Michael James Perry Revisited

I haven't written anything about my friend and little brother Michael Perry for quite awhile so let me give you an update on him and my thoughts about him. First and most importantly, Michael is alive and well. He is still incarcerated in Livingston, Texas and is still on Death Row.

Recently, he has suffered a major setback in his case as a federal appellate court judge rejected Michael's bid for a new trial and he did so with prejudice which means that Michael's lawyers angered the judge so bad that he can never file a federal appeal again. This devastated all of us and I can't even imagine how Michael felt. Of course being the trooper he is he's not giving up by any stretch of the imagination.

Now Michael is someone who is both fascinating and frustrating at the same time. He continues to amaze me with his resilience and his courage. But to say that he's a handful would be an understatement. He and I have become very close friends and that is a double edged sword. You see the closer we become, the more he feels he can take his frustrations out on me and that's OK. Michael has become an expert at saying very hurtful things to me and not thinking twice about it. Please don't think that I'm bitching about him because I'm not. It does make me feel good knowing that he feels comfortable enough to talk to me and share his feelings but as the old saying goes, "Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it". The only thing I hope is some day in the future, he learns a couple of new words to add to his vocabulary like..."I'm Sorry".

One other thing that frustrates me about him is how thin skinned he is. I don't know if it is the length of time he's spent in prison or that he's been that way his whole life. It doesn't take much to offend the little snot and when he gets mad, look out! I apparently have the gift to be able to upset him without even trying. When I come home from work and I see a letter from him sticking out of the top of my mailbox, I automatically go into bomb squad mode. I start asking myself all the relevant questions. What kind of mood was he in when he wrote this letter? Is he mad at me or is he in a great mood and want to talk my ear off? Which is it going to be? Is it the red wire or the blue one? BOOM!!....he's pissed. I picked the wrong wire, said the wrong thing or I did the wrong thing. Luckily, when he's mad, he only writes one or two paragraphs telling me how bad I screwed up, what a jerk I am and how he'll never trust me again and then signs off. In other words, when I take that envelope out of the mailbox, the first thing I check is the thickness. If it's thin, I pour myself a stiff drink before defusing that letter. If it's thick then I know there will be no explosion. Thick...Good, Thin...Baaaaaaad!

Now having said all that, he is now, and always will be my hero. This young man has spent the last six years in a room no bigger than your average bathroom waiting to die. But has he given up on life? No. He continues to look into the future as a free man because he knows he's innocent. He knows that one day someone will come to his cell to get him. But it won't be his executioner; it will be the guard who tells him "Michael, you're free to go". He believes that and so do I.

I will tell you that had I been in his shoes, I would have committed suicide a long time ago or gone completely insane but not him. His resolve to clear his name and get out of there is awe inspiring. While he can be a royal pain in the ass, he is one of the most intelligent people I have had the pleasure of meeting. Some others have called Michael a player and a con man and I don't necessarily disagree. However, I think to survive in his environment, you have to be a bit of a player and con man. He is trying to raise money for his defense and he doesn't have the luxury of time to be "Honest Abe". He is desperate and running out of time to save his own life. Michael was a player before he went to prison, I'll give you that, but all he is doing now is what he learned to do on the streets to survive. Can you really blame him?

If you don't like Michael Perry, so be it, you don't have to. I happen to love the kid like a brother and I believe in him 100%. He has his faults but they pale in comparison to his good qualities. He is still the sweet, caring person I met last year. He is still the guy with the big smile and big ears to match. He is still the person that knows how to make me laugh and cheer me up when I'm down. The most important thing to remember is that he is still the same innocent man that was wrongly convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death.

Not many people understand who Michael Perry is and what he's about but let me tell you something about him; he has very strong convictions (no pun intended) about what he wants and what he believes and no one is going to change his mind. That's what makes him so amazing. He will not conform to anyone's will or opinion as he has a very strong spirit in him. I am proud of Michael and proud to call him my friend. He is to be respected as everyone in this world deserves including his co-defendant Jason Burkett. I expect that when he reads this he will mail me another one of those "bombs" but hey, a bad letter is better than no letter any day.