My case manager, Ms. Oliver, paged me to her office this morning. I had requested an updated sentence computation sheet. Prisoners may request this form at any time and since the law under which I was sentenced offers different types of credit for good time, I request an updated sentence computation sheet at the beginning [...]
Read my 2009 Fourth Quarter Report here: http://prisonnewsblog.com/2010/01/fourth-quarter-report-2009/ Print PDF
Every time I talk to a new prisoner who arrives at Taft Camp, I become more convinced of the value my friend, Justin Paperny offers as a prison consultant. Today I spoke with Rick, a businessman from Los Angeles, who arrived in Taft to begin serving a 27-month sentence for tax evasion. Rick’s struggle was [...]
I’m fortunate to have subscriptions to three magazines (Time, Newsweek, and my favorite, The New Yorker). Since I rarely watch television, these magazines keep me current on what’s going on in the world. I need that perspective because prison boundaries isolate me from the national dialogue, and keeping up with current events is part of [...]
Today is a federal holiday that celebrates the birth of Martin Luther King. As a child I always welcomed this holiday. We used to celebrate on the day of Dr. King’s birth, January 15th. Since I share a birthday with him, and it was a federal holiday, I never had to attend school on my [...]
I spent the early morning working on the foundation documents that I began writing yesterday. At six I went outside to exercise, and after I returned it became clear that I wouldn’t spend much time writing. The weekends can be difficult to find quiet space—others use the table where I work to play cards and [...]
I’m spending the weekend preparing foundation documents that I hope will lead to sponsorship and support upon my release. If I serve my entire sentence (until August of 2013) I will have completed 26 years as a federal prisoner. That length of time, coupled with the growth I’ve made as a human being, may make [...]
Today is my 23rd birthday as a prisoner–the same number of birthdays I celebrated in freedom. I’m 46, deep into middle age and still locked in prison for the bad decisions I made in my early 20s. It’s strange…I hardly remember those decisions anymore. I know that I played a leading role in a scheme [...]
By working to inspire the prisoners around me, I keep my internal engine of motivation in good shape. It is important to lead by example, and as the longest serving prisoner here I always look for opportunities to mentor other prisoners. Recently I resumed participation with the Toastmasters Club in Taft Camp. As a public [...]
Although I’ve been confined in Taft Camp for 31 months now, I continue to find new resources that help me learn. As I was returning to my housing unit with a book on Winston Churchill, Albert, another prisoner, invited me to sit with him and watch an educational video on critical decision making. During the months [...]
