Chapter Sixteen

Damage, Survival, and the Cost of Truth

On February 18, 2025, I met in person with the Chief Investigator for the Albany County District Attorney’s Office.

This meeting was not incidental. In 2013, when I disclosed misconduct involving Chris, it was his DA boss, then in private practice and acting in place of his father, Chris’s attorney—who took my deposition. Given that history, I fully expected the District Attorney’s Office to recuse itself from any involvement in this matter.

Nonetheless, I believed it necessary to place the full record before them and to request something far more basic than prosecution: protection.

I hand-delivered the following letter to District Attorney Lee Kindlon:

(Letter remains exactly as written; it is already legally appropriate and restrained.)

(Also for legal reasons, I am withholding that from view, but I will speak to it)

At the time of that meeting, and as of this writing, I remain without meaningful resolution regarding my property. Firearms lawfully owned by me and by my father remain stored at Guns Inc. in Schodack. I am informed they are deteriorating. Their current condition is unknown to me.

Meanwhile, my family has endured consequences that never appear in court findings.

I am, by all honest measures, 99% whole again. My grandson—born with significant medical challenges and subjected to multiple surgeries in his first year—is now doing remarkably well. That perspective matters. It grounds me.

Yet the harm was real.

I have experienced fear in my own home for the first time in my life. I have altered my behavior, my movements, and my sense of safety. An incident in a public place, where a young man startled me from behind in a simulated act of violence, triggered an involuntary response that left no doubt: something fundamental had shifted.

This is the unseen damage of retaliation.

Earlier in this book, I described formative experiences that taught me to recognize victims—and to stand up for them. Ironically, those same instincts allowed me to understand what was being done to me long before others could see it.

I do not seek vengeance. I seek exposure.

Every misrepresentation, every omission, every retaliatory act described in these pages is documented. Personnel records, investigative files, correspondence, and court findings are appended for that reason. Disclosure is not my threat—it is my obligation.

If such a narrative can be constructed against someone with my background, my record, and my documentation, then it can be constructed against anyone.

That is the warning. This could happen to YOU!

To those who follow on this at times ugly path, remember the small things. Like the child you once coached.

For me…….

Last summer I ran into a young woman who I worked with as an 11 year old my first year coaching softball. Like my father working with some kids just clicks and Megan went on to talk about her experience, how it stayed with her, getting plenty out of it. Even if she was just going to be a recreational player, there were many non Sports lessons passed on, something she spoke about. Seeing her raising a family with a good man who maybe reminded me a little of myself was rewarding. She was trying to find the words to explain how she would describe me and my importance in life to others as we crossed paths. She goes “You know, it’s kind of like if you have a daughter, you want her to grow up and marry a man just like you.” To date, this is the best compliment I have ever received. They have a young son so Meg lets hope he grows up just like me… I humbly accept this!

It’s been these stories that have served as reminders, keeping me strong in the more difficult times.

And as it continues thank you again for your support and standing by my side

I will continue to speak. I will continue to document. And I will continue to stand, not as a victim, but as a person of conscience.