Maintaining Innocence

THE SCARIEST PRISONER IS AN INNOCENT ONE……
Maintaining your innocence is a human right. I did this throughout my sentence, and there was only one reason for this……. yep, I am innocent.
Now, many people say to me “Isn’t everyone in prison innocent?”. Well, actually, no! I would say at least 95% of the girls I met admitted their crime and many pleaded guilty. Admittedly many had stories around their crime, and, if these are to be believed, many of the ladies should never have been convicted or imprisoned. Many were led astray by men, or bullied into committing the crime. Upbringing and lifestyle choices also led to convictions for many women. Addictions of course also play a major part in offending behavour.
Prison life is all about addressing your offending behaviours. If you have none, due to not committing the crime, then the authorities do not know what to do with you, and that is scary for them. It is very difficult, for most people who are unacquainted with the legal system, to realise just how easy it is to fall victim to wrongful convictions. Before my court case (my first experience of the judicial system) I assumed that you tell the truth in court and so does everyone else….. how wrong was I!!
Look at the recent case of Stacey Hyde? http://www.theguardian.com/law/2015/jun/11/stacey-hyde-there-are-many-more-who-need-their-cases-re-examined
Stacey maintained her innocence throughout her sentence, and had to go through the harrowing ordeal of a retrial after six years in prison. She had very obvious mental health problems, she was a very young and vulnerable girl and I am so happy to see her free, with her conviction quashed. However, her time as an innocent in prison will affect her for the rest of her life. Her phyical self-harm scars will fade, but the mental and emotional ones will be harder to lose. I feel priviliged to have known Stacey, a brave survivor, and I wish her all the best for her future.
I was quite fortunate in jail. Once staff saw the facts and evidence around my case they were pretty supportive on the whole. I found they were like this with most of the women maintaining innocence. Common sense usually prevailed once the information was read and taken in. Which makes you question the judicial system yet again.
Sadly, the new PSI on the IEP system, issued in Novemeber 2013 has included the need to take responsiblity for your crime and address offending behaviour in order to achieve Enhancement. Despite this, those who maintain their innocence continue to do so, which surely shows that they, at least, truly believe they are innocent. Women who, after 17 or so years, still maintain innocence despite it knocking back their parole…… well, what do you think? Would you have this strength of mind?