By Mary Beth Marino

(First in a Series)

The 18-year-old brown-eyed, brown-haired boy was street-wise.

He had experienced drugs, liquor, stealing, auto-theft and fast friends. He had run away from home and lived in the woods more than once.

But Jeff is not the run-of-the-mill delinquent. He truly had a story that warranted an investigation. For this boy, behind all the delinquent behavior there was nothing more than an abused child seeking survival.

“I didn’t have anyone to turn to,” the boy said. “My Dad is in prison now, my real mother left us when I was just a year old.”

“My Dad would make me walk around a warehouse all day when I did something wrong. Then he would beat me until I was black and blue,” the boy stated.

“I tried to get help at school, but they thought I was a troublemaker because I had a temper and fought a lot.”

Out of desperation, Jeff turned to his older sister Micki, who called a social service agency for help. Jeff and Micki were put into foster homes at the ages of 12 and 14. They stayed there until Jeff was 13 and a half and then moved back home with their stepmother.

Jeff’s father was doing time in prison and the stepmother moved a boyfriend into the house. Jeff and the boyfriend had many fights, but he had talked Jeff into dealing drugs as well as using them himself. The fights got worse and, finally, the stepmother forced Jeff out of the house again at the age of 15. He lived in the woods for several weeks and finally moved into a group home in Chapel Hill, N.C.

“I just went wild…I got involved with the wrong crowd and it was getting easier to do all the wrong things,” the boy explained.

The counselor at the group home had a big influence on Jeff. “I was looking for a father figure,” Jeff said. His voice started to crack and he bumbled for words. He finally explained that the counselor had molested him.

Jeff was bitter and humiliated. He took to the streets again and lived in the woods. He lived off of anything he could find. He washed his clothes in the creek. He was getting tougher as he tried to survive.

More trouble followed. When a friend offered to allow him to move in with his family, Jeff was sexually abused by the friend’s mother.

“It was a mess,” Jeff said. “I had to get out of there, so I lived in the woods again.”

“My friend and I started stealing. First we just grabbed women’s purses and lifted tips from restaurants,” Jeff said. “Then we thought about robbing a bank.”

“We stole some guns and a truck…but we didn’t get very far. We tried to sell the guns at a pawn shop and the owner checked the serial numbers on the guns and then reported us to the police.”

Jeff was arrested on November 29 in South Carolina. Another warrant for his arrest in DeKalb County brought him back to Georgia for prosecution.

“While I was in jail from December 7 to April 6, I took my G.E.D. exams for completion of high school. I scored in the top 10 percent,” Jeff stated.

“I knew I was going to get anywhere from six years on up. I made up my mind that I would learn some kind of trade in prison. I didn’t want to live like this,” he said desperately.

“I felt I had to do something with my life if I were to survive. I acted tough, but I didn’t feel tough,” he said. “I had to survive in the only way I knew how.”

Jeff said chronologically he was 18 year old, but street-wise, he was 30. He went to court prepared to face a long prison term.

But Jeff’s luck was about to change. He would be given his first break in life. He would receive an earth shattering decision that would revive the boy’s faith in God, in adults, and in himself.

As Jeff continued his story, he looked towards the sky and said, “Someone cared.”

“I was never taught a formal religion. I was baptized in a Lutheran Church. I searched them all looking for answers, but I felt safe in the Catholic Church,” the boy said with sincerity.

The judge cared, too. Judge R. Keegan Federal, a Catholic from St. Thomas More parish, was the Superior Court judge presiding over Jeff’s case. After investigating Jeff’s life, he obviously felt compassion, for his decision would sweep the wire services statewide. It would also result in a personal interview for Jeff and himself on “Good Morning America.”

Jeff was standing before the judge. The courtroom was quiet. There were several defendants waiting to be tried and sentenced. Everyone, including the district attorney, was shocked as the judge turned to his assistant and asked, “Is that bailiff’s job still open.”

The assistant replied that the job was, indeed, still open. The judge turned to a stunned Jeff and said, “Do you want the job, son?”

“Yes, sir!” Jeff cried. “Yes, sir!”

Thus, Jeff’s life was going to change. A chain reaction began in the courtroom as arrangements were made for Jeff to obtain clothes from the St. Vincent de Paul Society. There would be no more living in the woods for Jeff. An attorney and his wife, who have two boys around Jeff’s age, opened their home to him.

“Jeff’s case is not really uncommon in the courts,” the judge stated. “My decision was unique, but the case was not. I saw Jeff as an opportunist and I was impressed with his attitude and demeanor.”

The judge stated that his intent was to use the fact that Jeff was an opportuniist and turn that quality toward positive action rather than criminal activities. The judge felt that Jeff needed to be given a chance.

“If he abuses this opportunity, he can’t say that he wasn’t given a break in life,” the judge contended.

Judge Federal said that Jeff would be symbolic of child abuse cases that can be redirected toward alternative care. The Judge feels it is far better than exposing him to the criminal environment where many abused children seem to gravitate for survival.

In the meantime, Jeff made some sound decisions himself. He wants to go to Georgia State next fall and major in social delinquent work, then counsel abused children.

He would also like to open a group home someday. “Abused kids won’t have to live in the woods, or turn criminal to survive,” he said.

A free-lance writer is helping Jeff compose a book entitled, “Abuse, what it is and how to stop it.”

“It will contain references for seeking help, giving social opinions and guidance to the abused child,” Jeff said.

In discussing all the publicity Jeff was exposed to, he replied, “If it helps just one child from suffering child abuse, it will be worth repeating my story.”

This 18-year-old boy-man, as he can only be described, is to begin a new life with new clothes, a new home and an understanding boss. However, he still must face the weapons charge in South Carolina which led him back to Georgia. This looms over him. He has had a taste of a respectable job, respectable people caring for him and a new outlook on his future. He likes the taste.

(Next issue: The Abusers Speak; The Clinical Viewpoint.)