First let me say this ; I believe with all my heart that my son is innocent of the crimes that he is in prison for . I feel deeply that he was made to confess to those crimes  . During the course of his initial contact with the county jail and the court system , he was beaten by law officials , raped by other prisoners , threatened with his own life , and that of his family , I saw this all first hand , I saw the aftermath of multiple beatings , I saw the bruises , the whites of his eyes bloody due to being choked almost to death ,  cuts and tazer marks by jail officials . I saw the threatening notes that were slid under his door . Each weekend I saw his fear . I know his Court Appointed Attorney did nothing but lie to him . He lied to us all . I sat through the last court appearance Joe made , listened to him tell the judge what the attorney told him to say and do , with promises of getting him out of this situation  , and the judge listened and to lies . I know my son is innocent of the charges he was convicted of . He has been in prison for 15 years , fighting in one way or another for his life . Trying to make sense of what has happened , as we all have .

In 2012 Joe was diagnosed with IgA nephropathy (Berger's disease) . A kidney disease that has progressively taken his quality of life and will eventually end his life . Not only does he have to fight for his life physically but for his own health , daily . Most people who have never had to deal with prison infirmaries don't know that the quality of care is lacking beyond compare . They are under staffed and in most cases do not have qualified persons to care for those very sick or terminally ill unless transferred to a medical unit , and even there it's not quality care . It took years getting Joe to the medical unit . We , both , fought with letters to everyone who would listen to get him moved , yet they moved slowly , citing one excuse after another . He was to the point of critical care by the time they did move him . Once there he was so overwhelmed with infections , he had to be sent to a hospital outside the prison for treatment . He is on dialysis now but its not going well . He is in constant extreme pain , he is tired , and most days wants to just end his own life , but because in prison if they are told you wish to do that , you are stripped naked , and thrown into a cell with no real bed , cold and alone , sometimes for weeks with no human interaction other than for those who put you there , and a camera watching over you . So he struggles with needing to do what is right and wanting it all to end . The mental health officials have no compassion at all , nor do they wish to do a job they are there for , in my honest opinion .

My son has fought his way in prison . The beatings continue , he has been stabbed 4 times , he has suffered verbal abuse by not only other inmates but guards , he has had feces and urine thrown on him , even as we spoke on the phone and no one did anything to prevent this , and some even encouraged violence against him . His religious rights are infringed upon as well . He has been there 15 long years . He has lost family members to dying and desertion . He has seen through pictures his son's grow into young men , he has seen them walk away from a man they believe is a monster . My son is no monster , he is a good man , that has made bad choices , and the biggest one was trusting and believing in the justice system and his attorney . He has mental issues that cause him to not understand things , that go untreated due to poor mental health officials and the policy in place and he trusted the wrong people . So now he is dying in prison and no one has shown him any compassion , other than his ever passing family . This is an urgent matter . His life is quickly fleeting away in a place that is not where he needs to be nor does he belong there  , he needs to be home with his family . He needs to come home to pass peacefully , in my arms .

There is an organization trying to get his case reopened and to be heard , The Innocence Project . He has been on their waiting list to be heard for about 10 years now . He may pass before they get him back in there . So until then I am his voice , I am his way to the world . Please , sign my petition to bring Joe home . I will take care of him . I will make sure he knows he is loved and show the compassion he so richly deserves as my son . I will make sure he doesn't die alone and forgotten .

Please , find it in your heart to sign this petition , and if Joe should pass before we can get this out to Gov. Hutchinson and whomever else may help , do not think that I will ever give up on this , maybe with this issue another dying inmate can have a voice out here in the " free world " that can be helped . Policy needs to change . Healthcare in OUR prison systems need to change . No one should be made to suffer as my son has . People need to be held accountable for neglect and abuse in the prison system . I , myself , have fallen prey to the outrageous ever changing policies within each prison he has been in since this entire ordeal began . Apologies have been to many to count from Wardens over the actions of those whom call themselves human beings , yet still are employed in the same capacities of that prison . I know no system is perfect , and I don't expect perfection , nor does Joe , just fairness and something more than an apology from people who keep repeating the same offenses , changing policies for their own area of work . violating rights and shoving their own opinions down the throats of those less capable of defending those rights . We live in one of the most vibrant places on the planet , yet our prisons are not fit for stray dogs . I've witnessed conduct by guards in my son's prisons , that had it been done here in the free world to an animal , they would go to jail themselves .

Update 5/24/2023 Joe has lost both kidneys, has congestive heart failure among many other life threatening illnesses. He has been on dialysis now for years.

I will close this now with one thought , I am begging mercy for my son , Mr Asa Hutchinson ,  I love my son , he is important to me , he is not just a number in the Arkansas Department of Corrections , he is part of me , he has my heart , and my spirit , I ask that you take a step away from what his papers say , the things he was convicted of and know that he is a good man , with a heart , and he needs to come home , and die peacefully , in the arms of his Mother .

Thank you ,

Anna Ayres

Acworth Georgia