Open E, Close Wallet
Dear Ann Landers: I am a convict currently doing time for robbery. We have access to newspapers here, and I never miss your column. I am writing about the parents who are allowing their young daughters to correspond with and visit a young man who is incarcerated. The parents are well-meaning, good-hearted people, but they need to be told to put an end to those visits.
I’ve been here for 10 years. What I have to say you can believe. I know more about inmates and prison life than people on the outside. Most inmates are con artists. It’s easy for them to cultivate pen pals and manipulate them into becoming emotionally involved. Their goal is to get money, postage stamps, packages and, if possible, personal visits.
It is a common occurrence for guys to brag about how they work their pen pals for all they are worth. Most inmates will end the correspondence after six months because by that time they have gotten all they can. They then look for fresh victims. Wise ‘em up, Annie. They need someone to open their eyes, and a few words from you will do it. - No Name, Just a Crestview, Fla., Inmate
Dear No Name: Thank you for a letter that is sure to open a great many eyes and hopefully close a lot of wallets. As I said earlier, teenage girls should not be cultivating friendships with prisoners. I hope the parents of those girls see your letter.
Dear Ann Landers: About 12 years ago, I met a great guy at a garage sale. He was handsome, romantic, immaculately dressed, a great dancer and a perfect gentleman. He told me he had retired from the highway patrol after 25 years.
About three months later, things didn’t seem to add up. His fancy car suddenly “disappeared” (read “repossessed”). The home where I first met him turned out not to be his but the home of a friend. He actually had nothing. (Not even a job.) I then found out he had been living with another woman while he was dating me.
This man made the mistake of telling me where his ex-wife worked, so on a hunch, I went to see her. She told me he had done a long stretch in prison for grand larceny, that he was an alcoholic and a liar, and that he physically and mentally abused her, and stole several objects from her home and sold them at garage sales.
Things began disappearing from my home, too. I noticed that soon after something was missing, he would show up with money in his pocket and take me to a fancy place for dinner (in my car, of course). We had been discussing marriage, but I knew it was only a matter of time before he started abusing me, too. His ex-wife said that he had been wonderful while they were courting but that the abuse began soon after they married.
I was just about ready to end the relationship when he had a massive heart attack and died in another woman’s apartment. I guess the good Lord looks out for fools like me. - Older But Wiser in Florida
Dear Florida: Gentlemen can turn out to be far from perfect. I urge all women who meet men about whom they know very little to check them out with family members, fellow employees and friends before becoming heavily involved. If the man says he has no family, close friends or coworkers, ask the local police department to help you find out if the man has a criminal history. Or hire a private investigator to have him checked out more thoroughly. It will definitely be worth the money to ensure your peace of mind.