Enlightened Sentencing Project
Statements from Legislators, Judges, Probation Officers, and Probationers
www.youtube.com/EnlightenedSentencin (g)

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The Honorable Representative Sue Shear
Missouri State Legislature

I see this as a wonderful alternative to imprisonment... So I congratulate the whole TM movement and all the people involved in it.

The Honorable Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr.,
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Missouri

I see TM as yet another tool that Judges can use in the rehabilitation of criminal offenders who come before them.

The Honorable David C. Mason,
Judge, 22nd Judicial Circuit Court, St Louis, Missouri
First US Judge to sentence an offender to learn to meditate as a Condition of Release

I'm really not a hero... The real issue is how are we helping people who are at risk to commit crime, to develop something from within to help them avoid the next crime.

The Honorable Henry E. Autrey
United States District Judge
Eastern District of Missouri

I would urge judges who are in our system, whose duty it is to maintain order, and to see to it that rules of society are kept and maintained, to consider and in fact use TM as one of your  tools within your arsenal to deal with those individuals who come before you...

The Honorable Sherri B. Sullivan
Judge, Missouri Court of Appeals

I wish for great success for the program, teaching probationers TM.

Farrokh Anklesaria, Esq.
Barrister-at-Law
Founder of the Enlightened Sentencing Project

This tape reports a historic development, the application of the TM program to the field of criminal law, and criminal justice, by leaders in their field.

Thomas Newmark, Esq.
Attorney-at-Law, Partner
St. Louis Missouri Bar Association

This is one of the most thrilling, and important occasions that I have had the pleasure to participate in, as a lawyer.

The Honorable David C. Mason
Judge, 22nd Judicial Circuit Court, St Louis, Missouri
Speaks at Press Conference on Violent Crime in Washington DC

I have spent a great deal of time during the past few years researching ways to deal with crime and criminal recidivism.

ABC News - KDNL - Channel 30, St. Louis

Criminals may soon be facing a new and unusual sentence here in St. Louis...

CBS News - KMOV - Channel 4, St. Louis

A St. Louis city judge is leading an effort to bring a different kind of prison program to Missouri inmates...

NBC News - KSDK - Channel 5, St. Louis

Circuit Court Judge Mason... plans to add mandatory TM to the sentencing and probation phase of certain convictions.

Farrokh Anklesaria, Esq.

Water the root, and enjoy the fruit.

Ruffina Anklesaria
Project Manager, TESP
It is my pleasure to welcome you this evening to the 5th Graduation of the Enlightened Sentencing Project.
Judge Mason became a pioneer, and took the initiative to try the TM program as a condition of probation for some of his offenders.  Farrokh Ankelsaria is the world's leading expert in applying the TM program in correctional settings...  Now more than 100 probationers have successful completed the course of instruction.. and there are five judges here in St. Louis who are actively sentencing probationers to The Enlightened Sentencing Project... who are bringing new light to the field of rehabilitation.

Farrokh Anklesaria, Esq.
It is a real joy to be here this evening, and to speak about the experiences of some of our graduates.
It's like what my master says, like a gardener who has been attending to the roots of a plant.
And now the plant has come up grown.  The fruits are here, and
The most eloquent testimony of this program.. are the experiences in the words of our probationers. 
So what I propose to do is to read about a sentence or two...from each of these graduates.

Helen
My whole life has changed
My 15 year old daughter told me "Mommy I'm so proud of you."
My mother has told me twice that she wants my children to learn TM
I want to thank Judge Autrey giving me this break and sentencing me to the TM program.

William ..a proud user of TM
Before I started TM, my family and friends thought I was the meanest person
Everyone wonders what has happened to my personality. 
I've become a polite, respectful, and generous person now.
My girlfriend actually thought I had bumped my head on something, because I've been so nice to her.

Student
I can see a future for myself, other than selling drugs
The TM program helps you get in touch with your inner self, and that's where you find peace.
I'd rather go to the TM classes, for one reason.  It works

Student
I was placed in to The Enlightened Sentencing Program by my judge, Judge Haegney.
I made a stupid mistake trying to sell drugs to make some fast money.
Since starting TM a couple of months ago, I've gotten so much accomplished in such a short time.
It also makes me want to continue doing good, and helping others.
I feel like I have this great big energy, peacefulness, happiness, and satisfaction in my life now.

Student
I quit the Anger Management classes because... you come out feeling more angry than when you started.
With the TM classes, there is peace...
I was promoted to a higher position.

Corey
In my last appearance in court, Judge Anna Forder put it to me like this:
"If I ever see you again in my court, no one will ever see you again!"
So she put me in the Enlightened Sentencing Program...
I found peace within myself... When I meditate now I look at life in a different way.
It is like getting high, without anything, but life itself."

In this study, 259 male felon parolees of the California Department of Connections who learned the Transcendental Meditation technique while in prison had fewer new prison terms and more favorable parole outcomes each year over a five-year period after release compared to carefully matched controls. The Transcendental Meditation program was shown to significantly reduce recidivism during a period of six months to six years after parole, whereas prison education, vocational training, and psychotherapy did not consistently reduce recidivism.

References:

1. Journal of Criminal Justice 15 (1987): 211–230.
2. Dissertation Abstracts International 43 (1982): 539B.
3. International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice 11 (1987): 111–132.

This study found that during the Transcendental Meditation program some of the early sensory components of the brain's response to somatosensory stimulation (0–100 msec) are more widely distributed across the cortex. This study, by Dr. Nicolai Nicolaevich Lyubimov, Director of the Moscow Brain Research Institute's Laboratory of Neurocybernetics, indicates that during the Transcendental Meditation program there is an increase in the areas of the cortex taking part in perception of specific information and an increase in the functional relationship between the two hemispheres.

References:

1. Proceedings of the International Symposium Physiological and Biochemical Basis of Brain Activity, St. Petersburg, Russia, (June 22–24, 1992).
2. 2nd Russian-Swedish Symposium New Research in Neurobiology, Moscow, Russia, (May 19–21, 1992).

Graduation Ceremony for Graduates of the Enlightened Sentencing Project

Monday August 29, 2005, at 6.00 p.m.
TESP center in downtown St Louis at
55 Plaza Square, St Louis, MO 63103
 

Featured Speakers

The Honorable Michael A. Wolff
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Missouri

Dartmouth College, 1967
University of Minnesota Law School, 1970
St. Louis University School of Law faculty, 1975
Special Counsel to the Governor, 1994-1998

Officer Douglas Burris
Chief Probation Officer of the U.S. District Court in Missouri

Winner of 2004 Office of the US Court Director's Award:
"Developed progressive initiatives to improve the quality of life and future options for persons under supervision."
www.uscourts.gov/library/annual_awards.html