Tribute from LSPC Staff

Tribute to Charisse by Cassie Pierson, Staff Attorney:

Saturday, August 4, 2001, I walked into the Universalist-Unitarian Church on Franklin and Geary streets in San Francisco. I was there to listen to Dorothy Gaines, Kemba Smith, Ruthie Gilmore and Angela Davis speak about the so-called "War on Drugs" and the effect it has had on thousands of African-American families across the country. Our agency, Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, was one of the organizers of the event and we were looking forward to the evening.

Sadly, when I arrived I was met by our Program Director, Dorsey Nunn, who told me that Charisse Shumate had died earlier that day. The news not only saddened me it angered me because Charisse was still under the custody of the California Department of Corrections (CDC) and died without her family beside her.

Charisse was a beautiful African-American woman who fought valiantly against her disease and the CDC. From the day she accepted the responsibility to represent all other women prisoners confined to Central California Women's Facility and the California Institution for Women in a class action lawsuit for better medical care, she was an inspiration to all of us. Despite her pain and despite the conditions of her confinement, Charisse carried herself with grace. Her concern was for all her "sisters" inside. She would downplay her pain so that she could advocate for someone else at the prison who was not receiving appropriate care.

Charisse had a smile that could light up a room. In fact, her nickname was, "Happy" and a more apt name could not have been given her. Even when she was very ill, she'd smile and ask how we were doing. Her concern about everyone was heart-warming. Her empathy for the suffering of others was heart-felt.

Over the past few months, Charisse was finally able to have a visit from her daughter-in-law, her grandchildren and her mother. Those visits took place in early June. Her mother and daughter-in-law appeared before the Board of Prison Terms (BPT) and requested that Charisse be given a compassionate release so that she could spend the last few months of her life in a hospice in the Central Valley. There was a bed waiting for her. All that was needed was for Charisse to be released. However, the BPT recommended clemency instead of compassionate release. Clemency requires the signature of Governor Davis, the same man who publicly stated that "no murderer would get parole" while he was governor. The governor chose to let the recommendation languish on his desk. He took no action on it at all.

Charisse died without her family or friends because the governor failed to act with compassion. All she needed was his signature and she would have been in a hospice where she could die with dignity. More importantly, she would have been able to hold her mother, grandchildren, and daughter-in-law once more.