Parole Board

My name is Jamil Pirant. I’m calling from Indiana DOC. This is called “Parole Board.”

Maybe two weeks ago, I was at work, and I heard the CO come on the floor and say, “Who is Pirant, where is Pirant?” And he kind of said it in an urgent kind of way, so when I turn over to look, they called me over there and said, “Look, after work, you got to go to the captain office.”

So I ask him, “What for?” He said, “You gotta go to the captain,” so he trying to look at me, facing and scaring me, saying, “You got to go to the captain office.” And I said, “Cool.” I said, “What for?” He said, “I don’t know.” So by the look in his eyes, I could tell he kind of know what but he ain’t trying to tell me, so I told him, I said, “Well, I’ll find out when I get there.” He says, “Okay, just after work, go to the captain’s office.” I’m thinking like, if something wrong, like if I was in trouble, they would come to pick me up, so I didn’t panic. Of course I didn’t. So he went as far as to say, “You might need to go to the- you got to go to the captain’s office because there might be a death in the family.”

So I didn’t trip. I said, once again, I said, “I’ll find out when I get there.” Long story short, I leave after work, of course, I go to the captain’s office. Come to find out, it had nothing to do with no death in the family, and he knew what I was being called for. It was for the release coordinator.

So I go talk to her. She said, “Well, I contacted the parole board, and the parole board contacted me back, and they said they’re ready for you to petition them.” So I said, “Oh, it’s a blessing.” And I was thinking, I said, “Okay, so how do this work? I didn’t get out and come back. You know, I’m not- I haven’t been locked since the eighties. I’m not under the old parole laws.”

She said, “No, they told me to tell you to petition them and, you know, have letters of recommendation.” She gave me the whole scope. It kind of hit me like a wrecking ball, because she said, “As soon as you put your petition there, you know, you see the parole board, you know, the next few lineups. See I’m in a level two prison. I ain’t go to my level jobs, so I’m in a minimum security prison. The parole board come down here once a month and the beginning of first week of every month. So whenever I put the petition in, she saying I be in front of the board as soon as possible. So it kind of motivating me a lot. Of course, you know, anxieties and all that stuff kicking in, but it motivated because I’m saying here I am, I’m on my way home, and I’m grateful.

I mean, anything can happen, but I’m dangerously optimistic, so I’m going home. I ain’t seeing nothing else. But I just want to thank everybody just for supporting me. I want to thank Ms. Noelle for supporting me like Prison Radio saved my life. It gave me a voice. It gave me support. And everybody who wrote me. And I heard by those who haven’t wrote to write, because I still need that motivation. I still need that support. Even more so now because they send that all the letters of support and love,it’ll help my chances. That’s what they told the release coordinator, that all of that letters of recommendations and all the letters from friends and family will do justice.

Of course they want to see if I have arms of support upon my release. Places of employment, things like that. But I just wanted to let everybody know like that time is here, that time is upon us now. It’s been a long road, but when I look at stories like Mumia Abu-Jamal, it’s nothing, so I know I can do it if he did it. 

I know I can do it at Mr. Walker did it, Shaka. I know I can do it. We here now, so I’m grateful for everything, grateful for y’all. Thank y’all, man.

These commentaries are recorded by Prison Radio.