BY AMERICAN "JUSTICE"

YVONNE WANROW defending children

When a Spokane judge sentenced Yvonne Wanrow to 25 years in prison for murder, assault and possession of a deadly weapon, few people expected much more would be heard from the Colville Indian woman. She had, after all, admitted -killing one man and wounding another with her 25 calibre pistol.

The dead man, William Wesler, a 62-year old neighbor, had threatened with a knife Yvonne's 9-year old son and her babysitter's 10 year old daughter in his home on April 11, less than a day before the shooting. The babysitter's 7-year old daughter identified Wesler to police that same day as the man who, months earlier, had sexually molested her and infected her with venereal disease, and threatened to harm her mother should the young girl identify him. Yvonne and her babysitter were frightened, and asked Yvonne's sister and brother, in-law to join them for protection.

When Wesler entered the babysitter's home, drunk and nearly ncoherent, at 5 a.m. on April 12, Yvonne, on crutches with a broken leg, killed him, wounded a companion, and then telephoned police. Some case facts:

.. The day before the killing, Wesler had threatened Yvonne's son with a knife;

--An autopsy revealed that the man had an alcohol level of .27 in his blood, and the same strain of venereal disease given the babysitter's 7-year old daughter;

--The day before the killing on Friday, Yvonne's babysitter begged the police for protection, but was told to file a complaint the following Monday, and in the meantime, to scatter handfuls of flour under her windows; this, the police said, would help identify anyone who tried to break into the house.

--Wesler had previously been convicted of child molesting, and had served time in jail and Eastern State Mental Hospital.

On January 7, 1977, the Washington State Supreme Court reversed Yvonne's conviction, partly on the ground of an improper instruction to the jury on the law of self-defense as it related to Yvonne. This ground constitutes an important victory for women. The court found that the language of the jury instruction, using the masculine gender rather than the feminine, and, therefore, leaving the jury with the impression that the objective standard to be applied is that applicable to an altercation between two men, violated Yvonne's right to equal protection of the law. Women can now be assured that the standard to be applied to them will be that of the reasonable women rather than the reasonable man.

As a result of this decision, Yvonne has won only the right to a new trial. The prosecutor in Spokane has decided to retry her, on September 29, 1977. Yvonne's three women attorneys point out that the legal issues are many and complex, but the moral question straightforward: Does a mother have a right to use necessary force when her childrens' safety is threatened?

If Yvonne, now 33, is unsuccessful, she faces prison and separation from her children for the next 25 years.

"I think my case has really become a people's case. People from all different areas can see them. selves in my position. I know the mothers of America are tired of seeing their children abused, and they are tired of sexual abuse. If I win this case I will be free, and the people who have been pulling for me will be free also. But a lot more follow-up work will be needed, a lot more. ก

It is difficult to believe that these women are not being persecuted for their color and their sex. A great deal of money is needed for all of them. Below is a list of defense committees for each. We ask our readers to send whatever they can.

Assata Shakur Defense Colmmittee 339 Lafayette Street New York, New York

National Committee to Defend Dessie Woods Post Office Box 92084 Morris Brown Station Atlanta, Georgia 30314

Narciso/Perez Trust Fund c/o Atty Thomas O'Brian 210 E. Huron St.

Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105

Yvonne Wanrow Defense Committee 411 Smith Tower

Seattle, Washington 98104

Francine Hughes Defense Fund c/o Sisters for Human Equality 1320 S. Washington Lansing, Michigan 48910 Ella Ellison Support Committee (617) 491-1575

MARYSVILLE REFORMATORY

On July 6, 1977, women in Marysville Prison staged a sit-down protest against rotten food, Inade. quate medical care, slave wages, and high commissary prices. Warden Dorothy Arn called in state police and National Guardsmen. Twenty "leaders" of the protest were removed to L-Block at the Ohio Penitentiary. The Ohio Chapter of the ACLU has filed suit, describing L-Block as "filthy and unfit for human habitation. The cells are infested by insects and vermin. Birds pick at the food before it is served to inmates. There is no hot water in the cells and many of the toilets are inadequate or in need of repair.

"P

"

The majority of women in prison have been incar. cerated for crimes against property. One such is Shirley Keller, an Italian American who has been Inside for about three years. She was denied parole In April because of her "rebellious activities. In a letter signed by Shirley and her cellmate, Cyndi, she tells us about conditions surrounding the July 6 strike. Her English is not academic, but she writes with more honesty than most of us:

We are female Political Prisoners in the Ohio Reformatory for Women.

We are returnees and are being held in the administrative isolation unit. I have been held here in this 6 by 9 by 10 foot cell since November 30, 1975. My comrade in the cell beside me has been here since July 6, 1976.

To tell everything we have saw happen here or what we have been thru and what we have saw others go thru would fill many books to be wrote.

I myself have had my unborn child beat out of me and then railroaded to Lima State Hospital for the Criminally Insane to keep it out of the public eye and also hide it from my family.

We have been beat, maced, left in Room Ten and the Bull Pen with no toilet facilities. We have had our water shut off for days at a time and we have been refused showers and exercise for up to a

month. We have been made to eat cold, greasy. starchy, spicy, bug-ridden food. We have only cold water in our cell, no TV, a radio we have been allowed just this year, and also since September they started letting us do our two-hours-a-week exercise outside if we want. We have even not been fed for days on end. Shot full of dope which we refused. Had to live under the worst sanitary conditions there are. We have had to show our bloody sanitary pads or panties before we were allowed another pad. We have had spiders, ants, worms, flys, roaches, water bugs, moths in our cells, beds. Crawling and biting us. These matrons and guards won't even call for a nurse or doctor when an inmate is sick. We get wrote up unnecesssary and we have no rights or court of law to back us up for standing up for our beliefs. We are constantly harassed and when President Ford sent the FBI down here to see me and Cyndi on some bullshit and on a frame-up about some letters they say we wrote but we didn't, we got 30 more days back here. Plus our social worker and the staff say we are guilty when we haven't even been proven guilty by a jury trial in an outside court.

All it is, is a political frame-up because they know we are revolutionist, activist, socialist, and they can't break us. Because we won't let them control us, or our minds, or take our rights, beliefs, womanhood, pride, dignity, or sanity. We won't bow down to them or kiss their asses, and we won't become snitches or informers for the administration. So we are constantly messed with both day and night. Our mail is being tampered with, read, coples being made, tore up, destroyed, and even our newspapers and books have been held up for weeks at a time. Some of my books were even sent back to the publisher. I finally got them a month later.

I and Cyndi have evidence on all this and safe where these capitalists won't never get their hands on it. We have witnesses who are willing to testify on this from all over this country.

We must stand together and have unity and help one another and fight for our beliefs and rights. And against racism, imperialism, capitalism, fascism, and colonialism. To struggle and survive or we will never obtain victory or freedom nor true life.

We need your help and we need your support and all the support we can get to be able to obtain victory and stop these inhuman, cruel and very unusual conditions. Any help or support will be very much appreciated. Thank you.

We will remain your sisters in the struggle even if we have to lose our precious lives and die for the greatest cause there is -human lives.

Sincerely,

Shirley Keller -10020 Cyndi Freeman -10871

These woman and their sisters need letters of protest sent to the prison. An example is below:

Warden Dorothy Arn

Ohio Reformatory for Women Marysville, Ohio 43040

To the Warden:

I strongly oppose the transfer of inmates to the Ohio Penitentiary for punitive purposes and I insist that these measures not be used again.

The sit-down strike of July 6 was just. The police and the National Guard should not have been called. I too oppose the Inhuman conditions, including rotten food, inadequate, medical care, slave wages and high commissary prices, that the prison has forced on the women inmates.

I demand that prison conditions be improved and that punitive measures cease!

Sincerely,

October, 1977/What She Wants/Page 9