Victor Trammell: Prison Warden Avoids Media Contact with Black Men Arrested for Seriously Questionable Reasons
Victor Trammell: Prison Warden Avoids Media Contact with Black Men Arrested for Seriously Questionable Reasons
By Victor Trammell
Beginning in October of 2012, I began investigating the federal convictions of the so-called IRP 6 on behalf of YourBlackWorld.net.
The IRP 6 are a group of men (five black and one white) who were convicted in October 2011 on multiple federal counts of fraud. One of the men, Gary Walker is the founder of the company that the six men ran called IRP Solutions.
IRP Solutions was a software development company, which opened its doors for business in 2003 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The primary goal of the company was to develop software that would help law enforcement agencies engage in more effective processes of investigative resource planning.
On November 5, 2012, I wrote an article about the incident. The article gave a summary of the events (which transpired from 2002 to 2011) surrounding IRP Solutions and its senior management team. A portion of my orignal article on this case reads as follows:
“In 2005, IRP Solutions’ offices in Colorado Springs were raided by the F.B.I. They confiscated software codes and other sensitive information. For reasons unclear, the agency also probed into the bank records of the executives’ family members. Agents then probed into the personal records of members of the Colorado Springs Fellowship Church, which is where the IRP executives attended service regularly.
Why would such an extreme action be carried out by what most people believe is a responsible federal law enforcement agency? In 2009, all six executives were indicted on multiple federal counts of fraud. In October 2011, Gary Walker and his business partners were found guilty. They are all serving sentences around 10 years and are working on appealing their convictions.” (BlackBlueDog.com)
The IRP 6 were accused of defrauding some staffing companies, who claimed IRP Solutions owed them money for labor they performed to build the designed software. IRP Solutions never denied owing the staffing companies money. IRP simply told the staffing companies that they needed additional time to sell the software. It is worth noting that these kinds disputes are usually litigated in civil court, not in a criminal proceeding.
Since my original article on the IRP 6 was published, I have been regularly corresponding with members of a social advocacy group called A Just Cause, which is based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. A Just Cause has been instrumental in helping the IRP 6 gain the legal representation needed to appeal their convictions. Sam Thurman, the president of A Just Cause is one of the chief representatives that I have been in contact with since last October.
For the purpose of gaining a better understanding of the case, I told Mr. Thurman and members of A Just Cause that I was interested in conducting an in-person prison interview with Mr. Walker and other members of the IRP 6. The purpose of my interview was to question the IRP 6 separately (with their attorneys present) about details surrounding their appeals. I was also interested in hearing an explanation about the alleged violation of their 5th Amendment rights during the trials.
A Just Cause reassured me that if I could get permission from the Federal Bureau of Prisons to conduct the interview, they would make any travel and hotel accommodations I would need to make the trip to the Federal Prison Camp (FPC) in Florence, Colorado. The IRP 6 are being held at FPC and have maintained their innocence throughout the course of this case.
In December of 2012, I reached out to Randall Mitchell, the Public Administration Officer of FPC in Florence, Colorado. Mr. Mitchell instructed me to submit my request in writing with a company letterhead stating the purpose of my visit and the proper verification of my credentials as a correspondent of the media. By January 2013, I submitted my response in the form of an email with the company letter attached to it. After the letter was sent, I received a call from Ed Ross, a public relations official with the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
Mr. Ross told me that his agency needed an additional letter from one of my superiors at YourBlackWorld.net. In the letter, Mr. Ross asked that one of my superiors verify I was a paid correspondent for YourBlackWorld.net. The verification was needed to ensure that I was indeed a member of the media because media members get a security clearance that is different than traditional inmate visitors. The Federal Bureau of Prisons also wanted to be sure that I was not a random free-lance writer or journalist.
I thought the requests were understandable. Mr. Ross also told me that he did not see why my request for an in-person interview would be denied once his agency received the letter from one of my superiors at YourBlackWorld.net. The letter from my designated superior was sent by the beginning of February 2013. I was eager to visit with Mr. Walker and the other IRP 6 members in person to give them a chance to tell their story to the public. It is their personal and God given right to be able to do so.
Once the letter from my superior was received by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, I was told by Mr. Ross that I would get a response from the Warden of FPC. Mr. Ross told me that “everything looked good” but that the final decision on the interview would rest with the Warden. I finally received a letter (dated on February 28, 2013) from Mr. D. Berkebile, the Warden of FPC in Florence, Colorado. Mr. Berkebile denied my request for an interview of the IRP 6 citing “concerns over institution safety and security.”
I am continuing to work with A Just Cause and Pastor Rose Banks of the Colorado Springs Fellowship Church to gain a better explanation from the prison over their denial of the exclusive interview. After visiting the Colorado Springs Fellowship Church and meeting with various members of the A Just Cause organization this past weekend, I have been able to gain more critical information. This new information has convinced me that the IRP 6 definitely need a new trial. Stay tuned in to BlackBlueDog.com for additional information about this case. Justice for the IRP 6 must be served. To read the original Your Black World article written about the IRP 6, click on the following link:http://www.blackbluedog.com/2012/11/commentary/fraud-or-injustice-black-owned-software-company-brought-down-by-federal-government/
Victor Trammell (pictured left) is a resident of the Kansas City Metropolitan area and graduate of the University of Phoenix School of Business in Kansas City, Missouri. Mr. Trammell is also an investigative writer and editor for the YourBlackWorld.Net Coalition founded by Dr. Boyce Watkins.
