by Kenny York, San Quentin State Prison, CA
When I was your age I never thought I would be in prison with a life sentence for murder. I have been in prison for fifteen years now and let me tell you it sucks. It was just going to be a quick robbery, fast and easy, in and out, nobody gets hurt. Just like in the movies I watched or the rap songs I listen to. The attempted robbery quickly turned into a murder though.
This is an example of the inherent risk/danger that is always present when you are committing crimes. Life does not always go as planned. If you agree with me on this (and you should because you are clearly at a point in your life where you are reading my letter to you), then I ask you to also agree with me when I tell you your crimes will also not always go as planned. I am proof of this.
If you are a young drug dealer like I was, I ask you to please stop. You can be killed over fifty dollars or fifty thousand. You can be the reason one of your friends or family members gets killed or you can end up killing someone when they try to rob you.
If you have committed robberies in the past and are thinking about committing them once again, I ask you to please stop. Do not go through with it. If you want to commit a robbery for your first time, for whatever your personal reasons are or beliefs, I am asking you to please stop. Do not go through with it. I can personally tell you it’s not worth it.
You are young, strong, and still have so much more life to still live. You have to stop committing crimes before it is too late for you and end up with a life sentence like me. I’ll tell you again, prison sucks. There is nothing cool or fun about it. Every single person here wants to go home, myself included. Whenever you make a choice, ask yourself these two questions:
“What are the consequences of this choice?”
“Will this choice bring happiness to me and to those who are affected by this choice?”
You can also ask your heart for guidance and be guided by its message of comfort or discomfort. If the choice feels comfortable, go ahead with that choice. If the choice feels uncomfortable, then don’t make that choice. This has really helped me over the years to make the right choice at the right moment. Maybe it can help you as well. Thank you for reading my letter to you. Have a great day, take care.