EX-CONVICT RELATES TALES OF HARD TIME

Every 24 hours a teen-ager is killed because of a crime related to drugs,
violence and gangs, an ex-convict told about 300 Hilton Head Middle School
students Friday.

"Out of 100 kids born, 15 of them will go to prison, and seven will die
from drugs or some kind of gang activity," said 52-year-old Dale "Mad Dog"
Messmer, a native of Wichita, Kan. Messmer said since getting off parole
five years ago, he's visited 150 schools and spoken to 800,000 young people.

He told the students gathered in the school's auditorium that he served
more than 10 years in prison for drug smuggling and armed robbery in four
states.

School resource officer Douglas Frownfelter said he heard Messmer speak at
a National School Resource Officer's convention in Miami recently.

Messmer's presentation was funded by a Safe and Drug-Free Communities and
Schools Act grant. Messmer said his message is that if the students follow
in his footsteps, they would regret their decisions for the rest of their
lives. He said last year he attended 11 funerals of students he spoke to
around the country who still decided to tread the wrong path.

"I don't want to go anymore. I'm tired of going to funerals," Messmer said.
"Every time I speak, I hope and pray someone will listen."

Sixth-grader Justine Hale said she definitely was listening.

"I thought it was great that he came to talk to us," Justine said. "This
can really change our lives."

Messmer also is a martial arts expert, former bodyguard and Marine. "I've
been a tough guy all my life," he said.

He even flew a plane for Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.

"So how accurate was the movie 'Blow?' (portraying Escobar)?" a student
asked Messmer.

"From my experience, it was very accurate," Messmer said.

When Messmer told prison tales about being shot in the stomach and leg by a
prison guard, the students wailed in disgust. And when he talked about how
plastic, not cartilage, is in his nose because an inmate hit him with a
pipe, the students shouted and wiggled uncomfortably in their seats.

He also spoke about how lucky the students are to be in school.

"Without an education," he said, "you will be handicapped for the rest of
your life."

Contact Aretha Frison at 706-8144 or afrison@islandpacket.com.