How did you find out about Alan's crime?

My sister and I were driving down to Georgia from Virginia. Alan and Becky had actually gotten a place down in Georgia. And we’d been dropping the kids off going back up to get Alan and Becky moved down here. So we’re driving up and Becky couldn’t get a hold of Alan. And finally we stopped. I forget where we stopped but she got through to the victim in the case and was told what was going on. Becky and I were in McDonald’s and at that point I turned around the corner and Becky’s just falling all over the place. She’s hysterical crying, saying Alan’s in jail and this is what’s going on and this is what he did. This is what she was told over the phone.

And so I’m picking my sister up off from the floor in McDonald’s because she was right in the middle of having a breakdown on the floor. She didn’t know what was going on and she couldn’t talk. We thought that it was a twenty-four hour thing and this was going to blow over and we'd be able to get Alan out of jail.

What was your reaction to his crime?

When I found out what had happened, I was so angry. I found out that Alan had been drinking a whole lot and so had everybody else that was in the place - they were all drinking a whole lot. People walked in on the scene and assumed the worst and called the police from there.

Alan had never been in trouble before in his life and didn’t know how to react - I didn’t know how to react. So he goes to the police station and they take a confession when they haven’t even blood tested him - they don’t even know if he’s still intoxicated or anything! They ask him all kinds of pointed questions and he has no idea where it’s coming from or what’s been happening.

We borrowed money from my mom and got him out of jail and were waiting for trial. We hired a lawyer who spoke to him probably twice; who I spoke to probably more times than Alan spoke to. I suggested all kinds of things for the lawyer to do. I had asked him about the possibility if, because Alan had a residence in Georgia, he could spend his time, if he was going to prison, if he could spend time in Georgia. I asked about all of those things and I come to find out the lawyer pushed the family into a plea bargain! And the plea bargain hasn’t worked how it was supposed to.

I know that Alan is getting a raw deal. He’s taking responsibility for what he’s done and he needs to and this is the time that he’s doing it. However, there’s a lot of things into taking responsibility and another thing is getting treatment. And he’s sitting in prison right now and the treatment he’s getting is: he’s working in a machine shop, sweeping floors, he’s taking classes, he’s getting his dentures fixed, he’s getting new glasses. But he’s not getting any psychotherapy. Alan’s been in prison now, I can’t even say how long he’s been in there, and he hasn’t gotten any.

Alan could very well do wonders in an outpatient treatment facility. He could have been put on probation. I mean, he could be out today, put on probation, made to go to an outpatient treatment program. This would end it. He could be back in society. He could be earning money for his family. He could be raising the two young boys. They have a lot of problems and I attribute a lot of the problems that Donnie and Josh are having to the absence of their dad.

They have a lot of turmoil in their lives and to take Dad out of the picture at this critical time in their lives is worse for them. Alan could be home doing all of this. The family lives in poverty. He could be working at a gas station and they would be doing better than what they’re doing now. Contributing back to society, getting his treatment. Instead he’s sucking everybody’s money up. He’s taking up a bed in New Hampshire State Prison.

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