Nexus - 0902 - New Times Magazine-pages

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NEWSCIENCENEWSCIENCENEWSCIENCE On November 24, 1986, Brockton Chief The Feds and False Charges of Police Richard Sprawls and other mem- Freedom and home, here I come! Wrong bers of the Brockton Police Department again. raided my Tremont Street home and seized Here come the Feds... They had a war- two shotguns, a 12-gauge and a 20-gauge. rant for my arrest for violating a new gun Both were legally registered to me; I used law that was passed on November 24, to use them for skeet shooting. I was 1986. That was just 10 days after my arrest arrested and charged with trafficking of of November 14, 1986. cocaine again. Remember the Brockton Police seized My bail was revoked and I was placed in my two shotguns? Guess what? I had the maximum security in the Plymouth house privilege of being the first person in of correction. I was sen- July 1986 trafficking of cocaine and was now waiting for the second trial for the November i The Commissioner of tenced to 15 years for the | | Patents and Trademarks ‘FI you'd ever been convicted of a felony. I checked the "No" box because I had never been convicted of a felony, just a misde- raided my Tremont Street home and seized Here come the Feds... They had a war- meanour. two shotguns, a 12-gauge and a 20-gauge. rant for my arrest for violating a new gun Well, the Feds said that under federal Both were legally registered to me; I used law that was passed on November 24, law my misdemeanour was a felony, there- to use them for skeet shooting. I was 1986. That was just 10 days after my arrest fore I was guilty on two counts of perjury. arrested and charged with trafficking of of November 14, 1986. They gave me five years on each count. cocaine again. Remember the Brockton Police seized Next, I got five years for being a convict- My bail was revoked and I was placed in my two shotguns? Guess what? I had the _ ed felon in possession of a firearm. maximum security in the Plymouth house privilege of being the first person in Now I had been sentenced to a total of of correction. I was sen- 15 years in federal prison tenced to 15 years for the | | without parole. July 1986 trafficking of I was still sitting in the cocaine and was now courtroom after a week of the waiting for the second The Commissioner of trial, and my attorney said that trial for the November Patents and Trademarks the US attorney was trying me arrest. Th Has received an application for a patent for a under the second part of the I knew where I could e new and useful invention. The tite and descrip- new law. My attorney said ali . . tion of the invention are enclosed. The require- : . . get some solid evidence United ments of law have been complied with, and it the trial would be short; that would clear me, but I has been determined that a patent on the in- wouldn't last more than 10 didn't know who to trust vention shall be granted under the law. minutes. There was no way dian Ctates Therefore, this that I could be found guilty. : ne offering for sale, or selling the invention : enforcement officers throughout the United States of America or im- was convicted on a second searching for me with porting the invention into the United States of count of perjury. guns, dogs, helicopters, America for the term set forth below, subject to Bingo! I hit the jackpot! . . . the payment of maintenance fees as provided . etc. I ran like a jackrabbit by law, USC18922G-E1 states that if through the woods. My you have three prior felony So I escaped from max- : Well, it went like this: I imum security. of United States Patent was convicted as a felon in Boy, I was lucky, as 2 Grants to the person(s) having title to this patent possession of a firearm; I was they had over 240 law America the right to exclude others from making, using, convicted of perjury; and I | If this application was filed prior to June 8, advantage was that the 1995, the term of this patent is the longer of convictions and have posses- woods were my old hunt- seventeen years from the date of grant of this sion of a firearm, then you are . patent or twenty years from the earliest effec: . erie ing grounds. tive U.S. filing date of the application, subject an armed courier criminal and I went and got my solid to any statutory extension. this carries a minimum evidence and gave it to If this application was filed on or after June 8, mandatory sentence of 15 the right person and sur- 1995, the term of this patent is twenty years from years without parole. . . the U.S, filing date, subject to any statutory ex- . . rendered the same day. tension. If the application contains a specific Now I had a total of 30 Two days later, reference to an earlier filed application or ap- years in federal prison without Brockton's Chief of plications under 35 U 20, £21 or 365(c), parole. the tern: of the pateni ears from the date on which the earliest application was filed, subject.to any statutory extension. A Patent from Prison, then Parole Well, the Feds have me Boace heen. tucked away for 30 years ; Comminioner of Trdemarks where I cannot cause any more trouble with my fuel Mindoro! nate? implosion system. Wrong, my home in July and ad wrong, wrong! November 1986? Now I I met a lot of powerful peo- know where it came from: the police evi- Massachusetts and the third person in the _ ple in the federal prison with powerful con- dence locker. And it fell out of Chief United States to be tried, prosecuted and nections on the outside—among them Sprawls's pocket onto the floor in my sentenced under this new law, USC. Kenny D., whose son is a patent attorney home, where another Brockton police offi- 16921G and 924E. I didn't stand a chance; for a large patent law firm and who did our Police was arrested for stealing cocaine from the police evidence locker. He was sentenced to two years in prison. Remember the cocaine that Chief Richard Sprawls said he found at cer found it. there was no case law in the law books to US Patent #5,782,225 while I sat in the Well, the Massachusetts Supreme Court support my defence of this new law. safety of the federal prison system. of Appeals overturned my cocaine traffick- I was given two five-year sentences for Remember the Feds sentenced me to 30 ing conviction on the grounds of tainted perjury because, when I bought the two _ years without parole? Well, on September evidence and an illegal search and seizure. shotguns, there was a box that asked if 13, 1997 (Friday the thirteenth, my lucky arrest. I knew where I could get some solid evidence that would clear me, but I didn't know who to trust Has received an application for a patent for a new and useful invention. The title and descrip- tion of the invention are enclosed. The require- ments of law have been complied with, and it has been determined that a patent on the in- vention shall be granted under the law. Therefore, this United States Patent Grants to the person(s) having title to this patent the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention throughout the United States of America or im- porting the invention into the United States of America for the term set forth below, subject to the payment of maintenance fees as provided by law. If this application was filed prior to June 8, 1995, the term of this patent is the longer of seventeen years from the date of grant of this patent or twenty years from the earliest eff tive U.S. filing date of the application, subject to any statutory extension, If this application was filed on or after June 8, 1995, the term of this patent is twenty years from the U.S, filing date, subject to any statutory ex- tension. If the application contains a specific reference to an earlier filed application or ap- plications under 35 U.S.C, 120, 121 or 365(c), the tern: of the patent is twenty years from the date on which the earliest application was filed, subject.to any statutory extension. Olinda Neate 50 ¢ NEXUS The Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks WWW.NeXU smagazi ne.com FEBRUARY — MARCH 2002