A Hard Straight Continued . . .

I think the people were victims and at the same time not victims because they were trying to change then they kept doing things they were not supposed to.

I think the people in the documentary will be successful because there is always another chance in life and they have a family to look after.

My experience was getting locked up. It was not cool because you miss your family and then you realize everything you are missing.

To be successful I have to stay out of trouble and stay away from the people I used to chill with and remember where I was and where I could end up. AF
I do not think the people were victims because some didn’t do anything that bad, but they did mad time. Yes, however, they are victims because they kept getting chances and they messed up. AF
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The people will never be successful because they want too much excitement in their lives.

My experiences were shown because I would get out of placement and say I changed, but get locked up again.

If I want to be successful, I have to be more responsible with my behavior. HG
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Yes, the people in the documentary were victims because once you are in the system you stay in it. It’s hard to follow the rules but it’s easy to break them. Some people change when they come home and some don’t and everything depends on the person or where you are from and the people you are around.

Once you are from the streets it’s hard to be successful. It’s hard to come out and that’s not cool for a person to do anywhere. Sometimes your friends are still in gangs and selling drugs and that’s something that’s going to bring you back to jail or death.

I never went through the experiences of the people in the documentary because whenever I did what ever I did it was around younger people and they gave me more chances for me to do in life.

To be successful when I am released, I’ll have to be away from the people that I used to chill with even though it’s not easy, but I have kids to take care of and a new life to go to and follow my dreams. CA
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I don’t think the people in the documentary were victims because they were given a chance and messed it up. Some did more than once. I think they made their own decisions and they are a victim of their own choices.

I think some of the people will be successful, if they think of others and not themselves. Although the recidivism rate is against them, they could easily prove statistics wrong if they are committed to changing their lifestyle.

Yes, I have had experiences like in the documentary, not directly with all of them, but I have gone back to drinking. My main things were getting out and going right back to the same things, just as some of them did.

To be successful when I am released I am going to have to realize that I will not get anywhere if I go to the same thing. I have to want to change and take actions (positive) to work towards a successful life. DW