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Derailed: How Being a Lawyer Taught Me to Survive in Prison
How did Mark Roseman, a well-known California attorney, end up in prison? How did he endure losing his freedom and being in a starkly different culture, complete with its own language and unwritten rules? And how did he put his life back together when he got out after two years? Mark shares the story of his transformative journey in this book--part memoir and part scathing indictment of the American justice system.
Although politicians earn votes and donations by being "tough on crime," mandatory sentences, three strikes, zero-tolerance drug policies, and other draconian rules, which result in longer, harsher penalties and deprioritize rehabilitation, create enraged inmates who are eventually released back into their communities only to sink back into the world of crime--and back through the prison system.
"We must stop turning a blind eye to our prison systems," Mark says. "Too much is at stake for us all."
Although politicians earn votes and donations by being "tough on crime," mandatory sentences, three strikes, zero-tolerance drug policies, and other draconian rules, which result in longer, harsher penalties and deprioritize rehabilitation, create enraged inmates who are eventually released back into their communities only to sink back into the world of crime--and back through the prison system.
"We must stop turning a blind eye to our prison systems," Mark says. "Too much is at stake for us all."
273 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 8, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 3, 2017
The book was definitely written by a lawyer. I mostly skimmed through the legal mumbo-jumbo in his explanation of how he ended up in jail. This book was discussed in our book club and the two Jewish lawyers in our group said that Mark was definitely guilty. The commented on his strategy of saying "I don't want to defend myself but here is what really happened."
I found his description of prison life interesting and informative but a little too clean cut. He didn't see any rape or other real violence although he does imply that there was some violence during his tenure. I felt like his description of the problems he faces now that he is out of prison was at least as valuable as his description of prison life.
The title is misleading. Mark present little evidence that his legal background helped him understand his fellow inmates. He even spends sometime talking about how important his experiences in the slaughter houses helped him understand what was going on in prison. His legal background seems to have helped him because it made him useful and therefore protected.
I found his description of prison life interesting and informative but a little too clean cut. He didn't see any rape or other real violence although he does imply that there was some violence during his tenure. I felt like his description of the problems he faces now that he is out of prison was at least as valuable as his description of prison life.
The title is misleading. Mark present little evidence that his legal background helped him understand his fellow inmates. He even spends sometime talking about how important his experiences in the slaughter houses helped him understand what was going on in prison. His legal background seems to have helped him because it made him useful and therefore protected.
March 13, 2021
Informative and inspiring
Having never read anything first hand about someone “like me” going to prison... I found this book to be informative and inspiring. I was pleased the author didn’t dwell on the “gory stuff” that happens inside of prisons but shared his stories tastefully. Many of them moved me.
I especially enjoyed his final chapter and his reflections: in what ways the experience changed him for the better; how he found and connected to his individual spirituality in the midst of so much danger and anti-semitismo; how he continues to “give back” to his community as well as advocating from his personal experience and authority. As he says, for him “he did prison”; it didn’t do him. It truly wasn’t a waste of time.
Having never read anything first hand about someone “like me” going to prison... I found this book to be informative and inspiring. I was pleased the author didn’t dwell on the “gory stuff” that happens inside of prisons but shared his stories tastefully. Many of them moved me.
I especially enjoyed his final chapter and his reflections: in what ways the experience changed him for the better; how he found and connected to his individual spirituality in the midst of so much danger and anti-semitismo; how he continues to “give back” to his community as well as advocating from his personal experience and authority. As he says, for him “he did prison”; it didn’t do him. It truly wasn’t a waste of time.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews