OMG, Steph, you're right. Also Twilight, I suppose.

Home. The hearing was about 5 hours, felt more like 5 years. Nephew had been 18 for an entire 1-1/2 hours when the incident occured. He pled guilty to the various awful charges. Judge would not consider him being considered a juvenile offender or reducing required minimums for any of the various possible legal reasons. Potential sentence was 12.5 to 52 years. He gave him 15. Lawyer says with great behavior and time served about 10-1/2 years. He's been in prison the past couple years so he will be 30 when he gets out. It was a very hard day.

My bottom line. No matter what he will be a different man at 30 when he gets out of prison then he was on his 18th birthday. What kind of man that will be is really up to him. His parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends were there to support him and will be in the next decade. This chapter over. On to the next.

I do appreciate your kind support and love.

(((((Laura)))))

Sorry, Laura. What a hard day.

Sorry Laura.

Oh dear, how awful for everyone. At least now you know what he's facing. So sorry to hear about this.

Lots of love, Laura. Indeed, awful for everyone.

That was definitely A Day, Laura. I hope he has some opportunities for school, etc. wherever he is housed.

My neighbor is an artist and writer who works in a prison near here teaching. She had one class of young men (all violent offenders, none older than 25) for a writing class and as an opening assignment ask them to write a paragraph on something no one would guess about them/be surprised about. One of them wrote a paragraph on how his favorite color was pink, and she said all the guys in the class nodded their heads and many agreed they liked pink, too. She really works hard to let them remember there is more to them than the offense for which they were convicted.

I hope he has some opportunities for school, etc. wherever he is housed.

I tried to stress this with his parents and the rest of the family. In the next decade he needs to take advantage of every single opportunity for education, work, religion, counseling, anything. Sign up. Keep busy. He is a voracious reader, which I think has helped him the last couple years in lockup waiting for this resolution.

I really appreciate being able to discuss this here. It is so painful. I'm fairly certain if there hadn't been the judge change the last month that the previous judge would have sentenced him as a juvenile, but no going backwards. He will certainly be an adult when he gets out.

My mom is in a church group that goes to see a prisoner, but I don't know how the prisoner gets signed up for that kind of thing.

I'm so sorry, Laura. It must be so awful for all of you.