09 May Project 6 Client Released on Parole!

Hosea did not know what to expect when he applied to Project 6 in early 2022. He had been incarcerated for 25 years and had an exemplary prison record. Despite this, he had been denied parole several times. To add to his frustration, he had no explanation from the Maryland Parole Commission (MPC) as to why he was continuously being denied parole. Hosea had given up hope; he wasn’t having any success facing the MPC by himself and he did not have the money to pay for an attorney. At a friend’s suggestion, Hosea sent in an application and hoped Project 6 would turn his luck around.

While Project 6 matches many cases with pro bono counsel from local law firms, we took on Hosea’s case on inhouse. The effort was spearheaded by Project 6’s Operations Director, Linden Goff. She was assisted by Monika Scherer and William Jacobs-Perez, two talented students at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law.

Project 6 believes that every person has a story, and we worked closely with Hosea to tell his story in a way that would resonate with the MPC. The team submitted a 100-page parole portfolio which detailed Hosea’s impressive record of rehabilitation and demonstrated his sincere remorse. When Hosea saw the final portfolio, he could not believe it. The quality of the work produced by Project 6 and the level of care and effort put in by the team far surpassed his expectations.

Project 6’s work did not end there. The team thoroughly prepared Hosea for his parole hearing by conducting several practice sessions. This filled Hosea with confidence and helped him feel ready to sell himself as an excellent candidate for parole.

Hosea went up in front of the MPC in December of 2022. Despite being completely prepared, Hosea did not answer a single question during the hearing. This is because the MPC had already decided to grant Hosea parole based entirely on the parole portfolio submitted by Project 6. Hosea heard the words from the MPC that he had been longing to hear all these years “it’s time for you to go home.”

When the written decision by the MPC came through, Hosea discovered that it specifically cited Project 6’s “extremely impressive” parole portfolio as a key reason behind their decision to release him. This type of praise is very rare and speaks to the quality of Project 6’s work. Hosea was not surprised by this commendation at all, he had long believed that his trust in Project 6 would pay off.

Now home, Hosea is enjoying spending time with his large family and his fiancée, Tia. He is ready to make the most out of his second chance and Project 6 could not be happier to welcome him home!