Michelle Taylor
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
As a child, Michelle was removed from her mother’s care and placed in foster homes due to sexual and physical abuse. Michelle used alcohol as an adult to cope with the pain and shame from her past. But Judge Memeo could not take into consideration Michelle’s... Read More
Robert Shipp: The World Gave Up on Him. He Proved Them Wrong
Friday, September 7, 2018
“It feels like the world has given up on you. That you are just some throwaway, someone who is irredeemable.” That’s how Robert Shipp describes being sentenced to life in prison for a drug crime in 1994. Read More
Amber Carlson: Mother Gets 10 Years
Thursday, April 12, 2018
Deep in addiction and mental illness and trying to scrape together enough money for gifts for her kids one Christmas Eve, Amber Carlson agreed to transport methamphetamine for a drug dealer. She had no prior felony convictions, but she got a 10-year sentence. Read More
Chris Young: “Barely on the Totem Pole” and Life in Prison
Monday, March 19, 2018
The judge at Chris Young’s trial described his life sentence as “way out of whack.” The absurdity of his punishment is matched, though, by the fierce passion for self-improvement and education that drives Chris now, even as he is doomed to die behind bars. His... Read More
Success on the Inside: Michael Monsivais
Thursday, April 12, 2018
In prison, Michael Angel Monsivais saw a huge need. And instead of waiting for someone else to fill that need—the warden, the BOP, the government—he took matters into his own hands. Read More
Stephanie Nodd
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Desperate to make ends meet as a 20-year-old single mom to three young kids, Stephanie Nodd became involved with a drug dealer. Eventually, she was caught up in the conspiracy that would bring both of them down—and she was sentenced to more time than he... Read More
Edna Harris: Getting Past the Pity Party
Friday, August 3, 2018
Here’s how and why on how I have become an advocate for my ex-husband, incarcerated in federal prison. Yes, you read that right: ex-husband. We are still close, and I can’t sit by and watch injustice. The more I ponder on it, the more I... Read More
Derrick Cain
Monday, June 11, 2018
Derrick Cain was sentenced to a 10-year mandatory prison term for selling cocaine. When his wife went back to school to become a pediatric nurse, Derrick’s salary alone wasn’t enough to keep them afloat, so he worked during the day and sold cocaine at night.... Read More
Nicole Walker: Her Sobriety Didn’t Matter at Sentencing
Wednesday, June 6, 2018
Nicole was an addict who got clean, turned her life around, and was a productive member of society. But the judge was unable to consider any of this when sentencing her to a mandatory 10 years in prison. Read More