Tom Payne blames UK experience for his problems...
Ky58
of UNC's program they parade Charlie Scott. UK's first
African-American player was Tom Payne. The media will
have a field day with this. He is blaming his UK
experience (1970-71) for his criminal record.
:-)
-----
Inmate 031259 ducks his head under a doorway, sliding
his 7-foot-2 frame into the visitors' conference room
at the Green River Correctional Complex. Dressed in
prison-issue brown jacket and khakis, he flashes a
gap-toothed grin. Over the next three hours he will
speak softly about his life (occasionally tossing in
Bible scripture and frequently mentioning love and
forgiveness) before shuffling back to the loneliness
of his cell. Tom Payne is far removed from the days
when he wore a University of Kentucky basketball uniform
and terrorized opposing defenses. Then again, he hopes
he has come a long way from what he says those times
caused him to do: terrorize women.
As a basketball player he had enormous potential, starring
at UK for one season before darting off to a promising
National Basketball Association career 30 years ago. But
he also had enormous problems, earning rape convictions in
three states and squandering every golden opportunity that
lay before him. Almost overnight, he went from pioneer to
pariah. "His has been a life with a lot of promise that has
fallen far short," said Jan Waddell, a Louisville attorney
who once represented Payne. Payne, 50, and his family now
are asking for one more chance for him to fulfill that lost
promise. They thought that chance had arrived last summer,
when he was released from a California prison after serving
14 years on his most recent rape charge. Plans were made for
Payne to move to Cincinnati with his brother and begin his
life anew, counseling young athletes and publishing children's
books. Instead, Kentucky officials sentenced him to an
additional 15 years behind bars, citing him for violating
parole on a 1971 rape charge. His family vows to fight a
difficult, if not impossible, battle to free Payne, who has
spent all but four of the past 30 years in jail.
Kentucky State Parole Board officials say that his sentence is
appropriate given his past offenses and that there is little
recourse. Payne's family counters that the parole board didn't
consider the steps he has taken toward reform; rather, they
argue, board members simply viewed him as a menacing 7-foot
black man. Payne, who doesn't deny his crimes, insists his
sentence and his stature are intertwined. A naive, towering
youngster who knew nothing about basketball before high school,
he became the first African American signed by Adolph Rupp.
Payne says that the racism he experienced from both friend and
foe during his one tumultuous season at UK led him to hate white
people and lash out against women. But over time, he says, he
has come to grips with his past and his demons. He hopes people
can view him like the character in one of his children's books:
a troubled giant who found redemption.
"I don't think I'm some kind of monster," Payne said. "Nobody
needs to be afraid of me." Sometimes you choose your destiny,
and sometimes fate grabs you while you're minding your own
business. Fate found Payne during his sophomore year at Shawnee
High School. The varsity basketball coach spotted the skinny
6-foot-10 teenager walking down the hallway and practically
begged him to join the team. The son of an Army sergeant who had
only recently settled his family in Kentucky, Payne never had
played the game (and had no idea that so many in the state took
it so seriously.) It took what he called a "humiliating" first
season for him to get serious about his game. Determined not to
have fans laugh at him when passes bounced off his chest or he
stumbled up and down the court, Payne jumped into every summer
pickup game he could find, developing skills against the best
the area had to offer.
"I wanted to make my own personal trail," Payne said. "I was
trying to carve out my own identity." He did so more than he
realized by signing with UK in 1969, three years after Rupp's
all-white team lost to Texas Western's all-black starting five
in a ground-breaking NCAA title game. But none of that meant
much to Payne, who saw no social significance in his college
choice. "It was kind of a rash decision, really," he said.
Having grown up in the integrated atmosphere of Army bases and
spent his high school years in Louisville's West End, Payne said,
he never experienced racism before college. Then it was thrust
into his face. He sat out his first season because of academics,
instead barnstorming with an amateur team put together by former
UK player Scotty Baesler. He showed his potential by leading the
team to victory over the UK freshmen in an exhibition at Freedom
Hall. Payne thinks that display impressed the UK coaches, whom he
says arranged for people to take correspondence courses in his
name the following summer to make him eligible. He joined the
Wildcats for the 1970-71 season, prepared physically but not
mentally for the challenge. He says fans on the road hurled racial
epithets, and the home crowd wasn't much kinder. Threatening phone
calls, broken car windows and eggs smashed on his front door became
routine. He feared for the safety of his wife (whom he married
right after high school) and their infant daughter. During a
mid-December loss to Purdue in the UK Invitational Tournament,
Payne was booed. He vowed to transfer.
"That's the kind of abuse I went through," he said. "And people
think that's not supposed to affect you?" He now contends it was
then that he began to feel contempt toward white people, though he
didn't realize it at the time. He was ready to leave school, but
his father, the Army sergeant, ordered him to finish out a season
in which Payne averaged 16.9 points and 10.1 rebounds. After just
one year of college ball, he made history again, joining five other
players as the first underclassmen to claim financial hardship and
enter the NBA draft. The Atlanta Hawks signed him to a $750,000
contract. It seemed as though Payne had put his troubles behind
him. In reality, they were just about to begin. Payne bided his
time on the bench in his first season with the Hawks, averaging
4.1 points a game. It would be his last NBA season and one of his
last years as a free man.
In May 1972, police in Georgia arrested him in connection with a
string of rapes in the Atlanta area. Five days after that arrest,
a Kentucky grand jury indicted him for three sexual attacks carried
out before he had left the state. In Georgia, Payne was found guilty
and was given a two-year sentence. When that term was completed, he
was convicted on another rape charge and sentenced to 15 more years.
He spent 2 1/2 years in solitary confinement after taking part in a
prison riot that ended with a guard shooting an inmate. In 1977,
after Georgia granted parole five years into Payne's term, he was
shipped to Kentucky to face charges of first-degree rape and
detaining two females against their will. The attacks had all
taken place between August and September 1971 and were similar
in nature: All three women were grabbed from behind as they entered
their East End homes in the early-morning hours. All three described
their assailant as extremely tall and soft-spoken with a mean
expression. Two managed to escape before being assaulted; a third was
not so lucky.
The rape occurred on Sept. 4, 1971. A few days later the victim (who
had never met Payne) recognized him from a picture in the sports
section of The Courier-Journal. She described her assailant to police
as "a giant" over 7 feet tall, said Paul Richwalsky, who prosecuted
the case. But detectives didn't believe her and wrote in their reports
that the attacker was no more than 6-4. A Jefferson County jury of 11
whites and one black returned guilty verdicts on all counts in September
1977. Though the law had changed after 1971, Payne was sentenced under
old guidelines that called for a life term for first-degree rape. Payne
maintained his innocence throughout his various trials, and supporters
(including his mother, Elaine) floated theories of a racist conspiracy
because all of his accusers were white women. During the trial in
Louisville, the Muhammed Mosque of Islam sent the judge a petition with
2,000 signatures that proclaimed Payne's innocence. (Payne had converted
to Islam while imprisoned in Georgia). Payne resurfaced in 1983, paroled
after just six years of his life sentence. At 33 and in great shape from
lifting weights in prison, he returned to basketball, playing briefly for
the Louisville Catbirds of the Continental Basketball Association. He also
took up professional boxing, but that career lasted only five bouts.
When neither of those pursuits panned out, Payne headed to Hollywood. He
had continued to lift weights, and he says he started using steroids,
which gave him an intimidating (and marketable) physical presence. The
convicted felon landed roles in the TV movie "Stingray," the popular
sitcom "Night Court" and a McDonald's commercial. At night he schmoozed
at parties with celebrities such as Elizabeth Taylor and Eddie Murphy.
"On the outside it looked like I was doing good," he said. But Payne
never had dealt with the hatred lurking inside him, and eventually it
reared again. On Valentine's Day 1986, police driving past a Hollywood
apartment garage spotted Payne lying on top of a woman on the hood of a
car. Her face was covered by a towel, and Payne's car was idling nearby.
Guilty, said a California jury. Twenty-eight years, said the judge.
Payne had run out of excuses and supporters.
"So many black people were being treated unfairly in the court system,
it was easy to believe he didn't do it (in Georgia and Kentucky)," said
Waddell, a high school classmate who represented Payne in the California
case. "After the arrest in California, it became a lot harder to believe."
Facing hard time yet again, Payne says, he was left with no choice but to
look inward. "That was the worst experience that ever happened to me," he
said. "I did something I didn't want to do. I self-destructed. I let
everybody down. I knew then I needed help." Payne underwent psychiatric
counseling in jail and discovered something shocking about himself: He
subconsciously sought out white women to abuse because of the hatred he
developed at UK. "Before I went to college, nothing in my life said I was
going to be a criminal," he said. "I never got in trouble. I never treated
women bad. My whole life took a turn going to UK and getting damaged so
much. My anger and hatred toward white society came up, and I lashed out.
It was never about sex or violence with me. If any of my victims showed
the least bit of resistance, I would back off. Payne (whose current wife,
Michelle, a California corrections officer, is white) worked to
rehabilitate. He took several sex-offender courses, spent years in
therapy and met face-to-face with sexual-abuse victims as part of a
violence prevention program. "Just seeing the pain in their eyes." he
said. "I would never want to hurt another woman again." A board of
therapists examined Payne and cleared him for parole.
"He's made a tremendous effort to heal himself," said Heidi Ann Garcia,
a licensed therapist who has known Payne for 15 years. "He's done some
very bad things to hurt people, but he takes full responsibility. It's
been a journey for him to be able to do that." Payne also converted to
Christianity while in California. The Rev. Roy Davis, who was doing
volunteer ministry work at the prison, first met him in the early 1990s
and nurtured his new spirituality. "He really embraced (Christianity),
and he became a mentor to other inmates," said Davis, pastor of Abundant
Life Fellowship in Roseville, Calif. "His belief is not manipulative in
nature. He genuinely loves the Lord." Last summer Payne appeared to catch
a break. His attorneys convinced an appeals court that California had
improperly enhanced his sentence by 20 years because of his prior
convictions. The court agreed and reduced his sentence by 10 years,
which would have made him eligible for parole six years earlier. Payne
had won his freedom, it seemed. His brother, Darrell, a prosecutor in
Cincinnati, sold his newly built four-bedroom home and purchased a
two-family unit, preparing for Tom to move in with him. But before
Payne could leave California, Kentucky placed a claim on him for parole
violation. He was brought back home in August and sentenced to an
additional 15 years. Payne's supporters were shocked. Attorney Leonard
Oldwin Jr., who represented him at the extradition hearing in California,
said Kentucky officials seemed overzealous in their pursuit.
"I've done a lot of extraditions before, but this one was unusual," Oldwin
said. "When I called (the parole board) office, they immediately knew the
case and were adamant about wanting him back. They certainly seemed to have
it in for him for some reason. That sentence seems to be unusually harsh."
Darrell Payne says the board did not adequately consider his brother's
efforts at reform while in California or the support system he had in place
in Ohio. Nor did it take into account the extra six years he served in
California or the fact that rape no longer carries a life sentence in
Kentucky. "As a prosecutor, I understand the seriousness of rape," Darrell
Payne said. "But based upon what he was convicted for, the time he's served
and the rehabilitation process he's gone through, I don't understand what
they're getting out of holding him for another 15 years. I have a feeling
a lot of it has to do with who he is and his size, and that's grossly
unfair to him." Tom Payne goes even further, claiming the parole board's
decision is based on racism. He says people in the state are still mad at
him for breaking the color barrier at UK. "I'm not the first athlete to get
in trouble, but I'm probably the first to do this kind of time," he said.
"Ask yourself why. No white guy in America has ever done this kind of time."
Former parole board executive director Tom Campbell said that by law, Payne's
parole was revoked automatically because he committed a felony. The state
could have given him up to 20 years, he said. "I wouldn't say his case is
unusual," said Campbell, who was named state corrections commissioner in
December. He said the board considers a laundry list of factors when
determining sentences for parole violation, including whether violence was
involved in the offense and the community's attitude toward the crime. Public
safety is the overriding concern.
"Given the nature of the offenses he's had, and the fact that he committed
this last offense after being given the opportunity for parole, I'm sure
that weighed heavily in the board's opinion," Campbell said. He noted that
Payne served only six years of his original life sentence; were he to be
sentenced to 20 years for rape under Kentucky law today, he would have to
serve at least 12 years. Richwalsky, who recently returned to the
Commonwealth Attorney's office in Jefferson County, could have sought life
without parole for Payne in 1977 but did not. He said he was shocked to
hear that Payne already had been released from California. "I disagree that
he's paid enough," Richwalsky said. "If he had stayed clean and not gotten
in any more trouble, then he would be a free man." Lynnie Meyer, president
of the Center for Women and Families in Louisville, says she empathizes
with Payne's family. But as someone who has worked with rape victims and
seen the lasting impact of the crime, she also supports the parole board's
decision. "Obviously, he has a long history, and this is a pattern of
behavior," Meyer said. "He knew what he was doing, and he knew the difference
between right and wrong. He deserves to be held accountable for his crimes."
Payne's family pushes on, as it has for years. His eight younger brothers
and sisters have earned a combined 17 college degrees and have taken jobs as
police officers, attorneys, social workers, doctors and nurses. Elaine, now
75, went back to school in the 1980s and finished work on two degrees. She
steadfastly maintains her son's innocence on all counts. Darrell Payne has
consulted with several attorneys and hopes to find a way to reduce his
brother's sentence or force a new parole hearing. That seems unlikely;
Campbell said new hearings can be ordered only if a defendant proves
misconduct by the board or if there's new evidence. Tom Payne, now a
grandfather, whiles away the long days in prison by reading the Bible and
motivational books, volunteering in the chapel and writing. He has penned
three children's books (loosely based on his experiences and featuring his
children as characters) and he hopes to publish them someday. "They're all
about the absence of hatred," he said. Because he is at peace with himself,
Payne says, he's prepared to serve out the rest of his sentence. The real
reason he wants out, he says, is so he can use his experiences to help
others. He would like to travel around the country speaking to young athletes,
warning them of the dangers they might face in their careers. Barring some
unforeseen legal maneuvering, that chance won't come until Payne's 65th
birthday. At an age when most people are retiring, he will be beginning his
life. A giant man haunted by a giant past, he hopes for at least a small
future.
"I'm not looking for sympathy," he said. "I know I made mistakes, and I'm
deeply sorry. I pray for my victims. At the same time, should I have to
pay for those mistakes for the rest of my life?"
<watch the wrap>
http://www.courier-journal.com/cjsports/news2001/04/04/sp040401s8460.htm
Jeff
out of his book of racial exploitations. I'm about ready to
puke that any "news" outlet (and I use the word news very
lightly - and people wonder why I think they hate UK in
Louisville - they're still mad because Tom went to UK
instead of UL probably) would actually print a bunch of
drivel like this. Talk about someone trying to cash in on
the anti-UK crap in the media. I hope he never gets out.
He should get another 15 years for ever blaming a horrid
personal characteristic like being a serial rapist, on
anyone but himself but to try and blame it on racism and to
say he wants to get out and counsel young kids is obscene.
It's Twanna Brawley kind of obscene. It's Jesse Jackson
obscene.
I expect him to write a book and make appearances on the
talk show circuit if he ever gets out. Or make HBO
specials.
I suggest a letter writing campaign to the Slurrier Urinal.
We can't sit idly by while people inflame racial hatreds
just so they can take pot shots at UK. I've never seen
anything so sick in my life. No one can blame such horrid
crimes on anything but their own evil. I hope the parole
board takes into account his severe lack of remorse and his
denial of guilt.
On Wed, 4 Apr 2001 19:15:27 -0400, "Ky58"
<seven...@bigblue.org> wrote:
:Here's a sad story...when they speak of the integration
:
Howey
awe. Such terrible crimes....blamed on racism that happened years ago.
It's so pitiful to see someone blame everything that's happened in their
life on something else other than themselves. At some point, a person's got
to look inward for their actions and quit blaming everyone else. That's
just one of the problems today's society has.
Does discrimination in all forms(black, fat, ugly, old, etc) lead to rape?
Give me a break. A person that doesn't learn the first time has a major
problem. I wouldn't want a convicted multi-time rapist anywhere near my
children or wife. Or neighborhood for that matter.
I can see how racism can lead to hatred. But not rape. There has to be a
line somewhere.
Neil
"Ky58" <seven...@bigblue.org> wrote in message
news:tcnamhd...@news.supernews.com...