Traficant's penpal helps to sell prison paintings

The art is a way to relieve frustrations, the prisoner's friend says.
YOUNGSTOWN -- An artist who lives on a farm in upstate New York describes herself as James A. Traficant Jr.'s pen pal and the recipient of the ex-congressman's prison paintings.
Sybille -- who asked that her last name not be used -- said she had a chance meeting with Traficant in the 1980s in Washington, D.C., and they have kept in touch. The 64-year-old Schuyler Falls woman said she hasn't visited him at the Federal Medical Center in Rochester, Minn., but they write and have talked on the phone.
When asked about Traficant's health, she said, "How does one know?" She said, "Generally speaking, he's in fair shape, but I don't know what shape he was in before."
She said the art is keeping him upbeat and diverting his rage at being imprisoned. Painting, she said, is getting his frustrations out.
Traficant, convicted of racketeering crimes in 2002, is projected to be released from prison Aug. 10, 2009. The 63-year-old former 17th District U.S. representative received an eight-year sentence.
Sybille and her friend, Jayne Moore, operate the Web site beammeupart.com that offers for sale paintings purportedly done by Traficant in prison. "Beam me up!" was one of his favorite one-liners.
Sybille, who moved to the United States from Germany in 1960, said she does oil paintings from photos she takes. She and her husband live on a farm that has pigs, goats and horses.
Subjects in paintings
Traficant once had a farm in Greenford where he raised saddlebred horses and entered them in shows. His purported artwork depicts mostly horses and barns.
Sybille said she is the owner of paintings done by Traficant and some of the sale proceeds are given to him to buy art supplies. Since the Web site and eBay forums made news this week, sales have been good, she said.
Michael Truman, Bureau of Prisons spokesman in Washington, D.C., has said that inmates are permitted to engage in hobbies, such as painting, but are not allowed to operate a business. Truman said Traficant would not be permitted to sell his paintings but could ship them to a family member who, in turn, could sell them and return the mKoney to Traficant's prison commissary account.
Truman said he could not confirm if the paintings on the Web site and eBay are, in fact, Traficant's.
Sybille, who described herself as "not political," said Traficant should be released from prison, that he's served enough time. "He did a little white-collar crime, if he did. I don't know," she said.