My Lost Decade, Part 2, Arraignment to Sentencing

“I saw my first inmate killing within 5 weeks. An argument over food… it ended in seconds.” “I was arrested at my home in Georgia and transported to San Diego for arraignment. What followed was 31 months in a detention centre that breaks you down piece by piece. 23 hours a day locked in a cell. Freezing cold. No windows. Food so bad you’d rather go hungry. And if you didn’t have money on your books—you did go hungry. Court days? Worse. Up at 2:30 in the morning, moved from cell to cell all day… just to be told at 2:30 in the afternoon that your case was delayed. Again. And when you finally stood in front of a judge, you’d hear a version of your life that didn’t resemble the truth. But you stay silent—because speaking could make it worse. It took 31 months just to reach a plea deal.”