Capitol Office
State Capitol, Room 5080
Sacramento, CA 95814
Tel (916) 651-4030
Fax (916) 651-4930

District Office
Wallis Annenberg Building
700 State Drive, Suite 113
Los Angeles, CA 90037
Tel (213) 745-6656
Fax (213) 745-6722

Chair
Budget Subcommittee #3
Committees
Budget
Health
Insurance
Labor
Rules
Joint Legislative Budget

California State Senate
Senator
Holly J. Mitchell
Thirtieth Senate District
[Seal of California Senate]

July 12, 2016

Edwin J. Hutchinson
1 Main ST
San Quentin, CA 94974

Dear Mr. Hutchinson,

Thank you for contacting my office regarding SB 1157. I care deeply about the concerns of the residents of California and I appreciate you contacting me regarding the issue of incarceration and at risk youth. You will be pleased to know that SB 1157 was passed by the Assembly Public Safety Committee as of June 21, 2016. Per your request, I have enclosed a copy of Governor Brown's Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 2016.

I have also taken the liberty of attaching the contact information of the members of the Senate and Assembly Public Safety Committees. I encourage you to reach out to them regarding your ideas to serve at risk youth. I am confident the members of this Committee will provide you with the time and attention your offer warrants.

I hope you will continue to keep me apprised of your views on this or any state issue of concern to you. Thank you again for contacting my office.

Demand more,
H. Mitchell
Senator Holly J. Mitchell
30th Senate District
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Insight Prison Project

Board of Directors
Michael Berger
Reggie Daniels
Della Ginorio
Givelle Lamano
Dr. Fredric Luskin
Leonard Rubio
Sunny Schwartz
Bev Shelby
Ophelia Williams
Dionne Wilson

Advisory Board
Jack Kornfield
Thich Nhat Hanh
Annie Lamott
Bishop William Swing
Alice Walker
Jon Kabat-Zinn
Kat Taylor
Lawrence Colton

Billie Mizell
Interim Executive Director
PO BOX 151642
San Rafael CA 94915
412.459.9800

www.InsightPrisonProject.org

December 9, 2015

Edwin Hutchinson, CDCR #P68859
San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin, CA 94964

Class: Victim Offender Education Group (VOEG)
Inside Facilitator Training
Date of completion: December 9th, 2015

Dear Edwin,

Thank you for your decision to participate in the Victim Offender Education Group (VOEG) Inside-Facilitator Training. Your presence in the group enhanced the group experience for everyone due to your willingness to participate, your courage to openly share your successes and challenges and your desire to learn.

Much of what makes this deep work of accountability, insight and empathy a success comes from a deep-seated belief in yourself and in your group. By deciding to further your learning, you have chosen to take on more responsibility and support others in the ways you have been supported.

We hope that you continue on your journey and choose to be a role model of compassion, healthy communication and honesty so others may follow in your footsteps.

Thank you again for your participation in the Victim Offender Education Group Inside-Facilitator Training and for being such a strong example of what this group is all about.

We look forward to working with you more in the future.

Sincerely,
[signature]

Karena H. Montag, MFT
Facilitator, VOEG
Programs Director/Clinical Supervisor
Insight Prison Project
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June 11, 2016

Edwin Hutchinson, CDCR #P68859
San Quentin State Prison
San Quentin, CA 94964

Class: Victim Offender Education Group (VOEG)
Date of completion: June 11, 2016

Dear Edwin,

We just want to take the opportunity to thank you for your decision to facilitate in the Victim Offender Education Group (VOEG). Your presence in the group enhanced the group experience for everyone due to your willingness to share, your honesty and your courage to be real. The panel of survivors with whom you met also expressed their appreciation of your willingness to share your story with them and to hear their stories with such compassion and empathy.

As you know, no one really knows quite what to expect when they first begin this group. We thank you for trusting the process and making the effort to "connect the dots" of your own life in an attempt to live a life free of crime and harm to yourself or anyone else.

We hope that you continue on your journey and choose to be a role model of compassion, healthy communication and honesty so others may follow in your footsteps.

Thank you again for your facilitation of the Victim Offender Education Group and for being such a wonderful example of what this group is all about.

We look forward to working with you more in the future.

Sincerely,
Dave Belden
Facilitator, VOEG

Bethany Woolman
Facilitator, VOEG

Karena H. Montag, MFT
Programs Director/Clinical Supervisor
Insight Prison Project
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Date: Tuesday, October 20, 2015
From: Correctional Officer C.T. Smith
RE: People of the State of California vs. Edwin Jay Hutchinson
Case No. NA040270 LASC-South Dept.SOJ
Subject: Reference Letter in Support of Edwin Jay Hutchinson (CDCR No. P-68859)
To: The Honorable Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Gary J. Ferrari

Your Honor,

Allow me to introduce myself to the court. My name is C.T. Smith and I am a 2nd Watch Correctional Officer employed at California State Prison-San Quentin for over twenty-eight (28) years. I first met inmate Hutchinson shortly after his arrival at CSP-San Quentin on March 29, 2009.

As my duties call for me to have close interpersonal contacts with a variety of different prisoners, including those housed on "death row" as condemned inmates, protective custody ("sensitive needs") inmates, mainline general population ("GP") inmates, and reception center ("RC") inmates. This has provided me with an objective point of view when it comes to the conduct and behavioral patterns of these inmates. Although I cannot offer an expert testimony of the cognitive behavioral patterns of inmates on a clinical level, I do posses over two and one half decades of experience and interpersonal contacts with incarcerated individuals, which provides me with a solid foundation for gauging when an inmate is "authentic" and being "genuine" and when they are still "criminally-minded".

However, more importantly, since inmate Hutchinson's arrival, here at CSP-San Quentin in 2009, he has had no disciplinary violations, whatsoever, and this demonstrates his willingness to "obey the rules". During our many conversations, he has often expressed and displayed evidence of his sincere remorse for committing the instant offense of second-degree robbery in 1999, for which he is sentenced to a prison term of thirty-years-to-life under the "Three Strikes" law. In addition, it must be noted that inmate Hutchinson is known as a "peacemaker" to the other inmates at CSP-San Quentin and has the respect of the CDCR prison staff, as well.

Based upon my personal observations, conversations and interactions with inmate Hutchinson, I am of the strong opinion and am inclined to believe that inmate Hutchinson is no longer a threat to society. He has addressed his past criminal behavior and substance abuse issues, and is fully prepared to successfully transition back into his community as a positive and productive member of society.

Therefore, I fully endorse the release of inmate Hutchinson and submit this reference letter in support thereof.

If you have questions regarding inmate Hutchinson, contact me at (415) 454-1460, ext: 3857 or 3432.

C/O C.T. Smith
C/O C.T. Smith 10/20/15

---------------

State of California
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
[legal seal of California DCR]

DATE: February 18, 2016
TO: Whom it May Concern
FROM: REYES, R.
Correctional Officer/2nd Watch/Education Dept.
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
San Quentin State Prison, San Quentin, CA 94964
SUBJECT: REFERENCE LETTER IN SUPPORT OF INMATE HUTCHINSON, EDWIN JAY (CDCR NO. P-68859)

This letter is authorized in support of inmate Hutchinson's (P-68859) model behavior and dedication which he has displayed toward his education and personal rehabilitation.

In my functions as the 2nd watch Education Department Correctional Officer, I have noticed inmate Hutchinson's continued devotion, preservation, and determination in his higher learning since January of 2013. Inmate Hutchinson is a dedicated student of Patten University, which is an on-site college offering Associate of Arts degrees.

Over the years inmate Hutchinson has always been a courteous, insightful and respectful individual towards me, other staff, and his fellow inmates. In our many discussions, he has expressed the importance of his education and how conductive this experience has been in preparing him in becoming a productive, responsible, and law-abiding citizen upon his release from prison.

It is my opinion that inmate Hutchinson has the necessary life sustaining abilities and education to be successful, as well as the perseverance, ambition, and initiative which will help guard him against any possibility of recidivism. As inmate Hutchinson will be graduation with his "AA" degree in June 2016, not only will he have academic skills but also the interpersonal, social survival skills, along with the right attitudes, values, sense of responsibility, and self-reliance necessary to live in the mainstream of society.

It is commendable to see such a transformation in a prisoner and inmate Hutchinson's improved self-worth and hope for the future is outstanding.

If you have any questions, please contact me at (415) 454-1460 Ex. 6701

[signature]
C/O Reyes