Don's Story, as told to Dianna

Don’s first reaction when he returned to the compound was, “I was never really scared.” Don returned a hungry man, because he had nothing to eat since breakfast and it was nearly 8:30 p.m. by now. Paul and Abdu had gone to pick him up from the police station in a nearby village, where they had to leave Abe in jail. The car with the sandpaper and new pipe were impounded as well.
Don’s story is that he and Abe had purchased the new pipe and were headed back to Jinja to leave the new sandpaper belts with the guys at the compound, and then head to Naminya to take the pipe to the guys at the drilling site. They were excited that they would be to the drilling site by no later than 3 o’clock. It was then about 2:30. That’s how close they were to Jinja.
Don saw a police woman motion them to the side of the road. He didn’t realize they had been speeding and never understood the conversation between the police woman and Abe. (The conversation he found out later was that she wanted a bribe of 50,000 shilling ($25) and Abe was not going to give in to the corruption. They also wanted to involve Don, as a white person, in the payoff but Abe never told Don.) The police then loaded Abe into a police car and asked Don if he wanted to drive Abe’s car on to the police station. Don didn’t want to drive so a policeman got in with him and drove the car to the station. Don didn’t know if it would have been legal for him to drive any way. At the station Don and Abe went before the judge who asked them to pay 400,000 shilling (200 dollars) and between the two of them they only had 350,000. The officers then put Abe in a holding cell and allowed Don to talk to him through a little hole. Abe reached out his hand so Don could hold it. Abe was a very scared twenty-four year old. He had never been in any kind of trouble before.
Don and Abe talked until it was 5 p.m. and the court was closing, and Paul and Abdu had not made it there to pay the fine. Don said it broke his heart to see his friend Abe taken away in handcuffs. The judge told Don to give Abe 2,300 shillings so he could buy protection for the night. (Abe later told us that is exactly what he had to do.)
Don then visited with the judge by showing him all the pictures on his camera. He had pictures of his niece at Christmas building the gingerbread house, pictures of his cows, his dog, his family and even a video of another niece’s kite pets. The judge was also interested in pictures of the well drilling activities and desk building. The judge even told Don if he could reverse the fines he would, but he didn’t have the authority to overturn that. Don asked the judge if he was born again and he said his wife is. The judge said that the neighbors are almost afraid because everything his wife prays for comes true. Don strongly suggested the judge follow his wife’s desires and prayers and become born again.
The next morning Paul, Abdu, and Don took off to pay the fines and have Abe released. Their early arrival was disappointing because the magistrate who needed to sign the paperwork was not there, and didn’t come until 10:30. Don tells how he cried and hugged Abe when he was finally able to come to them. Abe was hungry and dirty so they brought him to the compound to shower, and then took him out to eat in Jinja at Ozzie’s.