Comments on: Do Felons Deserve a Second Chance

By: some dude

some dude — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 04:49:03 +0000

Come on now…….any1 believe this cat? Didn’t u say in Va if ur a felon u can’t get a license, u have 5 right? Well u say u worked and got ur license back…..so r u not still a felon? Come people this dude is fraudulent

By: Anna

Anna — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:41:20 +0000

Well I have read everyone’s post….I felt I needed to say something… I’m dating a man who is a convicted felon,for aggravated murder…he spent 20 years in prison …he is a wonderful amazing loving caring man…..I have known this man for half my life…going on 30 years now…..we wrote back and forth over the years..he was out for 1 1/2 before he contacted me …well of course we fell in love with each other..he is my best friend!!! The reason im writing this today is Im confused how and why society treats people the way they do ….I know his story….I know who he killed….I understand the story why can’t other people. He does have a job….not the greatest, but it pays his fines, and keeps the state off of him….He got the job after being out for only 3 months. This is after he filled out thousands and thousands of resumes and applications….He does not like his job what so ever but he knows he has to do it, The one thing I dont understand and probably never will….Is he spent his time, he did his time….so let him live the rest of life, without people looking down on him, listen to his story, before you judge him..PLEASE!!!!! Why do people jugde people? If we as a society treat people right, then maybe repeat felons would not want to go back to prison….if we as a society help felons out maybe prisons would not be so full….So i think WE as a society should give felons a second chance to live their lives…and enjoy their life without society looking down on them or judging them. Yes Im in love with a convicted murder…and I would never change anything about it!!!!

By: convicted felon with a job

convicted felon with a job — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:56:37 +0000

I was also convicted of felony drug distribution. Me and my then husband spent a year in prison. Upon parole I was hired as a sacker at a grocery store who obviously didn’t do background checks. I was promoted to checker soon after making a little more money with more hours. After completing my parole/probation and waiting 5 years with a clean record I went in front of the governor of NM for a pardon. Not an expungement because felons can’t get their records expunged in New Mexico. Fast forward 15 years, I tried to get a job as a police dispatcher and of course my conviction came up and was denied the job but God is so good he blessed me with a job in a private university in Texas where my children can go to school for free. Many small law firms will also hire felons, most won’t do background checks. Now my 21 year old son got addicted to drugs and was sentenced to 4 years in prison for 5- 2nd degree felony robberies. This broke my heart because the vicous cycle wasn’t broken. My baby didn’t learn from his parents mistakes and has now landed in prison. I know he will be ok when he gets out, why because he has parents did it. His father who also spent a year in prison got a job working for Frito Lay, went to school and got his bachelors in business and rose to become a district supervisor. He recently quit that job to work for Coca Cola as some form of supervisor. He didn’t get a pardon. People, don’t give up and work hard to overcome your mistakes. There are people out there who will hire you even with a felony. Go to school, get a degree and move forward. Quit feeling sorry for yourself!

By: Cassandra

Cassandra — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 09:31:49 +0000

I was labeled a convicted felon in 2004 for trying to discipline my child. Before this terrible time in my life I was a Certified Nurse Assistant. I was dedicated to raising and providing for my children. I am a single mother of three children and I have no family support and no support from my children father. After being labeled with this horrible tag, my life has been very unbareable and often times I feel like giving up, but that’s even hard to do when all my children have is me. So I keep hoping and praying that some how and some way some one will give me a chance to provide for my family. I truly believe there is hope for us all if we ban together and start a petition in the states we live in to try and get a new law passed for individuals like ourselves. I’m sure there are enough felons nation wide that we can at least get some one to listen and consider our concerns and possibly at the very least either minimize our convictions or grant us a pardon. We all deserve to provide for ourselves and our families. I will keep you all posted if and when a door comes open for me. Keep Praying and God Bless Us All!

By: nan0bit3

nan0bit3 — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:48:53 +0000

I like this story, im in the same boat as this guy however im probably 100 times smarter. My story is similar to this guy i commited a few WHITE COLLAR crimes when i was young under 17 years old and was charged as an adult. Did a lot time let me tell you. Anyways i got had a low paying job trying to work my way up. I understand what i did was wrong but bc i had gone to prison before so stupid white guy accused me of assulting him and his wife and because i was on parole they automatically found me guilty and i went back in. NO evidence just his accusations. I had several creditable witnesses such as my teachers since i went back to high school as soon as i got out of prison. The courts did not let my teachers testify. I got out 8 months laters and i was out for about 2 years and again a cop accuses me of robbing at an Academy store. i fought the case for months pleading innocent but i was already in there for about 6 months. DA told me if i pleaded guilty right now i will give you time serve and if you dont i will post pone your trial date so that you can do at least another 8 months. I had to plead guilty i wanted to go back to school and finish. So i did. i went back to high school finish high school, btw i have my ged from prison but i wanted high school diploma, went to college majored in Computer Science and Mathematics minor in Economics. Graduated from an ivy league school im talking the best university in TEXAS. Now 2 years later i cant a job all bc of my background. So my 100k degree is worth crap. And yes it wasnt paid by taxpayers money. What do i do.

By: Michael Goins

Michael Goins — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:50:37 +0000

I am even worse off than most here, as I am a recidivist sex offender. I went to prison once in the army, and then once when I got out. The charges were the same, but because of my status employment has been nearly impossible to find. The one good thing to come out of this is that I am fully qualified for Pell grants and Stafford loans, so I am going to go to school, either for Culinary Arts or an Associates in Science.

I do not think society will ever relax the rules, and maybe they should not. If I am being honest, and I owned my own buisness, and a 2 time convicted sex offender came in wanting a job I would probably flat-out refuse him. All I can say is good luck to all in my shoes. At least if I graduate I can say that I did not let my mistakes and my past keep me from trying.

By: Kesha Kelley

Kesha Kelley — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 01:45:33 +0000

I have a felony and got it in 2007.. my first charge of my life first time iwas in jail.. Finally got off papers in 2010 and now looking for a job.. I have plenty of years in customer service and retail.. graduated from everest for medical insurance billing and coding went back to school for medical assistant and graduate from thete and havent had a job in 3 years.. Can anybody help… I am a dallas, texas girl and willin g to do what i need to for my kids, also willing to walk my way up the ladder if need b.. I JUST NEED A LIL PUSH OPF HELP OR ADVICE…

By: chris suttles

chris suttles — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 06:14:21 +0000

Well, once released from prison u must, find a job, pay court costs, pay ur probation office, find a home and transportation. Can u find a job? Yes. Can u find a good paying job to keep you from the temptation of going back to crime????
Yeah, convenient stores and fast food hire felons…yay! $7 an hour doesn’t pay for a home, a car and a family! And one writer said he is now a manager, after 4 years. Yay! Well, with a college degree I’m earning $7 an hour and paying court costs and my probation office.

By: esoteric

esoteric — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 01:43:23 +0000

@ Conservative American: your attitude is a part of the problem. Get off your high horse and have a heart, for God’s sake!

How do you think life is being convicted of, and doing time for a felony I didn’t even commit, having been tricked into confessing, due to my severe naivete concerning the legal system? I’m going, and have been so far, to have a horrible time finding a job!

As far as I’m concerned, I paid my debt to society by the loss of my freedom and the emptying my my wallet via court fines. How does shouldering me with a stigma that hinders my employment help me, you, other taxpayers, or the economy at large? All this does is make me a pissed off young person, with no job, no motivation, possibly no stable home, and having to rely on government handouts, forever. I can’t even back into college, in order to finish and use knowledge gained there to better myself!

Glad you had such an easy time (sarcasm) recovering from your unfortunate days as a felon, but my circumstances are different than yours, while those of some other criminal are also different than yours. The fact that you walked five miles in the snow, uphill both ways to work each day…I really don’t give a sh*t. The fact that you have done it is irrelevant, the fact that I am indeed physically capable of walking miles to work is also irrelevant; your reasoning seems to be “misery loves company” – so because you suffered long hard hours looking for work/trudging to work/struggling through dead-end jobs, that means I have to as well?

Be a human being, have a heart! Drop the whole “it builds character” b**lsh* (or whatever your reasoning is) and either propose a solution, or shut the heck up.

By: omar

omar — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 04:31:12 +0000

Good evening Conservative American. You’ve hit the nail on the head in so many areas and some of them, well I don’t really agree. One that sticks is simply taking responsibility for your actions and not expecting people to come to your aid or rescue. While embarrassing, I am somewhat transparent about my past. I was convicted of a sexual offense with another adult who chose not to tell the truth to save their own hide while in the military. I wouldn’t dare argue guilt or innocence (been there and done that) but I do believe in pulling your own weight. I am so behind you on that. Since release, I have completed my BS in EDU and Human Services. Currently, I am working on my Master’s in Human Service Admin. I will help myself! I have been HIRED and then FIRED or told the position is too high of visibility and even escorted out of work places once the background check came back (even though I disclosed the information in my hiring process). It’s been like that since 2007 and you know what, they are going to have to keep telling me NO until someone see what a great contribution I have to ANY organization. To the others who have served time, stop answering to what they say you are and start making a name for your self. We keep living by these titles and even think we have to live under this new rule of conducting our selves like we dont have ideas; like we can start companies; like we cant raise our children with AS great as morals and values as parents without backgrounds like ours. Like Black people who where ostricized, we have to use every available resource to over come these barriers. IT IS NOT EASY! It will get harder and harder before you see ANY light but if any of your dare to change what society has labeled you as, you contribute to the countless men and women who say I am NOT what you say I am.

Start your business. Education is the ONLY real freedom from any title, label or bondage that you may THINK you are subjected to live under. It’s not about religion (but man does it help) or your walk with any deity; rather it’s about the drive to succeed; standing up and SHOWING the rest of the world that the title is not who you are.