Posted inPoetry

B.L.A.M.E.

Blatantly Lying and Making Excuses

by Charles Mooney December 5, 2023

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B.L.A.M.E.

by Charles Mooney, Prison Journalism Project
December 5, 2023

<h1>B.L.A.M.E.</h1>
<p class="byline">by Charles Mooney, Prison Journalism Project <br />December 5, 2023</p>

<p>when i found myself in custody &amp; facing incarceration,<br />i BLATANTLY LIED AND MADE EXCUSES for each allegation:<br />i blamed the judge; all he did was judge the proceedings,<br />i blamed the D.A. for falsifying evidence &amp; being misleading.<br />i blamed my attorney for ineffective assistance &amp; selling me out,<br />i blamed the jury for finding me guilty beyond reasonable doubt.<br />i blamed the police for being corrupt &amp; out to put me in jail,<br />i blamed the system for being set up &amp; designed for me to fail.<br />i blamed the witnesses for showing up &amp; testifying in court,<br />i blamed my parents &amp; said they never gave me moral support.<br />i blamed it on the rain, isn't that what people say?<br />i blamed it on the rain because the sun didn't come out that day.<br />i blamed it on the drugs — with that excuse i can't go wrong,<br />i blamed it on that TV show, that movie, that lyric, that song.<br />i blamed it on everything weird, strange or odd,<br />i blamed the pastor, the preacher &amp; i even questioned my God.<br />i blamed my community for all the terrible choices i made,<br />i blamed public school &amp; the teachers for my failing grade.<br />i blamed the crowd i hung with for negatively influencing me,<br />i blamed my childhood &amp; youth for my delinquency &amp; truancy.<br />i blamed the victim for being at the wrong place at the wrong time,<br />i blamed every thing &amp; every body except the one who did the crime.</p>
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when i found myself in custody & facing incarceration,
i BLATANTLY LIED AND MADE EXCUSES for each allegation:
i blamed the judge; all he did was judge the proceedings,
i blamed the D.A. for falsifying evidence & being misleading.
i blamed my attorney for ineffective assistance & selling me out,
i blamed the jury for finding me guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
i blamed the police for being corrupt & out to put me in jail,
i blamed the system for being set up & designed for me to fail.
i blamed the witnesses for showing up & testifying in court,
i blamed my parents & said they never gave me moral support.
i blamed it on the rain, isn’t that what people say?
i blamed it on the rain because the sun didn’t come out that day.
i blamed it on the drugs — with that excuse i can’t go wrong,
i blamed it on that TV show, that movie, that lyric, that song.
i blamed it on everything weird, strange or odd,
i blamed the pastor, the preacher & i even questioned my God.
i blamed my community for all the terrible choices i made,
i blamed public school & the teachers for my failing grade.
i blamed the crowd i hung with for negatively influencing me,
i blamed my childhood & youth for my delinquency & truancy.
i blamed the victim for being at the wrong place at the wrong time,
i blamed every thing & every body except the one who did the crime.

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Disclaimer: The views in this article are those of the author. Prison Journalism Project has verified the writer’s identity and basic facts such as the names of institutions mentioned.

Tagged: California, Life Choices

Charles Mooney

Charles Mooney is a poet incarcerated in California.

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Charles Mooney