Kevin Tower Proposes Program for Transient
He's sitting in jail, but he's thinking about social justice.
Kevin Tower is currently a resident of the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) at the Lakeland Correctional Facility in Coldwater, Michigan.
He’s serving a life sentence after being convicted of murdering his two uncles.
Since his conviction, there has been a lot of evidence revealed which suggests he was wrongfully convicted including the development of an airtight alibi, a witness recanting while claiming to have been coerced by prosecutors, and the discovery of Brady evidence.
Lindy Morelli, of Lighthouse in Scranton, Pennsylvania, has taken up Kevin’s cause and she joined Megan Fox and I on the livestream last year to talk about Kevin’s case. Lindy comes on about thirty-five minutes in.
Besides fighting for his freedom, Kevin also sends along essays in which he proposes prison reform and describing prison life.
Here are a few of his previous ones: Essay 1, Essay 2, Essay 3, Essay 4, and Essay 5.
In his latest essay, he looks not at prison reform but a program to help transients.
I have been proposing a program called Citizens for Social Awareness and Response (CSAR). There has been a significant need for and attention to this proposal. This is Part 2.
Here is my idea for a School District or University. A University could be an excellent location for a pilot program.
You obtain grants and fundraising to hire Students and Seniors to establish a community contact list. This list would include every resident and transient resident within the School District or student at a university. You map the entire area and identify every member and transient member of a household. Some transients may be connected to several addresses. Next, you give the year of birth for each person. Next you give a vulnerability score of 0 to 9. Then you attempt to identify people who are connectors to each household and person. Connectors are given a problem score of 0 to 9. You then identify people who are connectors to multiple people and households who score both low vulnerability and low problem. You attempt to recruit these people to be awareness volunteers in their circles. That means they will check in on people’s wellbeing. When they do, they enter this wellbeing status as a number of +1 to +9. This allows all people in the community especially the most vulnerable to be looked after. When people know someone is looking out for them, they feel safer. When troubled people know vulnerable people have friends, they avoid causing them any trouble.
It is said that we are only 7 to 8 people away from anyone else in the Country. In our communities, we have people who are connectors. Connectors are people with high values, character and are generally trusted by the community. They have connections to dozens or even thousands of people. When they speak, people generally trust what they say. Connectors are rated as 10, 100, or 1,000 based on the quantity of people they are connected with.
I would first start such a program identifying vulnerable children and adults. Then based on the level of vulnerability and / or contact with problem people, you then base the level and frequency of contact that is needed to ensure their wellbeing. An example is a young female university student who has some mental health problems and has had trouble with another student imposing upon her vulnerability. This student would require multiple contacts and a frequent physical presence checking on her wellbeing and safety.
Ensuring someone's wellbeing requires social action. This could be domestic needs, medical, mental health, spiritual or law enforcement intervention to meet their needs and ensure their wellbeing and safety.
Then, I would focus on a high problem person score list. This would allow a problem score of -1 to -9. This would be a community intervention program to help people with problems by intervening before their problems elevate to criminal behavior. For convicted persons this means extending resources to promote a successful recovery. An example is sending Campus Police to check on the male student imposing upon the above female student. With the Police would be a CSAR Technician providing the problem male student with advice and education on violence and sexual assault prevention. The CSAR Technician would have follow-up meetings with the male student.
CSAR's then makes the appropriate referrals to assist in the wellbeing of both vulnerable people and problem people.
Eventually, CSAR's would progress to a mentorship and skills training program. There would be trained technicians and volunteers to conduct the intervention, training and mentorship. A key feature of CSAR's would be a web of internet volunteers to detect online activity for threats and with early intervention prevent mass shootings before they occur.
Citizens for Social Awareness and Response is the future of the wellbeing and safety of our communities! The intent of CSAR's is early intervention to increase mental and physical wellbeing and safety. To provide early intervention to reduce the number of crime victims and the number of people sent to prison for behavior that could be avoided.
Promote CSAR's today in Your Community! Thank you for reviewing my proposal.