Leaving Prison: How an Inmate Spent Her First Day Free | A Hidden America with Diane Sawyer PART 5/6

a 53-year-old Woman Betty Brown is leaving prison after 29 years the warden say women age faster in prison am I scared am I afraid absolutely because I've been locked up for such a long time but I'm going to be all right America has an unprecedented number of older women serving long sentences in prison Betty's blood pressure is high she's on seizure medications in for second deegree Murder She was a mentor over the years is for salila Stokes oh always cry be all right let me tell you something the same way that I made it you're going to make it this one prisoner has cost taxpayers more than a million dollars during her incarceration and after all these years Betty is taking with her $50 five boxes of books and a thank you for the warden M chiale Mr Kum it was nice knowing you thank you very much just a few more steps I got to make it I made it this far real air real air Warden Chippendale has newly 90 programs in Maryland makes a difference when they leave I think it makes a huge difference experts say education reduces recidivism by 43% Goucher College offers classes in Maryland but there's a waiting list in addition to the programs Warden rendale says something else is important keeping a woman connected to humanity number one right here their big night the prison version of Dancing With the Stars it's just like in the TV show you know the wave prisoners with good behavior can apply to compete I practice like every day even in my cell this inmate is really nervous she was an older lady than me so I was like oh no I cannot drop this lady so the officer bring the close and look at the transformation before after before after inmates facing decades in prison as rock stars I look at technique I look at synchronization and choreography they dance and the judges who include the assistant Warden and officers vote the prize some small things we might take for granted toothbrush soap the winner is the oldest contestant she's 48 it makes me feel happy instead of being negative all the time and so what is the recidivism rate in Maryland 40.5% in 2012 the latest National rate is 68% and I think it is because we've invested time we've invested money and talent into providing resources for offenders hold up right there but as we said every state has a different philosophy Tennesse believes prisoners should be rigidly controlled in how they walk and dress so the female offender is walking a straight line they have their hands out of their pockets and that's for a safety reason they also have programs in Tennessee about 27 of them and their recidivism rate here the latest published data is from 2007 it's 46% and while I'm there at Tennessee I start talking to a prisoner who's about to be released and then EXC me I'm going have to that she has to be behind a barrier when she talks to you at the door she'll have to be sitting with her feet that's our policy do you have a favorite book here uh I think oh seen I like possible side effects he wrote Running With Scissors I love him good morning later at breakfast Jesse Thomas tells me about her medications pamelar proac tegral for mental health problems one's for depression one's for bipolar and ones for um anxiety and ADHD she's in prison for theft and says she started using drugs as a teenager Jesse also tells me she found a soulmate in prison but her soulmate is in for 25 years I love you I love you it's just a really healthy relationship to live is to suffer to survive is to find meaning in the suffering so on the day she walks out she has $68 three t-shirts a few notes from her girlfriend and even though she's supposed to be given 14 days of medication she says she has nothing a younger sister picks her up their first stop Taco Bell can I have a Cheesy Gordita crun but the sister can only keep her one night Jesse says she wrote halfway houses shelters job centers but two rejected her and the others didn't answer in the car a favorite song still have a choice if we all light up we can scare away the dark starting fresh starting over I see it really overwhelming on her first night free she records a video diary a lot of options and I'm scared to make the bad ones I'm scared to make the wrong ones so I don't want to make any I don't know what to do to distract myself the only thing I've ever really done it's really just get H maybe I'll get some sleep maybe I'll just lay here and think about sleeping experts say the first month out of prison is the most important Jesse says it was 9 days after she walked out she finally got her medication and she's already missed 20 doses she got a job washing dishes but 34 days after her release police charge Jesse with robbing two pharmacies to get money for street drugs tonight Jesse is back in [Music] jail we have been looking into what other Western countries are doing and we discovered they tend to use more fines treatment and support programs for non-violent offenders instead of incarceration and they say it's more effective while here at home Advocates of prison reform say that approach would cost a fraction of what we spend every year on prisons and would be better at preventing crime next there she is visiting hours the families who didn't ask for this serving a sentence to boy when we return

Channel: ABC News

Views: 18,075,598

Keywords: Diane Sawyer, behind bars, interview prisoners, women in prison, Mentally ill prisoners, violence in prison, reality of prison live, Female Prisoners, social life of prisoners, investigation, abc, abcnews, Diane Sawyer special, Diane Sawyer interviews, Diane Sawyer hidden america, Diane Sawyer 20/20, prison life, orange is the new black

Id: UCtSs5UYJ6U

Length: 6min 41sec (401 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 01 2015