By Nazir Mobley, age 11
Earlonne Woods is co-creator, co-producer and co-host of a podcast called Ear Hustle, which tells stories about life inside the San Quentin prison in Northern California. In 1997, while in his early twenties, Woods was sentenced to 31 years to life imprisonment for attempted armed robbery.
Because of his work with the podcast, in November 2018, California Gov. Jerry Brown commuted Woods’ sentence, which means they lessened the punishment. On the podcast, Woods will now talk about the journey to re-enter society after around 20 years behind bars.
There are many challenges that people face when they leave prison, including finding jobs and housing because of their criminal records. Over 70 percent of the people who leave prison come back within five years. Woods hopes to humanize the stories of these people through the podcast and help us understand their experiences.
