William Garrison entered prison as a teen. He didn’t know how to read or write when he got there, having fallen behind in school because he’d been ill with tuberculosis.
His misfortune grew even worse when he got mixed up in a robbery gone wrong.
In 1976, he and some other teens got caught up in a home robbery that left a man dead. Garrison was sentenced to life in prison at the age young of 16.
For that mistake, he spent 44 YEARS in prison, where he taught himself how to read - and also did something that may surprise many.
He became an advocate for himself and others after spending years studying law!
When the U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down mandatory life sentences for juveniles, it looked like things might change for him.
His sister was even preparing a room for him and planning how to celebrate his 61st birthday, the first he’d have as a free man in decades. His release was weeks away.
Then he was found dead in his cell from coronavirus (COVID-19).
His sister is upset William didn’t make it home. For many, cramped conditions mean a prison sentence has become a death sentence, no matter what you’re in for.
The only way to stop it is by standing up for the human rights of people inside!