15-Year-Old Fatal Accident   1-23-2009

Testimonial of Ivory Jones “Momo”

Written on 2-17-2024.

Accused of felony murder and robbery with a firearm at the age of 15.  With God’s hand on my life, even with a lot of transgressions on my hands, I was certain to be delivered from the first.

Starting with the County Jail booking process, a medical assessment being a part of that experience, coupled with waiting first on a medical assessment, and then waiting on the results of that medical assessment. In addition, all this occurred at the same time I was on a segregated lock down. This was due to the nature of my crime, which required solitary confinement for a 60-day period.

Eventually, I was removed from my cell by two nurses who informed me if I didn’t consent to a tech shot and what seemed to be 4 huge antibiotic pills, that in as little as 4 months, it would be impossible to eliminate the STD I was carrying.  So, I consented, and God delivered me from that disease.

I came to the sad conclusion that while preparing for my defense, I would not receive family support.  My mother said these exact words… “I wash my hands; the people got you now.”

Although a few weeks later, the only eyewitness against me was discredited. Yet my public defender continued to pressure me to plead guilty to the charges.  For obvious reasons that didn’t _{appear like good advice to me, I declined to do so. If the only eyewitness against me was} discredited as a reliable witness, why would I plead guilty? It simply didn’t seem right to me.

When I returned to the Juvenile floor, I shared what I had learned about the witness. We attempted to shape my defense for a better outcome, and not accept the 35-year sentence that had been offered. Our first effort was to fire the public defender, which to my dismay I learned was not possible.  He came in a week later with my request in his hand and in my presence wadded the request up and threw it into the trash. He stated that he was court-appointed, and he could not be fired.

He also confessed that he had already been in a 2-year long court battle on another murder case and again told me I needed to plead guilty to the 35-year term that was being offered.  I once again rejected the offer, and he pushed so hard I lost my temper and motioned for the Officer to remove me from the room.

A month passed and feeling defeated, I felt I had no option but to accept the 35-year offer, as I feared ending up with a (LWOP) which means life without parole. Immediately after agreeing to the plea arrangement, I was transported to a prison A&R reception center. Upon arrival my case manager informed me it was illegal for me to be there, and as I was using my REC-Time for a shower, she arranged for me to be the only inmate on the day room floor, which made the other inmates furious.

Normally once a person arrives at A&R it takes 30 days for O.C. to find a facility in which the new inmate will serve his time.  However, in my case it only took 3 days, and I was shipped out.

At my first yard, my first cell mate was a 42-year-old man, and I was still only 15. While I was settling in, he apparently informed his wife that they moved a 15-year-old in with him.  She then proceeded to call the facility saying it was illegal for us to be cell mates, and if I were to get hurt, she didn’t want her husband to receive any of the blame or responsibility.  So, I was made to report to the warden who warned me I was being closely observed because he felt uneasy about me being sent to his prison. Most likely he had the same fear as the wife of my cell mate, that he would be held responsible for any harm that might come to me.

And this was my introduction to prison life.

About a month later the administration informed me that I would soon be faced with a decision.  I would need to decide on whether or not I would give my testimony to some 17 – 18 year olds in the “scared straight program” aimed at high school students and would take place in the Chapel. This led to the yard being shut down during this time for a youth program based out of the chapel in which I was to be host. This program was based on my testimony and Gospel Rap revelation by Pastor Darren Elliot who was exalted in the church shortly after I named this program “God First.”

I would like to restate the conditions when I first entered into the prison system, and was only a freshman in High School. However, H.B.O. had created a new project titled “A Special Education & Incarceration Prison Project” to which I was a main and youngest subject in this documentary being aired across America in this series of edifying the Gospel by displaying my rap skills as part of my prison lifestyle.

As is the case with many young people who find themselves in this situation, without a support group, and not fully trusting in the Lord yet, I was struggling, and fell into following older familiar gang members. I picked up their habits and ways to survive. It led me to drug abuse, at first, just marijuana for a long time, until one day I tried “K2” a harder substance, along with a few other activities such as finesse and manipulation which goes hand in glove with practicing sorcery, fueled by gaining influence with gang leaders and facilitating drugs around different yards, and sad to say, I became a master at these activities.

And, of course this led to several misconduct charges for possession of drugs & cell phones… somehow throughout, and in spite of all this, I managed to earn my G.E.D. I was able to obtain an Electrical license, learned to type, and Horticulture Management and have maintained a maintenance job for 4 years.  Now I can boast of 7 years clear conduct, by allowing God’s Holy Spirit take me over… I owe my life to Jesus Christ.

…