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Speaker 1: See this is all our spot here we have from

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Speaker 1: it's thirty fourth. Thirty fifth is the next Greek, So

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Speaker 1: we go from thirty four to thirty fifth, all of

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Speaker 1: these houses.

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Speaker 2: Kelsey and I are talking to Pastor Tony Parker. He's

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Speaker 2: the director of a halfway house, a re entry program

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Speaker 2: called Noah's Community Outreach.

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Speaker 3: And we got houses on both sides.

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Speaker 4: How many houses do you have it all?

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Speaker 1: We got eight houses in, we got nine under construction.

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Speaker 1: You finished the ninth one under construction, and I'm gonna

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Speaker 1: show you some lots.

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Speaker 2: We've been talking about this program with Leo and Scott

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Speaker 2: Cup a lot lately. People refer to this place as

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Speaker 2: Noah's House, but it's certainly not a single house. It's

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Speaker 2: a whole community spread across four city blocks in the

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Speaker 2: Jackson Heights neighborhood of East Tampa. Each building houses four

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Speaker 2: or six recently incarcerated individuals.

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Speaker 5: Most of the men are.

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Speaker 2: Older and have served a few decad in prison, but

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Speaker 2: there's a house for women as well. They all need

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Speaker 2: the support system from Pastor Parker, the program, and most importantly,

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Speaker 2: each other as they attempt to find jobs and learn

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Speaker 2: how to adjust to a life outside prison.

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Speaker 3: Walls. You know, at first, the commission did not want

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Speaker 3: to a lot of them to come here altogether because

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Speaker 3: they thought they would buddy up and start committing crime again.

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Speaker 3: So they would send one over there and one over here,

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Speaker 3: and they could make it because they had no support.

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Speaker 5: But look at the support.

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Speaker 3: Look at the support.

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Speaker 2: Leo already has a letter of acceptance from Pastor Tony Parker,

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Speaker 2: and he has a parole hearing coming up on May third.

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Speaker 2: If everything goes the way Leo is hoping, he'll be

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Speaker 2: granted parole by the Commissioners, released from prison and sent

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Speaker 2: directly to Noah's house. Leo, have you begun to imagine

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Speaker 2: what you're life might look like if you're paroled and

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Speaker 2: sent to this halfway house?

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Speaker 6: Like?

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Speaker 7: What are you imagining freedom will look like?

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Speaker 2: And feel?

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Speaker 6: Like? Yeah?

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Speaker 8: You know, I tell myself every day, Gilbert. Every day

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Speaker 8: I wake up and I'm just gonna go to work.

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Speaker 8: I'm gonna bury myself in work and tasks and stuff

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Speaker 8: so I don't have to think about that very thing.

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Speaker 8: And then I go to work and I spend the

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Speaker 8: rest of them that day, thanks doing nothing but thinking, Bob,

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Speaker 8: what wouldn't be like?

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Speaker 9: You know what?

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Speaker 8: My life would look like on the other side.

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Speaker 2: If he's granted parole and released, Leo will arrive at

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Speaker 2: Noah's house, where he'll maintain regular visits with a parole

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Speaker 2: officer who will monitor his progress and his transition. He'll

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Speaker 2: have curfews and random drug tests, but Leo would be

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Speaker 2: starting his life over a freeman after thirty five years

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Speaker 2: behind bars.

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Speaker 3: Hey y'all, Hey Joe, y'all come on his side.

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Speaker 1: Well, minute, man, they won't ask y'all a few questions.

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Speaker 2: Tony Parker shows us around one of the houses and

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Speaker 2: introduces us to a guy named Joe. He's a resident

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Speaker 2: at Noah's house. He's in his fifties, tan fit, and

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Speaker 2: has soft blue eyes. I could easily see him being

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Speaker 2: friends with Leo.

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Speaker 10: After thirty five years behind the fence. When I got out,

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Speaker 10: it was overwhelming. It was the first about the first

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Speaker 10: couple of weeks. It was overwhelming because it was like

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Speaker 10: something new. Being here helped me out, and I just

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Speaker 10: started slowly, but I transitioned in back into society. Now

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Speaker 10: I feel like I'm part of society.

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Speaker 2: Joe was paroled nine months ago, and he told us

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Speaker 2: that Noah's house has helped shield him from some of

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Speaker 2: the stigma of coming out of prison.

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Speaker 10: If the neighborhood knew I come out of prison and

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Speaker 10: what I was in prison for, they'd be looking at

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Speaker 10: me like I had three heads. But here they welcome

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Speaker 10: you and they give you that chance, and being in

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Speaker 10: this community helps you. It helps you because everybody that

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Speaker 10: lives here, we've all been there. So that's why we

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Speaker 10: help each other out because none of us want to

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Speaker 10: go back. I I know I'll never go back. I

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Speaker 10: love society.

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Speaker 5: Yeah, I ain't gonna lie.

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Speaker 10: I love it out here, you know what I mean,

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Speaker 10: And it's a blessing to me, and I wake up

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Speaker 10: every morning blessed.

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Speaker 2: In a few months, he's been at Noah's house, Joe

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Speaker 2: found a job and bought a jeep, and when his

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Speaker 2: year is up, he'll be moving on from Noah's to

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Speaker 2: Daytona Beach, where he grew up and where his elderly

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Speaker 2: mother still lives. I got the feeling he'd had dark

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Speaker 2: thoughts in prison, imagining maybe that he'd never have the

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Speaker 2: opportunity to see her again.

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Speaker 10: So I'm wont to spend some time on my mom

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Speaker 10: before it's too late, and just give her love.

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Speaker 3: She needs.

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Speaker 2: Kelsey and I spent about three hours with Pastor Tony

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Speaker 2: Parker and the men we met in the program. Tony

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Speaker 2: spoke a lot about the community and the culture, about

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Speaker 2: God and spirituality, and about all the stories.

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Speaker 5: These men bring with them.

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Speaker 2: He's clearly very proud of what they've built.

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Speaker 3: You should have see him on Saturday morning. You gotta

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Speaker 3: come around on Saturday morning. That's when you see him

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Speaker 3: on the porch. They sit out on the porch and drank.

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Speaker 11: Coffee and I say, hey, I say it is good

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Speaker 11: to come home and be able to sit on his

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Speaker 11: porch and just watch the cars come by, and so

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Speaker 11: you can think you see and they do.

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Speaker 2: If Leo comes here to transition from his life in prison,

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Speaker 2: he'll likely share a room with a few guys and

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Speaker 2: sleep in a bunk bed. He'll need to find a

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Speaker 2: job and pay one hundred dollars a week, which covers

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Speaker 2: room and board as well as his meals, but he'll

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Speaker 2: also be able to do longer visits with Chrissy Ashley

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Speaker 2: and his two grandsons.

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Speaker 7: Obviously, if you got released through a halfway house, it

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Speaker 7: would be a certain amount of freedom, but you know

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Speaker 7: you haven't been exonerated, and do you still think about

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Speaker 7: that when when you're thinking abound.

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Speaker 2: Parole as well.

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Speaker 8: Yes, absolutely, parole is just a means of getting home

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Speaker 8: and being able to interact more with my family less

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Speaker 8: you know, strict and the ability to work really is

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Speaker 8: what's really hopeful for me. I appreciate the oversight because

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Speaker 8: there'll be people will say, hey, no, you can't do

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Speaker 8: this here, you can't do that here, or you should

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Speaker 8: do this, you should do that, And I welcome that

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Speaker 8: kind of thing because I haven't been out there in

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Speaker 8: a long, long time. The last thing I want to

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Speaker 8: do is violate parole because I was standing on a

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Speaker 8: sidewalk that you made a law that says you can't

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Speaker 8: stand in this spot anymore.

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Speaker 9: And I have no idea, but all of this is

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Speaker 9: a big if.

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Speaker 2: For Leo to get out of prison and into a

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Speaker 2: re entry program like Noah's House, he'll need the Florida

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Speaker 2: Commission on a Fender Review to grant him parole, something

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Speaker 2: they've denied him in his last three attempts. The stakes

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Speaker 2: for Leo and his family have never been higher. If

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Speaker 2: parole is denied yet again in Tallahassee on May third,

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Speaker 2: it will likely be years before Leo gets another chance

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Speaker 2: at freedom. This is a special bonus episode of Bone Valley.

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Speaker 4: All right, you're read ready?

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Speaker 12: Ye?

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Speaker 2: Last month I flew down to Florida to join Scott

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Speaker 2: cup for some meetings he'd scheduled in the state capital

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Speaker 2: of Tallahassee.

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Speaker 12: Turn right onto West.

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Speaker 2: Miss Street, Internet, Pama John's Pizza.

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Speaker 9: It has been so long since I've worn this the coat.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Scott's wearing a suit, a suit that has been

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Speaker 2: tucked in the back of his closet for a while

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Speaker 2: once he became a judge. The jackets that were a

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Speaker 2: staple of Scott's career as a prosecutor and defense attorney

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Speaker 2: got switched out for a black robe.

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Speaker 9: How many robes do you have one? It's retired, dry cleaned,

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Speaker 9: and cut away.

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Speaker 2: Now it's the robe that's been pushed to the back

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Speaker 2: of the closet because about a week before I met

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Speaker 2: him in Tallahassee, Scott Cupp resigned from the bench to

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Speaker 2: represent Leo Schofield to do everything in his power to

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Speaker 2: get Leo out of prison, and he's committed to fulfilling

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Speaker 2: that promise. Scott's been speaking to people in positions of

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Speaker 2: power in Florida who are sympathetic to the injustice of

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Speaker 2: Leo Schofield's case. The goal in Scott's meetings is always

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Speaker 2: the same, liberation then exoneration, and that first step liberation

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Speaker 2: is most likely going to come through parole.

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Speaker 9: Because I've said all along that if they take it

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Speaker 9: upon themselves to read the Trout transcript, you have to

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Speaker 9: walk away with the overwhelming belief that Leo's innocent. So

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Speaker 9: I guess it's not that big of a logical leap

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Speaker 9: that if he's innocent, Yeah, he needs to be paroled

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Speaker 9: at a minimum, and then we can get to the

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Speaker 9: next step.

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Speaker 2: The first meeting Scott lined up was with a newly

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Speaker 2: elected state senator from Lee County, Florida, Senator Jonathan Martin.

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Speaker 3: And where did you meet, Jonathan?

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Speaker 2: By the way, was that was that prosecutor.

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Speaker 9: I'm gonna have to ask him. I don't know if

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Speaker 9: we met.

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Speaker 2: The former judge persuaded Senator Martin to listen to Bone Valley,

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Speaker 2: which he did on his long drives to and from Tallahassee.

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Speaker 9: He actually said that this guy shouldn't just be parole,

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Speaker 9: he should be exonerated. Oh man, He's said to keep

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Speaker 9: him in the loop. It's gonna help bal He can.

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Speaker 2: Nin probably a five minute walk.

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Speaker 6: Oh you kinda know where you're going. First.

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Speaker 2: Kelsey came down too, But since some of the meetings

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Speaker 2: Scott is bringing me along to her sensitive we knew

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Speaker 2: we weren't going to be able to record like this

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Speaker 2: meeting with Senator Martin. We're just hoping he'll give us

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Speaker 2: some insight into the Tallahassee political landscape so Scott can

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Speaker 2: form a legal strategy going into Leo's upcoming parole hearing.

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Speaker 13: If Leo is.

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Speaker 2: Granted parole, he will be released from prison after serving

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Speaker 2: a decade longer than his minimum sentence of twenty five years.

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Speaker 2: Getting paroled is no guarantee, though, and Leo's next parole

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Speaker 2: hearing is coming up.

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Speaker 5: Quick Bone Valley is sponsored by Stand Together. Stand Together

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Speaker 5: is a philanthropic.

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Speaker 2: Community that partners with America's boldest change makers to tackle

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Speaker 2: the root causes of our country's biggest problems, including the

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Speaker 2: failed War on drugs that has criminalized addiction, fueled over incarceration,

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Speaker 2: and shattered communities. At eleven years old, Scott Strode drank

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Speaker 2: his first beer. At fifteen, Scott went to a mental

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Speaker 2: health facility because of suicidal thoughts where he tried cocaine.

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Speaker 2: Like many others who experience addiction, Scott was using drugs

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Speaker 2: and alcohol to numb the pain he was trying to

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Speaker 2: numb childhood trauma. In his early twenties, Scott was invited

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Speaker 2: into a boxing gym by a friend. That's where he

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Speaker 2: discovered the healing power of sport and community that helped

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Speaker 2: propel him towards sobriety. In two thousand and six, Scott

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Speaker 2: founded The Phoenix, a free, sober active community that uses

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Speaker 2: the transformative power of sport to help people treat and

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Speaker 2: heal from addiction and imagine new possibilities for their lives

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Speaker 2: through fitness. The program restores compassion to a system that

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Speaker 2: has long relied on locking people up to solve.

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Speaker 5: The addiction crisis. Scott Strode is one of many entrepreneurs

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Speaker 5: partnering with Stand Together to drive solutions in education, healthcare, poverty,

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Speaker 5: and criminal justice. To learn more about addiction and the

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Speaker 5: War on Drugs, listen to the War on Drugs podcast

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Speaker 5: on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Speaker 12: Okay, I just got word that Gilbert and Scott are

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Speaker 12: done with their meeting I am about to drive over

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Speaker 12: and pick them up, and they're gonna tell me how

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Speaker 12: it went. Okay, let it go.

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Speaker 2: It was interesting.

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Speaker 7: He's a really friendly guy, and he's just you could

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Speaker 7: tell he was concerned about this, Like he did talk about,

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Speaker 7: you know, things happened in the past and they need

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Speaker 7: to be corrected.

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Speaker 2: And I think he just really understands.

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Speaker 9: That he's committed. He gets it. He will be as

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Speaker 9: engaged as he needs to be.

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Speaker 12: Ah.

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Speaker 9: Gave us a lot of good insight about what's probably

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Speaker 9: going on with the Parole Commission right now.

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Speaker 2: Senator Martin oversees the Florida Commission on a Fender Review

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Speaker 2: or f Corps. It's a panel of three commissioners, the

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Speaker 2: three people who will be making the decision on Leo's parole.

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Speaker 2: They'll either vote to release him or vote to keep

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Speaker 2: him in prison. Senator Jonathan Martin has had conversations about

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Speaker 2: Leo's case with one of the commissioners.

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Speaker 12: What's what's going on with them?

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Speaker 9: Well, he indicated that the chairwoman, Miss Coonrod, has already

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Speaker 9: listened to the podcast. Ah, and is believe you indicated

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Speaker 9: that she said she read the trial transcript. Yeah, so

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Speaker 9: she knows that that they're going to be hearing a

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Speaker 9: parole case on an innocent man, So what is that type?

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Speaker 8: Wow.

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Speaker 2: Melinda Kuhnrod is the chair of the Parole Commission. She's

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Speaker 2: a former assistant state attorney, a prosecutor from the Second

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Speaker 2: Circuit in Florida's Panhandle. She was appointed to the commission

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Speaker 2: by Governor Rick Scott, the same governor that appointed Scott

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Speaker 2: Cupp to the bench. Even before this meeting with Senator Martin,

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Speaker 2: Scott and I were aware that Commissioner Kunrod had been

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Speaker 2: diving into Leo's case in a much deeper way than

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Speaker 2: the typical parole case that shows up on her docket.

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Speaker 9: I'm still belonging away by the fact she read the

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Speaker 9: transcript that is such a big lift. That's a big

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Speaker 9: ask to get somebody to do that.

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Speaker 2: This is definitely a good sign for Leo. The state

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Speaker 2: often misrepresents the evidence from Leo's case to protect his

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Speaker 2: conviction and to keep him from being granted parole. So

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Speaker 2: anytime a judge or a parole commissioner goes to the

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Speaker 2: primary documents and transcripts instead of the States briefs, it's

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Speaker 2: an advantage for Leo. The questions Commissioner Kunrod asked, were

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Speaker 2: centered on Jeremy Scott, So she's definitely doing her due diligence.

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Speaker 2: But there are two other commissioners who will be voting,

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Speaker 2: and we don't know what they think about Leo's case

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Speaker 2: and his chances for parole.

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Speaker 12: So what else did he say about the other two commissioners?

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Speaker 9: To be honest, he I don't think he knows much

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Speaker 9: about them. I mean, he knows who they are, he

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Speaker 9: doesn't know much about their backgrounds. He's just, you know,

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Speaker 9: kind of getting up to speed with things.

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Speaker 2: We did some of our own research on the other

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Speaker 2: two commissioners, like Richard Davison, who, like Melinda Kunrod, was

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Speaker 2: also a prosecutor. I know for a fact that he

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Speaker 2: read my book Devil in the Grove because he wrote

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Speaker 2: a report for the Attorney General's Office supporting the posthumous

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Speaker 2: pardons for the Groveland Four back in twenty nineteen. And

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Speaker 2: then there's Commissioner David Wyant, who was appointed in twenty sixteen.

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Speaker 2: He had a twenty year career in law enforcement and

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Speaker 2: before retiring in twenty fourteen, he worked his way up

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Speaker 2: to sergeant of detectives at the Bartow Police Department, which

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Speaker 2: is in the heart of Polk County. In this role,

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Speaker 2: he had a long professional relationship with former State Attorney

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Speaker 2: Jerry Hill, the man who argued against Leo's parole back

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Speaker 2: in twenty twenty. This will be Leo's fourth attempt at parole.

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Speaker 2: At each of his past three hearings, a representative from

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Speaker 2: the Tenth Circuit State Attorney's Office has shown up to

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Speaker 2: argue against Leo's release.

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Speaker 14: Commissioners John Aguero on behalf of the State Attorney's Office

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Speaker 14: of the Tenth Circle.

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Speaker 2: At Leo's first parole hearing in twenty twelve, John Aguero,

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Speaker 2: the man with the electric chair tie clip who prosecuted Leo,

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Speaker 2: showed up to argue against Leo's parole.

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Speaker 6: I sought the.

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Speaker 14: Death penalty against Leo's Sofield for a arrendous murder of

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Speaker 14: a young eighteen year old girl in nineteen eighty seven.

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Speaker 14: He was a tremendously violent human being.

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Speaker 15: I think that the commissioners should use every aggravation that

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Speaker 15: is an available legal to keep mister Stokefield prison.

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Speaker 2: In twenty fifteen, it was Victoria Avalon's turn.

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Speaker 16: He has no remorse for what he did. He didn't

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Speaker 16: even help plan Michelle's funeral. These votracks are from our file.

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Speaker 16: They will show you where she was found.

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Speaker 6: I think you should see it.

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Speaker 2: She told the commissioners that she was concerned about Leo's

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Speaker 2: relationship with Chrissy, asking how safe is she really.

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Speaker 16: Really if he is released?

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Speaker 2: The autopsy show then Avalon went into graphic detail about Michelle's.

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Speaker 16: Murder seventeen r. Twenty sixth with wood were d some

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Speaker 16: as much as four and a half inches of d

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Speaker 16: where the defendant plunge at the knife into her over

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Speaker 16: and over and over. The autopsy before it shows that

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Speaker 16: her chest was full of blood, she essentially round flow.

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Speaker 2: In Leo's last hearing in twenty twenty, the one that

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Speaker 2: Kelsey was able to attend, Leo's lawyer, Seth Miller, thought

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Speaker 2: things might be different.

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Speaker 17: I was able to argue on behalf of Leo at

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Speaker 17: his parole hearing, and we were asking for the commissioners

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Speaker 17: to reduce his PPRD by one year to twenty twenty

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Speaker 17: two and send him to Everglades to the Correction Transition Program.

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Speaker 2: PPRD stands for presumptive parole release date. That's the date

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Speaker 2: the commissioners set for an inmates eventual release from prison,

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Speaker 2: as long as no disciplinary infractions get in the way.

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Speaker 2: A decade ago, Leo's PPRD was set for June of

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Speaker 2: twenty twenty three, and it hasn't changed. So in twenty twenty,

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Speaker 2: Seth was hoping to convince commissioners to transfer Leo to Everglades'

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Speaker 2: correctional institution and the lifer's program there. Everglades another prison,

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Speaker 2: but it's an institution with a program that prepares inmates

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Speaker 2: who have been institutionalized for decades to re enter society.

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Speaker 2: The program has a very high success rate, and very

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Speaker 2: few of the program graduates who are released go on

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Speaker 2: to re offend. We've been told that the commissioners rarely

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Speaker 2: parole someone who hasn't been through the program. If Leo

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Speaker 2: had been transferred to Everglades back in twenty twenty, he

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Speaker 2: would likely have been released by the June twenty twenty

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Speaker 2: three date that the commissioners had set. Seth and Leo's wife, Chrissy,

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Speaker 2: met with commissioners the night before the last hearing to

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Speaker 2: discuss Leo's parole possibilities.

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Speaker 4: We met with Davidson, Commissioner Davidson, and he was very

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Speaker 4: willing to ask questions and listen to the plan and

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Speaker 4: our expectations. And I left that meeting and I'm pretty

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Speaker 4: sure that Davidson said that he would be supportive of

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Speaker 4: moving forward. So that night I felt so positive, so positive,

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Speaker 4: like this is it, this is it, We're doing it.

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Speaker 4: We've got this one.

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Speaker 2: The parole hearing was the following day. Everyone there in

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Speaker 2: support of Leo was hopeful because the commissioners were showing

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Speaker 2: signs of being on board, was sending Leo to the

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Speaker 2: Lifer's program at Everglades. His release was now in sight.

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Speaker 17: And I gave a presentation about his high quality model

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Speaker 17: citizen time in prison, all his programs, what he would

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Speaker 17: do if he was paroled, and it went pretty well

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Speaker 17: until Jerry Hill got his ten minutes and provided the

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Speaker 17: parle commission with factually erroneous information about the case and

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Speaker 17: about Leo.

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Speaker 16: Leo said he was driven by an inver, forced to

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Speaker 16: go back to the pit area again.

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Speaker 13: Leo said he felt drown to that area and felt

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Speaker 13: Michelle was calling out.

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Speaker 17: To him, and then gave them a folder and no

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Speaker 17: one could see what was in it, but we believe

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Speaker 17: that it was autopsy photos of the victim, which is

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Speaker 17: both inappropriate because they're only allowed to consider new information

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Speaker 17: from the last hearing, but also incredibly incendiary, and we

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Speaker 17: had no ability because we got no additional time to

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Speaker 17: rebut anything that he said, there's no.

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Speaker 16: Remorse, there's no sorrow.

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Speaker 10: How do you put a man in a program getting

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Speaker 10: him ready to be released into society when he can't

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Speaker 10: say I'm sorry, when he can't say I do.

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Speaker 18: Do I know this is a subsequent and I'm sorry.

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Speaker 9: I'm so emotional that I.

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Speaker 16: Just feel very strongly that this is a cold, calculating

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Speaker 16: first degree murder.

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Speaker 8: He's a manipulator and he's exactly where we'll be.

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Speaker 12: At that point.

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Speaker 17: The Parle Commissioners, after looking at hearing that presentation from

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Speaker 17: Jerry Hill and looking at what was in that folder,

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Speaker 17: voted to make no change to his prole status, leaving

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Speaker 17: his PPRD at twenty twenty three and leaving him at

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Speaker 17: his current incarcerator facility. Jerry Hill has been part of

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Speaker 17: a group of people who recommends people who are going

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Speaker 17: to be pointed to the pro commission He has a

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Speaker 17: lot of sway with the Parle Commissioners and so when

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Speaker 17: he comes up and he says things, they might change

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Speaker 17: their mind about what they want to do, even if

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Speaker 17: they were going to do something that was favorable to

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Speaker 17: the potential parolie.

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Speaker 2: And Jerry Hill has a strong stance on the parole

396
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Speaker 2: process in Florida, and he's been clear about why he

397
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Speaker 2: still shows up at these hearings. The jobs not finished

398
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Speaker 2: as long as someone's sentenced to life hasn't completed that sentence,

399
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Speaker 2: he once told the press. Not only did Jerry Hill

400
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Speaker 2: mistate the facts of Leo's case, he also didn't read

401
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Speaker 2: a letter from Michelle's brother, Jesse Sam, who requested that

402
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Speaker 2: it be read to the commission. Jesse's letter said that

403
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Speaker 2: he did not have confidence in the conviction of Leo

404
00:24:09,040 --> 00:24:12,879
Speaker 2: Schofield and that as a member of Michelle's family, he

405
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Speaker 2: was supporting Leo's parole.

406
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Speaker 13: I wasn't really sure why the letter was suppressed. There

407
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Speaker 13: wasn't I really didn't feel like a reason to suppress it,

408
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Speaker 13: and I felt like it kind of really didn't work

409
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Speaker 13: in his favor because of it.

410
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Speaker 2: We don't know whether Victoria Avalon or Jerry Hill, or

411
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Speaker 2: another representative from the Tenth Circuit State Attorney's Office will

412
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Speaker 2: show up at Leo's hearing this time, but the tenth

413
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Speaker 2: Circuit State Attorney's office continues to double down in defending

414
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Speaker 2: the conviction of Leo Schofield. The commissioners put a lot

415
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Speaker 2: of weight behind statements from the victim's family when considering

416
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Speaker 2: an inmates parole. So Assistant State Attorney Victoria Avalon recently

417
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Speaker 2: called Jesse Salm.

418
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Speaker 13: I don't know why she reached out to me. She

419
00:25:01,880 --> 00:25:05,639
Speaker 13: just felt like she needed to call me and and

420
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Speaker 13: I guess set the story straight in her mind. It

421
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Speaker 13: just seems like to me that someone who's so dead

422
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Speaker 13: set on the result of the original conviction that there's

423
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Speaker 13: no sense for me to even try to, you know,

424
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Speaker 13: battle that's just going to be a one sided argument.

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Speaker 12: You know.

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Speaker 13: It's just so I just listened to what she said,

427
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Speaker 13: and she talked a lot for about an hour. Yeah,

428
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Speaker 13: So it went into you know, deep detail about things

429
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Speaker 13: about the case and things like that and so and

430
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Speaker 13: you know, and I just listened the whole time.

431
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Speaker 12: So did you find any of the persuadesive?

432
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Speaker 13: Not really. I mean, it seemed to have a lot

433
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Speaker 13: of holes in it. There's a lot of, like I said,

434
00:25:48,040 --> 00:25:51,280
Speaker 13: just missing data, you know, and things that are you

435
00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:53,879
Speaker 13: can almost tell they're kind of fluffed in a way

436
00:25:54,359 --> 00:26:00,359
Speaker 13: to make it seem to tilt against Leo. You know,

437
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Speaker 13: I think honestly, she was probably trying to gather information

438
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Speaker 13: about how I felt about it, but I wasn't really

439
00:26:15,840 --> 00:26:20,199
Speaker 13: interested in sharing with her my opinions, so I just

440
00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:20,880
Speaker 13: listened a lot.

441
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Speaker 7: I mean, what do you think, do you think that

442
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Speaker 7: there'll be this outcome for the next hearing will be

443
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Speaker 7: different this time and just your basic thoughts.

444
00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:36,600
Speaker 13: I think he deserves another chance from a different perspective,

445
00:26:37,080 --> 00:26:42,520
Speaker 13: you know. And uh, I think there's there was a

446
00:26:42,560 --> 00:26:46,960
Speaker 13: lot of missing data that people really didn't talk about.

447
00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:49,720
Speaker 13: I think that your podcast helped shine a light on

448
00:26:49,760 --> 00:26:52,199
Speaker 13: a lot of that stuff that you know, was just

449
00:26:52,240 --> 00:26:53,240
Speaker 13: not talked about.

450
00:27:20,440 --> 00:27:27,840
Speaker 4: This time. I feel I feel like it's not just

451
00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:30,760
Speaker 4: my desperation and that there's an army coming.

452
00:27:32,960 --> 00:27:35,920
Speaker 2: People around the world are now familiar with Leo's case.

453
00:27:37,359 --> 00:27:40,520
Speaker 2: We hear from them every day, people who believe that

454
00:27:40,600 --> 00:27:43,680
Speaker 2: Leo is innocent, who believe that the State of Florida

455
00:27:43,880 --> 00:27:46,439
Speaker 2: has put the wrong man in prison for the murder

456
00:27:46,440 --> 00:27:48,960
Speaker 2: of Michelle Schofield.

457
00:27:49,880 --> 00:27:54,439
Speaker 4: I don't have to feel desperate because it's not just

458
00:27:54,480 --> 00:27:59,359
Speaker 4: my voice, you know. It's like it is it does

459
00:27:59,440 --> 00:28:02,760
Speaker 4: feel like there's huge army. Chrissy. You don't even have

460
00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:06,439
Speaker 4: to say anything. We got you, We feel it, we

461
00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:11,800
Speaker 4: know it. So you just sit back and what That's

462
00:28:11,880 --> 00:28:14,960
Speaker 4: kind of how I feel, which is tremous, such a

463
00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:17,359
Speaker 4: huge relief after.

464
00:28:17,160 --> 00:28:21,000
Speaker 2: Three decades of fighting for justice for her husband. Because

465
00:28:21,040 --> 00:28:24,399
Speaker 2: of her persistence in her cracking Leo's case wide open

466
00:28:24,800 --> 00:28:28,960
Speaker 2: with her discovery of Jeremy Scott's fingerprints at the crime scene,

467
00:28:29,040 --> 00:28:32,600
Speaker 2: Chrissy gets so many letters and phone calls. They're from

468
00:28:32,600 --> 00:28:38,240
Speaker 2: old friends, law students, politicians, members of law enforcement, and

469
00:28:38,360 --> 00:28:41,920
Speaker 2: just ordinary listeners who are moved to contact her to

470
00:28:42,040 --> 00:28:46,080
Speaker 2: show their support and to state their belief in Leo's innocence.

471
00:28:50,280 --> 00:28:54,880
Speaker 4: It was weird, like, you know, for thirty five years,

472
00:28:54,920 --> 00:28:58,600
Speaker 4: I've been carrying this thing and to step back and

473
00:28:58,640 --> 00:29:03,800
Speaker 4: go okay, like to step back it was hard. It

474
00:29:03,880 --> 00:29:06,160
Speaker 4: was like a whole kinds of mixed kind of emotions

475
00:29:06,200 --> 00:29:08,760
Speaker 4: in my head about it. But now I'm like, okay,

476
00:29:09,080 --> 00:29:13,560
Speaker 4: now I'm I'm gonna I'll take it. I'll take it.

477
00:29:16,280 --> 00:29:19,800
Speaker 2: A transfer to Everglades and the Lifer's Program would have

478
00:29:19,840 --> 00:29:23,000
Speaker 2: been a win for Leo in past hearings, but this

479
00:29:23,160 --> 00:29:26,240
Speaker 2: time that decision would feel like more of the same,

480
00:29:27,120 --> 00:29:32,000
Speaker 2: more time passing with Leo still in prison, waiting indefinitely

481
00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:33,200
Speaker 2: to be released.

482
00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:38,840
Speaker 4: We're getting older and older. You know, we don't have

483
00:29:38,840 --> 00:29:41,000
Speaker 4: a whole lot of time left over, you know, like

484
00:29:42,040 --> 00:29:44,000
Speaker 4: you know, I mean really because think about it. He

485
00:29:44,080 --> 00:29:47,640
Speaker 4: if he he'd have to get out, try to get

486
00:29:47,680 --> 00:29:50,840
Speaker 4: some sort of job so that someday he can have

487
00:29:50,880 --> 00:29:54,360
Speaker 4: some security. And older you get, the harder that is

488
00:29:54,400 --> 00:30:02,080
Speaker 4: to you know, do and you know, our kid's grown now,

489
00:30:02,080 --> 00:30:06,040
Speaker 4: we got grandkids. We're just getting older. It's just time, Like,

490
00:30:06,120 --> 00:30:08,080
Speaker 4: what's the point let him go.

491
00:30:09,720 --> 00:30:12,960
Speaker 9: I'm not a parole expert. I don't specialize in parole hearings,

492
00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:18,160
Speaker 9: never did. This is one of those where I probably

493
00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:23,000
Speaker 9: should know more than I do, But part of me

494
00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:26,000
Speaker 9: is like I don't want to get immersed in their

495
00:30:26,040 --> 00:30:29,240
Speaker 9: procedures because I think we're beyond that.

496
00:30:30,960 --> 00:30:33,920
Speaker 2: At this upcoming hearing, it'll be Scott Cupp who will

497
00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:37,640
Speaker 2: advocate on Leo's behalf. He's going to tell the Parole

498
00:30:37,640 --> 00:30:40,920
Speaker 2: Commission that Leo should not spend another day in prison,

499
00:30:41,440 --> 00:30:45,120
Speaker 2: that Leo should be paroled immediately released from the gates

500
00:30:45,160 --> 00:30:48,480
Speaker 2: of Hardy Correctional institution straight to Noah's house.

501
00:30:49,560 --> 00:30:54,120
Speaker 9: Now it's almost on a more you know, human being,

502
00:30:54,640 --> 00:30:57,800
Speaker 9: one person to another person. Okay, what are you going

503
00:30:57,880 --> 00:31:01,040
Speaker 9: to do about it? To get this man out of prison?

504
00:31:01,560 --> 00:31:05,040
Speaker 9: You know, however you want to term it and phrase it.

505
00:31:05,080 --> 00:31:07,480
Speaker 9: And I, you know, think back to when I listened

506
00:31:07,520 --> 00:31:10,200
Speaker 9: when they denied him the last time, and you know,

507
00:31:10,600 --> 00:31:15,880
Speaker 9: citing that this rule and this, you know, based upon

508
00:31:16,240 --> 00:31:19,920
Speaker 9: thirteen A, this, this factor and that factor. It's like,

509
00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:25,440
Speaker 9: screw that, screw that. You know, we're past that. Let's

510
00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:26,800
Speaker 9: just let's just get him out.

511
00:31:28,240 --> 00:31:31,520
Speaker 2: Scott thinks that because of all the attention Leo's case

512
00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:35,200
Speaker 2: has gotten, that this hearing is different and it needs

513
00:31:35,200 --> 00:31:39,040
Speaker 2: a different approach. The commissioners will know ahead of time

514
00:31:39,480 --> 00:31:42,560
Speaker 2: that Leo is standing on a claim of innocence and

515
00:31:42,560 --> 00:31:44,800
Speaker 2: that he has a lot of people standing with him,

516
00:31:45,800 --> 00:31:49,320
Speaker 2: people who now believe what Scott Cup has believed ever

517
00:31:49,360 --> 00:31:52,760
Speaker 2: since he read the trial transcript Chrissy gave him decades ago,

518
00:31:53,640 --> 00:31:57,920
Speaker 2: that Leo Schofield is not just wrongfully convicted, He's an

519
00:31:57,920 --> 00:31:58,560
Speaker 2: innocent man.

520
00:32:00,240 --> 00:32:03,880
Speaker 4: I've already picked out the boots and keeps telling me

521
00:32:03,920 --> 00:32:06,880
Speaker 4: the belty ones and the kind of jeans and the shirt,

522
00:32:07,040 --> 00:32:09,400
Speaker 4: so at least I'll get him enough clothes to get

523
00:32:09,440 --> 00:32:09,800
Speaker 4: them home.

524
00:32:10,440 --> 00:32:12,160
Speaker 12: What does he want? What is he requesting?

525
00:32:12,480 --> 00:32:18,440
Speaker 4: Oh, let's see jeans and then the shirt. It's one

526
00:32:18,480 --> 00:32:21,920
Speaker 4: of those like what are they Henley shirts? You know

527
00:32:21,920 --> 00:32:25,400
Speaker 4: where the push up sleeves like that and a belt

528
00:32:25,440 --> 00:32:31,920
Speaker 4: but not shiny and boots. The ones that picked out

529
00:32:31,920 --> 00:32:36,120
Speaker 4: are brown with black souls and kind of ankle tops

530
00:32:37,080 --> 00:32:45,840
Speaker 4: and and no white underwear. That's not the list. So

531
00:32:46,640 --> 00:32:51,120
Speaker 4: but yeah, yeah that the clothes has changed because the

532
00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:54,520
Speaker 4: last time I got closed, I got suits, right, But

533
00:32:54,960 --> 00:32:58,560
Speaker 4: no suits this time? No, No, just jeans.

534
00:32:59,080 --> 00:32:59,600
Speaker 7: I like that.

535
00:33:00,440 --> 00:33:01,360
Speaker 12: You're gonna look good.

536
00:33:01,680 --> 00:33:04,240
Speaker 4: Yeah he will, he will look good.

537
00:33:06,120 --> 00:33:09,880
Speaker 2: But Leo, his wife Chrissy, and his daughter Ashley have

538
00:33:10,040 --> 00:33:12,520
Speaker 2: had their hopes crushed by this process before.

539
00:33:13,800 --> 00:33:16,800
Speaker 19: I'm still not like ready to get my hopes up.

540
00:33:18,560 --> 00:33:20,080
Speaker 19: I'm still not there yet.

541
00:33:21,080 --> 00:33:23,920
Speaker 2: Since she was a child, Ashley has seen her father's

542
00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:27,960
Speaker 2: parole get denied time after time. She never did get

543
00:33:27,960 --> 00:33:30,720
Speaker 2: that normal childhood with a dad who could come to

544
00:33:30,760 --> 00:33:34,200
Speaker 2: school plays or take prom pictures in the front yard.

545
00:33:35,000 --> 00:33:38,280
Speaker 2: Now she's twenty two years old with children of her own.

546
00:33:39,320 --> 00:33:42,520
Speaker 19: I'm still holding on to that child. You know that

547
00:33:42,560 --> 00:33:46,360
Speaker 19: and her child because you know, I'm waiting for that

548
00:33:46,520 --> 00:33:49,280
Speaker 19: dad and to be able to do things. So I

549
00:33:49,640 --> 00:33:54,800
Speaker 19: don't know, it's very yeah, very weird, and I don't

550
00:33:54,800 --> 00:33:57,880
Speaker 19: know if where it's the right word, but but I

551
00:33:57,920 --> 00:34:00,720
Speaker 19: do know, like I'm super super excited because I'm like,

552
00:34:00,840 --> 00:34:04,360
Speaker 19: at least my boys get to experience it. Now I

553
00:34:04,440 --> 00:34:07,080
Speaker 19: might not have, but at least my kids get to

554
00:34:07,160 --> 00:34:10,319
Speaker 19: experience it. So I'm okay with that. I'm okay with that.

555
00:34:11,920 --> 00:34:14,160
Speaker 2: Ashley talks on the phone a lot with her dad,

556
00:34:14,760 --> 00:34:17,120
Speaker 2: and she says that even though Leo doesn't say much

557
00:34:17,120 --> 00:34:20,439
Speaker 2: about his hopes for parole, he's making changes that show

558
00:34:20,480 --> 00:34:23,600
Speaker 2: where his head's at, like stepping down from some of

559
00:34:23,640 --> 00:34:26,919
Speaker 2: the leadership roles at Hardy, passing them on to other

560
00:34:26,960 --> 00:34:30,080
Speaker 2: inmates in the prison just in case he does get out.

561
00:34:31,040 --> 00:34:32,839
Speaker 19: You know, he doesn't really talk about it, but there's

562
00:34:32,880 --> 00:34:34,880
Speaker 19: some things that he does that shows there's hope and

563
00:34:34,920 --> 00:34:37,640
Speaker 19: that's one of them, you know, him passing down the

564
00:34:37,680 --> 00:34:41,919
Speaker 19: torch to someone else's that's huge, especially knowing how much

565
00:34:42,120 --> 00:34:45,439
Speaker 19: those men mean to him. I'm just kind of taking

566
00:34:45,480 --> 00:34:47,920
Speaker 19: everything as they go. I don't want to get hopeful.

567
00:34:47,960 --> 00:34:50,160
Speaker 19: I don't want to say this is what I want,

568
00:34:50,200 --> 00:34:52,880
Speaker 19: and then it doesn't happen and it's something else. And

569
00:34:53,560 --> 00:34:56,040
Speaker 19: obviously we all know he needs to come home. We

570
00:34:56,080 --> 00:34:56,640
Speaker 19: all know that.

571
00:34:58,320 --> 00:35:01,600
Speaker 2: And aside from his wife, his and his two grandsons,

572
00:35:02,080 --> 00:35:05,879
Speaker 2: there's something else waiting for Leo at home. Christy keeps

573
00:35:05,880 --> 00:35:06,600
Speaker 2: it in the garage.

574
00:35:07,480 --> 00:35:11,800
Speaker 6: WHOA, this is pretty I don't know anything about motorcycles.

575
00:35:12,000 --> 00:35:12,880
Speaker 6: What is it?

576
00:35:13,680 --> 00:35:18,840
Speaker 4: Oh yeah, it's a Harley.

577
00:35:17,680 --> 00:35:44,520
Speaker 6: M Okay ready, I feel like this is the feeling

578
00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:49,799
Speaker 6: of freedom in a little vehicle. I don't know, this

579
00:35:49,880 --> 00:35:50,400
Speaker 6: is crazy.

580
00:35:50,640 --> 00:35:57,720
Speaker 2: Yeah, we've heard that there are guards and prison administrators

581
00:35:57,920 --> 00:36:00,440
Speaker 2: who are jockeying to be at Leo's side on the

582
00:36:00,520 --> 00:36:03,640
Speaker 2: day of his release, walking him through the prison doors

583
00:36:03,640 --> 00:36:08,400
Speaker 2: at Hardy to his long awaited freedom. Maybe that white

584
00:36:08,440 --> 00:36:11,319
Speaker 2: Harley will be there waiting for him, and he'll ride

585
00:36:11,360 --> 00:36:15,360
Speaker 2: west towards the sun, roaring down the open roads of

586
00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:27,160
Speaker 2: Bone Valley. We don't know what's going to happen on

587
00:36:27,239 --> 00:36:30,800
Speaker 2: May third and Tallahassee, but we're going to be there

588
00:36:31,040 --> 00:36:36,320
Speaker 2: right alongside Chrissy Ashley, Scott cup Seth Miller, and many

589
00:36:36,360 --> 00:36:39,880
Speaker 2: of Leo's friends and supporters who are hopeful that this

590
00:36:40,000 --> 00:36:43,760
Speaker 2: is the day that finally ends Leo's wrongful incarceration.

591
00:36:46,760 --> 00:36:51,400
Speaker 4: So I'm hoping this time the voices are heard loud

592
00:36:51,480 --> 00:36:59,160
Speaker 4: and clear, you know, foot stomping loud. You know, enough's enough.

593
00:37:00,960 --> 00:37:04,440
Speaker 4: I know the door opens out. I've seen it. Know

594
00:37:04,520 --> 00:37:09,440
Speaker 4: that I actually have seen people walk out of prison,

595
00:37:09,640 --> 00:37:12,320
Speaker 4: So I know that it's possible that door does open

596
00:37:12,360 --> 00:37:16,080
Speaker 4: that way. It's not just an end. That door does

597
00:37:16,120 --> 00:37:20,600
Speaker 4: open out. Sometimes during the visitation, you know, you'll see

598
00:37:20,640 --> 00:37:23,320
Speaker 4: guys get out, their families waiting for them, and everybody

599
00:37:23,320 --> 00:37:26,600
Speaker 4: collapse and stuff, and some way some visitors get sad,

600
00:37:26,960 --> 00:37:28,840
Speaker 4: like they shouldn't do that in front of us because

601
00:37:28,920 --> 00:37:32,000
Speaker 4: we make them sad. I'm like, oh, no, that door

602
00:37:32,120 --> 00:37:34,799
Speaker 4: does open that way. It does.

603
00:37:46,400 --> 00:37:49,400
Speaker 2: Leo's parole hearing will be open to the public. It

604
00:37:49,440 --> 00:37:52,719
Speaker 2: will be held on May third in Tallahassee, Florida, at

605
00:37:52,719 --> 00:37:56,239
Speaker 2: the Office for the Commission on a Fender Review. You

606
00:37:56,239 --> 00:38:08,120
Speaker 2: can check our show notes and social media for further details.

607
00:38:10,600 --> 00:38:14,520
Speaker 18: Letter dated February twentieth, twenty twenty three, to the Florida

608
00:38:14,560 --> 00:38:16,720
Speaker 18: Commission on a Fender Review, Dear.

609
00:38:16,560 --> 00:38:20,080
Speaker 20: Commissioners, Dear honorable members of the Parole Board.

610
00:38:20,520 --> 00:38:24,000
Speaker 18: I'm writing in support of the immediate parole of Leo Schofield.

611
00:38:24,160 --> 00:38:26,560
Speaker 20: I would like to extend my support for parole for

612
00:38:26,680 --> 00:38:27,680
Speaker 20: Leo Schofield.

613
00:38:27,800 --> 00:38:30,760
Speaker 21: I am writing on behalf of Leo Scholfield.

614
00:38:31,040 --> 00:38:34,760
Speaker 20: Once again, I am writing in regards to Leo Robert

615
00:38:34,840 --> 00:38:36,160
Speaker 20: Schofield Junior.

616
00:38:36,719 --> 00:38:38,520
Speaker 18: I truly believe this man is innocent.

617
00:38:38,840 --> 00:38:41,640
Speaker 20: The hardest part is that my brother Leo has been

618
00:38:41,680 --> 00:38:45,360
Speaker 20: wrongfully imprisoned for over three decades.

619
00:38:45,880 --> 00:38:49,440
Speaker 21: He has a devoted husband, father, and grandfather.

620
00:38:49,960 --> 00:38:52,840
Speaker 5: I have followed the progression of his journey, and I

621
00:38:52,880 --> 00:38:55,680
Speaker 5: have shared the highs and lows with him and his family.

622
00:38:56,080 --> 00:39:03,400
Speaker 20: He's almost fifty seven now and has survived, arrived, learned, worked, reached, mentored,

623
00:39:03,480 --> 00:39:05,200
Speaker 20: and performed his way through it all.

624
00:39:05,719 --> 00:39:09,840
Speaker 21: I truly cannot imagine a better person to be granted parole.

625
00:39:10,200 --> 00:39:12,840
Speaker 20: If you truly knew the man he was is and

626
00:39:13,040 --> 00:39:16,120
Speaker 20: has become, you would be doing your very best to

627
00:39:16,200 --> 00:39:16,960
Speaker 20: set him free.

628
00:39:17,320 --> 00:39:20,640
Speaker 21: But it is up to you to allow him to

629
00:39:20,719 --> 00:39:23,840
Speaker 21: be able to serve outside the walls of a prison.

630
00:39:24,200 --> 00:39:27,960
Speaker 18: I am willing to offer mister Schofield ongoing support after

631
00:39:28,000 --> 00:39:28,600
Speaker 18: his release.

632
00:39:29,000 --> 00:39:31,160
Speaker 20: There are so many of us out here wanting to

633
00:39:31,200 --> 00:39:34,640
Speaker 20: take extra special care of him, especially me.

634
00:39:35,400 --> 00:39:38,400
Speaker 21: I thank you for your consideration and ask that you

635
00:39:38,520 --> 00:39:42,120
Speaker 21: grant him his freedom.

636
00:39:42,239 --> 00:39:46,040
Speaker 8: Dear Commissioners, let me begin by expressing my gratitude for

637
00:39:46,160 --> 00:39:48,920
Speaker 8: being able to present myself for you for the purpose

638
00:39:48,960 --> 00:39:53,319
Speaker 8: of being considered for parole. When June of this year arrives,

639
00:39:53,680 --> 00:39:57,279
Speaker 8: I will have been incarcerated for thirty five years. I

640
00:39:57,400 --> 00:40:00,960
Speaker 8: understand that parole is not based upon guilter. Since having

641
00:40:01,000 --> 00:40:04,160
Speaker 8: shared that I must stay once again for the record

642
00:40:04,200 --> 00:40:06,720
Speaker 8: that I am, in fact completely innocent of the crime

643
00:40:06,760 --> 00:40:09,880
Speaker 8: I am charged with leads understand that I am not

644
00:40:09,920 --> 00:40:13,040
Speaker 8: stating this back to Americans. The only reason I am

645
00:40:13,080 --> 00:40:16,279
Speaker 8: emphatically stating my position here is because I cannot make

646
00:40:16,280 --> 00:40:18,520
Speaker 8: a state for the remorse for this crime, as the

647
00:40:18,560 --> 00:40:21,759
Speaker 8: state has highlighted in my last appearance before you in

648
00:40:21,800 --> 00:40:26,160
Speaker 8: twenty nineteen. This is a very difficult position to assume.

649
00:40:26,239 --> 00:40:28,279
Speaker 8: As I do know that you rightly look for the

650
00:40:28,280 --> 00:40:31,920
Speaker 8: remorse in the potential paroli. I ask only that you

651
00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:34,280
Speaker 8: consider the fact that I have stood on my innocence

652
00:40:34,280 --> 00:40:36,400
Speaker 8: in the face of plea agreements that would have allowed

653
00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:39,720
Speaker 8: me to go home many years ago without parole of probation.

654
00:40:40,280 --> 00:40:42,360
Speaker 8: A back to the record that is known in the state.

655
00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:46,440
Speaker 8: No inmate that knows he or she is guilty of

656
00:40:46,480 --> 00:40:49,960
Speaker 8: a heinous crime, fakes into debt penalty, turns down a

657
00:40:50,000 --> 00:40:52,520
Speaker 8: plea agreement that would have allowed freedom in less than

658
00:40:52,520 --> 00:40:57,120
Speaker 8: four years, and instead stays in prison for over three decades,

659
00:40:57,160 --> 00:40:59,279
Speaker 8: holding to a claim of innocence he or she does

660
00:40:59,320 --> 00:41:02,359
Speaker 8: not actually is that in the hopes of one day

661
00:41:02,360 --> 00:41:05,400
Speaker 8: convincing a permission that does not operate, guilty of innocence

662
00:41:05,480 --> 00:41:09,799
Speaker 8: to let them go based upon that bony innocence that

663
00:41:09,880 --> 00:41:13,719
Speaker 8: simply does not make sense. The only right conclusion that

664
00:41:13,760 --> 00:41:16,000
Speaker 8: can be arrived at with my situation is that I'm

665
00:41:16,080 --> 00:41:19,840
Speaker 8: forced to maintain my innocence simply because I am actually

666
00:41:20,239 --> 00:41:24,720
Speaker 8: factually innocent. I may not be able to share remorse

667
00:41:24,760 --> 00:41:26,960
Speaker 8: for a con I did not commit, but I can

668
00:41:27,000 --> 00:41:29,920
Speaker 8: wholeheartedly promise you that if you will take a chance

669
00:41:29,960 --> 00:41:32,520
Speaker 8: on me and grant me p ule, your grace will

670
00:41:32,600 --> 00:41:35,799
Speaker 8: never come back to you an embarrassment or write. I

671
00:41:35,920 --> 00:41:39,680
Speaker 8: pray that counts to something. I also make this promise

672
00:41:39,719 --> 00:41:41,759
Speaker 8: to you that by the end of this year, you

673
00:41:41,800 --> 00:41:44,040
Speaker 8: will be proud of me as a parole. I am

674
00:41:44,040 --> 00:41:46,880
Speaker 8: wholeheartedly hoping that you will take advantage of my talents

675
00:41:46,920 --> 00:41:49,640
Speaker 8: and abilities and use them within the prison system to

676
00:41:49,719 --> 00:41:52,840
Speaker 8: help other inmates whom you may be considering a parole

677
00:41:52,840 --> 00:41:56,400
Speaker 8: in the future. The fact is many of the friends

678
00:41:56,400 --> 00:41:58,480
Speaker 8: I've met here are like family to me, and I

679
00:41:58,480 --> 00:42:01,160
Speaker 8: wish to stay involved in theli to continue guiding them

680
00:42:01,200 --> 00:42:04,160
Speaker 8: under my path. I can travel wherever you need me

681
00:42:04,200 --> 00:42:07,040
Speaker 8: to go on demand. I honestly look forward to working

682
00:42:07,080 --> 00:42:09,720
Speaker 8: for and with you in this endeavor, and of course

683
00:42:09,840 --> 00:42:12,560
Speaker 8: your impact in my life is most needed and appreciated.

684
00:42:13,200 --> 00:42:17,320
Speaker 8: Thank you for your time for consideration. THEO, Robert Schofield, Junior,