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Thank you for visiting the FundRazr page I created for my mother,
Tammy Johnson. Any help you can provide today will go a long way to
bringing her life back on track.
What's the deal?
Tammy Johnson has been held at the Lake Region Correction
Center (which has not been in the news for good reasons lately) in Devils Lake,
ND since October 3, 2015. Her life is in shambles, and she is a mental
wreck. Every phone call she sounds more and more desperate, and every
day I'm worried I might never hear from her again.
Who is Tammy Johnson?
My mother's life has been an endless struggle. I remember her
working three jobs and taking night classes while I was in school. She
was featured in our local newspaper under the headline "From
Welfare Roll to Honor Roll" when she received her Associate's
degree. She continued to work her way through school, earning her
Bachelor's degree from Mayville State University. She was, until her
arrest a month ago, a highly valued construction manager with
an impeccable work record. She had finally found a great
job that valued her, and she was beginning to pay off the debt that
raised me.
What happened?
On Saturday, October 3rd Tammy was arrested on a warrant for an
NSF check. She never received the summons listed on the case's
register of actions, and the same shows "returned mail"
which I believe will show the summons was sent to an old address
(although the collection agency, and the clerk of court were both
aware of her current residence). I cannot request discovery myself,
and her court-appointed attorney is completely unreachable, and
everything surrounding the case is very pecuilar. For example:
the copy they gave her in jail of the arrest warrant has
someone else's name on it. I wrote a letter to the
Attorney General's office, but have not heard back yet. I also sent a
request to the ACLU-ND before her attorney was even assigned, but
again have not gotten a response.
At the appearance the Monday following her arrest the judge
stated that he wanted her to "sit for at least 30 days,
to clean-up" and set a cash-only bond of $10,000. He
told her she would not be eligible for work release, so she has
essentially lost her job. As of October 31st, she has lost her health
insurance, and many of the personal belongings from her home. When she
is released, she will be homeless. Frankly, she should have
been given a PR bond, like the second and fourth-time offenders I
saw in court that day, but instead she rots.
There are now three cases open against my mother, the first has
barely been mentioned in court, but is the only reason the state has
for the search of the home she shared with two young men. The second
case includes the felonies, and is the only case her court-appointed
attorney has ever talked to her about. (He wants her to plea
guilty, by the way, and seems to not want to work beyond
discussing a plea bargain with the State's attorney prior to court.)
These first two cases were granted a change of judge at her (second)
initial appearance. The court just added the charge of
ingesting a controlled substance to a third case this Friday, after
she had already sat in jail 28 days, which I incorrectly
thought was due to us discussing her defense plans over the monitored,
and over-priced phone calls she makes from the jail.
What can you do to help?
If you are a lawyer licensed in North Dakota, you can represent
my mother. She is at her wit's end, and the
court-appointed attorney is not going to fight for her freedom. We can
work out a payment plan, and she would like to seek her lost wages returned.
Any donation amount will go a long way, and while I doubt I'll
be able to raise enough to post her bond, your donation will
guarantee she does not have to live outside in the North Dakota
winter whenever she is finally released. She'll need at least
$1000 for a deposit and first month rent for an apartment in Devils
Lake, whether she is out on bail or after a series of court
appearances. I certainly hope she is not forced to mount her defense
from inside the jail though.
If we can raise at least $3000, I can hire a civil
rights attorney, who will dedicate themselves to all of
Tammy's cases, rather than only to the case he was assigned, ignoring
all defense options.
If we reach $12,000, I will bail her out so she can try to
reassemble her life. Any amount beyond the $12,000
goal will help my mother through the appeal process or civil suit.
Please, if you can spare a few dollars, donate them to help my
mother. The desperation in her voice is the worst sound I've
ever heard. I know this experience has already changed her
forever, please don't let it end her. She needs to be freed, and to
talk to a lawyer who has her best interests in mind, but your support
may be enough to encourage her to keep fighting, and keep living.
Thank you for your love and support!
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