Josh interviews Romando Valeroso about his life, his service in Vietnam, and about his 44 years in prison and reentry

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Preview

My Guest:

Romando Valeroso is a Vietnam veteran, a veteran of a 44-year prison sentence in Michigan, a long-time legal aid writer,  and veteran of the Prison Creative Arts Project. He finally has his own place after returning home from prison a little over a year ago.

A picture of Romando Valeroso my guest on episode 72 of the Decarceration Nation Podcast

Transcript

A full PDF transcript of Episode 72 of the Decarceration Nation Podcast

Notes From Episode 72

Here is a link to the final report of the Joint Task Force on Jail and Pretrial Incarceration.

Criminal Justice Reform has happened in 34 states and crime and recidivism has declined.

Unfortunately, large and indeterminate sentences are still very normal all over the country.

I was wrong to say the percentage of veterans in prison was 15%, it is 8%.

Unfortunately a high percentage of military personnel end up in our criminal justice system, often suffering from PTSD and other post-combat trauma.

Veterans are, in fact, often sentenced for the most serious of crimes.

It can often be very challenging to get an official ID after prison.

Medical care in prison is notoriously poor.

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