Roddy Pippin
I’m usually not one for feeling sympathetic towards those who break the law. I’ve always believed that old saying, “don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.”
But what happens if the so-called criminal is a type 1 diabetic? What happens if his crime is a non-violent theft of cattle? Not exactly victimless, but not really armed robbery, either.
Today, I read about the reality of being a T1 diabetic in prison. It’s something I’ve thought about – maybe we all have. What would happen if I went to prison and was stripped of my insulin pump, glucometer, CGM, endless supply of fast-acting glucose, and all of the other tools I keep in my arsenal? What would happen if my diabetes had to be managed by people who weren’t really interested in keeping me healthy? It’s a terrifying thought, and one I hope never to face.
Roddy Pippin is facing that reality right now. You can read his entire story here; I won’t attempt to tell it better than it already has been.
When I think about his crime, which absolutely WAS a crime, I cannot reconcile the ultimate price he’s paying for it. Roddy is not receiving proper medical care, he’s experiencing many of the complications that we all fear, and he’s getting worse everyday. There seems to be some sort of personal vendetta against Roddy, but I can’t see the reason for it.
I’m afraid that I’m going to read of Roddy’s passing in the near future, and it absolutely breaks my heart. He seems to be a kind, respectful, gentle, handsome, and honest (he turned himself in, after all) young man who made a stupid choice as a teen. I made lots of stupid choices as a teen, too. Fortunately, none of them were illegal (well, except for underage drinking), but if I’d grown up in rural Texas, who knows what I’d have done.
So, I ask my fellow bloggers and anyone who follows my posts to ask yourself this: Should a person be sentenced to death for stealing cattle? How about losing one’s sight or even a limb or two? Is that enough payment for this debt?
Themocracy
Shannon: If you send your e-mail address to me at MCCAUS13@aol.com, I’ll forward to you some transcript excerpts that you will likely find to be of interest. – Bob McCausland (friend of Roddy)
Wow. A little harsh of a sentence, in my opinion. Hopefully he can hang on until he’s released.
Shannon, you are not alone in your thinking. How many of us ever think about the lives of prisoners. It’s hard to feel sympathy, especially the way they are universally portrayed.In truth (I worked in correctional medicine for a decade) most are NOT violent, 65% are in for some drug-related charge, often a property crime. Roddy at 19 followed some older relatives into a spree of stealing. He got what seems an illegal sentence, but breaking past the “good ol’ boy” network between judge, law enforcement, DA in Hardeman County has proved impossible. I won’t go into all the mistreatment of these last 2 months, just update you. No sooner had a lawsuit been filed, challenging this prison medical care, than his phone contact were cut off. Also his access to commissary (meaning no stamps to mail letters out). He gets his cell and person search daily, often twice. He was moved to a medical isolation cell. Last weekend, after he was taken for his 2nd hospital trip to stabilize him, he was moved to another unit- one that houses ONLY state prisoners and is not supposed to hold state jail inmates. It holds death row inmates, has a lesser medical staff, and is remote from a good hospital.He will be moved again- probably on the bus now. On trips, he goes without insulin all day, no food or water. This is how our prison system retaliates for filing suit. Tomorrow I plan to call John Moriarty, Inspector General of the prison system, and renew my complaints. Roddy needs all the support he can get and NOW. TDCJ will happily kill him. Then they actually refuse to release the body until on outside autopsy cannot document his death by diabetes seizure or coma. He will officially have died of “natural causes”. DA John Heatly should be ashamed of himself, yet I suspect this would be his moment of triumph. Sorry for the rant, but this is just so terribly wrong!
Thank you for your comment, Phillip. I am just sick about this whole situation. Is there any way to “rush” an appeal? Is it something that can be escalated to a higher court? If his communication with the outside is so limited, is anyone aware of his current condition?
Has anyone ever made an attempt to contact one of the network news magazines (Dateline, 60 Minutes, etc.)? If ever there was a human interest story, this is it.
Are you kidding me??? What a joke. Our tax money is going to handle him w/ kid gloves. He is a grown man and if he did not manipulate his sugar levels he would be treated like one. He was out once, why didn’t he stay out. TDJC is probably doing him a favor…I’m sure there are cowboys out their that would like to hang him. So grow up and take your punishment and learn from it. Don’t go back into the system it you can’t handle it. BE A MAN FOR ONCE.
Mary, you are mistaken on so many levels:
1. Your tax money isn’t handling him with kid gloves. Your tax money is being wasted by continuing to incarcerate a non-violent, first-time offender.
2. He is not manipulating his blood glucose levels. He is only allowed to eat what he is given, and he is required to eat it all regardless of its carb count or his BG levels. You obviously know nothing about type 1 diabetes, so until you’re willing to educate yourself, you should keep your opinions to yourself.
3. He was released once because he was given Shock Probation for the 2nd of his four consecutive two-year jail sentences. When that Shock Probation term ended, Roddy was required to turn himself in to serve the remaining two jail sentences. He fully complied with the terms. He was not returned to jail for any violation – quite the contrary; he abided by all terms of his Shock Probation period.
4. TDJC is not doing him any favors. They may very likely kill him before this is over. They are confining him to isolation so that his severe blood glucose swings go unwitnessed. He is being held in a state prison, despite the fact that he was sentenced to four, two-year JAIL sentences.
5. You’re actually correct about there being cowboys who’d like to hang him. The TSCRA would like nothing better than to hang him. I find it incredibly ironic that we have repeat violent offenders committing crime after crime and walking away with a slap on the wrist, while Roddy sits in an isolation cell. Yeah, that’s justice.
FInally, as someone who has communicated directly with Roddy, I can say that he is, without question, an honorable and contrite MAN. He takes full responsibility for his crimes and only wants to survive long enough to have a decent life: marry the woman he loves, attend church, work for a decent wage, and have a family. Are you really so cold and ruthless that you’d prefer to see someone die for stealing cows? Shame on you, Mary.
My son is in jail and the same thing is happening to him. they are so ignorant of this disease that they wont let him eat meat but will force him to eat oranges – all of which they give him without insulin to cover the carbs. he called me saturday because his bg was so high that the meter could not read it and they refused to give him any insulin to bring it down. my son DID commit a crime but for breaking into some cars he could essentially be getting a death sentence. They wont even let me pay for the insulin he needs so that he can continue his regular regime.
These men need to pay their debt to society but that doesnt mean they should suffer life long illness or death because of it.
Winnie, I’m sorry for taking so long to respond.
Where do you live? Have you contacted anyone to investigate your son’s treatment? Send me an email if you’re interested in learning about some resources that might be able to help.
Yes i would love any resources. We have an attorney who is trying to get something done but he is hitting a lot of walls.
i am dealing with a simular situation. my boyfriend is in county jail for DWI that happened 2 1/2 yrs ago but was just sentances to 60 days in county. anyways he recently found out a couple months ago that he is diabetic and we have been having trouble controlling his blood sugar levels. the nurses in the columbia county jail in upstate new york have done false documentation of his bs levels he though has also been writing he bs level down (thecorrect levels) and they want him to take humulin instead of what he normally takes simply cause they dont want to pay for what he is supposed to take. his bs level is now over 300 and i also fear something bad to happen. he will not take the insulin they want to give him and they refuse to give him what he was taking beofre he went in there. i have called the deputy john davi of the jail but he has not returned my calls so i plan on taking this above john davi. and a possible law suit of violation of civil rights. i hope it helps i have contacted my states commission of corrections you might want to look into your states commissions of correction. or osha or the health department?
My name is Amy K. Burt. I am actually from the San Marcos area but live in Wichita County. I am writing to you in regards to the Roddy Pippin case. He and I have a common judge. That judge is Dan Mike Bird. I have been waiting to start contacting media. I tried in my area but did not get any response. I have been researching this judge for a while. I am in the middle of a contentious divorce. Like Roddy, I got a very unfair shake in this mess. My ex husband, Donald D. Burt Jr is a declared alcoholic, cheater, and an abuser of my daughters and I. The judge gave him custody of our children. His statement at the final hearing was that I had too much influence over my daughters. I still do not understand what that means.
I left my husband of 14 years on November 19, 2009. I still had access to our cell phone bills. I discovered another woman in my ex husband’s life. The end of our marriage was hard. He had gotten to the point where he was forcing me to have sex. I honestly believe that he was already physically involved with his present girlfriend. My ex filed for divorce on December 17th. His attorney, Matt Malone, drafted a divorce petition that would have required me and our daughters to be restricted to Wilbarger County, restrict me from seeing our daughters, and other things. I was living in Salado with my sister, Stacy Weaver. I had intentions of the girls and I moving to San Marcos to live with my mother, Marilyn Stoll. The reason why I did not move down there right away is because I wanted to make sure my daughters and I were safe.
On December 31st, the first hearing was scheduled but since I could not be contacted, it was rescheduled for January 19th. The judge had a jury trial that day so we were rescheduled again for February 1st. My attorney canceled that hearing due to weather. For whatever reason, the judge changed his mind and mandated that we all be there on February 2nd. My family and I arrived there. We had left our youngest daughter with my brother in law and their children. We waited until 5 p.m. that day to finally have our temporary orders heard. Keep in mind my ex husband had already established a new relationship within days of my leaving our home. At the time of his filing for divorce, he had already proposed to the new girlfriend. Admittedly I was a fool. I married a man who had been married four times at the time of our marriage. I stayed with him out of pure stubbornness. I am now his fifth ex wife. He is now working on wife number six, Lisa Clark.
Because of the way that the hearing was so quickly rescheduled, I asked my attorney then, Bethany Lucking, if ex parte communication had occurred. She asked me to not mention that again. The judge allowed illegally obtained emails into our divorce hearing. These emails did not have a subpoena. These emails were obtained while I was living with my sister. After leaving my ex husband, I had stayed with so called friends in Electra. That was my first mistake. Beth and Dwight Michener have an interesting history in themselves. She and her daughter, Rachel Michener, had plotted to kill her husband Dwight with a bottle of Ever Clear. They were going to swap it out with his normal rum. Her husband, Dwight, had also attempted suicide three times. I did not discover this bit of information until shortly before I left. It was one of many reasons why I left. My daughters and I had been through enough drama and abuse with my ex husband. These two people also have a history of hacking into computers. Dwight has been heard stating that he has hacked into the Electra School District. These two people broke into my sister’s computer and accessed my email accounts. I had shut one email account down on December 20th. I have the email verifying that. Once I got to my sister’s house, I changed my email account passwords. These two people reopened that email account using another email account associated with my blog. I believe that they are still in my computer now. I do not have any reasonable expectation of privacy at all because of these people. The judge, Dan Mike Bird, still allowed these emails into evidence. Admittedly I was very upset when I wrote them. I wrote them in an emotional haste to friends. The people to who they were sent did not give consent to my ex husband or his attorney to use them. They have contacted the Texas State Bar Association to complain about the attorney, Matt Malone, and the judge, Dan Mike Bird. They have also contacted the Texas Judicial Commission on Judicial Conduct. Both agencies denied them. I still have a pending complaint with the Texas Judicial Commission.
At the end of the hearing, my family was very upset. My mother told the judge that he was placing two little girls with a man that had a history of abusing all of us. When my daughter found out that she was going to live with her father, she began screaming. She kept screaming that this was not what she wanted. The judge screamed at us that if this continued that I would not regain custody of our girls ever. This situation was supposed to have been temporary. It was supposed to have been a visitation. After my daughter began screaming, he stated that this was a reflection on my family and I. I was to regain custody once I relocated back up to Wilbarger or surrounding counties. I moved back up to Wichita Falls. I felt that I moved back to Wilbarger county that I would have ended up dead. In fact, I still worry about that issue despite that things have calmed down between my ex and I. I am a cable installer. I have to climb a ladder onto a telephone pole. There have been a few people who have died that way.
Once I located an apartment, I notified the judge’s office of my new address. Within hours, he gave custody to my ex husband. He did not explain why. I can only assume that it had to do with court room procedure. I began collecting evidence against my ex. I hired a new attorney, Price Smith. I also read my daughter’s diary in which she wants to commit suicide. I tell her father, my ex about it. He blows it off. She even has a massive depressive episode on March 1st. He still ignores it. I contacted the school, Harrold Independent School District. I get blown off. I called Helen Farabee. They gave me a list of counselors but I knew my ex would blow me off on it. I also contact Star Connection which handles suicidal teens. I also attend parenting classes through them to see if I could learn anything more. I also find out that my ex has been violating the judge’s orders against having members of the opposite sex over past eight at night. I had to finally threaten the school district with legal action if they continued violating my parental rights by denying me access to their progress and getting my daughters the help that they needed. I finally contacted CPS. CPS concluded that I was the one who was guilty of medical neglect of our daughter. Here I had jumped through hoops to get my girls help. I was found guilty. I requested an administrative review but the Vernon office refused to get me the forms. I finally got a copy of CPS records. The CPS worker, Lisa Schur, accused me of giving the diary to the judge. That never happened. The judge never saw that. CPS investigated my ex but they did not investigate me. My daughter was admitted into Red River Hospital because she had attempted suicide with her father on several occasions. Red River Hospital felt that the placement with their father was not an appropriate thing. I have the records to prove it. I finally got my administrative review. It is currently pending.
At the final hearing on May 5th, the judge gave my ex husband custody. Keep in mind my ex admitted to being a heavy drinker, abusive, and a cheater. The judge placed our daughters with him. My oldest daughter was on Zoloft. My daughter also signed an affadavit of choice to live with me. The judge ignored all of that. She is 13 years of age by the way. The judge still has not signed the divorce decree. He has declared the divorce final on August 10th but still no signed copy of it. The judge had requested to speak with our oldest daughter without consulting my attorney. So he was in communication with my ex and his attorney. My ex even went to the courthouse to “accidentally” bump into the judge to ask him to speed up the signing of the divorce. His attorney has contacted the judge numerous times to speed up the signing of the divorce. My attorney, Price Smith, was never contacted by Matt Malone nor the judge, Dan Mike Bird. This is blatant ex parte communication.
To give you a clue about this judge, he has a bias against women raising their children. This judge when he was district attorney did this very thing with his wife. She tried hard to get her divorce out of Wilbarger county. Because he was district attorney, the divorce occurred in Wilbarger county. This is not the only case that he has done this one. You can go to the 7th Texas Appeals Court. There are two other cases where he blatantly disregarded Family Law. Samantha Bradford and Scott Auld both had their cases overturned and remanded back to his court in accordance with their rulings. Samantha Bradford had her child taken from her and given to the father. Vernon CPS was also involved in her case. Vernon CPS was also involved in Scott Auld’s case. While he was in prison at Allred, they failed to consult with him on his regaining possession of his children after he got out. Judge Dan Mike Bird would not give him custody of his children period. He stated that Scott had to ask him for visitation. I have heard of several other cases where women in divorce court with this judge have lost their children to their ex’s. Judge Dan Mike Bird also gave my ex my property prior to the marriage. Crystal that I had bought in Germany, a family oak chest of drawers, many cds, vcr tapes, and other things. It blows my mind. The judge did not even give me half of our things. I did not get a fair shake at all. I have looked at this objectively and still can’t understand his decision.
Right now, the judge, my ex, his family, Matt Malone, and the ranch have all participated in parental alienation. Because my oldest daughter has spent most of her time being drugged on Zoloft, she and I have a very estranged relationship. She and I were very close prior to this mess. My ex husband used to throw plates of food at her and I if supper wasn’t to his liking. He would call both of us fat, ugly and other horrible things. He has on repeated occasions shoved me down, kicked me, and raked spurs over my legs. On one occasion, he rubbed my face into the carpet. He did this in front of our daughters. My youngest daughter is afraid of her father. She absolutely does not want to live with him.
The other funny thing in this situation is the W. T. Waggoner Estate/Ranch. My ex husband works for that ranch. It is a very powerful ranch here in this part of Texas. The CPS worker, Lisa Schur, is related to Weldon Hawley, ranch manager, my ex’s boss. So there is a mix of a corruption and power in this area. I need major help. I need someone anyone to do an investigation into this judge and his decision making process. He has hurt many families. He also has a federal lawsuit by a former Hardeman County sheriff’s deputy against him for corruption, racism, and other horrible things.
Roddy Pippin did not deserve the sentence that he got. I sure as heck did not deserve what I got either. I know of too many others who are in the same predicament. If anything, help us so that we can prevent it from happening to others.
Sincerely,
Amy K. Burt
Wow, Amy. I don’t even know what to say other than I’m sorry. Clearly, the political corruption in Texas extends far beyond Roddy’s case. Thank you for coming forward with your story.