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Catching a break

By Jeff Terrill

Fort Wayne Reader

2018-05-17

“You’re going away for a long time. Maybe you’ll learn how to behave. You need to figure it out. So when you get out, you can try to have a normal life.”

That’s how the judge ended Cole’s sentencing hearing. The judge didn’t seem to care that in Cole’s short life he hadn’t caught any breaks. Not one.

Cole’s father was out of the picture months before his birth. Cole’s mom had a crack cocaine and heroin problem. Cole’s mom left him alone when he was a baby — sometimes for days at a time. Multiple adults physically and sexually abused Cole before he was old enough to ride a bike.

A caseworker once mentioned to Cole that his mom locked him in a dog crate for days. Cole can’t remember that. He sometimes wonders what else he can’t remember.

The state placed Cole into foster care when he was five. The first few foster families didn’t work out too well. Cole’s maternal aunt reluctantly accepted him into her home for a while. Unfortunately, her on-again-off-again boyfriend began
molesting Cole and threatened to kill his aunt if he told anyone. Cole didn’t say a word.

Cole started stealing. He fell in with some friends who drank and used drugs. To avoid the abuse at his aunt’s home, Cole stayed away for weeks at a time.

Cole’s anger issues accelerated. He started fighting a lot and skipping school. Cole didn’t really care about anything. Why would he?

Police arrested Cole for robbing a gas station when he was fifteen. The juvenile court put Cole into a placement facility that helped kids with troubled pasts. Cole liked living in a group home.

After a few months, however, the placement facility kicked out Cole for violating house rules. The juvenile judge then committed Cole to Boys School, which is a prison for minors. Cole fell in with a gang there. No one visited or sent him a
letter in his two plus years there.

Cole wasn’t out long before he started getting into more trouble. Adult system trouble. Police arrested Cole in a stolen car. Officers found pills, some meth and a gun.

As the bailiffs walk Cole out of the courtroom, Cole’s court appointed lawyer explains that he could appeal the sentence. Cole tells him not to bother.

Cole’s not a real person. But the prisons are stuffed with guys like him.

Cole never caught a break. Not one.

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Jeff Terrill is a partner/shareholder with the law firm of Arnold Terrill Anzini, P.C. Mr. Terrill represents clients accused of crimes throughout northeast Indiana. You can contact Mr. Terrill with any questions or comments at his office at 260.420.7777 or via email at jterrill@fortwaynedefense.com. Learn more about his firm at www.fortwaynedefense.com. This article expressed opinions and observations of the author, is not intended as legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship between the author and the reader. Please consult a qualified attorney with any legal questions or issues you might have. Thank you.