Sunday 30 January 2011

Demand Justice for Kelley Williams-Bolar





Ohio mom, Kelley Williams-Bolar, recently went to jail for sending her kids to a highly ranked school near where her father lives, which was out of her home school district.
Kelley was trying to give her children a better life.  Now, as a convicted felon, helping her children will be even harder -- she was studying to become a teacher, but that dream may have ended with the conviction as well.
Please join us and ColorOfChange.org, in calling on Ohio Gov. Kasich to take a public stand and do everything he can to right this injustice!
Petition
Dear Governor John Kasich,

I’m writing to ask you to intervene to correct a grave injustice in the case of Kelley Williams-Bolar, a single mother who recently received a draconian sentence after sending her children to a school they weren’t entitled to attend for two years.

Williams-Bolar was simply trying to send her kids to a good school. While it appears that she broke the law by enrolling her kids in the school district where her father lived, clearly her intent was to provide a good education and bright future for her children with limited resources — in the context of an educational system that does not provide equal opportunity to all, regardless of race or economic status. Ironically, Williams-Bolar was studying to be a teacher and working as a teaching assistant, demonstrating her commitment not only to her own children, but to providing a better future for many other children through education as well.

Williams-Bolar was targeted by a prosecutor who refused to negotiate any kind of plea deal, instead pushing for the maximum punishment  possible under the law. Luckily she only served 10 days in jail, instead of the 5 years she originally faced, because the judge saw the sentence as an injustice. However, her own education and career may now be in serious jeopardy as a result of her felony conviction. While Williams-Bolar made a mistake, the punishment in her case is vastly disproportionate to the crime she committed.

I urge you to take a public stand in this case and push for a more just outcome, and that you commit to granting Williams-Bolar a pardon should a request come across your desk. And I’m asking that you do everything you can to ensure that Williams-Bolar has the opportunity to continue her education and teach in Ohio.

Sincerely,
http://action.momsrising.org/letter/Ohio_Mom/?fs=fb



Dear Friend,
As you've likely seen in the news, Ohio mom, Kelley Williams-Bolar, recently went to jail for sending her kids to a highly ranked school near where her father lives, which was out of her home school district.[1]  She was trying to give her children a better life.  Now, as a convicted felon, helping her children will be even harder -- she was studying to become a teacher, but that dream may have ended with the felony conviction as well.

Real justice requires that the punishment fit the crime.  By any measure, this is cruelly unjust.

*Please join me and national non-profit organizations, MomsRising and ColorOfChange, in calling on Ohio Governor Kasich to take a public stand and do everything he can to right this injustice (including making sure that Williams-Bolar has the opportunity to become a teacher in Ohio). And please ask your friends and family to sign the letter as well -- it takes just a moment:
http://action.momsrising.org/letter/Ohio_Mom/

What happened?  Kelley Williams-Bolar is a single mother of two daughters who's a teacher’s aide in Akron city schools in Ohio and has been studying to become a teacher. According to Williams-Bolar, after their home in a housing project was burglarized, she decided to protect her daughters’ safety by sending them to school in neighboring Copley Township, where her father lives.  In an interview with the Akron Beacon-Journal, Williams-Bolar explained she feared for her children's safety after school, 'I could not conceive of them walking home after our home was violated.'' [2]

Williams-Bolar claims that she maintained a part-time residence at her father’s home, but the school district didn’t see it that way. Neither did County Prosecutor Sherri Walsh, who charged Williams-Bolar with grand theft and falsifying records — a third-degree felony. The judge presiding over the case recognized the harshness of the felony charge and encouraged Prosecutor Walsh to offer a plea bargain for a lighter charge — but Walsh flatly refused.[3]

The end result was cruelly unjust with a punishment that went far beyond what the crime merited.  Williams-Bolar was convicted on the felony charge, and sentenced to 5 years in prison. The judge suspended all but 10 days of the jail time, instead ordering 2 years of probation and 80 hours of community service. She’s out of jail now, but the repercussions could last a lifetime: Unless the felony is eliminated from her record, Williams-Bolar may be unable to earn her teaching certificate under Ohio law. Williams-Bolar is only a few classes away from earning her teaching certificate.[4]
Ridiculous!
Any parent could understand why Kelley Williams-Bolar did what she did to try to give her children access to opportunity.
Join me and ask OH Gov. Kasich do everything he can to right the injustice Kelley Williams-Bolar faces.
Toether we are a powerful voice for women and families,
Judie
Kristen (Moms rising)
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