Dear Friends,
April is Second Chance Month, a time to celebrate redemption and the reality that people can and do change. It’s also a time to take stock of our criminal laws, how those laws are enforced, and our overly punitive punishment practices. One in 3 Americans has a criminal record, and together they navigate more than 44,000 legal restrictions that come from their convictions, including barriers to employment, housing, and treatment.
I’ve spent two years researching my book on second chances that will be out next year. The evidence is clear: long prison sentences do not keep us safer, do not support crime survivors in the ways most say they need, and do not provide true accountability, healing, or assistance.
What I’ve found is reflected in the stories of people I’ve had the privilege of interviewing on the Just Justice podcast, people who have done extraordinary things with their second chances: Bobby Bostic, Andrew Hundley, Felix Rosada, April Barber-Scales, Nikki Mammano, and David Carrillo. Their stories illuminate what we gain when we make room for second chances, and what we lose when we don’t. During Second Chance Month, I hope you’ll take the opportunity to revisit these powerful conversations.
As we enter Second Chance Month, I also wanted to share a few headlines which could directly impact second chances for thousands of people around the country.
Second Look Bill
In Colorado, lawmakers are considering a second look bill that would allow people who were under 21 at the time of their offense, or who are now over 60, to petition a court for sentence review after serving at least 20 years. The bill passed its first committee hearing on a narrow vote and is still moving forward.
One of the people who testified in support of the bill was David Carrillo, who was sentenced to life without parole at 19, became one of the first incarcerated college professors in the country, and was granted clemency by Governor Polis in 2024. David was also a recent guest on my podcast Just Justice. His testimony to Colorado lawmakers about why second chances matter came straight from the heart.
Life Without Parole
Just last week, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court struck down mandatory life without parole for all felony murder convictions, holding that punishment without any individualized assessment of culpability is unconstitutional.
More than 1,000 people in Pennsylvania are serving life without parole under the felony murder rule, nearly 70 percent of them Black, for crimes that required no finding that they personally killed or intended to kill anyone. They were the lookout, or the getaway driver or even the person who left the room before the shooting started. Yet, they were mandatorily sentenced without regard for their actual role in the crime. If this ruling is fully implemented, many of those people will get a second chance.
Louisiana is now the only state that still mandates life without parole for all felony murder convictions. Let’s let Louisiana know that they need to get with the program!
Exposing The Truth
The documentary film The Alabama Solution was in the news last month after its Academy Award nomination. If you haven’t yet seen it, this is the month to do so. You cannot talk honestly about second chances without talking about what people are enduring inside prison walls. This documentary was built on footage secretly recorded by incarcerated men who filmed horrific prison conditions and violence by correctional staff on contraband cellphones. The men were transferred to solitary confinement for their efforts in exposing the truth about what goes on behind their prison walls.
After viewing the film, a conservative Republican state senator was so impacted that he introduced a bipartisan bill to examine the Alabama prison system. Although that bill did not advance, Alabama has at least launched a one-year prison oversight pilot program. Change may be slow, but it also may be coming.
Happy Second Chance Month! To celebrate, find an event, read a memoir by someone who was incarcerated, catch up on Just Justice, or tell a friend to subscribe to All Things Justice.
Whatever you choose, thanks for all that you do.
— Jessica