[Authors note: This fictional interview follows the first story, "Michael meets the Crymaker." If you haven't read that story, I would recommend you do that first.----Nathan]
Excerpts from Radio interview with Mr. Travis Ward, state administrator for police affairs. Mr. Ward has authority over all state corporal punishment issues, and responds to recent criticisms related to the punishment of Michael Hanson, carried out in Brinrick County two weeks ago, on the 14th day of March. He was interviewed on live radio by WBR606 AM by Tom Litton, talk show host.
Tom: "Well, hellooooo out there...Tonight we have a special guest with us----A Mr. Travis Ward, state administrator overseeing all corporal punishment issues. The talk of the town of course has been the recent punishment of a 17 year old boy, Michael Hanson, witnessed by most of his high school just a little over two weeks ago. The controversial punishment has been decried by some local citizen groups, while being toted at the same time as effective government in action by others and also by those in authority....Tonight, we will get to the bottom of this....(laughter) and we will begin after this commercial break....."
(commercial)
Tom: "Mr. Ward, thanks for coming. As you know, just a few weeks ago a 17 year old high school junior was punished in Brinrick County, and most of his classmates were invited to watch. There are more than a few people a little upset that a high school kid was virtually tortured and humiliated in front of his classmates for a few small acts of vandalism. Isn't this going just a wee bit too far?"
Mr. Ward: "Tom, I'm really glad for this opportunity to straighten up the record a little here. I think you have to understand what is going on here, and also realize that this Hanson boy is no angel. He got what he deserved, and I object to your term, "torture." If by that you mean a sound paddling---well he did get that (laughter); but I'd hardly call it torture. He didn't bleed and wasn't cut in any way, and in fact he didn't even require a trip to the hospital. He walked out of the jailhouse an hour after his spanking, and he was in school on Monday morning. Now, I won't disagree with you that he was humiliated--in fact, the humiliation factor is one of the primary deterrents that was designed into the Juvenal Corporal Punishment Act that was put into law just a little over 2 years ago. The Hanson boy was certainly humiliated, but I would have to say that he was supposed to be."
Tom: "Yes, but why in front of his entire school....isn't that a little unusual?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, unusual yes....illegal, no. Under the Punishment Act the offender is usually punished in front of the people that he victimized. Now normally, just by the nature of most crimes, that is pretty limited...usually one or two people at the most. If a teenager shoplifts from a hardware store, normally he's going to have to face the owner, and maybe a second owner in the case of a business partnership. In a case where a kid vandalizes a home, he might face a family. In the Hanson case, he vandalized a family, as well as his school. Now typically, only the family he vandalized and the principal, and perhaps the PTA representatives would be invited to witness the punishment. But in this case, the principal of the high school asked for the student body to be invited. He argued that they were all victimized and that argument had merit. It took the courts 2 days to consider his request, which as you know, was eventually granted as long as the students under 18 had parental consent to attend. In hindsight, it might have been a mistake, but then again, it certainly showed the other kids that vandalism isn't as cool as some of them thought it was. The principal in this case was concerned with vandalism at the school, and used this opportunity to hopefully end it. Right or wrong, it was allowed under the act, and the facility at the jailhouse was designed to accommodate groups of up to 250 people so his request was not difficult to honor."
Tom: "Wow...thanks for that information...I hadn't realized that there had been some discussion before that decision was made.......speaking of the Punishment Act, would you mind going over that and exactly what its goals are, and how effective they have been?"
Mr. Ward: "Certainly Tom, and excellent question actually. The Juvenal Corporal Punishment Act, or JCPA, as its known now, resulted from voter demand that we take some decisive actions to stop the total unchecked rise in gang violence, juvenile crime activities, and vandalism. A team of physiologists specializing in adolescent behavior designed the deterrent system that led to the punishment apparatus. The goal of the program from the beginning was to show the wayward youngsters that there are true consequences for their actions, and also to demonstrate to others in that age group who might be considering misbehaving that it may not be a wise thing to do. The act was also designed to appease the victims. In the past, when a person was victimized by a crime, he basically had to eat his loss, and more than not watch the kid who harmed him get away with nothing more than a slap on the wrist and a few hours of community service. Even the more serious offenses usually resulted in some detention time at juvenal hall, and then within a few months or years the perpetrator was out, totally free and laughing at what he had got away with. All that changed with the implementation of the JCPA."
Tom: "Now, does this J—--C---P---A affect both teenage boys and girls the same?"
Mr. Ward: "Actually, the act addresses both _s_e_x_es, but in separate programs and different punishments. I am primarily assigned to the male delinquency division, and so will be discussing things from that end of things. The girls that misbehave have a wider margin of tolerance from the court system, although they too have a punishment apparatus, but the reality of the situation is that it is rarely used."
Tom: "I see. Well, it's hard to argue that something's not working....-----the crime rate has certainly come down."
Mr. Ward: "Yes it has...we are running 53% fewer crimes per month from juveniles than we were 3 years ago. And the one most significant statistic that I think is truly amazing is that NOT A SINGLE YOUNG CRIMINAL has EVER, and let me repeat this, EVER, had to be punished by the machine twice!" The machine works, and it works well, keeping us safe and making our state and its communities a wonderful place to live."
Tom: "By the machine, you mean the Crymaker?"
Mr Ward: (Laughing) "Well, yes, that's what the kids call it....and the press too. It's actually a good name, because I don't care how hardened or really cool a teenager is, once you strap him into the machine and it begins its sequence, you are going to watch a young man get a chance to really cry like a baby. It's almost comical to watch them think they can keep their cool and I personally enjoy watching their expression when they realize they are in serious trouble there."
Tom: "You say the Crymaker isn't a torture device.....what is it then?"
Mr. Ward: "Tom, as I mentioned the punishment apparatus was designed by a team of psychologists who understand the adolescent male. It is designed to attack him where he is most vulnerable, and in doing so, teach him that there are true consequences to what he did. It also convinces him totally that he needs to avoid coming back and re-visiting the machine. In reality it helps him, and our society. It does this in two primary ways. The first, and most obvious, is the actually paddling that he receives. In the Hanson case, the boy was sentenced to 34 strokes, which is 2 strokes for each year of his life. Thirty-four is the maximum penalty the judge could have given him, and this is normally the sentencing guideline where multiple infractions have occurred. The Hanson boy had been found guilty of 3 acts of vandalism, and he got the maximum. Typically, the judge sentences the offending youth to the maximum anyway that is allowed by law, and then gives the victims the opportunity to show mercy, if they feel it is deserved. As you know the Hanson boy got lucky, his friends let him off for 5 of his 17 remaining smacks. That's not insignificant...its a reduction of almost 30% in his remaining sentence."
Tom: "I see. I wasn't aware of that."
Mr. Ward "Yes...well, as I was saying, the machine is designed to punish in two ways, the first being through the paddle. It's designed to hurt...and I mean HURT. It swings an oak board through almost 4 feet of travel. The solid oak board is 1/2 inch thick and 5 inches across. It's also 3 1/3 feet long, and its fired hydraulically at the criminals rear. The setting is different for the age and weight of the boy tied into the machine, but in the Hanson case it was firing the paddle into his ass at a speed almost twice what a human could swing it. Needless to say, when it connects, the kid knows he's being punished!"
Tom: "Yeah....that's certainly true. The Hanson boy was crying almost from the beginning. What's the pain like?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, its been described as a burn...a flash or explosion that radiates across the entire buttocks almost instantly, then builds in intensity for about 15 to 20 seconds.....as the nerve endings change from shock to recognition. You see, most teenage males think that they are gong to grit their teeth and bear it. In fact, when the Hanson kid saw his schoolmates watching, you can tell in his expression he was determined to bear it. He had that look of resolve on his face....of course, before the sequence started. That's what is so great about the machine. These kids like to be in control. The Hanson boy was a jock at his school, extremely popular. His grades were middle C, with an occasional D in there now and then....2.5 average. He was Mr. Cool on campus, hot girlfriend, the jock image all the way. So, there he is...naked and in front of them, and he's determined to keep as much of his cool as possible.....however you do that when you're naked and about to be paddled."
Tom: "It seems they lose that coolness part almost as soon as their punishment begins."
Mr. Ward: "Well, they do...and it's designed that way. As soon as the curtains are pulled back, the machine pulls the boy forward, and out towards the audience. Of course, the victim doesn't want to face them...he would rather look away, look down, look ANYWHERE but in their faces. But he can't....the machine controls where he's looking, at least where he's facing. As he is pulled forward, he is bent over the bar, which causes his rear to stick out, perked up for his paddling so-to-speak. It's the absolute last position he would voluntarily put himself in, and it's very humiliating to be made to do it while everyone is watching. Then, he slowly slides his legs apart....or the machine slides them apart I should say.....again, the very LAST thing he would willingly do but a motion designed to show everyone he is readying himself for paddling. So, the entire pre-paddling sequence is designed to take his control away from him."
Tom: "Wow. There IS a lot of thought into this then, a lot more than I realized."
Mr. Ward: "Every movement of the machine is designed to punish the offender. When the paddle is fired the first time, it always catches the boy by surprise. I mean, he's expecting to get paddled, and he's even prepared to get paddled, but he's NOT PREPARED for the intensity of the paddle, and the intensity of the pain level. It seems to build to impossible levels. Do you remember what the Hanson kid said when he felt that first smack?"
Tom: "I think it was a four letter word....."
Mr. Ward: "Yes....guess I can't say it on the radio...(laughs)....but he screamed it out at the top of his lungs.... The boy was totally taken by the impact of the paddle.....I mean one minute he was "Mr. Joe Cool" on campus and the next, he's in shock, and in deep trouble as far as being able to control himself goes. He realized at that moment that he wasn't going to be able to take the 33 remaining strokes and keep his cool. That's the look of horror you see on his face...the sudden realization that he can't even stand another one....(laughter), and then, well, he gets it anyway (laughter again). His big problem is when the second one hits, it's a LOT worse than the first, as impossible as that is for him to believe. He thought he had just felt the most painful thing in the world, and he just finds out that it can get worse. The second stroke reaches a point of higher intensity....it takes him to a higher level of pain if you will. The pauses between the strokes let the pain build, and by the time he is into number three he is at pain levels beyond his ability to comprehend. There just isn't any way a teenage male can handle it."
Tom: "Wow...I see what you mean by the paddling. It really was planned that way by a team of psychologists?"
Mr Ward: "Yes Tom...it was planned that way from the beginning. A teenage boy strapped into that machine doesn't have a chance in hell of surviving the punishment with his dignity intact."
Tom: "This is a difficult question...but one I know my listeners want to understand. The machine has a _s_e_x_ual side to it...I mean, even the Hanson boy actually had an erection, and a subsequent ejaculation before his ordeal had ended. I suppose that is part of the design?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, yes and no Tom. Remember, I told you that the machine attacked the teenage male in two areas. The first remember is the pain side of things...and he gets that through the hydraulic paddle. The other side of his punishment, no less important than the first, is the humiliation side of things. If you want to humiliate a teenager these days, first, take away his clothes. These kids are shy shy shy---they don't even shower in gym anymore. The have separate shower stalls when they do, and they never, and I mean NEVER, strip in front of anyone. Now, suddenly FORCE them to be naked....and you can just see the embarrassment on their faces. Now, the MOST embarrassing thing for a teenage male is to get an erection at school....and while it happens to all of them at that age now and then, it's always a source of ridicule if its discovered. So, if you want to really humiliate a male even more as part of a punishment process, one of the best ways is, after you have removed his clothing, and forced him to stand to maximize his exposure, then also force him to get into a situation where he gets an erection. That's just what the machine does. It starts him out standing up with is arms and legs spread open....so everyone can see him and his body. A mirror wall is used to insure he is fully exposed...fully visible all of the time. Now, to magnify the humiliation 100 times, you not only force him to give himself an erection, but you make him do it in front of everyone. For a teenage male, that is just about his worst nightmare. And so, in the machine, there is that ring of rubber, which is referred to as the 'humiliation ring.' Its designed to slide up and down the offender's penis with any movement of his hips or legs....and it continues to oscillate for several strokes after he stops moving. Now this is the dilemma for him....if, a BIG IF, he can just NOT MOVE then he doesn't have to get an erection. But, the paddle hurts so bad....he has to move...and if he moves...well, then he gets an erection..... Its like the old catch 22. Worse, if he doesn't get control of himself and stop moving sometime, his absolute worst nightmare could happen."
Tom: "His absolute worst nightmare?"
Mr. Ward: "Yes........he could actually ejaculate in front of everyone...which, as you know, the Hanson boy did before he was half done. (laughter) In high school, there is nothing more embarrassing than making love to a punishment machine in front of someone, especially if they are your friends or your enemies."
Tom: "(laughing too) Wow...I didn't realize the depth of things that he was having to deal with during his punishment. If you wanted him to ejaculate, couldn't the machine just make that happen directly?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, its not designed to, and some kids don't. The entire thing is about control---take away a teenagers control, especially one that likes being the cool guy and in control, and you are really adding to his punishment. If you just manipulated his penis until he had an orgasm it wouldn't be perceived as anything he could have stopped...so he would be just a victim in a machine. But instead, he does have control. He causes every single movement of the sliding ring, and even though he doesn't want to cum, (in fact, it's is worst nightmare) and he tries real hard to NOT cum, in the case of the Hanson boy he doesn't have that kind of control, and so he loses it. And of course, everyone laughed when he did, which further added to his humiliation. When he ejaculated, he was a done dude...the laughing stock of his school...and he knew it."
Tom: "So the machine just pulverizes their asses on one end and makes them humiliate themselves on the other?"
Mr. Ward: "Absolutely not. The machine delivers the paddle blows exactly 30 seconds apart, except for the pauses where the victim is allowed to beg his victims for mercy, and again when the victims have the opportunity to key in their recommendations for clemency. The 30 seconds doesn't just pulverize their ass; instead it administers a solid smack of the paddle, gives time for the burn to increase, then for their nerve endings to re-register the intensity of the pain. The last 8 to 10 seconds that remain before the next paddle firing allows for the individual to feel the 'humiliation ring' doing its thing and also to again become aware of the crowd, their comments and especially their laughter. The 30 seconds between strokes prevents the nerve endings from becoming numb and insures the teenager is able to maintain his erection which otherwise might be lost. It all works to maximize the punishment experience."
Tom: "You mentioned the begging for mercy part.....I guess that's part of the design too?"
Mr. Ward: "Oh yes, that part is extremely important. Sometimes these young men are spitting in the faces of their victims, being cool, and even bragging about what they did before they are punished. However, I have NEVER, and let me repeat that, NEVER, seen that attitude last past the midpoint of a paddling. By then, the teen male is totally sorry---I mean, he's probably sorrier about then and what he did than just about anything he has ever been sorry about before. He is truly sorry, and he gets sorrier with every single paddle firing. So, at the midpoint, we give them the chance to let their victims know how sorry they are feeling and then we give the control to the victims so they can regain some aspect of what the perpetrator took from them. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved, and really appreciated by the victims. Besides, its always interesting and even a little fun to listen to them beg for mercy---you can always tell that the machine owns them......and whatever self esteem they had is gone completely."
Tom: "Do they victims always reduce the sentence for the teen being punished?"
Mr. Ward: "Actually no. For example, in cases of shoplifting many of the store owner's want everyone to know they will give no mercy. In the Hanson case, if the only voters had been the principal and the girlfriend's dad, the Hanson boy might have had even more of an ass-pounding than he got. Like I said....he got lucky. The entire voting system is really ingenious---each victim sits at a voting seat with a keypad built into the armrest. He or she can type in any number between 0 up to the maximum that remain of the boys sentence. In a very real way, at that moment the people the juvenile harmed have their opportunity for legal revenge. If that isn't true justice, I don't know what is. It only takes seconds, doesn't slow the punishment process down significantly, and really teaches the errant teenager the true consequences about doing bad things to other people."
Tom: "Is the state's goal to ruin their lives when it punishes them?"
Mr. Ward: "That's a good question Tom. Just the opposite is true however. Take the Hanson boy. A middle C student....making C's and some D's. Rude to his teachers, and a smartass to just about everyone but his friends. Now, just two weeks later, he has been seen saying "Yes Sir" to some of his teachers, he is nice to just about everyone, and he has a totally different set of friends. His grades are suddenly very important to him, and when I checked before I came over here this afternoon his grades have already made a tremendous improvement. He made a 100% score on a recent math exam, turned in a perfect English paper on Monday of this week, and his science project that he did was "best in the class." The punishment apparatus changes these kids....and it in fact may even save some of them.
Tom: "Wow...is that behavior shift typical?"
Mr. Ward: "Yes...it turns out it is. When we look back on these kids that have done some pretty bad things and been through the machine you would expect to see some real losers out there. Instead, when you look at them a year or even two years later they are doing remarkably well in their respective schools. Grades are all important, and being cool isn't. Of course, it's probably difficult to be real cool after you've been paddled and humiliated---it does drive you down a few pegs and that may account for some of it."
Tom: "You mean all of it don't you?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, no, there is the probation factor to think about....and I'm sure that enters into the equation somewhere."
Tom: "The probation factor?"
Mr. Ward: "Oh yes. The Hanson boy was sentenced to 34 strokes, of which he actually only received 29. So, he's under probation for the other 5....and if he doesn't get his GPA above 3.0 and keep it there, or if he steps out-of-line at school or anywhere else, then he gets to revisit the machine and receive the remainder of his sentence. He can't skip school---if he misses a single day without an excuse from a state approved doctor then he's going back to the machine. He wasn't even allowed to miss the first Monday after his punishment---he had to go to school. It's important that they aren't able to escape any of the ridicule. For the Hanson boy, having the constant threat of the machine gives him quite an incentive to toe the line, and if history is any teacher, I'm sure he will. Most of these males will do ANYTHING to keep from having to go see the machine again. He's working at school literally like his ass depended on it....and in a way, it does (laughter)."
Tom: "Wow....I can see why the bad ones turn around so fast. We are almost out of time here...but one more question...why the jail time before the punishment? It would seem that you could just require them to show up at the appointed time and place and add enough threat that they would have to comply."
Mr. Ward: "Well, when the first teenagers were punished under the act that was the practice. However, several things have changed that and now for the most part it is standard practice to incarcerate them for the few days between the sentencing hearing and their punishment appointment. The Hanson boy spent 5 days in jail.....often they only spend a day or so. The punishments are almost always carried out on Saturday, so depending on the hearing date it's normally just a few days at most. The reason the system was changed is that allowing them to show up just prior to punishment allows them to control part of the humiliation factor, and that was determined by the overseeing committee as to be unacceptable to the goals of the program."
Tom: "How is that...I mean, what can they do unless they run away?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, there is the running away problem...and it did happen a few times early in the program. But remember, the machine punishes the teen on two fronts....the pain front through the hydraulic paddle, and the humiliation front, through the stripping process, loss of control, and the oiled up sliding 'humiliation ring.' What we were finding is as the word spread some of these males were taking pain killers and were also masturbating just before they were showing up for their punishment...thereby reducing the pain factor and also the tendency to get an erection. This usually forestalled any ejaculatory responses totally. Now, they are incarcerated for the few days prior to punishment, and are monitored during that period to insure those things don't happen. They can watch TV, listen to the radio, read, exercise, or do just about anything the other inmates do while they are in jail....except take any pain killers or have a _s_e_x_ual release of any sorts. That is prohibited, and watched to make sure it does not occur."
Tom: "Wow...now that's punishment (laughter).
Mr. Ward: (laughing too) "Well, yes...but it all is factored to meet the goals of the program. We do cause them some discomfort, and we do embarrass them. But then, that's why they don't come back, and that's why the crime rate has fallen so fast and so far. It's a tough program, but consequences are part of the real world, and this forces our young people to think before they act."
Tom: "Wow....thanks for the information, and for setting the record straight. Sounds to me like the Hanson boy got a well thought out and very deserved punishment, and it appears it was for his own good too. Any more county punishments scheduled for this weekend?"
Mr. Ward: "Well, thanks for inviting me Tom. I always like your show, and it's a good opportunity to get the facts out. As for additional punishments, we are running roughly 2 per Saturday in Brinrick county, and only about a dozen state-wide. There are two boys scheduled for this Saturday in fact, both are brothers. I believe their names are Robert and Travis Harrison, and it should be interesting. Well, maybe someday we will get the crime rate down to---(interrupted)"
Tom: "Well, we are out of time.....thanks again, and folks, after the commercial break, we will be moving to the CZ's Top 40 Countdown....so stay tuned............................"
[Author's note: Please email me if you like this story....if not, tell me to quit wasting my time and yours. Any comments or suggestions for the Harrison kid---let me know. :-) Nathan9001@yahoo. com]