Tag Archives: Reynold Moore

An Emotional Father’s Day…

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On this special day, I’m sharing the stories of five exceptional Dads. They take their roles seriously but their ability to have a direct influence on their children’s lives is nonexistent…and heartbreaking. Despite the obstacles, their children look up to them with the greatest respect.

Michael Hirn is the youngest of five innocent but imprisoned men in Wisconsin. His only child was an infant when he was incarcerated in 1995. Now a young man, this son has only known his father’s presence from behind prison walls. He’s been forced to grow up without the intimate guidance and life experiences of a father but he relishes in knowing that his dad is innocent. I’ve received numerous pictures of them together during prison visits and although the guarded smiles on their faces tell of uncertainties for the future, I also see a closeness that will stay strong no matter what that future holds.

Keith Kutska shines through his son, Clayton, who is a father himself and a tireless supporter of his father’s innocence. Clayton states how extremely hard it has been to grow up without “my dad”. One only needs to look into their sad eyes to understand how this injustice has affected them both. Nonetheless, there will always be a mutual pride between these two men. For Keith it is a pride for the man his son has become. And for Clayton the pride is witnessing the courage of a father who has maintained his unrelenting innocence for twenty-three years. Both are strong father figures despite this predicament.

Dale Basten is the oldest of the five men. His two daughters do their best to go on with the many challenges of living a normal life. Dale has always been a devoted father and their deepest concerns for him have been his age and of his recent major heart attack in a prison system that lacks adequate health care. Some time ago the family was frantic when this health crisis occurred and no information about his condition was forthcoming until after the fact. In more recent years, Dale, who is now experiencing dementia, faces a bleak future with few options, as this injustice continues to plague this traumatized family.

Rey Moore’s faith has guided him along a very daunting path fraught with far too many disappointments during this turbulent time. It has helped him to maintain sanity but there is an element of deep distress when he writes about his children. Worry is the motivation in his pleas for me to make contact with them. Their survival in an unforgiving town has its challenges, as does Rey, within an unforgiving prison system.

Michael Johnson is also beholden to a faith that gives him strength and helps him to stay optimistic. His children and his wife, struggle to grasp the reasons for his absence, why such a fate has befallen them, and why it is that no one seems to care about the pain that persists in their hearts.

We must search deep inside ourselves to imagine the hardships of those who are faced with what has been lost and what can never be reclaimed. For these five men, twenty-three years are gone forever, never to be retrieved. We all must acknowledge the deprivation they experience. For it is far too easy for us to take lightly the privileges we’ve been given, and to overlook the pain of those who cannot. So when you celebrate this special day, please take a moment to silently remember these men and the countless other dads who sit quietly with little or no chance of experiencing those treasured moments with their children. I promise that you will become a better person for it!

Full Circle…

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Early in my advocacy concerning the injustice of six Wisconsin men, I learned about Reynold Moore; one of the six, from my sister, Clare. She knew Rey and his wife long before the incident happened at the mill in 1992. They had been good friends. That bond resulted in her firm belief of his innocence and of the innocence of the other five men. Clare was also the catalyst for my involvement into this mission to free all of the men.

Reynold Moore. (Courtesy of artist/writer, Jared Manninen) 

There’s a memory Clare uses to describe Rey’s character. She often talks about the days before Rey was convicted and how he and his wife would invite Clare over to their house to visit. Since her only source of transportation back then was riding her bicycle, she would head over to their house on the bike, knowing Rey would offer to throw it into the back of his pickup and drive her home if it got too late or too dark. She will never forget how concerned Rey was for her safety.

That view of Rey shines brightly through in all of his correspondence. There’s no accurate way to define him other than as someone who beams with inherent kindness. Rey always ends his letters with a prayerful blessing for me and my family. He appreciates the hope now instilled within because of our support.

Rey will be the first to say that his record is not spotless and that he was not always a nice person. Maybe so, but this is not the picture my sister paints of him. She has shared the struggles he’s had and how they’ve affected his family. I can only imagine the burden he faces daily. Still, he exhibits patience and forgiveness. I’m aware of many close friends and supporters of his who vigorously advocate on his behalf and participate in activities to promote his release.

The crucial evidence used to convict Rey was the testimony of a paid jailhouse informant, James Gilliam. On the day of the arrests in the Monfils case, James Gilliam, a career criminal, was also arrested for threatening a woman with a butcher knife.* He immediately saw an opportunity. He told the authorities that while he was jail, he shared a cell with Rey. He claimed Rey had confided in him about the murder. And on the witness stand during the Monfils trial, Gilliam testified that Rey disclosed details to him about how he (Rey) had participated in the beating of Tom Monfils. Even though Gilliam’s statements contradicted the known facts, he was rewarded with two years’ probation and was set free for his contribution to the prosecution’s case.

But years later, Gilliam recanted his original statement while being interviewed by the Wisconsin Innocence Project (WIP). In light of this recantation, the WIP had taken up Rey’s case. They petitioned the court to grant Rey a hearing based on this latest development. Their aim was to ask that Rey be given a new trial which might produce a different outcome than the original trial. But when Gilliam took the stand during the hearing, he recanted his recantation. He reversed his story to reflect what he had said at the original trial. Ultimately, the petition for a new trial for Rey was denied.

Despite these disappointments, Reynold Moore has held strong to himself and to his faith. He tells me he looks forward to the day when we meet “face to face” so that he can thank me in person for all I’ve done for him. I look forward to that day as well. But I, in turn, wish to thank him for being the caring friend he was and is, to my sister.

*Gilliam is currently serving a life sentence for murdering his wife. He is ineligible for parole.