Names have been changed to protect the vulnerable. This is a true story.
September 1, 2016
Marty is an incredibly conversant young man in his early 30's, very easy to talk to, an open communicator. He comes across as quite wholesome and humble, seems to understand people well and is quite up to date with current events. Marty always has been a Sikh, although you would never know it, since he dresses normal without a turban. He came from Surrey, B.C. which has been in the news recently with its continued reputation for drug trafficking and gang related activity.
Marty's father migrated from India and is extremely religious, so much so that he became a strict disciplinarian on the home front, demanding perfect behavior that is completely compatible with religious doctrine (based on their interpretation of it). As a result, Marty learned quite extensively about the culture and religion he was born into and has always remained religious himself throughout his lifetime. His father insisted he wear a turban when going to public school, and I think you know where this story is headed. I do recall as far back as when I was in university that there was a student who chose to no longer wear a turban much to the dismay of his father after being influenced from others to break away from such tradition. Marty was no different as he too had more modern ideas.
What do you expect him to do as well when he gets teased and bullied in school? The school system now is doing a much better job in educating students to respect different cultures and religions since we live very much in a country that supports multi-culturism. But this was not the case where and when Marty went to school and he was treated like dirt by certain school mates. He felt that squealing to a school principal was not an option since reporting such incidents for disciplinary action would only get him in bigger trouble later with the same students (whom he feared) wanting payback.
His father was so angry with his radical decision to “turf the turban” when he was 16 years of age. When they were having their most heated argument, Marty was basically disowned by his father and considered to be a disgrace. That combined with being upset with western civilization in general, his father decided he was going to pack his bags with the rest of his family and move back to India! His wife was so upset over his decision as she loved her son, but there was no way she could change his mind. Their beliefs dictate loyalty and faithfulness to any decision made by the father of the house and so Marty's mother and his younger siblings reluctantly had to go and leave Marty behind to fend for himself.
Marty had a place to stay with other relatives, but he always felt like he did not belong. Seeing the only love he had in his life leave caused him to feel deserted and very empty inside. Any spiritualist will tell you that the opposite of love is fear, and Marty was very scared as he had no one to support him and he feared going back to school since he already was labelled as an alien, but well aware that he needed an education. He really could have used a bigger brother. He chose to join a local gang since his membership gave him the security he needed when attending school. Instead of being bullied, students chose to leave him alone since they became scared of him for a change, as the gang protects its members. Marty's membership meant he needed to perform certain tasks, such as drop off a package, or pick up a bag of “goodies”. He was willing to go along with these requests as payment for the backing and security he needed in school.
Marty's decision of not reporting a bully was little different from the mistrust that the whole religious group felt living in Canada, the land of “freedom and opportunity”. There was an overall feeling amongst the group that they were getting discriminated against and therefore they limited their interaction with the police force for instance for any local domestic disturbance, but rather tried to resolve any issues on their own. This is because it was felt as an example that any issue reported where they were a victim of a crime would not be given as high priority as it would if they were of European decent.
Marty was able to graduate from school. His father after three years concluded his decision was made from his mind (which became insane), and so he forgave Marty and moved back to Canada with the rest of his family. The damage however had already been done, since Marty kept getting more deeply obligated to perform tasks as directed by the gang. He was able to get a job in a restaurant serving food he was familiar with, but along with his time at the restaurant came a criminal record and a label with the police for his gang activity.
It was at this time when he worked in a restaurant that he met a very lovely young lady who became the love of his life! It did not take them long to get married, to get a place, and start a family when he was in his early 20's! Marty became a father! Marty has a son! What is interesting to note here is that she is Muslim, but Marty's father, who had now become more accepting of modern thinking, was therefore quite happy to have her as part of the family. What helped, I suppose, is she was also of East Indian decent.
The owner of the restaurant was also a lady of East Indian decent and according to Marty was into gang activity herself big time and was considered by Marty to be the “evil one”, combining restaurant business with a more lucrative, but illegal business. Marty really needed a job because where else was he going to get one with a criminal record in support of family, and so he became her “yes man”, ignored any behind the scenes activity, and just did what he was told and did the best that he could.
His best friend, who was also a Sikh, fell in love with the same owner and they started to date. Marty chose to talk to his friend privately to warn him that she was no good and to not trust her. After the couple's heated argument and breakup, word got out that it was Marty who had warned him of her evil ways. Marty then became the owner's worst enemy and she vowed to get even with him for being a traitor. So much for Marty's job! The evil one quickly found a new lover, and it was at this time when Marty's troubles became a time of horror. For the evil one with her boyfriend (whom she controlled) decided to become Marty's worst nightmare. It was the boyfriend who had been programmed to repeatedly threaten him with death and body dismemberment, starting with his young “family”, being his wife and son, the only real love of his life.
With continuing threats haunting him, Marty's situation became desperate. What was he going to do since he already had a criminal record and still considered himself an outcast to western civilization? He did not believe that the police were his friends. He needed to protect his family and so chose to take the law into his own hands. He grabbed his gun and went over to the perpetrator's house, rang the doorbell, then stepped back and waited. Once the door opened, he shot him in the lower abdomen, then in his leg after he started to crawl back inside. Marty was only trying to teach him a lesson and leave him in pain, not to kill him. He was planning a third shot, but the victim managed to slam his house door and lock it in time. Marty decided he had done enough damage, then left.
Marty did not make the best choice for his actions. We all make mistakes in our life; it is just that some people's mistakes lead to more serious consequences. His father made a terrible mistake earlier and now it was his turn. He never thought that the bully would retaliate which could have happened later, but as it turned out, Marty's second shot hit the man's main artery, and he bled to death in his home. Marty was arrested and had his day in court. Rather than take the time to really listen to Marty's story after confession, the judge just took down the facts, and as he personally knew him from previous convictions, he “threw the book” at him, charging him with second degree murder. But in Marty's mind, he was acting in self defence to protect his young family.
Marty's lawyer considered appealing the case, but there was no guarantee they would win and therefore the choice was made to get on with serving the sentence for the charges laid with the hope that he eventually would earn his freedom. Off he went to maximum security imprisonment. According to Marty, maximum security means being in a dark, cold concrete room with metal bars, with not much more other than maybe someone else in your cell. Not only did Marty feel he should not have to be punished so severely, but now he had to live a life of hell, having experienced bullying and discrimination before, and not knowing what other inmates would do to him given a chance.
Most inmates become just a shell of their former self when serving time in maximum security as the experience just sucks the life out of your will to live. Some inmates do lose their minds and remain permanently scarred from the experience. Marty had several things going for him though while serving time, starting with the unconditional love of his wite who remained loyal to his side, forgiving him for his crime, believing completely his story of self defence, and accepting life's realities and making the best of a horrible situation. She worked hard to keep the family together and manage finances. Marty also had his baby son whom he had to leave behind, but hoped to see again, the baby of which is now nine years old. Marty also had his religion and he took plenty of opportunity to pray and meditate in his cell, keeping his sanity together long enough to get promoted to more livable quarters.
Marty is now able to talk to his wife daily, he volunteers at Habitat four days per week under surveillance, and is also allowed to be escorted to the Sikh temple for worship and prayers once per month in northeast Calgary. He hopes to be a free man in about one and a half years from now. He along with other inmates will never be completely free, since they will have to check in with parole officers on a regular basis. Marty's son does not know that his father is a prisoner. He was told that he was spending extended time in the army and that he will eventually return home. They have not figured out how they will handle this explanation and the exact timing of it, but will look to recruiting a psychologist for assistance.
Our conversation at the end turned more towards what Marty will do once free. He was serving time in Alberta since it was felt safer for his future to be away from the evil one along with the gangs that knew of him. Marty wants to return to Surrey once freed to live with his family and help the family business started by his father and brother. When our conversation swung more into the Sikh religion, Marty commented that he has absolutely no choice but to be as good as he possibly can be for the rest of his life, such as be loving, gracious, caring. This is so critical because Sikhs believe in reincarnation and he needs to fix any negative karma before going into his next life line.
Marty has witnessed first hand at Habitat how we all get along with one another regardless of diversity. The whole Habitat experience has been so rewarding, since he can see that we are not perfect, but yet we are demonstrating what the world can be like. This makes him more hopeful for the future since he feels like he belongs, we are accepting of and caring for one another, he is getting no sense of discrimination whatsoever, and we can work together in harmony for a common goal and be the best of friends.
It is totally amazing that someone as religious as Marty made such a terrible mistake. We are all here to learn, but some of us have a much bigger lesson to learn in life based on the circumstances we are put in. We need to count our blessings and be thankful for the life that we have had, for it could have been far worse. I have no reason to doubt any of the story as described by Marty as it came from his heart.
Update - December 1, 2016
All inmates coming out to Habitat became naturally good for certain tasks, and the task that suited Marty the most was that final check of quality to ready a unit for possession. I noticed as a result that he worked more now by himself and not with others. I think this is his preference as he is just putting in time and although loves his new groups of friends, he really, really wants to go home. Marty remains waiting for the moment to come when he is granted his release with parole. Marty was so bubbly one day for he had been told that his request to be transferred to a Vancouver institution had been approved. This would have allowed him to have more visits with family which remain carrying on with their life in Surrey. The penitentiary had second thoughts later however, with disappointment shown on Marty's face, but he knows he will have another chance soon.
For whatever reason, I can always quickly tell when Marty gets down (as he becomes quieter), and so it came to be one day. I asked him what was the matter and he was surprised for my observation. He mentioned he had just heard about one of his previous inmate buddies (Drew), who had been granted his release just one week earlier, and all the joy, excitement and celebration that came with his release, with no intention of ever picking up his old life...only to be gunned down as a result of revenge from old business. Sure enough, in the newspaper a few days later was this 32 year old man named Drew who tragically lost his life at such an early age.
So where does this leave Marty is the question for his own fate. He has his dreams of living again with his loving, loyal wife and son, to work in the family business, and to worship weekly in the temple with his family and friends. He will no doubt be released soon, and how emotional that day will be. I had asked him once about “old business” and he thought that should not be a problem, but I am sure he now has some concerns knowing what happened to his friend. I immediately stopped my discussion on this subject, as it just did not seem appropriate, since our discussion was all about whether he was going to live...or die...upon release.