On prison, freedom, and redemption.
The first thing one notices is the chair. Comprised entirely of straight lines with minimal upholstery, it’s a chair designed for utility rather than comfort. On the seat is a device like a small heating pad on which I’m asked to sit and, in the polygrapher’s words, "take it easy," though neither of us believes…
In 2011 the author was sentenced to twelve years in federal prison for downloading child pornography. He was released in 2021 and now resides in Texas. For more than a decade he has written extensively about his experiences as a defendant, prisoner, and as an ex-felon and registered sex offender reentering society.
Clark smiled broadly, which was unusual for Clark. Prone to anxiety and depression, he often sat through our weekly sex offender treatment sessions wearing an exhausted, dour expression, as though his life were coming to an end and he’d sooner sleep through the last dreadful bits. But today he smiled—it was a rather handsome smile—and…
A flicker in the bottom corner of my eye, too quick to identify but slow enough to determine speed and direction. It’s source: the dried goods shelf where oyster and hoisin sauce cans are stacked in rows; it’s destination: the small, irregular hole at the baseboard behind the stove. Unperturbed, I continued sliding blocks of…
My neighbor died the day I moved into my apartment. This I learned from another neighbor, Dillan, who lives three doors down. She’d went by Charlie, he said, and added that she’d been very old, nearly ninety, and in poor health. She’d had a cat. This I learned not from Dillan but surmised myself from…
The nearby river crested a few days ago, and the facility is no longer in danger of flooding—a shame, really. I was hoping the waters would breach the banks and wash this miserable place away, prisoners and all. Last week, when potential flooding was still a concern, there were rumors that the prison would be…
The trick to making friends in prison is simple: bring the hot sauce. Technically, outside condiments are not allowed in the chow hall. But this rule, like so many others, is not typically enforced. Inmates regularly sneak in all sorts of contraband: pill bottle of hot sauce, shakers of sazon, packets of Ramen seasoning. A…
Rooster wasn’t understanding fractions. It was the simplifying he was having trouble with. What number goes into 10 and 26 without a remainder? He stared up at the classroom ceiling rummaging through his multiplication tables, but the answer was nowhere to be found. "Two," Stanley said standing at the board with chalk in hand. Stanley…