Linda Paey to Pain Relief Advocates…

Linda Paey to Pain Relief Advocates…; Linda Paey; War on Doctors/Pain Crisis blog of the Pain Relief Network; 2007-09-29.

Friends, Family and Media Friends,

WOW! What a week we had! It’s been truly amazing, we feel blessed, it must have been all the prayers that people sent our way. We were shocked on Thursday when Governor Crist sent the order to have Richard released from prison. We have been grinning ear to ear this past week. Richard and I look at each other daily and exclaim “Can you believe this?!”

We now recognize the rarity of such an action by the clemency board, it appears that this was an unprecedented occurrence. I remember my early meeting with the clemency aides, I was surprised by the number of questions regarding the details of our case. I was told by friends that I should act contrite, but expressing regret conflicts with our stated belief in Richard’s innocence.

It is possible that the answers I gave at that meeting and documents I gave to the board, led them to believe that Richard did not commit trafficking, yet alone prescription fraud as the state contends? Three quarters of the board came from law enforcement backgrounds, yet they came to the conclusion that a pardon was appropriate. This tells volumes about the strength of the state’s case against Richard.

Richard has come back to a family that was injured by his absence but we are now on the mend. Ben has been watching TV with his father, Elizabeth is finally getting help with her history and English, (they are my weak subjects) and Catherine is rethinking her plans for college, she is now believes she will commute from home for the first two years. Our lives sound like any other family’s, in other words, life is good.

We will concentrate our efforts in this upcoming year on improving our family’s finances so I may soon go back to a five day work week. Richard will reestablish contacts with his local doctors in an effort to control his fatigue and pain. Richard expects to work closely with Pain Relief Network to better inform the public on chronic pain issues, along with FAMM and November Coalition. And lastly, we hope to meet with many family and friends who have given me and my family support during the years Richard was incarcerated.

Thank you for helping make our family whole again. You made a big difference in our lives and I want to express our deepest gratitude to you all. This is better than a Rocky movie!

Sincerely,

Linda Paey

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