Editing 79-08-B8 (section)

= Operation Get Smart =

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=== Transcript ===
Back in April, I reported on a very unorthodox program conducted at New Jersey's
Rahway State Prison which is designed to literally scare the crime right out of young
offenders. The Juvenile Awareness program, as it is called, was founded by Frank
Bindhannner, a convicted murderer. A graphic documentary on the program called "Scared
Straight" was broadcast throughout the country in March. The film has since won an
Oscar as the best documentary of 1978.

The film demonstrates how the program works, and the logic behind it is very simple.
Seventeen teenagers, all who have already had serious problems with the law, were
locked in a room with a panel of murderers, armed robbers and other criminals with
long prison sentences. The young people sat there for three hours as the inmates
screamed at them, swore at them and scared them, all in an effort to convince the
youngsters to go straight before they, too, ended up in a maximum security prison
like Rahway. The results so far have been impressive. The documentary reports that
of the 17 young people attending that particular session, only one had committed a
crime a year later.

The success of this program and its sheer simplicity prompted the establishment
of other programs throughout the nation. But in South Carolina, a similar program, one
which is much more extensive, has been steering young people away from crime since
1964. It is called "Operation Get Smart".

The founder and prime mover of this worthy program is Ken Laws. Ken, who is
now 42, was convicted of murder and sent to prison in 1964. Soon after his incarceration,
Ken decided that he wanted to tell his story to other young people. He wanted to show
them how an honor student from a good family like himself could embark on a course
which finally resulted in a prison sentence for murder. During that first year, Ken
had a total of six speaking engagements. But since then the program has snowballed.
This past year Ken (who has since been paroled), along with a team of young inmates,
spoke to no less than 850 civic groups, schools, churches and military bases in
South Carolina. Their message to the yo-ng people in the audience is simple. It is
easier than you may think, the inmates tell them, to get involved with the wrong crowd,
to get involved with drugs and go off on some reckless adventure which turns into a
crime - - and a disaster. As in the Rahway program, the inmates of "Operation Get Smart"
tell of the hardships of prison life -- the monotony , the poor conditions and the
threat of physical assault.

Ken is careful to point out that his program is different from the Rahway program
in many significant ways. The scope of "Operation Get Smart" is much wider. "Scared
Straight" is limited to those young people who have already committed serious crimes.
Ken and his group have a message for the entire community. They even conduct worship
services. Also, Ken tells us that while the fear of prison life is invoked in his
presentation, the panel does not browbeat the audience with verbal abuse as in the
case of Rahway . "Our purpose is education," Ken tells us. "We don't moralize. We
present them with the facts so that they can make intelligent decisions."

Ken served 10 years in prison. He could have pushed the experience out of his
mind. But instead, he relives his story hundreds of times a year in the hope that it
may prevent others from making the same mistakes he did. He stand before communities
through out South Carolina and tells them "My name is Ken. I was convicted of murder.
I lost respect for God."

In 1977, the state of South Carolina recognized the importance of Ken's work and
funded "Operation Get Smart" as an integral part of the state's crime prevention and
corrections program. Meanwhile Ken Laws expresses the hope that other states will
adopt similar programs. I hope so too. 

This is Ronald Reagan.

Thanks for listening.
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=== Details ===
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<TR><TD WIDTH="150">Batch Number</TD><TD WIDTH="150">{{PAGENAME}}</TD></TR>
<TD>Production Date</TD><TD>05/29/[[Radio1979|1979]]</TD></TR>
<TD>Book/Page</TD><TD>[[rrpl:public/2024-07/40-656-7386263-014-015-2024.pdf#PAGE=33|Online PDF]]</TD></TR>
<TD>Audio</TD><TD></TD></TR>
<TD>Youtube?</TD><TD>No</TD></TR>
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===Added Notes===

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