| Case Story |
| Ask Michael |
| Trial Transcript |
| Magazine Coverage |
| About the Blount's |
| Photo Gallery |
| Donations |
| Links of Interest |
| Contact Michael |
MICHAEL'S
TESTIMONIAL |
|
A Wrongful Conviction and Death Sentence Saved my Life By: Michael Toney More often than not, we don't call out to God until we are in an absolute dire situation. That was me! I didn't cry out to God until I was sentenced to death for a crime I did not commit. Now I firmly believe that the death sentence saved my life. On December 4th 1997, I was accused of a terrible crime (bombing) that happened on November 28, 1985. Three innocent people were tragically killed. From December 4, 1997 until May of 1999, my attorney and I desperately attempted to prepare for trial, but we didn't have any idea what evidence the government could possibly use against me. I had never been to the place where the crime happened nor had I heard about it until 1997 when another man told me about it. There was no connection between the crime or the victims and myself. When the trial began, I was relatively comfortable with my relationship with God and I was confident that everything would work out. I thought I was a Christian, but as the trial progressed I realized something was very wrong. The devil and his lies were waging war against me and I felt completely alone. I had never felt so alone in my life. Needless to say, I lost the battle and was sentenced to the ultimate punishment ... death, for a crime I did not commit. During and after the trial, the harsh reality that I was not a true Christian became more and more obvious. I had no idea what I was doing wrong or what I had done to deserve such injustice, but I knew something was separating me from Jesus. I found myself in the most dark, dreary and lonely place I had ever been, the notoriously cruel and expeditious Texas death row. For the next ten months I cried, screamed and proclaimed my innocence as I watched men being taken to their death but it was as if nobody could hear me. The few that did hear me called me a "liar" and said, "Everyone on death row says they are innocent. Is there anyone who is guilty here?" I felt like God had let me down, but I didn't know why. I was on the verge of giving up when on March 1st, 2000; I was sitting there in my dark cell trying to hide the tears that had flowed so much that the salt had burned the corners of my eyes when I heard a Voice. The Voice seemed to come from everywhere and was so perfect -- it was soothing like soft music. It is beyond the power of words to describe the Voice. It was AMAZING! I'm ashamed to admit it, but at first, the Voice scared me. I thought I had finally lost my mind. The Voice spoke not only to my ears but also directly to my heart and Soul. The Voice said: "You MUST forgive Darrell Rich as I have. He will he executed on March 15th” Darrell Rich was a man that had been constantly in my thoughts since 1978, almost 23 years. It was at that very moment that I realized what I was doing wrong and what separated me from God. I grew up in a very small town in far northern California. The town of Cottonwood is made up of many small ranches and is situated in the Sacramento River Valley between the Sierra Nevada and Coastal mountain ranges. The population is just 2500 and many of them are related to me by blood or by marriage. It was a peaceful little town where nobody bothered to lock their doors at night or felt the need to take the keys from their cars. Most people wouldn't have known where the keys to their home were, for they were never needed. That peace was shattered in the summer of 1978 when my girlfriend’s sexually mutilated body was found where she had been thrown from a bridge at Lake Shasta and left to die. Within a day or two, a friend of her family and mine was arrested for her murder. His name was Darrell Rich. He had killed my childhood girlfriend, Annette Selix. Annette was a beautiful little girl with a big heart. She was my best friend. When she was killed, my life changed for the worst. I was no longer happy and I was no longer comfortable in our little town. My heart was full of anger and hatred for Darrell Rich. My family wouldn't talk to me about him or what happened other than to tell me that he was convicted and would never get out of prison. I carried that anger and hatred around with me for almost 23 years. Hatred is a heavy burden to carry, especially for more than two decades. The Voice that spoke to me was the Voice of Jesus. I know that without any doubt at all. After Jesus spoke those few but all-important words to me, I wrote a letter to a friend and asked her to search the Internet for any information about Darrell Rich. A few days later I received a letter confirming that he was, in fact, on California death row and would be executed on March 15th. For the next few days, I did a lot of thinking and praying and was finally able to truly forgive Darrell. Immediately upon forgiving him, it was as if Jesus wrapped His arms around me and said, "It's about time." He hasn't left me since and my life has completely changed. It was my anger and hatred, and most importantly my lack of forgiveness, that separated me from God. How could I expect God to forgive and accept me if I didn't forgive others myself? God can't forgive us if we don't first forgive. Mark 11:25-26. My life has changed so much since I was able to forgive Darrell. Now I am truly a Christian and Jesus is with me every moment of everyday. I'm far from being perfect, but everyday I strive to be more like Him. I'm no longer alone. I can feel the tears fall when I'm not aware of the fact that I have done something wrong and displeasing to Him. I desperately think about what I have done to make Jesus sad and immediately upon realizing what it was, I feel Jesus smile. His smile is like warm sunshine that dries His tears from my face. When I feel Jesus smile I can only smile myself, because I know I am pleasing our Beloved Jesus. It's not always easy to smile in my situation, but with Jesus I can and with Jesus we all can. I've also felt the joyful tears of Jesus, which is the most comforting and reassuring things we can experience. His tears cleanse us and His smile dries them. Those that couldn't hear my cries or called me a "liar" now hear me. Those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior know I'm telling the truth and know that I am completely innocent of the crime that I am awaiting execution for. More importantly I know that, through Jesus, I have eternal life. I don't know why He chose to speak to me the way He did. Perhaps it was because I was so hard headed I couldn't hear Him any other way. I now know that He speaks to all of us but we can't always hear Him because we are selfish and caught up in the things of this world when we should focus on eternity. After all, life on this earth is very short, but eternity is forever. Don't let anger, hatred and FORGIVENESS , separate you from God.
FORGIVENESS is the key to HEAVEN. It's so much easier to forgive and
so much more rewarding. It's crucial to our
salvation. MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND ALWAYS KEEP YOU WITHIN ARMS REACH
For more information about Michael or to contact him:
www.michaeltoney.com |
|
|
|
StoneColdMedia