Prison Professors With Michael Santos

I’m reading from chapter 3 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com ******* When I call home on May 27, 1989, I hear the news from Julie that Christina has given birth to a daughter, Isabella. I’ve known of Christina’s pregnancy for some time, but I’ve been too wrapped up in dealing with the loss of Lisa and the challenges of my prison adjustment to grasp what that means. It’s surreal to think of my younger sister as a mother, and to think of myself as an uncle. Christina and I grew up very close as children. I have fond memories from our grade school years, and of bringing her fishing with me in a neighborhood stream. But I haven’t seen her since my imprisonment. Now she’s a mother, and trying to imagine her as a grown woman with a family of her own feels almost incomprehensible.  Life is changing without my being a part of it. I hang up in tears, unable to suppress my mix of emotions.  I’m happy for Christina, but also filled with sadness

I’m reading from chapter 3 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term Podcast 118: Chapter 3.3   ******* It’s 1988 and Vice-President George H.W. Bush is about to become America’s 41st president. He talks about a thousand points of light and inspires me with his call for a kinder, gentler America. Yes!  More compassion and understanding is exactly what I need, and I’m working feverishly to prove worthy of reconsideration. With each passing month I feel the pressure. But I like having a reason to push through each day. My studies and writing goals necessitate a strict schedule and I train myself to function on less sleep. The cellblock rocks with constant noise and ceaseless disturbances, but with clearly defined goals I block out all distractions and become more skillful at carving out niches of time and space to study. The tight schedule helps immensely, especially as my connection to Lisa becomes more and more tenuous. I’m proud of what I’m producing and for Christmas I send her copies of

I’m reading from chapter 3 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com ******* During my first weeks in the penitentiary, I meet hundreds of men.  Listening to them convinces me that it’s best to keep a low profile, at least until I understand more about my environment. I don’t even talk much with the other men assigned to my cell. Just as Check told me on my first day, the men mind their own business and don’t show much interest in building new friendships. They work in the prison’s factory, manufacturing or repairing mailbags for the U.S. Postal Service. I catch the vibe–one of apathy rather than hostility. These men have no interest in talking with a young prisoner who shows enthusiasm about being hired to work in the library. Enthusiasm dies long before most men enter the inside of these walls, I suspect.  It might reveal naiveté, which exposes vulnerability. In the evenings I lie on my rack thinking about how I’m going to make it and real

I’m reading from chapter 3 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com Chapter Three: 1988-1990 Months 14-36 I’m assigned to A cellblock.  It’s a long, rectangular, hollow shell of a building with high ceilings similar to the Oklahoma housing unit I just left at El Reno. Pigeons fly around in the open space above. It’s late summer and the oppressive heat, without air conditioning, makes me sweat. Burgundy tiles cover the floor. The beige, enamel-faced brick walls have been stained yellow from nicotine smoke that has accumulated over decades. In the center of the shell, a freestanding metal and concrete structure reaches five stories high. Each tier supports a four-foot wide catwalk that wraps around the caged tower. Steel bars evenly spaced four inches apart enclose the side-by-side cells in the building’s core, and metal mesh screens the catwalk. From the looks of it I suspect administrators ordered the screens as an afterthought to keep pris

In the #Straight-A-Guide #reentryplan, we feature stories of people who used time in prison to #prepareforsuccessafterprison. Learn how @TheArthurDuncan became a lawyer. https://prisonprofessors.com/reentry-programs/

People in jail or prison may learn about the livestock industry or job opportunities on a farm by listening to our lesson with Rene, an expert horse breeder.

Podcast 115: Earning Freedom with Michael Santos Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term (2.3) For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com ******* With the exchange of prisoners complete we leave the corporate jets behind and fly east. Eventually I deplane and board a bus with other prisoners. We ride through the busy streets of Atlanta and as I look at the glass-faced skyscrapers, the places of commerce, the people, I try to soak it all up, knowing I’m not going to see a big city for a long time. My stomach churns as the bus speeds across a dip in the road. And then I see it. For the first time I stare through the window at the fortress that will hold me, a monster, with an intimidating façade and a 40-foot high concrete wall that encapsulates the penitentiary’s perimeter. Coils of razor wire top tall metal fences that surround the outer wall as added protection against escape. Gun towers are evenly spaced about every 50 yards, standing ominously around the wall. I see guards inside–alert, at attention, with a

Earning Freedom with Michael Santos Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term (1.2)   I’m reading from chapter 2 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term   For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com         Podcast 114: Earning Freedom 2.2   ******* Following the chapel service I return to my cell where I catch the guy assigned to the rack below me. He’s in his 40s and not particularly intimidating, standing barefoot in boxer shorts splashing water under his arms; it’s a birdbath in the tiny sink. Still, I feel awkward as I stand outside the open gates of the cell. “You the new guy?” he asks, sensing my apprehension about walking in on his personal routine. “Yeah, got in last night.” “Well, you’d better come in. Count’s about to start and you don’t want to be out on the tier when those gates roll closed.” “Michael,” I offer and stretch out my hand to shake. “Buck,” he responds and closes his hand into a fist. I realize he prefers to knock knuckles in greeting. “Where you headed?” “What do

I’m reading from chapter 2 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com Month 13 The court paid my public defender, Justin, to represent me after I cut ties with Raymond.  Now that I’ve been sentenced, however, I’m without much access to legal counsel.  Justin will prepare a direct appeal, but he won’t be available to help me understand how to navigate my way through the 45-years I must serve.  I don’t even know what that means and I wonder whether the judge really intends for me to languish in prison for longer than I’ve been alive. Unlike the federal time that I’m serving, most of the other prisoners in my housing unit at the county jail face problems with the State of Washington’s criminal justice system. From those men I learn that all 50 states maintain their own criminal justice and prison systems, with different rules and legal codes. As a federal prisoner, I have little in common with them.  Still, by listening to the more experienced p

I’m reading from chapter 1 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com Podcast 112: Earning Freedom 1.3 ******* The marshals escort four of us in chains through the working areas of the post office. I see postal clerks eying us suspiciously as they sort the mail into large bags while we wait for an elevator to take us to the courthouse. We walk into a bullpen. The marshals remove our handcuffs and chains before locking us in. A few minutes later the marshals bring in Alex, my former partner. I recognize his voice when they lock him into an adjacent cage. We can’t see each other, but once the marshals leave I hold onto the bars on the front gate and talk to Alex, disregarding the solid wall that separates us. “How can you testify against me?” I ask him. “We’ve been like brothers.” Alex graduated from high school two years ahead of me, but despite our age difference, we became close friends. After he introduced me to the money we could earn by s

One key to #prepareforsuccessafterprison will be a personal accountability tool. We offer these tools with our self-directed #reentryplan, like the #Straight-A-Guide. https://prisonprofessors.com/reentry-programs/

111. Earning Freedom with Michael Santos   Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term (1.2)   I’m reading from chapter 1 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term   For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com         ******* “¿Que Onda?” Another man is locked in the same cell. Cuban, I presume from his accent. He stands by a waist-high metal locker in boxer shorts, staring at me. He looks like a thug. We’re the same height, though he is heavier, with more fat than muscle. Crudely drawn tattoos look like chicken scratches across his arms and torso. I nod. “¿De donde eres?” He wants to engage me. “I don’t speak Spanish.” “What is you, white?” He speaks in English this time. The man’s question bothers me.  I think of myself as an American, un-hyphenated by ethnicity. “I am what I am.” “I thought you was Cuban.” “My dad’s Cuban.” “So why the fuck you don’t speak Spanish?” “I speak English.” I’m ready for this guy’s challenge, if that’s what he wants. “Where you from?” “I’m from Seattle.” “You a cop

101. Earning Freedom with Michael Santos   Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term (1.1)   I’m reading from chapter 1 of my book, Earning Freedom: Conquering a 45-Year Prison Term   For more information, visit PrisonProfessors.com         I can feel the DEA agents waiting. I don’t know where or when they’ll strike, but I know they’re near. I’ve never been arrested before, and I’m scared. My wife, Lisa, sits next to me in our Porsche convertible, clutching my hand. We’ve only been married five months. She’s a glamorous South American blonde who looks spectacular in her form-fitting designer clothes, better still in a bikini. With her beside me, I feel powerful. I’ve built my life on extravagance and appearances, and Lisa completes the image I want to project. She’s five years older than I am and I always try to appear strong for her–man enough for her. I don’t want her to see my fear, but inside I’m shaking. Shadowy forces feel like they’re closing in, but I don’t have a grasp on what’s coming. Instinct, intuition, a

Sometimes people make bad decisions that lead them to prison. To #prepareforsuccessafterprison, a person could create a self-directed #reentryplan, like the #Straight-A-Guide. https://prisonprofessors.com/reentry-programs/

We feature stories on how to #prepareforsuccessafterprison with our self-directed #reentryplan that we call our #Straight-A-Guide. https://prisonprofessors.com/reentry-programs/