Action on Michael’s Petition for Commutation

Michael had some interesting/exciting news yesterday. He learned that someone from the US Pardon Attorney’s office called administrators at Taft Camp with a request for his most recent progress report. In late March, Michael submitted an updated petition for commutation of sentence to the US Pardon Attorney. His petition has been on file since 2003, but […]

Senator Jim Webb Brings a Voice to Prison Reform

Please support this effort by contacting your Congressional representatives!  Tell them to support Sentator Webb and embrace prison reform. Find your representatives here:  http://www.vote-smart.org. America has too many people languishing in prisons for too many years, causing social and financial consequences that are destructive and wasteful.  ****** Read Senator Webb’s Message to American Citizens******  http://webb.senate.gov/email/criminaljusticereform.html The […]

President Obama election and newly elected Congress give real hope for prison reform

Two days have passed since millions of Americans elected Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. For the sixth time, I watched election poll results from inside a federal prison. I sat in one of the television viewing rooms at Taft Prison Camp, cheering when the networks called Pennsylvania for Obama. Then […]

Prison as Part of my Future

Provided I receive permission from the parole officers who will supervise my release, I hope to build a career that will help individuals avoid prison, and that will help those forced to struggle through prison emerge successfully. Besides working with at-risk adolescents, I hope to lead seminars inside of our nation’s prison system that will […]

First Quarter Report, Taft Prison Camp 2008

I began 2008, my 21st year of imprisonment, with a high degree of optimism. Now that we’ve moved beyond the first three months of this year, I feel better than ever. I keep track of my daily progress by recording my activities in a weekly planner. When this year began, I knew that we would […]

A New Earth – Chapter One: The Flowering of Human Consciousness

As part of Oprah’s online class, my wife and I are working through Eckhart Tolle’s book, A New Earth, together by reading and answering the weekly workbook questions. Following are my answers to the questions posed in the Chapter One workbook: Why did you decide to read this book? My wife, Carole, sent me Eckhart […]

Speech On Leadership

At Taft Camp, as has been the case in any other federal prison where I’ve been held, I am responsible for creating my own opportunities to grow. My motivation is not to earn any meaningless certificates, or even to ignite hopes of advancing my release date. I strive for improvement because I find fulfillment in […]