"The Other Side of the Story"

Melvin Hall Talks About Life Out of Prison and Off of Drugs

originally published April 9, 2008

Not long after Flagpole published Pete McCommons' interview with Dennis Holmes on Mar. 12, Flagpole received a phone call from Melvin Hall, who said he'd had similar experiences to Holmes', and wanted to tell "the other side of the story." Here is what Hall had to say.

Ben Emanuel

Melvin Hall

Flagpole:

For starters, can you tell me a little bit about your story?

Melvin Hall

For me personally, my struggle started… February 7th, '05. I got arrested, and I made up my mind then that I did not want to do any more drugs or harm or hurt anybody; I wanted to be a help some way, form or fashion. So, actually, what I did, in Clarke County Jail [laughs], was that… they'd come in once a week on Mondays and hold NA [Narcotics Anonymous] meetings. Well, that just wasn't enough for me, because I used every day. So what I did was I started holding my own meetings on the wing with some guys there, and as a result of it, when I got out I went to a program that's here in Athens that's called Hope House, run by a guy named Matt Minshew. The guy is a living angel, man. You know, he means so much to me. And AJP - Athens Justice Project - hooked me up with him…

First off, there's one rule: you don't use, no matter what. Everything else is called life. People deal with it on a day-to-day basis, you know?

Second of all, you've gotta be responsible to yourself. You've got to start loving yourself again. All that we've put inside of ourselves - we've self-medicated ourselves to hide a lot of feelings. But once you get off of those drugs, you start feeling a lot of different things, and what drives us back to that [drugs] is not knowing how to channel those feelings. It's just all about staying connected with the right people, and getting involved with the community.

Flagpole:

When did you first go to prison?

Melvin Hall

I went to prison in '89 [in New Jersey], and I actually got out in '94. I lasted about three hours before I was right back to doing heroin, right back to getting high. And as a result of it, I got a parole violation - they locked me back up for about nine more months. I got out, and I came [back] to Georgia. And I got extradited from Georgia on parole violations three times. I would go back, do about eight or nine months, come back here and get caught, and go back there.

I went to prison in Georgia in 2004. I did 18 months. I got out in 2005 - October of 2005. I've actually been to prison twice in Georgia - and the last trip was just something different, man. It was a repeated cycle: I always had this ritual that I'd do when I'd get out. They give you a 25-dollar check; I would get a can of beer, pack of cigarettes, and take the rest to the dope dealer. This time when I got out, I went straight to an NA meeting.

I had a lot of people to help me along this time. I had the Athens Justice Project - they were actually there waiting for me. I'd never had anybody waiting for me to get out of prison before. And they had everything that I needed. You know, they even had a job lined up for me at Trump's Catering with Ron Schwartz, who is a great guy - he gave me an opportunity.

Flagpole:

Why were they there waiting for you that time?

Melvin Hall

Well, actually, I was holding the meetings inside Clarke County Jail, and they got wind of me, I got wind of them, I gave them a call, and they decided to take me on as a client. They walked through the whole process with me… There's just so much available to us that we don't take advantage of.

Flagpole:

So you didn't go through that same cycle that time, when you got out, with that 25 dollars…

Melvin Hall

No. No, I think I - actually - Valentine's was coming up, and I went and bought my daughter some Valentine's candy. And that was, like, probably one of the biggest moments of my life, because I actually showed up.

Flagpole:

So, you just got out, for the last time, about a year ago?

Melvin Hall

I've been out a year. And I just celebrated - February the 7th was three years clean.

Flagpole:

Congratulations.

Melvin Hall

Thank you. It's been a good walk - I've gotten married since then, I have a beautiful wife, my daughter is, you know, head over heels in love with her father. So, it's been a lot going on in my life, man, that I'm just so thankful for.

Flagpole:

How long have you been with your wife?

Melvin Hall

Well, I've actually been with her 11 years, and we got married December 18th of last year. And, by the way, it was Judge [Charles] Auslander that married us. And the thing of it is, he was also the judge that I went before on my last charge, and [he] said, "No - I'm not gonna give you a bond."

And I can do nothing but thank him. Had he let me go, you know what I mean… I've got nothing but love for him, nothing but love.

Flagpole:

Has your daughter always lived here in Athens?

Melvin Hall

Yeah, she was born here in Athens, and, ah, I guess her mother's the reason why I kept coming back [smiles]. But I'd never actually cleaned up the wreckage. I'd never actually taken responsibility, up until three years ago - from day one - I decided to take responsibility for myself…

My biggest thing is that I don't want anybody to be like, "Oh, this poor guy," or poor him, or he's a victim of this - no, it's not true. We choose these things, just like you choose to be responsible. We had the same choices. And my biggest thing about the article I read was that, there is so much available to us, that's not even available to you! You know, because of the situation that we put ourselves in.

Flagpole:

So, where are you working now?

Melvin Hall

I'm working right now with McLeroy's Plumbing Company. They gave me an opportunity, and I show up every day, and work Saturdays… and I got benefits, man! Benefits, you know?! [laughs] It's a great company, man, and it's just been a blessing.

Flagpole:

You still do work with Athens Justice Project?

Melvin Hall

Yes, and I've graduated Athens Justice Project. We went to a dinner with Governor Roy Barnes at the civic center, and I actually got to talk to these people. I sat across the table from the Chief of Police… and, you know, he wasn't looking for me. I mean, how cool is that? I got to sit down and politic with these people, and they were actually interested in what I had to say, as opposed to me being outside looking in their car. That's just the blessing of keeping myself clean, and being in the right position.

Flagpole:

You're still working with NA?

Melvin Hall

Without a doubt. As a matter of fact, about an hour ago we went over to Hope House… I call Athens Justice Project… Deborah Gowen, who was my lawyer… I still call her just to say hey, thank you… Because it means a lot that somebody saw something in me and said, "Hey, I'm gonna take a chance on you."

Flagpole:

What does the future hold? Do you plan on staying in Athens?

Melvin Hall

Oh, without a doubt. We're not going anywhere… I'm trying to get my book [based on my experiences] off the ground, you know, trying to get somebody to give me a serious looking-over with that. It's not for monetary gain; it's basically that maybe somebody could make a turn and go a different route. That's what it basically comes down to: if I've helped one person with my struggle, by looking through my eyes, then that's a blessing.

Ben Emanuel