The Child in Hard Time

—Alonza ¹⁴

Alonza Rydell Thomas Jr. is now 20 years old. He is scheduled for release February 14, 2013.

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Stephen Elliott, a ward of the state of Illinois from ages 14 to 21, is the author of four novels, includingHappy Baby (MacAdam/Cage) — aVillage Voice and Salon.com book of the year. He lives in San Francisco. His Web site iswww.stephenelliott.com.

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¹ The People v. David Foster SC214A

² The People v. Alonza Thomas SC081072A

³ Wright, Rossi and Daly, 1983 and 1991

⁴ Several articles were written prior to the passage of the act stating that juveniles would now be eligible for the death penalty. However, Cal. Pen. Code Section 190.5 states, “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the death penalty shall not be imposed upon any person who is under the age of 18 at the time of the commission of the crime.” Neelum Arya, at the Youth Law Center, asserts that this is one of the reasons Proposition 21 is so confusing: Not all of the provisions affect all juveniles, or all adults. The name of the bill is particularly misleading, since most voters believed the bill only affected juveniles.

⁵ Body Count, Simon & Schuster, 1996

⁶ Professor Wilson, now at Pepperdine, did not return multiple requests to clarify whether he ever supported Proposition 21 and whether he supports it now.

⁷ In 2003, the last year for which data is available, 20 kids were tried in adult court for petty theft, 16 for alcohol-related offenses, 10 for disturbing the peace and eight for vandalism.

⁸ Mother Jones, January 15, 2000

⁹ Report of the Inspector General, State of California, Tehachapi Youth Offender Program

¹⁰ When Alonza entered corrections, he had finished the 10th grade. He made no progress toward a high school degree after entering prison.

¹¹ According to prison files held at Lancaster, Alonza’s last day at Tehachapi was 7/31/03.

¹² Vince Crittendon, prisoner No. C-57138. Requested his information be made public.

¹³ The prosecutor in that case, Matt Manger, testified on Alonza’s behalf in 2000, citing his cooperation in putting a violent felon behind bars.

¹⁴ Spelling and punctuation were corrected in the transcribing of this letter.