TWO WEEKS A SLAVE

I've been taken against my will, lied on and held captive for several days. I've been treated, fed like and spoken to like an animal. I don't know if I can no longer trust the land I live in. I defiantly don't trust the police. It was because of the police I was sent to prison in the first place.

Before they took me in, I was finally getting my life together. I've been working a film, a documentary and a reality show with Top Management Inc.

The Reality Of Film Making Episode 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjwP80Ebs3Q

Episode 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=da1l4xbrcwM

Filming Videos for DMC of Run DMC with Who Got The Juice Ent
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Wt20iwxCnI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igqMrlz63-I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxMsPV7FIBk

and making what I can at Hall Of Fame Music Store. Other than that, I was paying bills with my mother, planning which short films I wanted to work on next and getting ready to take my math GED for the 4th time. On October 3rd 2009, I was stressed and exhausted. I worked all week and I needed a break. Though I knew I had plenty of work to do to further my career as a film maker (been working on it for the last 8 years)I wanted a break free for the day. It was a saturday, which was the sabbath so I knew that was my time to relax. My twin brother, my cousin Emmanuel and my long time friend Richard and I was watching Rocky when we decided to go to my cousin Chris house. My mother begged us to stay home but we all told her "We'll be right back". Eddy and Emmanuel took the bus as Richard and I walked to save money. By the time we arrived to Chris house, we was drenched, soaked and wet because of the rain. When Eddy and Chris was finishing a song they was working on, Richard had got in touch with his friend Mel who just got back from Miami and he wanted to see him. Problem was, his girlfriend in far rock wanted to see him as well. Since she was hanging with her girls, she told him to bring us along. At first I wasn't going to go. I had work to do and it was late. My boys wanted me to come, they kept saying that I was always working and never hanging out with them, so I went along. As soon as we got to Far Rock, trouble started.


 A group of guys walked over to us, asking if we were from "40". We replied no but they kept bothering us, so we kept it moving until they decided to leave us alone but I can honestly say they seem like they wanted to do more than talk. After that, everything that went on for the rest of the night, I decided to write down on twitter (www.twitter.com/Carlemile) just to be safe. We used the GPS on my iPhone to get around until we met up with Mel's girl. We quickly went to her apartment because we heard gun shots near by. We hanged out, listen to music and watched TV for a few hours. Had a good time just hanging out, nothing crazy but it was really getting late so we had to get back to Jamaica, Queens. We made our way to the Q113 bus stop. The boys and I ended up separating and I found myself alone. Now at this point Im in a daze. We were drinking with the girls and the world couldn't sit still. I sat on the floor trying to catch myself when I look up and see the guys fighting. As I cross the street Mel runs towards me screaming "RUN!!!!". Out of fear, I ran with him. We ran several blocks before we stopped running. I found myself alone again and near a train station. I asked myself should I run towards the train and meet them back in Rochdale but I decided to go look for them. I meet back up with Richard and Mel and call Eddy and Emmanuel to find out where they were. Emmanuel tells me they are being searched by the police and that he will call me back. As soon as I hang up, the police approaches us as well. I remained calm as they searched us because I knew I didn't do anything wrong (If only I knew I had the right not to give them a consent to search me because unless they have probable cause, its against your american right to do so) but I know now you don't have to commit a crime to be arrested. As they begin to handcuff me, I asked them why was I being handcuffed, they ask me about a phone. I had no clue what they was talking about and they continued to put me away. As I was still handcuffed, I wrote my last tweet, hoping someone will see it and tell my mother. The police took all of us and held us in a cell for almost eight hours. 

Though my boys were calm, I was still trying to understand why I was behind bars. Eddy and them laugh as if this was a game but I felt that this was to serious. I was told later Eddy and them got
into a brawl with 3 spanish guys (all drunk) and Mel took the guy's iphone but that still did not explain why I was jail myself. The police asked us one by one what happened. I couldn't give them an answer because I honestly didn't know what happened and I was still sobering up. The guys told the police I wasn't there but they kept me there. The arresting officer wrote a statement claiming 6 boys (including myself) ran up on the spanish boy and robbed him for his cell phone. They even took the 10 dollars out of Emmanuel's pocket and said it belonged to the spanish boy. I was now being charged for Assault and robbery to the second degree. I couldn't believe it. They sent us to central bookings to see the judge, we didn't even get to tell our story (and the legal aid was no help at all). By the end of sunday night, I was sent to prison VCBC (also known as the boat) in the bronx with a 5,000 bail. They made me sign a whole bunch of papers and sent me away on the correction bus. Only Richard and Mel was sent to Rikers island (at first) because they were young. The rest of us was on the boat. The correction officers treated us as if we didn't deserve respect. In less than 24 hours, it seemed like all my rights been taken away from me. For hours we remained in a cold cell. Though I didn't know what
was going to happen next, I remained strong for I had known the lord was with me and wouldn't let no harm come to me. They stripped search me, checked my health, separated me from my twin and sent Emmanuel and I into the dorm. The dorm was better than I expected. Though it got freezing at times, some of the officers still treated me as a criminal and served me food that was beneath me, I was alright. I quickly made friends with doctors, nurses and a few C/O's and inmates. From the way I behaved and spoked, they all continued telling me that I didn't belong there. My mother couldn't afford bail so I had to remained there until my next court date. October 19, the day after my mother's birthday. The showers weren't private but we all had separated stalls. The inmates treated me better than the C/O's but everyone had something to say about the case. Some said I will go home, some said I will do parole. Another few even said I would be doing time. After I spoke to JP, the legal coordinator I decided I couldn't take anyone's word but God's.


Though I have been saved for years, I took that time to re-new my mind and work on my films. For years I've said Im not in the entertainment business to make money, I just wanted to entertain the world but I got to admit, for a while I was lusting the hollywood lifestyle. That week, I stopped caring bout the money, the cars, the women, the clothes, the fame and fortune. I just wanted to have my stories told trough film world wide. If God didn't give it to me, than I wasn't going to take it. I was now excited that my mind was back on the right track, all I needed to do was to get out and work on making a brand. Every time I was around apart of the prison I never been before, I wanted to try and escape but I kept telling myself, I only had to deal with those two weeks. Don't do anything crazy to make things worse. Remain invisible to everyone. For days, I was emotionless. You could not look at me and read my emotions (who said being an actor does not come in handy). I had a blank expression on my face for days. Didn't want anyone to think I was tough and I didn't want anyone to think I was soft. So I made it seem like I was sitting at the bus stop the whole time. The only escape I had in their were my dreams. I was having nothing but nightmares (and still am until this day) but it
was the only time I felt like I wasn't where I was. Out of all the dreams I had, only one stand out the most. The morning Emmanuel was bailed out, I had a dream I was being chased by the police. I jumped onto a train to get away and on that train I saw an old friend I haven't seen in years. This friend and I did not leave on a good note so I tried not to get that friend's attention but that friend seemed to already know I was there. My old friend walked over to me with a few other people.
They offered a song and a prayer for me. I refused it, I didn't want it at all. For years I haven't spoke to this friend, the friend wanted nothing to do with me. Why bother with me now but the friend insisted that I let them sing and pray for me. So I let them. They sang their hymn and did a prayer and went back to their seats.


Curiously, I walked over to my old friend, asking why. Why after all these years, all that has been said and done that they still prayed for me. That friend gave me attitude and I gave it right back and walked off to only find myself running from the police again. The train stopped and the police was out there waiting for me. As I was getting ready to run again, I heard a voice calling me. I woke up realizing it was the C/O. She tells me to pack up, I was being sent over to Riker's island. They
wouldn't let me get in contact with anybody and I had not seen my brother in days. Last time I saw him it was a monday, it was now thursday. They had me in a cell waiting with a murderer and a rapist. I continued to be emotionless but they automatically made up their minds that I didn't belong with there. They told me countless of times I didn't belong there with them. They treated me better as well. The Rikers c/os were a whole different breed though. I never was treated with so much disrespect in my life. They had me sleep in the sprungs in Rikers, which is like a giant tent with electricity. Before I walked into Rikers, I looked up to the sky and said "Lord, Watch over me. I am about to walk into the Devil's home" and I think that was the best thing I said this whole year because in those two weeks, nothing happened to me. I was not harmed. I had more inmates watching over me than I had them wanting to harm me. God had his angels with me at all times. I've seen dudes getting beat up, harassed by C/Os and nothing happened to me. I felt invisible. After a few days, I started to show emotions. I was always calmed because I seen dudes who lost their minds in there and things always got worse for little reasons. So I learned from their mistakes and kept quiet and to myself but I always found myself socializing with the other inmates. The nights were horrible. It would get below 40 degrees at night, there were nights where the inmates would wait for the others to sleep before they attacked them, nights when I heard inmates screaming. You actually have to share the showers in RIkers. One big shower. I always waited until it was empty before I got in. By my second week, I had finally got new clothes from my mother and a brand new note book. In several days, I wrote 13 movies. The food was garbage, I had to keep my guard up just in case someone wanted to try me (Im talking bout both the inmates and C/os) but I remained trying not to be noticed until my court date. My court date finally comes and I told myself I was going home. I said God will take me home, he wouldn't let me suffer. He couldn't keep me there. The whole time I was locked up, a lot of things slowed down for business I worked with. The longer I was in there, the less progress and money was being made. My mother brought me a suit and I was ready to come home. When they transfered me back to bookings, I ran into Eddy for the first time in two weeks. I was never so happy to see my brother before. We sat in that cell and we spoke about our adventures in prison. He had it a lot easier than I did. I lived a horror movie. We laughed and joked as we waited to see the judge. The hours continued to count down and we still didn't see the judge. Turned out, my lawyer didn't even show up. Neither did Rich, Mel or Emmanuel's. The judge decided not to see us and I was to return to Rikers for another month. My court date would be on the 20th of November. Though I didn't lose faith or hope, I was upset. I couldn't believe this was happening to me. For a crime I didn't commit, why am I suffering? I was now ready to make myself an official inmate and make myself comfortable. The next day, I began work in the kitchen. I couldn't sit around all day and not making any progress. I tried reaching my mother because I didn't have a chance to speak to her the day before. She quickly tells me she got a loan from the bank and she was coming to bail me out "so don't do anything stupid". I wanted to cry but I held it in, too many dudes were near me. So I waited for the day to end and I was bailed out around 8 p.m. but they didn't release me until after midnight. Eddy and I was back home with our mother and had to continue to fight this case.

According to my lawyer at the time, just the fact I was there with them could of made me guilty by association. I had to admit punching a man I never met so I couldn't "snitch" on Mel if we took it to grand jury.

I did nothing wrong to be locked up. Those two weeks I could of been working to pay my bills, being productive to further my career as a film maker and study for my Math GED (which I did pass) Instead, those two weeks have been taken from me. I've lost business as a videographer, labeled as a criminal, lost time I could of spent with my mother for her birthday and lost my right as an American. Since I've been out, I cannot retrieve my property, still having night mares, cant stop feeling like I got to
defend myself every time I see someone look at me. I look at the police like a gang now. I officially realize America is only free to an extent. Every time I spoke to my mother while I was in jail, I died inside hearing her cries and hearing how stress she was. I've seen the dark side of America and its not pretty. I will continue my career as a film maker, not because I was going to anyway but because if this goes on my record it will be hard to find work else where.

We had to go to court on Nov 20th (and for another six months) and had to sign papers at the bail bondsman office each week to prove I didn't run out of town. I proved my innocence, got a slap on the wrist but after that I learned about the law. This is a business. The things I witness in there I will never forget. Everyone is a number and they are getting paid for each person they can keep behind bars. Who's to the blame? The industrial prison complex  system? The Hip Hop culture programming our way of life? Mel for taking the phone or myself for being out late? Either or, the system is bigger than me. Bigger than my experience. There's much more people out there doing worse and people who been through worse. I was only locked up for 2 weeks. There are innocent people locked up now who been there for 2 Decades!!!!

If they can lock up a film maker for doing nothing, imagine what they can do to someone else. Imagine how many other innocent people are in jail and stuck in there as the bankers who own the prison profit off them..I've been trough many things in the last 23 years but this one takes the cake (right next to surviving a war in a third world country in 2004). Now I know a few good cops are out there. Believe it or not, I never had a problem with police after that. Well there was defiantly a few stop and frisk, random car search from DEA...never mind the police is not to be trusted but at least the white cops didn't violate me like the black cop that lock me up. Some Black cops have no respect regarding their own kind but not all cops are bad.. It's just their job to arrest people. If there is no one to arrest, there is no money to be made.

but will you be next?

Want to hear something funny tho... My favorite reality show is still cops.. Now I know what to do or say when they show up (YouTube "Flex your rights").

Carlemile