After spending the last 22 years in prison, LAURA received her second chance and was able to celebrate her first Christmas with her family in over two decades. She says her favorite gift was being able to spend time with them outside of the prison visiting room.
COREY was supposed to serve a century in prison for a crime he did not commit. After two decades, he was resentenced and gained his freedom. Now 47, he says he is thankful for the gift of life and support as he rejoins society. “The help I’ve received has been a blessing,” he said. “I can’t say it enough.”
DEE spent two decades in prison before being released just after the new year. Determined to use her incarceration to improve herself, she earned her GED, Associate, and Bachelor’s degrees. Dee says that the word “freedom” alone is the only way she can describe what a second chance now means to her.
MELISSA was 19 years old when she was sentenced to life without parole. After 25 years, she received a commutation from the governor and was subsequently granted parole. Now, she’s looking forward to strengthening her relationship with her daughter, who she had to watch grow up from afar.
HERBERT was 18 years old when he was given a life sentence in 1968. Then, a life sentence in Louisiana was 10 years and six months. But the rules changed and he spent 54 years in prison before receiving a second chance at the age of 72. He says he learned to accept life and move forward, and “the hardest thing is taking that first step.”
