Report from the Goldflower Defense Committee

Kathy Thomas is a battered woman who was convicted of murdering her common-law husband, Reuben Daniels, on June 20. She was immediately sentenced to 15 years to life in prison by Judge James P. Kilbane. Her attorneys are currently appealing the case.

The morning daily newspaper has already editorialized that the jury reached the correct decision when they convicted Kathy Thomas. The reporter who covered the trial further commented in an opinion column that women's groups had chosen the wrong case to rally behind on behalf of a woman's right to defend herself, based on the fact that the story of what bappened the night Daniels was shot, as related by the police and a doctor, was not always the same. And even though the reporter says that Thomas' lawyers "rightly admonished the jury that her lifestyle was not on trial”, she uses that as a reason to argue that this was not a good test case. But is it truly a test if we only support persons who we already know have more credibility in court? If we are not challenging the biases that we hope to expose and change, then we have not provided the court with much of a test.

I hear her voice sometimes. Slow, husky and good humored, it echoes in my memory, I wonder what she is doing at any given moment. I wonder how she is coping with this new prison that has engulfed her. And I hear Judge Kilbane saying, “Guilty”. Guilty. What does it mean? Guilty of what? Guilty of trying to save her life. Guilty of being black, poor, and a woman. Guilty of not acting in a manner which is expected of someone who falls into that social category.

Never are society's rungs on the ladder of rights so clearly delineated as they are in a court of law. Each step away from being rich or white is a step further from the protection of the law.

woman

Then I think of my guilt. My white, middle-class views which led me and others like me to come to know and support Kathy Thomas, a, with whom we may never have had contact otherwise. I search my mind and my conscience for something that went wrong along the way. What could we have done differently? How could we have altered the

GETTING OUT

(continued from p. 12)

Alimony Only action (also called separate maintenance) will do everything a divorce does, but you will still be married. The grounds are very much alike. The Alimony Only action can decide custody, child support, alimony and property matters (house, furniture).

car,

Reasons why you might want to file for alimony only instead of divorce are:

1. You and your husband are not sure you want to end the marriage.

2. Your religion will not allow a divorce.

3. You may want to stay legally married in order to collect certain benefits that you could not get if you were divorced. For example, to collect on your husband's social security, one of the requirements is that you stay married to him for 20 years.

You should remember that after you and your husband have lived apart for two years, your husband will then be able to get a divorce, whether you want one or not. This is because a two-year separation is grounds for divorce in Ohio.

Separation Agreements

When you and your husband separate, you might want to make a separation agreement. The separation agreement is a paper which says who gets what property, how the children will be taken care of, and what support is to be paid. Separation agreements are used when:

1. You are not getting a divorce but you want to put the duties of you and your husband in writing. This can avoid arguments at a later time.

2. You and your husband reach an agreement in either a contested or uncontested divorce. The judge

Page 14/What She Wants/September, 1978

course of events which resulted in a 15-years-to-life sentence for Kathy Thomas? I cynically question if we will ever reach a point in this country when the circumstances which led Kathy Thomas to the point of standing trial for murder will cease to be the dominating force.

There is also the nagging question of the kinds of thoughts that must have gone through the minds of the jurors during their days of deliberation. How is it that we fail to recognize that bias that each of us has? How is it that several people can see the same event and yet describe it so differently? What life experiences did these people have that made them only able to see certain parts of the evidence while I saw others? And how can we ever hope to create a system which does embody and acknowledge the existence of a variety of perceptions? My mind whirls with questions for which there are no

answers.

The last time I saw Kathy she was in Cuyahoga County Jail in the Justice Center. I went with Cynthia Herns, her mother, for a short visit. Dressed in pale blue prison garb, Kathy somehow managed to maintain her humor and her belief that everything in this life happens for a reason. It is an optimism which I would never challenge, but which 1 find impossible to share.

At this writing, Kathy Thomas is in the checking area of Marysville Prison. This is the first stage of an inmate's absorption into the prison system. Marysville is overcrowded and the admitting process will probably be very slow. Until Kathy is officially assimilated into the prison and assigned to a cottage, she is not allowed to have any visitors except her attorneys and their legal assistants. It could take up to two months to complete the process.

Kathy has been getting letters from supporters which she has said have been very helpful to her. Since visiting is so severely limited, you can send letters to:

Kathy Thomas

1479 Collins Avenue Marysville, Ohio 43040

For more information about what you can do to help will then make the agreement part of the divorce decree if s/he thinks it is fair.

3. You and your husband are doing a dissolution. (A separation agreement is a must in a dissolution.)

When making a separation agreement, you should make a checklist of everything you want and on which you need to live. Some things to put on this list are how much money you will need for rent, food for the family, medical care (doctors, dentists, emergencies), keeping the car running and/or bus fare for yourself and your children, and health and life insurance.

If you cannot get everything you want, the list will help you know what is most important.

Your goal should be security for the children and financial independence for yourself. A separation agreement requires give and take on both sides. You will probably get the best results if both sides are reasonable.

IMPORTANT:

1. NEVER sign a separation agreement if you do not understand everything in it because you will have to live by its terms.

2. NEVER sign a separation agreement until you understand which sections can be changed (such as alimony, custody, and support] and which sections cannot be changed (such a division of property].

3. NEVER sign a separation agreement without understanding the tax consequences of it.

4. NEVER sign a separation agreement if you disagree with any part of it.

5. NEVER sign more than one separation agreement unless the first one is destroyed.

the Gold Flower Committee or if you would like to join or make a donation, call Jeanne Van Atta at 391-3912 or Jane Campbell at 696-3100.

FINANCIAL REPORT FROM GOLD FLOWER Income to Date

Hessler Street Fair

Fundraising party at Rosewater's

$1,103.03

Izquierda/Oven Productions benefit

500.00

150.00

697.00

$2,450,08

Other donations

Expenses Paid to Date

Women Together [1/3 of Rosewater benefit]

259.91

Amasa Stone Chapel/Oven Prod. Sound Bull horn for rally

25.00

25.00

Women's Self-Defense Law Project

400.00

Ellen Sheffield -staff

150.00

249.80

14.00

$1,123.71

Rape Crisis Center -printing

P. O. Box

Total Paid Out

Outstanding Expenses in order of priority of payment

Women's Self-Defense Law Project

200.00

WomenSpace telephone bill [trial related calle]

126.88

Kathy Thomas legal fees

1,500.00

Transcripts from trial

282.00

Tahira Wadud's court costs

60.00

215.00

$2,101.88

$1,326.32

Loan from J. Van Atta Total owed

Total Cash on hand

Expenses which cannot be definitely listed here but which will be incurred in the coming weeks and months are more transcripts which may be needed, more printing costs, and more legal fees to enable lawyers to continue to try to free Kathy Thomas from jail. --Jeanne Van Atta

If your husband has a lawyer and you do not, you should have a lawyer look at the separation agreement before you sign it.

The next issue of WSW will contain information on Filing the Divorce and Dividing Up the Marriage.

APPENDIX

Support Groups and Emergency Help

Alcohol Hotline

Battered Women's Hotline Cleveland Rape Crisis Center

Free Clinic

Psychiatric Emergency Victim's Service Unit

Welfare Rights Organization WomenSpace

391-2300

961-4422

391-3912

721-4010

229-4545

623-7345

241-5926

696-3100

Legal Help and Referrals

American Civil Liberties Union

781-6276

Cleveland State University Legal Clinic Cleveland Women's Counsel

687-2525

321-8585

Cleveland Women Lawyers Association

696-0385

721-4010

Legal Aid Society

687-1900

National Lawyers Guild

687-2351

631-4741

University Legal Center (CWRU)

368-2677

621-3443

Governmental Agencies

County Welfare Department Social Security Office

861-7700

476-1414

Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement and Support Office

623-7825

Free Clinic

People's Law Center

Women's Law Fund