P.O. Box 30013
Lansing, Michigan 48909
Re: Richard Wershe Jr.
Dear Governor Snyder,
As the father of someone who struggled with
addiction for seven years before getting clean, I think people who distribute
and sell illegal drugs like heroin and cocaine are the scum of
the earth. Making your living by ruining people's lives--and destroying entire
families--is about as low as you can get.
That said, I also believe in second chances,
especially when it comes to young people making mistakes. And I believe in fair
and just punishment for young people who commit crimes, especially when those
crimes are non-violent.
This is why the case of Richard Wershe Jr. troubles
me so much.
As a lifelong Detroiter, I remember hearing about
the "notorious" drug dealer with the nickname "White Boy Rick" back
in the 1980s. In the spring of 1987, at the age of 17, Wershe was arrested and
charged with possession with intent to deliver almost 18 pounds of cocaine.
Wershe was convicted, and in 1988 he was sentenced
to life in prison without parole under one of the harshest drug laws ever:
Michigan’s "650 Lifer Law." Signed into law in 1978 by Michigan Governor
William G. Milliken, the law mandated life-without-parole sentences for anyone
convicted of possession of 650 grams or more of cocaine or heroin.
Twenty years later, in 1998, Governor Milliken
called the signing of that law
the greatest
mistake of his career, describing the law as
“inhumane.” That same year, Governor
John Engler
signed
modifications of the "650 Lifer Law" that eliminated life without parole,
and provided parole eligibility to over 200 people serving sentences under the
law.
It has been 17 years since the repeal of the "650
Lifer Law." Yet out of all the people sentenced under the guidelines of the old
law, there is only one person still incarcerated today for a crime they
committed as a juvenile. That person is Richard Wershe Jr.
As if that wasn’t alarming enough, consider that
the United States Supreme Court
ruled
in 2010 that juveniles could not be sentenced to life in prison without
parole for any crime short of homicide. Why? Because it’s unconstitutional.
Nevertheless, Richard Wershe Jr. still sits in prison 27 years after his
conviction; 17 years after the repeal of the law that put him in prison for
life; and 5 years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled his sentence
unconstitutional.
Of course, there is more to Richard Wershe Jr.’s
story, which has led
to speculation about why he might still be in prison.
In a nutshell, Wershe’s late father was a paid FBI
informant, and law enforcement sought out Richard Jr. to be an informant,
too--at the ripe old age of 14. Police used Richard Wershe Jr. to
put a lot of criminals behind bars,
and in the process turned an innocent teenager into a drug dealer. When law enforcement
was done with Wershe--the 17-year-old product of a dysfunctional family--he tried
to survive doing the only thing he knew how to do: selling drugs. And he got
caught.
But why is Wershe still in prison? Even Robert
Aguirre, a former Michigan Parole Board member has
said
there’s "no reason in this world that he should still be there. What the powers
are behind it, I can’t speak to."
Respected investigative reporter Vince Wade has a
theory, though. In his
"InformantAmerica" blog, dedicated to the curious case of Richard Wershe Jr., Wade
writes:
"He’s doing life because he ratted on the wrong
people--a politically-connected drug dealer and cops who were on the take from
drug pushers, including one cop who was a local celebrity because he had been
in a movie with Eddie Murphy. The Detroit political and criminal justice
establishment has vowed to keep Rick Wershe in prison until he dies for telling
the FBI the truth about some of their own."
Whatever the reason is that Wershe’s still in
prison, the fact of the matter is he doesn’t belong there.
Governor Snyder, you have the power to right this
wrong that has gone on for decades. You have the power to set Richard Wershe
Jr. free from his life sentence. I beg and plead that you find it within
yourself to do the right thing in the name of justice. Richard Wershe Jr. was
17-years-old when he was arrested for a non-violent crime. He was 18 when he
was convicted. He is now 45. He has paid his debt to society many times over. But keeping him in prison is costing Michigan taxpayers approximately $44,000.00 a year.
To date, President Barack Obama has commuted the
sentences of 89 drug offenders. Several of those offenders were serving life in
prison, and several more were in prison for possession or distribution of
cocaine. But President Obama can’t help Richard Wershe Jr., because Wershe was charged
and sentenced under state law, not federal law. So it’s up to you, Governor
Snyder, to have some mercy on Richard Wershe Jr.
One last thing: Our great and beautiful state of
Michigan has been using its very successful "Pure Michigan" ad campaign for
years.
Those
commercials feature the distinctive voice of actor, comedian, and Michigan
native Tim Allen, who was born Timothy Allen Dick. According to Families
Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), in a 2013 article entitled
"HowMandatory Minimums Almost Killed Santa Claus":
"In October 1978, Timothy Allen Dick was arrested
for possession of more than 650 grams of cocaine (actually it was a little more
than a pound) at an airport in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He was charged under federal
law--not Michigan law--and as a result served less than two and a half years….
If Allen had been charged under Michigan’s 650-Lifer law, the judge would have
had no discretion over the sentence. Instead of serving 2.5 years in prison
followed by a hugely successful acting career, Allen would have been given a
sentence of life without parole."
Tim Allen served 2.5 years in prison because he
was lucky enough to be charged under federal law. Richard Wershe Jr. has served
27 years and counting because he was charged under state law--a law that has
since been repealed and found unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. What
is wrong with this picture?
Governor Snyder, I have no sympathy for drug
dealers. Drugs took one of my sons--and our entire family--on a roller coaster
ride through hell for seven years. But I don’t think anyone should have to
suffer the injustice that Richard Wershe Jr. has suffered. After 27 years, he
deserves a second chance at freedom.
Please free Richard Wershe Jr.
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| Richard Wershe Jr. as a teen (L) and today (R). |
