Greenfield's Mark Tabb wins Christopher Award for “Convicted"

Greenfield, Indiana-based co-author Mark Tabb with authors Jameel McGee and Andrew Collins has received a Christopher Award for Convicted: A Crooked Cop, An Innocent Man, and an Unlikely Journey of Forgiveness and Friendship, (Waterbrook/Penguin Random House). It is one of 12 books for adults and young people by 19 authors and illustrators to be celebrated on May 17, 2018 at the 69th annual Christopher Awards in New York along with the writers, producers and directors of 9 feature films and TV/Cable programs.

Radical forgiveness and reconciliation are on display in the true story of the unlikely friendship that formed between a crooked white police officer and the innocent African American man he sent to jail. Collins was a police officer with the Benton Harbor Police Department for nearly five years when he resigned due to an investigation for misconduct. He was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison for drug possession with the intent to distribute, serving 18 months.

He was the arresting officer for Jameel McGee, charged with possession of crack cocaine, later admitting to falsifying reports. McGee was opening his own business when he was arrested by Collins. He was sentenced to 10 years and served three years in federal prison until his conviction was overturned when Collins admitted to falsifying evidence. Years following their release, both men worked together at Café Mosaic, a coffee shop and community development program in Benton Harbor.

Tabb is the author or co-author of 16 books of which four were New York Times bestsellers and one received a Mom’s Choice Award. The titles include “A Promise to Ourselves,” with Alec Baldwin, [St. Martin’s Press]; “Mistaken Identity” with Don & Susie Van Ryn, Newell, Colleen & Whitney Cerak, [Howard/ Simon and Schuster] and “The Unusual Suspect,” with Stephen Baldwin, [Faithwords/ Hachette]. He served for 16 years as a pastor before writing full time. Collins and McGee live in Michigan. Collins is a licensed pastor and works as a staff associate for Young Life Southwest Michigan. McGee serves as a mentor to Benton Harbor area youth.

The Christopher Awards were created in 1949 to celebrate authors, illustrators, writers, producers and directors whose work “affirms the highest values of the human spirit.” The Christophers, a nonprofit organization founded in 1945 by Maryknoll Father James Keller, is rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition of service to God and humanity. The ancient Chinese proverb—“It’s better to light one candle than to curse the darkness”— guides its publishing, radio, and awards programs. More information about The Christophers is available at www.christophers.org.