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Unconstitutional Life
By Brian Bassett“I sentence you to three consecutive terms of life without parole. This court is adjourned.” The crack of the judge’s gavel fades away along with the memory. This was the second time in...
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Thanks and Giving
Another holiday season is upon us, with many things to be thankful for and to celebrate!Minutes Before Six has been able to present to you fifty-two new essays and countless new poems and works of art...
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Roo Does Her Duty
By Burl N. Corbett"How long has she been in labor?" Sean asked his worried neighbor."Even since her water broke yesterday afternoon," Barbara replied, tenderly stroking the hapless goat. With feverish...
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Man Down: A prisoner’s struggle for survival in the Bureau of Prisons’...
By Edgar “G.BAM Shango” PittsTwelve hundred beds needed to be filled at the United States Penitentiary in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. That was the problem prison officials faced when they decided to turn...
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Hell's Kitchen Cooking School II: Right in the Oven
By Chris DankovichTo read Part One click hereThe slightly soapy smell of baking bread wafts up above the stovetop. Here it intertwines with a cacophony of scents and smells, sweet and savory. One man...
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The Train
By Milo Rose aka One EagleIn the Spring of 1957, I was being raised as a free roaming seven-year-old child. My mother would encourage me to go outside and play and I'd be off without hesitation, as...
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Months Before Six - Part Four
By Billy TracyTo read Part Three click hereLarry Swearingen: August 21st, 2019“In the end, everything is a gag.” – Charlie ChaplinLarry:“Billy, think you can write a farewell for me like you did for...
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Prison Teleprompter
By Isaac SweetPart OneI'm passionate about criminal justice reform, more specifically, sentencing and prison reform. I've been in this fight for a long time. I wrote my first letter in 2009, advocating...
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The Bitter Truth
By Rigoberto SanchezEdwin Lima did not have to die - that’s the bitter truth.The prosecution alleged at my trial for Lima’s death, that I pulled the trigger because he was engaged in an affair with my...
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Things That Bear Mentioning
Things That Bear Mentioning, 2019A February snowstorm exceeds all expectations, dropping more than two feet over a couple days, breaking records and the hearts of the population here. The yard is...
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Death Watch
By Patrick MurphyThursday, March 28th 2019, the day that the State of Texas had planned to eradicate me from existence. As they had my four co-defendants who were part of the Texas 7. Only Randy...
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I Am Not Okay
By Sabir Shabazz aka ElohimYesterday I participated in a much-needed decompression with a psychologist. When I returned to the cell, a question that occurred to me was whether psych staff ever move...
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Sistas of the Struggle
By Rhonshawn JacksonI want to take this opportunity to give a 21 Gun Salute! to all of the women around the world that take time out to support the incarcerated men on this planet by writing us...
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Thomas Whitaker (Granted Clemency February 22nd, 2018)
Two years ago this week, Thomas Whitaker was granted clemency. To mark this significant occasion, it was our plan to share a new essay written by Thomas. However, unfortunately, that plan went...
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Confusion and Control
By Richard Sean GrossAn account of the move from SCI Graterford to SCI Phoenix in the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. For several years leading up to the move, Graterford was awash in rumors...
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Death Row
By Anthony EhlersIn this essay, I am going to talk about death row and the death penalty; a recent talk in a class about such brought up a lot of old memories and feelings for me…Death row is torture!...
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Solitary in Texas
by Thomas McLaughlin Allow me the opportunity to introduce myself, I am your personal artist. I hope to accurately paint the picture for you on the daily and yearly experiences from a Texas Prison. I...
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Perspective
By Shilo Watts Prison has a unique and haunting way of putting things into perspective. Doing time slows down your present but, oddly enough, speeds up your past. One has a lot of time to sit and...
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Time Passages
Call WaitingBy Kyla ZiegenhagenWhen I first got locked up my son was barely six and my daughter, three. Being away from them was the worst feeling I've ever experienced, the worst kind of heart ache,...
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Trial and Errors
By Billy TracyI am not a saint unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying – Nelson MandelaThe experience of my capital murder (death penalty) trial starts off a little differently than...
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