WHO I AM
My name is Louis Scott. I grew up in Southern, California in a household burdened with domestic violence, sexual abuse and criminal behavior. What most people would consider unsafe living conditions became a way of life for me.
When I was seven years old, I saw my father kill a man in front of me. My mother was engaged in prostitution. Murder, prostitution and crime were more normal to me than Tonka trucks and video games. Without true guidance, I made a series of bad decisions that led me to becoming a pimp. It was a period of my life that I regret tremendously. As a result of my actions, I was prosecuted and sentenced to 229 years-to-life for a high profile pimping and pandering case and other related offenses.
I take full responsibility for the crimes that I committed and the people that I hurt. The truth is that I am guilty of some of the charges, but I am not guilty of all of them. The public defender, who was appointed to take my case, failed to represent me in an adequate and professional way. On appeal, my sentence was reduced from 229 years-to-life to 199 years-to-life. But with 199 years-to-life, I have been sentenced to die in prison.
I am now trying to raise money to hire a post-conviction lawyer who can ask the court to correct the original mistakes in my trial. All I want is an opportunity to prove to the parole board, the state and society at large, that I am a changed man and that I do not deserve to spend the rest of my life behind bars. All I want is to serve my fair sentence and return to society, to hold my grandkids, wake up next to my wife and help keep people from making the mistakes I did.
HOW I HAVE CHANGED
I have been incarcerated for 19 years. I am not the same person I was when I was convicted. By participating in programs in prison and sitting with the guilt of what I did, I have grown and matured. Through Restorative Justice, I gained insight into why I committed the crimes I did. I see how my upbringing, my lack of education and my desire to feel like I belonged to something (even if it was not a good thing) led me to engage in criminal behavior. I also learned how to cope with difficult emotions, not react to them. Now I facilitate Restorative Justice circles and lead a large group of 80+ men who are trying to better themselves. I also learned how to be a journalist, reporting on important stories from behind bars.
But most of all, I learned a great deal about myself, the impact my actions had upon my family, the victims in my case and the community. Even though no one was killed as a result of my actions, people were hurt and they will have to live with those memories. My children grew up without a dad. I learned how my own daughters were gravitating towards individuals who emulated the lifestyle I once embraced; from afar, I have tried to educate them, help them turn away from anything that could threaten or harm them.
Because of the harm I caused as a pimp, I am committed to doing my best to fight for an end to sex trafficking. I know the lifestyle of individuals involved in this type of behavior and I can offer at-risk individuals unique insight into how to change in positive ways. I work with other men incarcerated here at San Quentin to educate the public on preventing sex trafficking in our communities through forums. I support the efforts of outside organizations that help victims of sex trafficking and advocate for an end to the practice of using people for money. I made the video depicted on this campaign so that people would take action to prevent and stop sex trafficking.
I truly believe that I can better serve humanity and those I have victimized by being a productive citizen of society and doing everything humanly possible to put an end to sex trafficking. Join me in this fight.
WHY I NEED YOUR HELP
I do not have the money to hire a private attorney. I have tried many times to challenge aspects of my conviction in court but to no avail. Without the help of a professional attorney, I will not have a chance of ever getting out. All of your donations will go toward my legal representation.
At a time when there are more people behind bars than ever before, when taxpayers pay $60k per year to keep a single person behind bars, it can be hard to figure out how to make a difference. This is your chance to change one person's life and to begin untangling some of the deeper problems in our society: mass incarceration, sex trafficking, a legal system that treats poor people worse than those with money.
With your help, I might one day regain my freedom!
MORE OF MY INVOLVEMENT AT SAN QUENTIN
Restorative Justice Facilitator - Lead restorative justice sessions that help hundreds of inmates understand the impact of their crimes on their victims, victim's families, their families and their communities.
S.T.E.P. Project Sex Trafficking Exploitation Prevention Co-Founder/Facilitator - Work with various non-profits to educate the public about sex trafficking, provide resources and treatment to survivors who have been trafficked, and continue advocating for the end of sex trafficking.
Patten College Student - San Quentin Extension - Prison University Project - I am in my third semester of English.
Society of Professional Journalist Co-Chairman - Honored to be a one of the first incarcerated men, of any prison, to become a member. Developed a natural capacity for reporting stories and learned the skills for how to be a journalist at San Quentin Radio. Several of my stories have aired on 91.7FM KALW in San Francisco. KALW has partnered with the producers at San Quentin Radio to bring us the San Quentin Prison Report, a series of stories that focus on the experiences of the men, written and produced by those living inside the prison's walls.
LISTEN TO MY STORIES AND OTHER WORK HERE:
