Celebrity Testimony 3: Duane Lee Chapman( Dog the Bounty Hunter)

You Can Run but You Cant Hide Chapter 9 Muder One: The judge set bail at $50,000 each. There was no way I was getting out of jail. As it was my job barely paid me enough to pay my bills. I tried to make extra money by renting a room to women but I always ended up sleeping with them before I could collect the rent. They'd leave or I'd kick them out so LaFonda( his first wife) wouldnt know the truth. Whenever I had a few extra bucks, I squandered it on weed, whores, or my bike. I sat in my cell with nothing to do but think. I had really messed things up. I did'nt realize how much I loved LaFonda and our boys until I sat alone in my cell that first night in jail. I'd taken so much for granted my family, my freedom, my entire life. Suddenly it was all gone. Yeah I know. A guy died. Someone had to pay for taking his life. Someone had to own up to the crime to take responsibility for what he'd done. Why did Donny do it? Why didnt I stop him? Why didnt I know he had a gun? There were many times I wondered if Jerry Lee would have been shot if I was not there that night. He was my friend. I dont believe Donny would have gone to his house if I hadnt been in the car. Did that make me respnsible? The more I thought about this the angrier I got. My rage was becoming unmanageable. If I was going to rot in jail for killing a man I might as well kill one. I wanted to rip someones head off. I didnt care who it was. My rage was out of control. The sheriff would put all the drunks and" Encourage them" to help settle me down. I beat the crap out of every guy they put in there with me. I was unstoppable. I would have beat up a minister it they'd put one in the cell with me. Reverend Gerald Middaugh from Pampa's Assembly of God church wasnt your typical preacher man. He looked 18 years old eventhough he was in his early thirties. He didnt seem like he was old enough to be a reverend. I wasnt sure why he came to visit me in jail but I was certain I wanted nothing to do with whatever he had to say. I was still angry about the whole situation. I didnt do anything wrong. I wasnt suppose to be in jail. The reverend stood outside my cell and began to talk. "Dog do you mind if I call you Dog?" He looked scared to death. "LaFonda tells me you were once a spiritual man. She said you have a strong belief in the Lord. I'm here to talk to you about that." I stared him down. I could feel the blood rushing to my face. "Move along reverend. I aint got nothing to say to you." I spoke in a soft low growl "now listen Dog. I know your angry. God knows youre a good man. A decent man. Youre in a bad situation here." I slowly moved my face toward his. " What do you know about my situation,reverend? You dont know nothing" I held on to the cell bars as tight as I could. My knuckles turned white from the strength of my grip. "Dof you of all people should know that God will show you the way. He will lead from this dark place into the light. You have to trust the Lord. Put your life in God's hands." I was pissed. I didnt want to hear about God or his almighty plan. All I wanted to hear was that I made bail and was a free man. " Unless youre hear to post bail reverend I suggest you get out of here. I aint interested in anything you have to say. I'll use your Bible for rolling papers." The preacher stood motionless unfazed by my anger. Hec I was locked up behind bars. What was I going to do? I couldnt touch the guy and he knew it. Still his willingness to take my mouth was surprising. "If you want the lords help Duane, you have to ask for it. If you want your bail reduced then ask God for reduction in bail. Ask and you shall receive." He spoke with such confidence and assurance. I didnt care. I walked to the back of my tiny cell and never turned around until I heard the reverend slowly walk away. Darn him I thought. Who does he think he is coming in here telling me about the ways of the lord? I walked in small circles thinking about what he had said. He didnt know me. He didnt know nothing about my life. If he did he sure wouldnt be wasting his time on a guy like me. Life in jail wasnt as bad as I thought it would be. I had been arrested many times before so I kind of knew what to expect. I was able to sneak in some drugs mostly pot which helped calm me down and pass the time. It was easy to smuggle in the drugs. I lowered a string from the window of my third floor cell and one of my disciple brothers always hooked me up. Usually it was Little Earl who tied a bag of weed or Fiorenal to the string so I could pull it back up. To be perfectly honest I could have gone down to get the stuff myself. I discovered that previous inmates had tried to saw through the bars on the window. It took me a few days but I finished the job useing a sharpened metal lid from a jar. Id sneak out at night shimmying down a drainpipe. Little Earl was always there. Wed head over to the local bowing alley and grill a couple cheeseburgers. It never once accured to me to run. Where would I go?. Besides if I ran I would be giving up Lafonda and the boys. I wasnt willing to sacrifice my family for freedom. Those kids meant the world to me. They needed their dad. I wanted to be around to see them do the kids stuff. I wasnt going to do anything stupid like bust out of jail. Sheriff Rufe Jordan didnt see it quite the same way as I did. "What on earth are you doing,Dog?" the sheriff asked as I swung my legs through the window leading back into my cell. I was speechless. The sheriff looked completely shocked. Im guessing it was a first for him to actually have an inmate break into jail! He never said another word about it. Despite my constant dismissals the reverend kept visiting trying to lead me back to the lord. LaFonda even brought my Bible in hope that I would find Gods love and light. It had been years since I read my Bible. It took me a few days before I cracked it open. But as I began to read I kept denying the reasons why. I read it because I was bored, alone, sad, angry, frustrated. Thats what I kept telling myself. But looking back it was because of so much more. Reading the Bible brought back many happy memories from years ago. It reminded me of when I was a boy going with mom to Sister Jensens mission and to church with her on sundays. Slowly I began to realize the words were uplifting and healing. I began reflecting on my life. I knew I had made some bad choices along the way, but reading the Bible in jail helped me see that I had probably done more damage than good in my first 19 years. That wasnt how I wanted people to think of me. I am a proud man. I had set of values that guided me. I thought of myself as moral criminal. Yes I stole but that didnt make me a killer. I fought but I wasnt a violent man by nature. I sold drugs and partied. I could chalk up that to being young and stupid. But deep down I wasnt an idiot. That I was sure of. I hoped it wasnt to late to change my life. In my heart I wanted to be good. I wanted to be on the straight and narrow. I didnt want to waste my life spending the rest of days and nights as a hoodlum biker. So for the first time since I was a boy. I began to pray. I asked the lord for help. I begged for his forgiveness and guidence. I took the reverends advice and asked God to reduce my bail. I pleaded with God to show me the righteous path. I promised I wouldnt run around with the Disciples or cheat on my wife. I told the lord I would go straight get a jod and make money on the up and up. I even told the lord that if he helped me I would sell my beloved bike. That might be the hardest promise I had ever made. The proof would be at the hearing which was set fourty-eight hours after I began to pray. There was no way I could come up with fifty grand. "All right God. If youre really out there show me you have heard my prayers. I am being sincere lord. Please God. Help me. Let thy will be done." Two days later I appeared infront of Judge McIllheney. "Bail is set at $5,000." I threw my head back in utter shock "Wow," was all I could say. Darn I was going to miss that bike. When you make a promise to the Lord, you'd best keep it. As soon as I could I began to fulfill all the promises I made to God in jail. He showed me he is a man of his word. Now I had to be a man of mine. First chance I had I paid a visit to my old friend Dale from Bison who was now sellin Kirby vacuums. "Dale I need a job. You gotta help me." I was practically begging. He said,"Ok Dog I'll put you back on but you cant bring your troubles here friend." Next I went to see Reverend Middaugh. I wanted to thank him for his guidence and tell him he was right. I asked and God provided. I wanted to share my rediscovered belief in God. The reverend offered me a job as the church janitor. He even trusted me with a key to the church. That man was my friend. He said" and on Sundays you can help with collections." I smiled knowing no one would let Dog pass by without putting money down. The reverend told me tithing went up significantly in the weeks I passed the collection plate. He was a smart dude. I had to give him credit for seeing that opportunity. Finally I sold my Harley to friend fro $3,000. It almost paid for my fast growing legal fees. I loved that Harley Panhead. It was by far the fastest and best looking motorcycle in Texas if not in the world. For years my enitire indentity had been being a biker. Without a bike who would I be? I spent most of the year waiting to go to trial. I was trying to make up for all the years I'd wasted breaking the law and ignoring God. I committed myself to seeing the error of my ways. I went to church as often as I could. LaFonda and I went every Sunday. Duane Jr sat on my lap as we raised our spirit to God. In addition I often found myself alone in church praying for hope and guidence. I wasnt sure what the future held but I was confident the Lord had a plan.