I Was A Lawyer Smuggling Heroin for the Mexican Mafia w/ Jason Keller | The Hopeaholics Podcast #346 episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 21, 2026 · 1H 22M

I Was A Lawyer Smuggling Heroin for the Mexican Mafia w/ Jason Keller | The Hopeaholics Podcast #346

from The Hopeaholics · host Addicted to Hope

I Was A Lawyer Smuggling Heroin for the Mexican Mafia w/ Jason Keller | The Hopeaholics Podcast #346Jason Keller was a criminal defense attorney with his own firm when he started smuggling drugs into jail for his clients. Papers that looked like textbook material turned out to be black tar heroin flattened between the pages. Then it was a cell phone. Then a charger. All for the Mexican Mafia. He was also smoking crack in the courthouse parking lot before walking in for hearings. He got arrested and almost did six years. That still wasn't his wake-up call. He got drunk on vacation in Honduras, fell off a boat, went to dinner soaking wet, and urinated in a fountain in front of everyone he knew. He was 47. That was the morning he decided he was done. He recently retook the bar exam 20 years later and passed. Chad and Natalie sit with him through all of it the addiction that started at 13, the law career that somehow ran alongside it for decades, and what it took to finally stop.#TheHopeaholics #redemption #recovery #AlcoholAddiction #AddictionRecovery #wedorecover #SobrietyJourney #MyStory #Hope #wedorecover #treatmentcenter #natalieevamarieJoin our patreon to get access to an EXTRA EPISODE every week of ‘Off the Record’, exclusive content, a thriving recovery community, and opportunities to be featured on the podcast. https://patreon.com/TheHopeaholics Go to www.Wolfpak.com today and support our sponsors. Don't forget to use code: HOPEAHOLICSPODCAST for 10% off!Follow the Hopeaholics on our Socials:https://www.instagram.com/thehopeaholics https://linktr.ee/thehopeaholicsBuy Merch: https://thehopeaholics.myshopify.comVisit our Treatment Centers: https://www.hopebythesea.comIf you or a loved one needs help, please call or text 949-615-8588. We have the resources to treat mental health and addiction. Sponsored by the Infiniti Group LLC:https://www.infinitigroupllc.com Timestamps:00:00 Cold Open: The Charges Read Aloud00:42 Introduction / Jason's Background01:56 How He Became a Criminal Defense Attorney03:18 First Marriage and Using During Law School05:57 3 Years Old and His Grandmother's Liquor Cabinet10:15 Full Scholarship to U of A. Flunked Out First Year.13:01 The Workout Regimen That Started in Prison15:04 Can a Convicted Felon Practice Law in Arizona?16:28 The God-Sized Hole / What's Actually Underneath Addiction18:52 The Moment He Said Yes to Smuggling21:00 The DUI That Derailed His Career Before It Started22:23 Out of Prison and Already Manipulating Probation24:21 Relapse on Meth / PO Says Treatment or Go Back26:14 How the Smuggling Actually Started27:18 Smoking Crack in the Courthouse Parking Lot30:28 Finding Out the Papers Were Full of Heroin34:26 The Cell Phone for the Mexican Mafia39:14 Arrested September 30th, 2008. Seven Charges.41:21 What the Arrest Changed and What It Didn't42:09 The Detective Who Put the Cuffs On Him43:17 The Sun City AA Meeting / 86-Year-Old Jack Lee45:29 The Ninth Step Amends With the Detective51:26 Chad's Story: Felony Evading in a Lamborghini57:41 The Real Wake-Up Call: Honduras1:01:10 Finally Admitting He Was an Alcoholic1:03:35 Step One and What Changed Everything1:05:30 Why Prison for Six Years Still Wasn't Enough1:07:31 Internal Bottom vs External Consequences1:12:20 The AA Meeting He Started for Lawyers1:14:57 Ethics Talks at the Public Defender's Office1:16:58 Why Lawyers Are Scared to Get Help1:19:37 The Disciplinary Panel / Waiting on the Bar1:20:55 Passing the Bar by Hand While Everyone Used Laptops

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I Was A Lawyer Smuggling Heroin for the Mexican Mafia w/ Jason Keller | The Hopeaholics Podcast #346 Jason Keller was a criminal defense attorney with his own firm when he started smuggling drugs into jail for his clients. Papers that looked like textbook material turned out to be black tar heroin flattened between the pages. Then it was a cell phone. Then a charger. All for the Mexican Mafia. He was also smoking crack in the courthouse parking lot before walking in for hearings. He got arre...

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I Was A Lawyer Smuggling Heroin for the Mexican Mafia w/ Jason Keller | The Hopeaholics Podcast #346

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