New Prisoners Should Prepare Family Before Self-Surrendering

John was a fellow prisoner at Taft Camp who was going through a difficult adjustment. The trouble was not so much the 14-month sentence he served, but rather the pressure he felt as a consequence of his not being able to meet the financial needs of his family. John said that he could have made […]

My Wife Opposes Funding Prisons in Economic Stimulus

I feel very proud of my wife for the active efforts she makes to live as an integral part of my life. In late January of this year, Carole told me that she had contacted the offices of both California senators to express her outrage that Republicans were trying to squeeze a billion dollars into […]

New Prisoners Ought to Understand Security Level Classifications

Prisoners who are new to the system should understand how their behavior can influence their security-level classification. Such an understanding can help them adjust in manners that will allow them to serve their sentences in the least-restrictive environments possible. Unfortunately, many prisoners make decisions in the camp that result in their moving to higher-security prisons. […]

Prison Administrators Can Lower Recidivism Rates by Offering Incentives

As I watched political news shows this past Sunday morning, I heard many Republican pundits assailing President Obama’s economic stimulus package with accusations that it lacks incentives for success. I wish those conservatives would support the use of incentives when deliberating over strategies for prison reform. For more than 21 years I’ve served time in various […]

Prison Furloughs Can Lower Recidivism

American citizens have a vested interest in preparing offenders for successful re-entry into society. Those who leave prison without strong networks of support, without employment prospects, without a fundamental knowledge of the communities to which they will return, and without resources, stand a significantly higher chance of failure. When offenders revert to criminal activity upon […]

Prison Reform Like Foreign Policy Reform

As a prisoner in the midst of my 22nd year in continuous confinement, I have had a first-hand look at this system. I’ve served virtually my entire adult life within prison boundaries of every security level. This perspective has given me unique opportunities and experiences from which I have learned. They convince me that prisons […]

My Reasons for Suggesting Defendants Learn More About PSI

A federal probation officer from Seattle conducted my Presentence Investigation Report after my arrest in 1987. I was 23-years-old then and I did not understand much about the criminal justice process. I knew that after a jury convicted me, I was facing a sentence of life without the possibility of parole. The presentence investigation did […]

Giving Prisoners Access to E-Mail Could Result in Safer Communities

Roberto Gabino asked some questions with regard to an article I wrote about providing e-mail access to people in prison. He wanted to know whether I thought such a program would provide criminals with more opportunity to direct criminal activity from inside prison. He also wanted to know whether I thought administrators ought to exclude […]

Prison Reforms Save Money

Ana Plascencia responded to an article I wrote about the need for work-release and study-release programs for those in prison. She recognized that due to the difficult economy, such prison reforms were unlikely to find funding. Ana asked my thoughts on how we could incorporate such prison reforms when our society had other priorities. As I […]

Enthusiastic Endorsement for Prison Legal News

As a long-term prisoner, I want to express my admiration for what Paul Wright and Alex Friedman have accomplished. They are former prisoners who have made a huge difference in society through their publication known as Prison Legal News. Through that newspaper, they publish content that can be of great value to prisoners, family members […]

Love Makes Prison Easy

Yolanda Perez read my report from the Fourth Quarter of 2008. From that article, she rightfully realized how fortunate I am to have such a loving, magnificent wife. I thank God and count my blessings for Carole every day. Yolanda had a few questions for me about my thoughts on release.  She wanted to know […]

Is My 45-Year Sentence Reasonable?

Maria Iniguez reviewed an article I wrote about PSI reports and posted two questions. She asked whether I thought the 45-year sentence my judge imposed was reasonable for the types of crimes I committed. She also wanted to know whether the PSI could have left out information that might have influenced a lighter sentence.  When […]

Prison Guards Interfere with Corrections

Brenda asked me two questions with regard to my article entitled They’re Prison Guards, Not Correctional Officers. Brenda wanted to know whether I thought guards were trained to harass prisoners or whether the culture conditioned them to abuse their authority. She also asked whether I came across any prison guards who were not abusive. When […]

Uncommon: Finding Your Path to Significance

Date Read: March 1, 2009 Book Title: Uncommon: Finding Your Path to Significance Book Author: Tony Dungy with Nathan Whitaker Book Publisher: Tyndale House/2009 Nonfiction/260 pages Uncommon was the fifth book I finished reading in 2009. Reasons I read Uncommon: I have been a fan of Tony Dungy’s leadership style ever since I saw profiles […]

Incentives Lead to More Effective Prisons

Noel responded to an article I wrote about the need for work-release and study-release programs in prison with questions about specific prison reforms I thought would work best to prepare more prisoners for law-abiding, successful lives upon release.  The 21-plus years that I have served inside prisons of every security level convince me that we […]