The forgotten art of letter writing

Many of you have sent me messages or posted comments on Facebook regarding the case, and sent both condolences and words of support.  I thank you for all of them!  I thought some of you might want to write to Brent yourselves and give him words of encouragement.  He has, after all, been sitting by himself in a 10'x10' cell (for reference, you know those canopies used at outdoor events?  Those are 10'x10') since the middle of April.  They don't even let him have a pillow.  I personally can't imagine sleeping without a pillow for six months.
The first letter I wrote to him got returned because I put some Peter Rabbit stickers on it.  They are very Gestapo-like with their postage rules.  You can only send letters, no cards.  You can send regular photos, but no Polaroids.  No stickers, funny ink or any tomfoolery is allowed.  And for the love of Jesus H. Christ on a cracker, don't write anything on the outside of the envelope except the "To" and "From" addresses on the front.  After all of that stress, don't forget to put the stamp on, or they won't deliver it (postal humor there.  It's terrible, I know).  There are probably other weird rules that I haven't unknowingly broken as well.
He has subscriptions to the newspaper and Entertainment Weekly, but he likes hearing from people.  Even if it's just to say hi, or let him know what you're doing, and he'll write you back. 
We're still waiting to hear news on the appeal, so who knows how much longer he'll be stuck there.

Brent Benefield
AD9214  S/36
P.O. Box 8526
Wichita Falls, TX  76307


And please continue to share.

And since it defaults to a picture of me if I don't add one:

<3,

---jaime

The eye of the tiger...

These last couple of weeks have been really frustrating.  I've almost gotten used to frustration on a regular basis since I've volunteered with animal rescues for so many years.  (Isn't that sad?)  So I figured I would share a bright spot for once.  The rescue Anthony and I work with is hosting a 45 hour adopt-a-thon with 8 North Texas rescues to try to get 300 dogs and cats adopted.  It kicks off tomorrow at 9pm and goes straight through til 6pm Sunday.  Here is the video Anthony shot and I edited for the event.  It's short and should give you a little laugh for the day.

Enjoy.

NO DEAL

A response came today from the Attorney General's office in reference to releasing the 911 call.  In a nutshell, they said the DA's office doesn't have to release it to me. They claimed that the release would:

(1)  release of the information would interfere with the detection, 

investigation, or prosecution of crime

There are specific reasons and details about the case that are supposed to be cited, but they weren't.  They made a "mere conclusory statement" and aren't supposed to be able to do that.  It's another example of their unwillingness to acknowledge the truth.  Their case must be paper-thin and weak indeed if they're worried that the 911 call will interfere with prosecution--to me, this means they know that Brent was hysterical with worry and grief that day, and Lucas's birth mother was not.

The truth will come out eventually.  Brent's last letter to me said this:

"I'm not sure if I've made this clear to you or not, or if it goes without saying but I want a trial.  I've made it clear to Brennon that I will take no 'deals' or anything like that.  So you might want to make that clear to whatever lawyers you talk to."

They have offered him a couple of deals, and he won't take one.  He won't do anything that lets them pin guilt on him.  He also said he wants the answer to one very important question:  Why did he get a one million dollar bond.  He says, "Everyone here keeps trying to avoid that question and I think that needs to be addressed."
When I wrote him back, I told him that I've posted that concern here several times--that his Eighth Amendment right to freedom from excessive bail is being denied/violated and that he is the victim of extreme gender bias.
I wonder what the people in the District Attorney's office would do if this was a member of one of their families, and then I remember that they would have advantages "normal" people don't.  The system is slanted toward their "good ol' boy" network and the wealthy--which is why celebrities seem to be above the law.  They can buy their way out of situations like these and it is NOT RIGHT.  IT IS NOT A JUSTICE SYSTEM the way Wichita County is operating and it's disgusting.  The person who suffers most in all of this is Brent's 7 year old daughter, who is old enough to know what is going on.  She keeps saying that all she wants for Christmas is for her daddy to come home.

Here's the letter:

thanks for reading

---jaime

Frustration! Thy name is Wichita

The 45 day period that the court has to answer the appeal for the Writ of Habeas Corpus expired last week, and we still don't know anything.  Brent is still sitting in jail.  We're all so tired of hearing, "It's Wichita County.  They do whatever they want."  So apparently this means they can continue to violate a man's 8th amendment right to freedom from excessive bail. 

As I posted earlier, bond is meant to ensure court appearance, and to keep people who are deemed a "flight risk" from skipping town.  Brent has been 100% cooperative.  He called the detective when he heard there was a warrant for his arrest, and sat at home waiting for them to come arrest him.  He is as much of a flight risk as an ostrich.

It continues to amaze me that he is being held when there is a wealth of evidence pointing to someone else, and that someone else is roaming around free.  I'm beginning to think they either have a particular axe to grind (great job being fair, judicial system) or are just plain stupid.  Either way, we have things in the works that will take time, but their day is coming.  We'll see how much of a priority this becomes when there is a media storm pointing out the horrific miscarriage of justice they are responsible for. 

Most days I am sad, but today I'm angry.

"One angel to answer so many prayers"

The papers/articles of incorporation came yesterday for Lucas and Laika, and I bought the domain name as well.  Now, to put together a website!

We visited Lucas's grave on his birthday, and Jenna brought him some flowers.  I was glad to have a few people there so that I wouldn't be alone with my thoughts, and I think everyone else felt the same way.  We had heard that Lucas's mother would be there all day, so we waited til almost dark so that we wouldn't disturb her...

We've gotten a couple of pieces of good news this week, but I can't share them just yet.  It's finally starting to feel like the tide is turning in the right direction.  As soon as I get permission, I'll post what we have.

I was talking to Lisa last night, who had been telling one of her best friends that she was having a hard time with Lucas's birthday.  Her friend said she felt like Lucas had been sent to us to help protect his brother (because we couldn't do anything), and to help all of the families that benefited from his donations at the hospital.  She said, "Think about all of those families and their prayers.  Think about how he has saved his brother.  I think your family had a moment with an angel he sent to protect Logan.  One angel to answer so many prayers."

Despite what I may believe or may not believe, I bawled my eyes out when she told me this.  And despite what you, the reader, believes or does not believe, I appreciate your thoughts and continued support.  This blog just surpassed the 3,000 page views mark, so more and more people are seeing Lucas's story.  Please continue to share and help us get justice for Lucas.

Thank you.

<3

----jaime

Lucas and Laika

Tomorrow we're heading to Wichita Falls, where a few of us (family and friends) will have a small memorial service for Lucas.  If you've been following the blog, you'll know it would have been his first birthday.  It's important to our family to keep his memory with us.  We will not rest until justice has been served and Brent is home. 

Below I'm posting some pictures of what I've been working on.  Two of my greatest loves are family and rescue animals, so I've named the business to raise funds "Lucas and Laika".  You already know Lucas's story, so I'll tell you about Laika.  Laika was the first animal sent into space.  She was part of the Soviet space program in the 1950's, and they sent her up into the stars knowing that she would never return.  To me, she is a symbol of all of the poor souls who are abandoned in animal shelters every single day.  I've always wanted to use her name as a tribute, and since she and Lucas are both among the stars, I am creating pieces to honor both of their memories. 

These are some that I'm giving to family members (obviously they aren't put together yet!  These are just the parts), and I'm making some other things that these will be part of.  You'll see!  All proceeds from any sales will go towards Brent's legal defense expenses.  So these are not for sale, but some others will be soon.

Thank you for reading and for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.

"Time moves in one direction, memory in another."

<3

---jaime