[Noisebridge-discuss] Open letter from Oshan Cook

Tue Nov 20 12:54:47 UTC 2012

Well after reading this and hearing so many good things about the Om Shan Teahouse and his owner in the past I hope for a miracle I wish he gets out of there soon. 

Frantisek Algoldor Apfelbeck

biotechnologist&kvasir and hacker

http://www.frantisekapfelbeck.org

"There is no way to peace, peace is the way." Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

________________________________
 From: Tony Longshanks LeTigre <anthonyletigre at gmail.com>
To: Noisebridge Discuss <noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net> 
Sent: Tuesday, November 20, 2012 7:05 PM
Subject: [Noisebridge-discuss] Open letter from Oshan Cook

I want to post this open letter newly written by my friend Oshan, who owns Om Shan Teahouse in the Mission, just a few blocks down the street from Noisebridge. He has been to Noisebridge in the past, & many locals know him. He is currently in jail awaiting sentencing.

Open
Letter from Oshan in Jail

Dear Family, Friends and Allies,
I am writing to let you know about my current
situation. As many of you know, I have been fighting a legal case for two and a
half years, accused of distributing psychedelics, with charges punishable by 10
years or more in federal prison.
The weight of having this hanging over my head
for years has been an agonizing experience, causing extreme exhaustion ,
stress, and a deep depression. Despite this, I did the best I could to keep
running my teahouse, my mobile tea services, teaching school kids about tea ceremony,
hosting hundreds of spiritual dance, music and poetry events, throwing large
intentional parties (Heartform, Tecompression) and striving to build community
and contribute to the world as best I could. In the end I ran out of energy and
my massive debts due to my legal fees caused me to close my teahouse down. I
did this with great sadness and regret as poured so much money and years of my
life into it. I hope that it had some lasting benefit to the bay are community
and beyond. For more than 4 years, I haven't had more than 2 days break from my
work and have longed for a vacation. I finally have it now, although tragically
not on the beaches or in the forests as I had dreamed of. 

Two and half years of fighting my case included
a number of unsuccessful legal motions, relating to the impropriety of the DEA
officers actions during my arrest and search. I believe these motions were
denied due to a reactionary bias of the judge in my case also due to the
outright lies and fabrications of the police officers. In July 2012 I underwent
my first jury trial. Despite the fact that officers blatantly lied and
contradicted each other while testifying and that dozens of government
employees with unimaginable resources collaborated to try and convict me,
multiple jurors decided that I was not guilty after hearing all the evidence
against me. The prosecutors decided that they would waste more of our tax money
by retrying my case at the end of October 2012. The trial proceeded like that
last one, with officers lying and even admitting to lying during the previous
trial. Sadly, after two days of deliberating, the jurors reached the verdict of
guilty. I suspect that some of the jurors were pressured into coming to a
decision so they would not have to come back after the weekend. After the
verdict was announced, I immediately entered into custody and was transferred
to Glen Dyer County Jail in downtown Oakland. I have been here for 10 days and
will likely be here for another two and half months, after which I will be transferred
into to a federal prison for a 10-15 year sentence. 

Here at jail, I am confined to a 100 sq. ft cell
more than 21 hours a day with my cellmate, who is a mexican gangster from the
mission. In our cell is a bunk-bed, a small desk, and a toilet. There is also a
small slit of a window which lets in minimal light, but has a cloudy film on it
so I can't see out of it. The cell is so small that there is only one spot
where I can stand in the middle and stretch out my arms in all directions
without hitting a wall. The cell walls and floor are filthy and there is
limited access to cleaning supplies. In our "pod" there is a TV on
very loud everyday beginning around 8am and ending by 11pm at the earliest but
some days until 2am or later. The TV is usually on a sports channel or
sometimes a violent movie and I can always hear it blaring into my cell often
making it difficult to sleep. We are let out of the cell 4 times a day for
meals and "pod time". Breakfast is served around 6 am (although
sometimes as early as 4 am) and lunch is served around 3:30 pm. The
"meals" consist of the most disgusting and unhealthy food I have ever
eaten in my life. I was raised eating organic, vegetarian food my whole life. I
have many food allergies and the jail is supposed to accommodate my special
diet but have failed despite numerous written and verbal requests, so I am
forced to go without or eat food that violates my fundamental health and
spiritual beliefs. We are only given about 5-10 minutes to eat these
"meals" and then forced to go back in our cells. "Dinner"
is delivered to out doors around 7pm and 90% of the time its baloney sandwich,
an orange and two cookies. 

"Pod time" consists of all 26 inmates
in our pod being let into the 1000 sq ft communal space where we play inmates
play chess, cards, socialize, watch TV and get in line for short phone calls or
showers. Pod time happens twice a day for a total of 3 hours or less, in the
morning from around 8-10 am and in the evening around 8-9 pm. These times are
often shortened and occasionally canceled. All the schedules are constantly
shifting so its hard to get into a routine. Due to the noise and schedule its
hard to get more than 4 hours of solid sleep. There are minimal educational and
religious activities and most have a long wait list that takes a month or more.
State law mandates that inmates get 3 hours/week of outdoor "yard
time" but inmates here tell me they have had about 1 hour of yard time in
the past 6 weeks! Indeed the jail violates many of its own operating procedures
as well as state and federal regulations and probably international human
rights codes. 

I cry almost every day that I am here, although
I am careful not to do it around other inmates. I miss all my family and
friends. I miss being able to hug and cuddle with friends. I long to eat
healthy food, breather fresh air, see the sun and the sky, be in nature and be
able to move freely and get proper exercise. I pray everyday for a miraculous
release but I don't see how its possible. I am using this experience as an
oppurtunity to grow and learn as much as I can. I am doing lots of reading,
writing lots of letters and doing calisthenics and yoga as much as I can in
this cramped cell. I am cultivating a strong spiritual practice of meditation
and prayer. 

On January 17th, 2013 I will be sentenced to
10-15 years in federal prison. It would be great to see all my friends there,
so mark your calendars if you can come. It would be great to have good
character reference letters to present to my judge. My lawyer said that quality
is much more important than quantity, so its best if they are from people that
actually know me and especially good if they are from people who would be
considered respectable by my conservative judge. The deadline for these is
december 8th. Send them to Aaronzenstevens at gmail.com. 

After sentencing it will take 5-30 days for me
to be transferred to prison probably in Oregon or southern California. Prison
is much better than jail and there are a lot more activities, free movement and
outdoor time. I am trying to see it as an extended meditation retreat. Even
though I have so many friends out there, I have a fear that I will be forgotten
about, lost in the prison system. 

Due to the fundamental flaws in my case, I will
be attempting multiple appeals in the higher court. This will cost a lot more
money, so my family and friends well be continuing to raise funds and they
could use any assistance anyone could offer. If you have any media or
journalism connections who might want to cover my story, please get in touch. 
Thank you for the tremendous amount of support
and prayers, donations, and moral support I have received so far. It really
touches my heart and makes this whole nightmare bearable. I urge everyone to do
what they can to educate themselves and others about the cruel and corrupt
criminal justice system, the horrors of the drug war and the prison industry.
There is information on various organizations you can work with on
TeaNotPrison.com. I also encourage people to explore concepts of judgement and
punishment in our society. 

Much Love and Gratitude!
For The Benefit of All Human Beings,
Oshan Anand ♥
-- 
You should read my diaries after I die—I talk about you a lot in there.

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