2008 momentum drives inmates to push for change

Other coverage: Bangor Daily News, Portland Press Herald, Maine Public Radio

Michael Parker has been on a voter registration drive for three years.

The magic number is 150, the number of registered voters required to petition the state for departmental rule changes. Up until this year, interest has been sparse.

Wednesday that changed, when about 200 inmates at the Maine State Prison registered to vote. Many of them had not been registered before. The Warren prison holds just under 1,000 inmates.

Maine is one of two states that allows the incarcerated to vote, along with Vermont.

Awareness of this year’s election reaches through the walls of the prison. Inmates, who occupy their time by watching television and reading, are well aware of the contest between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

At a program coordinated by the Portland chapter of the NAACP, officials from the Democratic, Republican and Green parties spoke at three sessions for the inmates. In the afternoon, a group of inmates met with the press.

Click here for more on what some inmates had to say on the election.

Parker, who is from Portland, is serving time for aggravated assault. He’s been in prison for 11 years and is now president of the NAACP chapter there. He said he’s become a respected voice among his fellow inmates.

Parker said the public hearing is necessary to bring about real change in the prison. He said there are rule violations, such as the system not giving good time to some prisoners, which need to be brought to light.

The majority of inmates don’t know they have the right to vote. “Becoming a registered voter is a source of empowerment to the individual, Parker said.

Michael Chasse of Lewiston is serving 40 years on a variety of charges, including robbery and escape. He said he is playing close attention to the Democrats because of corrections initiatives they’ve proposed that are rehabilitation oriented.

He is a member of the long-timers group, an organization of inmates that advocates for change in the prison. He is working on an initiative to bring back parole in the state, and also hopes to gather support to petition for the hearing on department practices.

The Department of Corrections, Chasse said, likes to avoid public scrutiny. 

According to state law, if 150 or more registered voters petition a state agency, they must begin rule-making proceedings within 60 days. These include a public hearing.

Chasse said he has established himself in the prison community as a go-to person for help with legal cases. He said the interest in voting shows the climate inside the prison is changing.

“In the old school days, it used to be, ‘keep your mouth shut, tighten up, man up. Keep your mouth shut and deal with it,” Chasse said.