The national recidivism rate is 67% within three years of release. Two out of three people who leave prison end up back inside within 36 months. We cite that number like it’s a verdict — like it proves something fundamental about people who’ve been incarcerated. Like it’s inevitable. It’s not. And the data is very…
Criminal Justice Reform · April 30, 2026 California Just Changed the Three Strikes Law. Here’s Why That Matters. For thirty years, California’s Three Strikes Law has been one of the bluntest tools in the state’s criminal justice arsenal — mandatory sentences of 25 years to life for a third felony conviction. It was designed to…
Second Chance Month · April 30, 2026 Today is April 30th. The last day of Second Chance Month. Tomorrow, the proclamations come down, the awareness posts stop, and everybody goes back to running background checks the same way they ran them in March. So before that happens, let’s talk about Larry Miller. If you follow…
An eight-second video clip hit the Facebook feed last week. The background was a simple prison fence. Three lines of text flickered on the screen. It wasn’t high-production. It wasn’t a celebrity endorsement. The reel claimed 3,500 likes, 80 comments, and over 1,100 shares in a matter of days. In the world of social media,…
You’ve probably bought the bread. The bright green package. The seeds. The whole grain density that makes it feel like a responsible decision at the grocery store. Dave’s Killer Bread is in Costcos and Whole Foods and Safeways across the country. Flowers Foods bought it in 2015 for $275 million. What you might not know…
The warden told Andrew Jarecki not to talk to the men. “They’re very dangerous,” he said. “Don’t take anything from them.” Jarecki — the Oscar-nominated director behind The Jinx — walked into Easterling Correctional Facility in Alabama in 2019 to film a religious revival meeting. Within minutes, incarcerated men were whispering to him off-camera. People…
TL;DR Corruption vs. Integrity: Recent arrests of California correctional officers highlight a systemic pattern of corruption, contrasting sharply with the survival-based integrity of the incarcerated. The Social Architecture of Prison: Integrity is the highest currency inside; people who survive these systems often possess unmatched resilience and reliability. Second Chance Month Reality: April is about…
TL;DR Fair Chance Hiring: Look at potential over past mistakes to build a loyal, resilient workforce. Mentorship: Use your professional skills to help returning citizens with resumes and interviews. Vote with your Wallet: Support businesses (like Breaking Free Industries) that prioritize social impact and second chances. Systemic Advocacy: Support efforts to remove the 44,000+ legal…
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During Second Chance Month, we focus on redemption. But extreme heat in prisons isn’t punishment, it’s torture. Here’s why survival must come first.
