Thursday, December 4, 2014

 

In February I’ll be the keynote speaker at a symposium that UC Hastings Law School is hosting on Federal Sentencing Reform. I’m looking forward to the opportunity. I am scheduled to be the closing speaker, and the speakers before are really distinguished. The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California will open the ceremony in the morning. Then, throughout the day, we’ll hear from several distinguished lawyers and law professors. Five different federal judges will also make presentations, and I will provide the closing remarks. Besides offering me the opportunity to speak, coordinators of the event also invited me to submit an article for the law review. I’ve never written for a law review before. Today I began drafting a lengthy article. It will describe my journey through 26 years as a federal prisoner and it will offer suggestions that legislators may consider when deliberating over appropriate sentencing reforms. I am of the opinion that we should have big change, one that incentivizes individuals who want to work toward earning freedom through merit. As I’ve written frequently before, I’m convinced that we can improve our nation’s criminal justice system. One start would be to recalibrate the way that we measure justice. Instead of measuring justice through the turning of calendar pages, we should measure justice through an individual’s efforts to reconcile with society and prepare for a law-abiding, contributing life.

 

Days since my release from prison: 479

Miles that I ran today: 0

Miles that I ran so far this week: 26.36

Miles that I’ve run during the month of December: 26.36

Miles that I ran so far in 2014: 2,257.35

Miles that I need to run in order to reach my annual goal of 2,400 miles: 142.65

Miles I’m ahead of schedule to reach my 2,400-mile goal by the end of 2014: 36.69

My weight for today: 168