that they have.  In my case, the prosecutor that had the power was listening to people who were corrupted by others.  That prosecutor was accepteing expensive vacations from the same individiual who was instrumental in my being wrongfully charged and imprisoned.  That prosecutor is still in power today.  It still bothers me to this day that my name is not cleared.  It still makes me feel abused, tortured, and victimized.  Even though I can walk with my head held high, these are the feelings that are still present in my soul.  I can only pray that others will not be affected in the way I was, yet I fear that it does continue.  I want to know that someday I will receive justice, but I also rationally know that it is unlikely that this will ever come true.  I have a police officer friend in another commmunity who told me that if he was testifying in trial against a defendant who he knew was a "bad person" that he would lie to make sure the person was convicted.  I was saddened by what he told me.  This is a friend who I considered to be very honorable.  I still consider him to be a friend, but I hope that our discussion will make him reconsider doing that in the future.  2009 is a brand new year.  Let's all hope and pray that it will bring peace to those who have been wrongfully convicted.  Lets all hope and pray that it will make those in power carefully consider the power that they hold and use it wisely.  I also pray for a prosperous 2009 so that I may complete the journey across the United States in 2010.