Surviving the Mob - Dennis Griffin [94]
As 2000 came to a close, Andrew had good reason to experience feelings of anxiety. Was the government sabotaging his efforts for an early release? If and when he did get his hearing, what would the decision be? When would he be able to see his son again?
As the former gangster entered 2001, the future was anything but certain.
22
A New Beginning
In spite of the lingering doubts regarding his pending parole hearing, Andrew began 2001 with a positive attitude. He convinced himself that even if his bid for reconsideration failed, he was still way ahead of the game. He was, after all, a survivor. And compared to many of the situations he’d been confronted with over the years, doing another four years behind bars wouldn’t be the end of the world.
But it turned out that his internal pep talks weren’t really necessary. The same good fortune that had kept him from taking anyone’s life during his numerous acts of violence smiled on him again. He recalls learning that he was going to be a free man after serving only half of his parole-violation sentence.
“I called home one night in January to speak with my mother. As soon as she answered the phone, I could hear the excitement in her voice. She was bursting at the seams to give me the good news. She’d received a call from my case agent saying that the parole board had reviewed my case and voted to grant me an immediate release. I was in shock. I didn’t even know my case was being reviewed. I was under the impression nothing would happen on my case until the hearing scheduled for February.
“I remember being too emotional to speak right away. I don’t know if those who have never lost their freedom and then regained it can appreciate what it was like to hear that news. But I’m sure that any guys reading this who were ever incarcerated know exactly what I’m talking about when I say how emotional it was. It’s a feeling that goes beyond happiness.
“But there was a scary side to it as well. My whole life was about to change. I’d spent many nights in my cell staring at the ceiling and planning for my release. But now that it was almost a reality, I realized that I was far from being prepared. I wouldn’t be back on the streets of Brooklyn where I knew my way around. In fact, I’d probably never be in my old neighborhood again. There would be no more crime and no more big scores and no more easy money. That had been Andrew DiDonato’s thing and he’d be gone. The new me would hit the streets as a legitimate citizen and I’d have to play by the same rules as everybody else. I’d have to go to work and pay my bills.
“For most of my life, I’d faced dangerous scenarios and stress that might have brought down a two-ton elephant. And there I was thinking about having to get a real job and it scared the hell out of me. It might not make sense to most people, but I was terrified.
“But I knew I couldn’t let that fear get the best of me. I was getting a new chance at life and I wasn’t going to blow it by going back to my old ways. I’d have to succeed at whatever real job I got. If I didn’t, I could easily end up going back to making money the only way I’d ever known. And I wasn’t going to let that happen. When the gates opened for me, failure would not be an option. I was committed to becoming a regular guy.
“With no formal training or experience in the real world and no background information to put on a job application, I knew it wouldn’t be easy. But if I could survive the streets of New York and deal with some of the most ruthless criminals in the country, I knew I could handle being a working stiff in the real America.
“Not being able to have personal contact with my family was another matter. I knew that would be much harder on me than leading a legitimate life. Yeah,