Category: Prisoner Profile

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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

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

Rufus Rochell: A Gentleman and a Gentle Man

Monday, May 7, 2018
Despite his 35-year sentence for a drug crime, Rufus Rochell remains upbeat, kind, and forward-looking. For more than three decades behind bars, he’s immersed himself in service to others—a kind of remarkable self-rehabilitation.   Read More

Yolanda Flournah-Perkins

Wednesday, May 2, 2018
In 2004, two semesters before she was set to graduate from the University of Central Florida with a degree in criminal justice, then-23-year-old Yolanda Perkins was sentenced to 37 months in prison for possession of stolen mail, a white-collar offense. Since her 2006 release, Yolanda... Read More

David Lee Sanchez

Monday, April 16, 2018
David was only 14 when he first started selling marijuana to support his own habit. At 18, he and his uncle were arrested for dealing, and David’s uncle blamed David for everything. He received the mandatory 18 years and nine months to 23 years and... Read More

Marcus Boyd

Wednesday, April 18, 2018
Marcus received a 169-month sentence for distribution and possession with intent to distribute 37.4 grams of crack, even though only 5.6 grams were attributed to him at the time of his arrest. He was released in 2009 due to the crack sentencing guidelines retroactivity amendment. Marcus was... Read More