Ken Klonsky

Outing the Law: a Website on Injustice

Getting Home

ENTRY TWO

On the joyful ride home with my family, I recognized nothing about the Bushwick where I grew up. There were no vacant lots and virtually nothing that reminded me that I once lived in this neighborhood. Some childhood friends had since passed away; some were incarcerated; some were literally doing the same things we did 29 years ago.

Once home, I had the joy of seeing my oldest sister Ella for the first time in 29 years. My sister Ella was born with a severe case of Cerebral Palsy. She cannot speak or sit up (she was born without a spine), so she has been bed-ridden her whole life. Later on when I finally got some private time with my family, I spent a long time talking to my sister. She is an absolute gem, someone who motivated me throughout my entire incarceration. My sister’s circumstances are inspiring to me because doctors said that she would not live past the age of 13. But those are doctors, not my sister, who is now in her late fifties.  During my time in prison, I never had to go far for motivation. My sister was always there inside me.

My mother Ernestine McCallum is the strongest person I know. She has endured a lot in her life but never complained. I remember the first time I spoke to her after my arrest. She simply asked me if I did the crime. When I answered no, the conversation never came up again. That’s the type of person my mother has been virtually her entire life. After my father passed away on November 11, 2005, my mother struggled with his death. But, my mother, not to my surprise, has not allowed my father’s passing to prevent her being the loving person that she is. I get along fairly good with the rest of my family and can say that we are close. During my time in prison, it was a blessing to be able to get on the telephone and be able to call any member of my family, just to let them know that I was doing okay. All my siblings currently live in New York City with the notable exception of my youngest brother Larry, who is incarcerated in the State of Kansas. He is scheduled to be released in December 2015. Much like what has been done for me, I talk to my brother often, counseling him on how to survive the pitfalls of such a place. Equally important, I talk to him about the importance of making the most of his time there so that he can be prepared for his eventual release. My brother sounds as though he has gotten the message but the true test will come when he gets out.

Ultimately, I would like nothing more than to move my mom and family out of Bushwick and into a better living environment. Although the neighborhood has changed dramatically, I am told that things to tend to get bad during the summer.

On the night I was released, I was treated at Junior’s Restaurant, in Brooklyn, for the first time in my life. Present was Ken Klonsky, his wife Mary Ellen Belfiore, Joan Ustin, Laura Cohen, Oscar Michelen and his wife Christine, my sister Mattie, her two kids Aaron and Tamia. Also present was Ray Klonsky and his wife Robbie, Marc Lamy, Aaron Hancox and my longtime friend Gary Dolin, a psychiatric social worker for Innocence International, who played an extremely important role in my growth and development during the ten years I have known him. The food was so good that I was surprised that I didn’t get sick from the richness of it, especially after eating prison food for such a long time.

During the next few days, I would see things that would literally scare me half to death. For instance, my attorney Oscar, Ray, Marc, and Aaron was on our way to an interview at The Huffington Post. On the train platform, I saw this guy standing near the edge of the platform listening to his cell phone even though the train was quickly approaching the station. This guy did not flinch as the train literally passed inches from him. I was really scared for this guy but apparently that is a normal occurrence in today’s society. Seeing people walk quickly in the streets with their heads buried in their phones was also strange to me. Some were nearly hit by passing vehicles, but it seemed like no big deal to them. It was clearly I who had to get with the times.

Days after my release, I conducted several interviews in no particular order with The Huffington Post, Channel 7 Eyewitness News, Fox Five, New York’s Pix 11, and interviews with various newspapers. Although I didn’t necessarily care for all the cameras in my face, I wanted to publicize wrongful convictions and be a voice for those individuals languishing in prison who are wrongfully convicted and don’t have the necessary resources and/or support that I was blessed and fortunate to have had for a number of years.

 

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