Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform > World Wide Association of Specialty Programs and Schools (WWASPS)

PLEASE HELP SAVE MICHAEL PERRY!

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Anonymous:
I definitely agree that he was likely abused at a WWASP program, but that aside, he did admit to a crime and will not have much of a life staying in prison forever.  I personally would not want to spend 60-75 more years in a high-security prison.  This is truly a tragedy and I am not sure if Michael is not better off sticking with his original punishment.

Antigen:
I agree. I was treated pretty badly in a number of ways for most of my childhood, including the Program followed by an early version of the 'exit plan'. Never killed no one. Never even robbed anybody or anything like that. As tragic as it is, we have to draw a line somewhere. I also definitely don't approve of the death penalty. I just don't think there is any way mere humans can ever be that sure of our conclusions about the way things happened.

I do believe the guy's confession could be false. Anyone's confession under police interrogation can be false, even without the obvious, physical 'interrogation' methods. And I think Karen's right; LGA does leaves people extremely suggestible. Add to that the 'scorched earth' nature of the exit plan after an extended time isolated from one's life... Yeah, I think there's good cause to suspect valid mitigating circumstances.

We don't put people to death in this country for just any old homocide.

But I can't make the call from where I sit. That's what our stringent, adversarial judicial system and trial by jury is all about.

But here's the thing. This is not the only guy sitting on death row or damned to other horrific circumstances after having received the "benefit" of coercive behavior mod type treatment. It's actually sort of common.

Anyone who thinks there is, or ever can be such a thing as a solution to life's problems as these programs represent themselves to be ought to know this. There's probably not much any of us can do for those poor sobs who have already met with bad ends. But I'd like to think we can, eventually, dispel the dangerous myth that thought reform is therapeutic!

It is hardly too strong to say that the Constitution was
made to guard the people against the dangers of good intentions.
There are men in all ages who mean to govern well, but they mean to
govern. They promise to be good masters, but they mean to be
masters.

--Daniel Webster
--- End quote ---

Anonymous:
On either 20/20 or Primetime last night, there were a bunch of kids giving false confessions after enduring hours of yelling and uncomfortable circumstances in an interrogation.  They did an experiment with Stanford students in which they accused them of pressing a wrong button while typing, and they also falsely confessed.  It was very interesting to hear them discuss the interrogation methods, keeping the room uncomfortably warm, etc. as techniques to get people to "confess".

Anonymous:
After reading his story it seems reasonable to me he is innocent. Just saying.

BuzzKill:
Sure, To hear Mike tell it, you can easily believe he is as innocent as a mid Summer day is long. And none of what he says is a lie. Its just that he is a master of data Drop-out.

As for false confessions - I know it happens and I believe time in a programs like Casa by the Sea would indeed predispose a person to making a false confession. Thats really how I got interested in Mike's case. I felt it was highly likely he had given a false confession. I now feel that is not the case - but I did find it plausible when I first read about his situation.

There is a lot about the use of the death penalty that troubles me greatly. In brief - I do feel there are cases where it is justified. I can not oppose it absolutely. Even so, I feel it is used to freely, and for less than adequate reason, and with no regard for mitigating circumstance in some states - and TX is one of them.

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