![]() Inmates shouted to one another on long, slow‐moving lines into the mess hall, commissary and offices of caseworkers a loudspeaker blared unintelligible commands to the prison population at large and a cacophony of tran sistor radios screamed against an obbligato of clumping, mud‐laden boots. I was immedi ately overwhelmed, and depressed, by the subway rush‐hour‐like congestion and din. ![]() The marshal led me into the small administration build ing in the center of the compound. We stopped at a cluster of low frame buildings that resembled a World War II Army camp-which, in fact, Allenwood had been. We entered through an open, unguarded grillwork gate and drove past fields covered with hoarfrost. The drive to Allenwood, 18 miles away, took 25 minutes. Was this my destination? Then he opened the door and said, “Jackson, you come with me. When the marshal stopped the car in front of the main gate, I became even more apprehensive. This, I soon realized, was Lewisburg Penitentiary. It reminded me of Count Dracula's castle. ![]() In the distance loomed a towering edifice surrounded by a high gray wall. That is, the most dangerous criminal, capable of the most hideous deeds under certain circum stances, in everyday life looks and acts just like you or me.Īt the Lewisburg city limits the marshal turned off the highway and onto an ominously beautiful, deserted, tree‐lined drive. From this impression, which was later re inforced by my dealings with scores of other in mates, I learned that you can't judge a crook by his cover. In our forced intimacy, I felt compelled to con verse with my comrade‐in‐bondage and was amazed to find him an affable, polite, even gentle human being. His outfit, I was soon to learn, was standard Fed eral prison garb, a confusion of armed‐forces sur plus and items made by prisoners at various Federal institutions. The prisoner beside me in the back seat, I noticed, was wearing a bizarre combination: a navy pea jacket, green stocking cap, suntan pants and shirt, and brown high‐top shoes that looked like some thing out of a Sears, Roebuck catalogue, circa 1910. My lawyers had told me that it would be either the maximum‐security penitentiary at Lewisburg or the minimum‐security prison camp at Allenwood. The sedan sped toward the outskirts of Lewis burg, and I wondered again which prison I would be taken to. ![]() I tried to look appropriately grim, though, in truth, I was feeling nothing. The four of us descended the steps of the courthouse to a waiting sedan. We were joined by another marshal and another prisoner, a young black from Lewis burg Penitentiary who had been to court that morn ing to be resentenced for having murdered a fellow inmate over a carton of cigarettes. My thoughts were soon interrupted by the ap pearance of the United States Marshal, a friendly, rotund man in his late 50's, named Cotner, who re moved me from my cell and apologetically clamped me in manacles. My kids had been prepared emotionally for the long separation, my office staff had been instructed on how to carry on without me, and my wife's material needs had been provided for.Īs I sat alone in the claustrophobifacient cell, furnished with two fancy mahogany chairs and a toilet seat, my mind throbbed with questions: Had I made a mistake in abandoning my plan to chain myself to the Jefferson Memorial? (One of my law yers had led me to believe that I would be released in a matter of weeks if only I would refrain from any show of defiance.) Should I have fled to Cana da, as I had at one point made elaborate plans to do? Would the public be made aware of my im prisonment and the constitutional issues involved? Which prison would I be sent to and what would prison life be like? 17, 1972.Įxcept for the fact that my wife Shoshana had needed smelling salts at the very last minute, every thing had gone smoothly, all things considered. I found myself in the tiny lockup of the Federal District Court at Lewisburg, Pa. The 10‐year ordeal of courtroom histrionics, legalistic double‐talk and dashed hopes had ended at last. The door to the cell slammed shut and there I was behind bars.
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