Samuel Gibson, homeless school janitor sentenced to life because he accepted ride with burglars
Gibson strongly maintains that he is innocent of the accused crime
Gibson was walking to get breakfast for his aunt when burglars gave him a ride to the store. Police subsequently stopped the car and all in the car were arrested. Gibson was homeless at the time.
Gibson who worked as a high school janitor, was sentenced to life without parole under Florida’s habitual offender law because of prior convictions for burglaries and grand thefts that he committed at age 17 and an armed robbery that he committed when he was 19.
Gibson now sings in prison programs and writes music.
Read full story at ACLU Special Report. A Living Death: Life Without Parole for Nonviolent Offenses.
Many of the long serving inmates have no one left to support them. You can help by sharing their stories and asking others to do the same. Sign up to become an advocate for an inmate.
As voters, citizens, taxpayers and bystanders, we as a society have inhumanely punished thousands of nonviolent people. Currently Washington DC and 30 states have compensation statutes for wrongfully convicted inmates. Congress’ recommended amount is $63,000 for each year served. On the other hand, overly sentenced victims who in many cases have suffered equally or worse typically receive $20 and a bus ticket if they are fortunate enough to ever be released.
Select the link below to donate directly to Gibson to help him with legal and other expenses. Most of these inhumanely sentenced inmates don't remember the last time they were able to buy personal items or snacks from the commissary. No donation is too small. JPAY is used for state inmates and Western Union for federal.
No Harsh Justice inmate has ever been convicted of a violent crime.
Donate to Gibson's Legal Fund (Select Florida, Inmate ID=093734)
Note: 100% of your donation goes directly into the inmate's prison account.