Joy sighed as she sat in a little meeting room with her lawyer inside of the courthouse on a hot July morning. When she first heard about the Correction Match program, it sounded like a joke to her. And now here she was, on the precipice of signing her life over into it.
Only a few years ago, Joy's whole life seemed charmed. She worked at a job she enjoyed as a high school English teacher, had a nice home, a husband, two sons. Now, at 41, these court issues seemed like the last straw. Her divorce had been finalized just over a year ago. It had been a nightmare fighting with Matt, her ex-husband over every little thing. Just when she thought all of the fighting over custody, alimony, the house and everything else was through, now it was all back again. Joy had squirreled away about $150,000 over the years in an investment account that her ex-husband knew nothing about. And as far as she was concerned, he didn't need to know anything about it. It's true she hadn't disclosed it in the divorce, and therein lied the source of her current problem.
Months after the divorce was final, her nightmare of an ex-husband's forensic investigator somehow found out about her side account and reported her to the court. It was a $75,000 fraud, her husband reported, because Matt was supposed to be entitled to half of all of their assets in a divorce. And to make matters worse, Joy had testified in court that she had no other assets besides what she declared, so now the matter was referred to the DA and she was charged with fraud and perjury. It pained Joy to the bone to see her sick scumbag of an ex-husband getting the last laugh by seeing her charged with a crime.
After collecting her thoughts, Joy focused on what her lawyer was telling her. "Right," she nodded- there was a new diversionary program for non-violent offenders that could result in no criminal record and no jail time. The catch is that it was a corporal punishment program. "Unbelievable," Joy exclaimed. Who thought this sick program up? She didn't have to take it, her lawyer explained; it was entirely up to her. If Joy declined to participate, her sentence would likely be in the 3-6 month range. Not the end of the world, but the rub is that she'd lose her job as a teacher with those convictions on her record. Gritting her teeth, Joy knew she had to take a spot in the program and bear it, no matter how distasteful. The program had been very controversial, Joy's lawyer explained. There were some elements that many believed were too sexual and humiliating in nature. There was a good chance that in the next legislative session, the program would be toned down by lawmakers, but unfortunately that wasn't going to help Joy now.
Joy tried to focus on the remainder of what her lawyer told her. The Judge will mandate what he believes to be the appropriate number of Correction Match sessions, and an appropriate number of "enhancements" per session. Joy would then be required to download and monitor an app on her phone, which will notify her 24 hours in advance of a discipline session and inform her of the address of a citizen disciplinarian to visit, along with a profile of the disciplinarian. There are a limited number of "swipe right" tokens to decline a session, which offenders often use if there is an important scheduling conflict or the offender simply wants a different disciplinarian.
Joy made a mental note to save some of those in case she is assigned to any parents of her students. Every session is limited to one hour and involves a bare-bottom spanking, and potentially other measures depending on the "enhancements" allowed by the judge, the lawyer explained. As long as the program is completed fully, the judge will review the file after the last session and seal the offender's record, which means the case is closed with no public criminal record. But if the program is not completed, then the offender gets no credit for it and returns to court for a jail sentence. One more catch, Joy's lawyer added. For program violations, such as excessive lateness, missing an appointment, or inappropriate behavior during a session, offenders can be sent to a sort of detention facility for an overnight stay and more intense discipline as a punishment.
"Okay, I think I've got it," Joy told her lawyer with a deep sigh. "This sucks, but I have no choice. I can't go to jail and have a criminal record the rest of my life." The lawyer nodded. "Now when we go into the courtroom, the judge is going to ask you some questions to be sure you understand the details of the program. Just be pleasant and polite and answer all of his questions truthfully," the lawyer admonished her. Joy nodded, and then followed her lawyer out of the meeting room, through a tall set of wooden doors into the large courtroom.
"Case of Joy Garrison," the judge called out, looking down from the bench as Joy and her lawyer stepped up to the defendant's table. Joy smoothed out her skirt and ran her hand through her brown hair that ran six inches past her shoulders as she approached the table. She'd dressed conservatively as her lawyer had advised her, with a pink top that accentuated her 34C breasts without showing any cleavage, and a black pencil skirt that highlighted the slim, but not skinny, hourglass shape that she prided herself on keeping.
"Joy Garrison. 41 years old, teacher, no prior criminal record," the judge read out to himself. "Ms. Garrison, the last time you were in my courtroom, you pled guilty to one count of fraud and one count of perjury. Have you had an opportunity to speak with your lawyer about the prosecutor's offer to participate in the Correction Match program?" the judge asked.
"Yes, Sir, I have," she replied quietly.
"And have you decided whether or not to participate in the program?"
"Yes, um, I will participate," Joy responded.
"And you understand that you have no obligation to participate in the program, and if you decline, that will not affect your sentencing?"
