Stories from before, behind, and beyond the bars.
An unflinching account of one man's journey through a decade-long federal prison sentence and beyond. From the courtroom to confinement, Five to Twenty is an unfiltered look at America's criminal justice system and a former inmate's search for freedom and redemption.
Recent Stories
-
The Freedom List: Returning to Prison
"The walls sneered: 'We knew you'd be back, so we kept everything as you left it.' That terrible déjà vu began before I'd even reached the prison's chain link fences."
-
Pink Socks: On Probation and Polygraphs
"The test isn't really about separating fact from fiction—which it can't do—but rather about frightening and intimidating the test-taker."
Past Dispatches from Prison
-
The Act: Hiding Sexual Identity in Prison
"I swagger and shift my weight from side to side; I keep my voice low; I sit with my legs spread wide and never crossed. I even feign sexual interest in the female officers."
-
Harper's Index: One Year in Prison by the Numbers
A statistical snapshot of prison life, from daily routines to personal connections, told through numbers that paint a picture of incarceration.
-
Locks: Violence and Racial Tensions at Thanksgiving
"The more serious of the brawls happened yesterday, serious because it involved two races and therefore held the potential for a race riot. The Sureños ganged up on a black and stabbed him in the throat."
-
Christmas Cards: A Bittersweet Holiday Ritual
"Rod sent out his Christmas cards this week. He slipped the cards into three white envelopes and stamped them upside down, a symbol of love."
-
Candy Man: On Inmate Ingenuity and Ostracism
"He makes his taffies not with rose petals but with Hawaiian Punch, combining the drink mix with powdered creamer to form a dough which he rolls into ropes."
-
Bug: Adjusting to an Institutionalized Cellmate
"My neighbor Steve warned me about Rod before he moved in. 'You know Rad's a bug, dontcha?' A bug is a person who's been incarcerated for so long that they become loopy."