A Journey of Redemption and Cannabis Advocacy: Q&A with Matthew Nicka

Stephanie Shepard • November 13, 2023

A Journey of Redemption and Cannabis Advocacy: Q&A with Matthew Nicka


Matthew Nicka's journey of growth, incarceration, and reintegration into society after serving a 15-year sentence for a non-violent cannabis offense is both a poignant and eye-opening story. In this exclusive Q&A with Stephanie Shepard, the Director of Advocacy at the Last Prisoner Project (LPP), Matthew sheds light on his background, his arrest, and his experiences before and after incarceration.


Matthew's story highlights the need for reform in the cannabis industry and the criminal justice system. He was a non-violent cannabis offender who found himself sentenced to over 15 years, serving nearly a decade of that sentence. The stark contrast between his life before and during incarceration underscores the impact of institutionalization and the challenges faced by those reentering society.


Despite the hurdles he's faced, Matthew's determination to reintegrate and contribute positively to society is evident. His short and long-term goals, which include education, career growth, and spending time with his family, showcase his commitment to building a simple, fulfilling life.


As the cannabis industry continues to thrive, Matthew's journey serves as a powerful reminder that criminal justice reform and the release of non-violent cannabis prisoners are essential steps toward a more equitable and just future. His experiences also emphasize the importance of organizations like LPP, which work tirelessly to provide support and advocacy for individuals like Matthew who have been affected by cannabis-related convictions.


Through Matthew Nicka's story, we are reminded of the significance of compassion, understanding, and the need for change in the face of a system that has disproportionately impacted the lives of non-violent offenders. His journey of redemption and cannabis advocacy is a compelling call to action for a more just and compassionate world.


Q&A:


Stephanie (LPP): Matthew, tell me a little about yourself, your background, and how you ended up speaking with me today.


Matthew: I am a white, middle-class suburbanite from Tulsa, Oklahoma. I grew up with a drug problem. I was 17 years old when I got sober, around 1987. Shortly after that, I discovered the Grateful Dead. I consider myself a wrestler, a deadhead, a sober alcoholic, and now, a convict. I started following the Grateful Dead, and I have always been a cannabis user, so I started to believe in the things I learned on the Grateful Dead tour. We lived outside of society and believed that a person can do what a person wants to do, and if a person wants to do what society would deem “harm themselves”, it’s their right to do so. I’m seeing people freely using marijuana and not hurting themselves. At some point, I began to sell it.


Stephanie (LPP): Can you tell me about your arrest that resulted in your incarceration?


Matthew: I sold marijuana until 2010 when I was indicted for conspiracy to traffic over 1000 kilos of marijuana. I plead guilty to that, as well as to money laundering. As part of my plea agreement, I would not cooperate. I bucked the system the whole way.


Stephanie (LPP): Sentencing is one of the most difficult aspects of the whole situation. How long was your sentence?


Matthew: I plead guilty to no less than fourteen, no more than nineteen years. My pre-sentence report recommended that I should receive 12 1⁄2 years. The prosecutor wanted to give me 33 years. I couldn't understand why. I’m vehemently opposed to firearms, violence, and hard drug use. It may sound like an oxymoron because marijuana is a drug, but I never saw it that way. I don't agree with the terminology of marijuana as a “drug”, but it doesn't matter what I agree with because the U.S. Government considers it a drug. I was eventually sentenced to 188 months, but it ended up being 203 months because I spent 15 months in a Canadian jail that the BOP didn't count.


Stephanie (LPP): I know my first year of incarceration was unbelievably challenging. How was your first year?


Matthew: That was a rough year. I’m not one of these in-and-out-of-prison guys. It was a tough adjustment period. I’m a non-violent hippie, and I have strived my entire adult life to get away from the person that I once was. Before finding the Grateful Dead, I was a violent guy, I didn't treat people correctly. I had no karmic boundary at that point in my life, but the Grateful Dead community showed me a different way. Growing up in Oklahoma, racism was prevalent. I had gotten that upbringing completely out of my system.


Stephanie (LPP): How much time did you ultimately end up serving and how did you end

up coming home early?


Matthew: I served 9 years, 8 1/2 months of a 188-month sentence. I was released under the Cares Act. A good friend of mine, Erin Cadigan, told me she knew of these people who were helping non-violent cannabis offenders get out of prison. I said, “Well, I’m non-violent!” I turned in the necessary information to Erin and she got back to me saying that LPP couldn't approve me because of a violent charge in my past. I knew the 1992 misdemeanor assault charge was showing up despite it being 29 years prior. I was determined to work on that, and Erin lit a fire under me to get the assault charge expunged. As a byproduct of my trying to qualify myself for assistance from LPP, and by them motivating me to get the charge expunged, I became eligible for the Cares Act. It all happened very fast. March 21st, 5 years before my scheduled release date, I’m home, at my mom's house in Florida. Erin put me in contact with LPP's Co-Founder. After we had that conversation, I received a $5,000.00 reentry grant to re-establish my life. I didn't ask for it. It was crazy, but I told them I didn't want it, to give it to someone who needed it more. They wouldn't take no for an answer and made some good points about why I deserved the help. I used the money in the best way possible; I sought out a therapist. I am institutionalized. Prison changed me. I was a mess and the therapist was a way

to help me reintegrate myself back into society.


Stephanie (LPP): It is unfortunate that something as a minor misdemeanor so long ago was still showing up on your record and hindering your life. People do grow, and you grew into an adult who was adamant about non-violence being a key pillar in your life. Did you feel labeled with your charge?


Matthew: It is very easy to be seen as a violent “drug dealer”, but people have a hard time seeing you as a non-violent dealer. Being a part of what the “kids” call the legacy industry, we chose to sell less for the money and more for our beliefs. I didn't need a firearm. I’d go meet clients at the Starbucks, throw a big duffle bag in their trunk then sit together and have a cup of coffee. I’d probably front it to him and I knew he’d honor the deal. That’s what made the marijuana world different from any other drug sales. No one was being harmed by what I was selling.


Stephanie (LPP): When you speak of being institutionalized, what changes do you see in yourself before and post-incarceration?


Matthew: I have a picture to share with you of me and keyboardist, Merle Saunders. Merle was a good friend of Jerry Garcia and a Black man. I was 28 years old, happy, with dreadlocks and a big smile on my face, hugging Merle. You can see on my face, the effect prison had on me. You look at me, a non-violent drug offender who comes into the system, who’s happy and thinking along the right path, and by the end of it, I look like a monster. I wasn't a monster, but you can see the pain and institutionalization in my face. That picture speaks a thousand words.


Stephanie (LPP): It took you many years to escape the negative thinking patterns that you grew up around, just to end up back around those negative forces in prison. How do you see that impact your life today?


Matthew: I still feel slightly incarcerated. I live in a home with my mother, my father passed away while I was in prison. I don't get out very often, but when I do, it’s sometimes overwhelming. When someone asks me what I want from the store or what I want to order to eat, I have all these options, I just have to have them order for me. I find myself going to Walmart and picking the same products we had on commissary because the decision-making process is too much. I haven't truly been able to enjoy the little things yet. I still have my ankle monitor on for 4 years, but I’ll take the trade.


Stephanie (LPP): It’s mind-boggling that you are free to walk around with nothing preventing you from committing a crime besides a little box on your ankle. How do you reconcile that this is a condition of your release?


Matthew: There are two ways to look at it; one, the system is set up to deter others from breaking the law and for public safety, but also, I employ many people. It takes the staff at the halfway house to monitor my device, the case managers, unit managers... the BOP is a business. I do not want to get on a pity pot, I was caught breaking the law, and I knew there would be consequences, but no one deserves a 17-year prison sentence for selling marijuana. I understand their job is to lock people up and my job was not to get caught, and I got caught. The prosecutor did better at their job than I did at mine in that case.


Stephanie (LPP): Since you’ve been home, can you describe what it’s been like for you to reconnect with your family and friends?


Matthew: I was shell-shocked. One great thing was I was able to go to AA often and re-connect with a lot of my old friends both from my hometown and the Grateful Dead world. I stayed away from everyone while I was going through my stuff because nobody wants those issues. When I got home, a lot of people just showed up to visit me out of nowhere. It was incredible. There are a lot of people who believe in what we’re doing and know that I'm not the monster that the U.S. Government made me out to be. They came and showed me support. Acclimating was hard for me because as I said, I'm very institutionalized. My mom might say “Let’s watch this show together.” and I say “Mom, you know I work out at 1:30, and at 4:30, I run.” I don't eat until after 4:30 count time in prison, so I don't eat until 4:30 now.


Stephanie (LPP): There is much more work to be done in the way of cannabis reform. What is the biggest change you’d like to see?


Matthew: Releasing all cannabis prisoners is the first thing. The time people are being given for non-violent cannabis charges, I don't know how anyone on the planet could think it's justifiable. To throw people in prison for a decade for selling a few pounds or a few hundred pounds of marijuana is ridiculous.


Stephanie: I know you also support the rescheduling of cannabis. Why do you lean that way as opposed to descheduling?


Matthew: I don't necessarily see a descheduling. I see the impact that alcohol with no set schedule has on society. But I can't believe, for the love of God. it's a schedule one. I think it should be a schedule three, and maybe if I can look at it through a different set of glasses, it will be completely descheduled. I'm probably one of the few people who see it this way. Now, maybe my motivation for that is I think it would probably help me legally if it was schedule 3 more than it would be if it was descheduled. Do I believe that marijuana is completely harmless? I've wrestled with this statement. I've wrestled with this for years, and I know that when I was abusive with marijuana as a kid, I was so foggy-headed. What's he say in Platoon? That shit kills your will to want to win? I don't know that I agree with that, but I think at least let us study it and find out what it does. We can't even do that. It's ridiculous.


Stephanie (LPP): Thank you so much for taking the time to share a bit of your journeywith us. What's next for you Matthew? What do your short and long-term goals look like?


Matthew: Up to 92 days, my goals were to get a job, stay out of trouble with the halfway house,and not go back behind the fence. Beyond that, I’d like to finish my studies for my degree, expand my career choices, continue going to AA, not using, and spend as much time with my family as possible. I just want to keep my life simple.


Stephanie (LPP): I am so happy you are home and taking the steps to continue thriving in your reentry. Thank you again for sharing some of your journey with us.


Conclusion:

Matthew's story is a powerful testament to the need for cannabis reform and the importance of organizations like the Last Prisoner Project. Through his journey of redemption, he not only seeks to rebuild his life but also advocates for the freedom of others who remain incarcerated for non-violent cannabis offenses. As the cannabis industry continues to evolve, Matthew's experiences serve as a reminder of the importance of compassion, understanding, and criminal justice reform. Together, we can work towards a more equitable and just future for all individuals impacted by cannabis-related convictions.

"Nobody Should Be Locked Up for a Plant": Kelly Barbieri's Story of Loss, Resilience, and Reform

By Mary Bailey • August 20, 2026
For Kelly Barbieri, incarceration for a cannabis offense in Georgia cost her far more than her freedom. It cost her time she can never get back with her family, time she needed most when tragedy struck at home. Her story is one of grief, community, and an unshakable belief that no one should ever go through what she and her family endured. A Family Rooted in Tradition Kelly and her husband, Dan, have been married for more than 30 years and have raised two sons together, the younger of whom is autistic. Kelly describes their household as very traditional: the couple made sure a parent was always home, even when that meant working separate shifts and sacrificing time together. Kelly eventually left her teaching job to homeschool her younger son. Family life centered on simple pleasures: cooking, watching old movies, spending time outdoors, caring for their dogs, cats, and chickens, and tending a garden of food, flowers, and medicinal plants. Everyone in the family is a devoted Grateful Dead fan, a shared love of music that has long been part of their household. How It Began In March 2018, the family's Georgia home was raided after Kelly provided cannabis to a friend whose mother had cancer. Unbeknownst to Kelly, that friend had become a confidential informant to help resolve his own drug charges; he later died of a fentanyl overdose. The case didn't go to trial until late August 2023, more than five years later. Kelly and Dan were convicted of manufacturing and distributing marijuana and sentenced to 10 years, with three to serve. The judge issued a modification order recommending early parole so the couple could return home to care for their special-needs son, but the parole board set Kelly's tentative parole date for October 2026, just two months before her maximum release date. A Hard Beginning Kelly's incarceration started with Diagnostics, an intake process she describes as the hardest part of her time inside. "We ate cold food out of Styrofoam trays, were often in lockdown, and it was just a gross place," she recalls. It was the only period, she says, when she felt genuinely unsafe. But even that hardship paled in comparison to what came next. An Unimaginable Loss While incarcerated, Kelly learned that her eldest son was sick. His health declined rapidly, and he died a week later. She was powerless to help. "If I had been home, I could have made him go to the doctor or hospital," she says. "That feeling of helplessness and being powerless was horrible." The loss shook her faith. "I think what helped me get through it the most was the other women in there with me who had been through similar experiences and supported me," Kelly says. "I don't know that it was any kind of faith that helped. If anything, I lost some faith in a higher power during that time." What carried her forward was her remaining son, and her determination to stay strong for him. Kelly recently attended her son's memorial, an experience she calls healing. "Seeing how many people loved him and came to honor him warmed my heart," she says. She still grieves every day, but has found grounding in nature, family, and keeping her son's memory alive. "I know the only way to get through this is to feel it, and remember that grief is the price we pay for love," she reflects. "I believe he would want me to live, and not just exist and survive." The Power of Community Even from behind bars, Kelly felt the support of people she'd never met. Letters from strangers reminded her she wasn't alone. "It's so nice to hear your name called at mail call, and then just hearing the validation from others that what I was going through was so ridiculous," she says. She saved every letter. "It still makes me feel good to know that there is a large community of people out there who want to help those in a similar situation to ours, and it definitely gives me hope." Last Prisoner Project's Role Kelly remembers the exact day she learned Last Prisoner Project would sponsor her case, a day that had started with the loss of her beloved dog. "I was so depressed, but then my son told me that y'all had accepted us to sponsor, and it really brightened my day," she says. The financial support meant she no longer had to rely on her sons to put money on her books, and a grant to her son eased the family's financial strain. "LPP was truly a blessing," she says. "It's easy to feel lost and alone while incarcerated, and knowing y'all were there helped so much." Reflecting on LPP's broader work, Kelly is direct: "Some organizations just pay a lot of lip service to cannabis policy change, while LPP is actually doing something to help, and that is huge." Looking Ahead Now home and back at work, Kelly is rebuilding the life she and Dan always envisioned, one centered on family, gardening, cooking, and caring for their special-needs son, while carrying the memory of the son they lost every day. But she's also clear-eyed about the work still ahead. "My husband and I should have never been sentenced like we were in the first place, and then for the parole board to keep us in there for so long, even months after our son died, was just unnecessary," she says. "Nobody should be locked up for a plant, period. No victim, no crime." Her call to action is simple: full decriminalization of cannabis at the national level, so state reform can follow. "Nobody stopped using cannabis because we were locked up," she says. "So the whole incarceration thing is pointless."  Kelly Barbieri is a Last Prisoner Project constituent. Her story is shared with her permission as part of LPP's ongoing work to end the incarceration of individuals for cannabis-related offenses and support their successful reentry.

A Mother Still Behind Bars for Cannabis: The Story of Brandy Fisher

By Mary Bailey • May 18, 2026
A Mother Still Behind Bars for Cannabis: The Story of Brandy Fisher While legalization spreads across America, women like Brandy Fisher remain forgotten inside federal prison — serving out decade-long sentences for marijuana as the world outside changes without them. How It Began Brandy Fisher never imagined she would spend a decade in federal prison. Charged with distribution of 1,000 kilograms of marijuana, she became a target when family members and close friends she trusted were already working as federal informants — six of them. When agents approached her first and asked if she wanted to talk, she asked for a lawyer. That decision, the right one under any standard, did not protect her from what came next. “The 6 informants who were close family and whom I thought were best friends had turned federal agents,” Brandy recalls. She took a plea deal — ten years under Rule 11(c)(1)(C), a binding agreement that locks the sentence in place regardless of changes in law. And the law has changed dramatically. “Sitting back and watching the world change daily is amazing — how now the world can see that marijuana can be used to cure people of sicknesses.” — Brandy Fisher As state after state has legalized or decriminalized cannabis, and as federal reform conversations have grown louder, Brandy remains locked in. Her binding plea means no retroactive relief applies to her. She watches from inside, and she waits. While Brandy serves her sentence, her family carries the weight too. Her father has received a family support grant from the Last Prisoner Project to help offset the costs of caring for Brandy’s six-year-old son. And when Brandy is eventually released, she will be eligible for a Last Prisoner Project reentry grant — funding designed to help cannabis prisoners like her rebuild their lives from the ground up. Life at FCI Waseca Brandy first survived FCI Dublin — the California federal prison that became the subject of a federal investigation into widespread staff sexual abuse. She was transferred to FCI Waseca in Minnesota, which she describes as one of the worst women’s federal prisons in the country. The conditions she describes are a portrait of institutional neglect. The commissary is shut down for weeks at a time. The kitchen served her food with a live beetle on the tray — she no longer eats there. Women are denied body oils because, as Brandy recounts, the staff claim it draws unwanted attention from male officers. A captain reportedly declared that commissary soda was being removed because women there were overweight. Cleaning supplies — bleach, Ajax — are withheld, yet women are asked to clean bathrooms that handle used sanitary products, sometimes without gloves. An outbreak of H. pylori, a bacterial infection that can lead to stomach cancer if untreated, has affected a significant portion of the population. “They are trying to keep it on the low,” Brandy says. “We are run around by majority men officers — there are unpleasant comments made about women and their sexual body parts, comments about the way our clothes fit.” — Brandy Fisher The harassment, she says, is daily and institutional. The message from staff is clear: the needs and dignity of the women housed there are not a priority. Safety, Mental Health, and a Six-Year-Old Boy Brandy shares her room with three individuals convicted of serious child sex offenses carrying sentences of 25 or more years, as well as others convicted of drug offenses and one convicted of murder. The federal system houses people across these vastly different profiles together, and any refusal to comply with the arrangement risks placement in the Special Housing Unit — solitary confinement. For Brandy, the psychological weight is not abstract. She has a six-year-old son on the outside, being raised by his 80-year-old great-grandfather. Every night, she falls asleep thinking about child predators — the ones inside, and the ones who may be near her child. Mental health support at Waseca is, by her account, almost nonexistent. There is one mental health staff member. “I will not call her a doctor,” Brandy says, “because when she talks to you, she is angry herself and she doesn’t give good advice.” When Brandy first arrived at FCI Dublin, she was immediately stripped of all mental health medications she had been taking for four years. No taper. No transition. No plan. What Clemency Would Mean Brandy is currently pursuing clemency with legal support from the Last Prisoner Project. For her, release is not the end of the story — it is the beginning of one she has been carefully building in her mind, and on the page, for six years. She wants to return to real estate: flipping and staging homes, putting them back on the market. She is also planning a nonprofit bookstore dedicated to donating reading materials to federal prisons nationwide. Over the past year alone, she has read more than 200 books. It has changed her. “Reading gives me hope, and it makes my time fly by. I want to help feed the minds of others with learning materials, love stories, action-packed books — and let’s not forget the hood books that keep us all on edge.” — Brandy Fisher She points out that in six years, not a single author of the many book series her family has ordered for her has ever donated books to FCI Waseca or FCI Dublin. She intends to be the person who changes that. Brandy Fisher is not asking for pity. She is asking to be seen — and asking those with the power to grant clemency to consider what second chances are for, and who deserves them. Write to Brandy — Let Her Know She Hasn’t Been Forgotten One of the hardest parts of incarceration is feeling invisible. A letter from a stranger can be a lifeline. If Brandy’s story has moved you, take five minutes to write to her directly. Tell her you read her story. Tell her she matters. Tell her people on the outside are fighting for her. Brandy Fisher 47495-509 FCI Waseca P.O. Box 1731 Waseca, MN 56093 You also have the option to write your letter to Brandy on the Last Prisoner Project website, and we will print and mail it for you: https://www.lastprisonerproject.org/letter-writing Support the Last Prisoner Project Brandy’s family support grant, her legal advocacy, and her reentry grant when she is released — all of it is made possible by donors like you. Last Prisoner Project works every day to free cannabis prisoners, support their families while they are inside, and help them rebuild when they come home. To keep doing this work, we need your support. Donate here .

75 Years for Cannabis: The Story of Julian Andrade

By Mary Bailey • May 4, 2026
75 Years for Cannabis: The Story of Julian Andrade Julian Andrade is 22 years old. He was born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas, and he has now spent three of those years inside a prison cell, serving a 75-year sentence for a nonviolent cannabis charge. He also received concurrent terms of 50 and 10 years. No one was hurt. No violence was involved. Just a young man from Fort Worth, still maturing, whose life was upended by a system that chose punishment over proportion. Julian is a father. His son was born while he was incarcerated, a milestone he could not share, a childhood he cannot witness in person. His aunt stands firmly by his side, advocating for him and helping make sure his story gets told. Together, they are determined that what happened to Julian will not stay silent. This is his story, in his own words. A Fast Life and Bigger Dreams Before his arrest, Julian was someone who poured his time into the people he loved. "Before incarceration, I would spend any and all time that I could with my family and loved ones," he says. Underneath that, he carried real ambition. His goals were not small. He wanted to open businesses and bring others along with him, to create something and share it. "The path I thought I was on at 19 was a fast life that I did not know how to get out of." It's a sentence worth sitting with. A teenager who wanted to build something, who wanted to lift people up, caught in circumstances he didn't yet have the tools to escape. That kind of nuance rarely makes it into a courtroom. Shock, Confusion, and a Quiet Resolve When the verdict came down, Julian didn't rage. He went quiet. "I was in shock, loss of words, hurt, but mainly confused. I didn't hurt anyone. It was only cannabis." The confusion is understandable. Cannabis is now legal or decriminalized in the majority of U.S. states. The substance at the center of Julian's case is sold openly in dispensaries across the country. And yet, in Texas, a 19-year-old received a sentence longer than most people's entire lives. Julian has refused to let that sentence hollow him out. Since coming to prison, he says he has grown closer to God and encourages others to do the same. He uses the time to mature and to become a better man, not just for the people waiting for him on the outside, but for himself. "Since receiving my time, my perspective has changed completely. I now use this time to mature, grow, and become a better man for my family, friends, and my release, but most importantly myself." A Father Behind Bars Julian's son came into the world while Julian was incarcerated. There was no hospital room, no first cry he could hear, no hand to hold. There is only the wondering. "I miss my son daily. It hurts me knowing I can't help or even watch him grow up. I'm always wondering what he is doing, what kind of kid he is, and what he likes. Hoping one day I can do the same things with him that my grandpa did with me." That last line carries everything. A grandfather's love, passed down through memory, now at risk of being cut off by a sentence for a plant. Julian's son is growing up without his father. Julian is getting older without being able to watch his child grow. "My child means the world to me." The Daily Weight Ask Julian what his hardest challenges are, and his answers are not about prison conditions or legal policy in the abstract. They are deeply personal. "The biggest challenge I face daily is missing home. Hoping I'm free before my grandpa or mom passes. Being able to still be in my child's younger years. And enjoying life in the free world while I'm still young." He is racing against time on every front, against grief, against his son's fleeting childhood, against his own youth passing inside a cell. And yet something keeps him going. "The world is changing. But mainly dreaming about the things I will do and the life I want to live upon my release." He means it literally, too. Julian says he looks forward to pumping gas, walking through a grocery store, and one day helping others who find themselves in situations like his. The smallest freedoms, the ones most people never think about, are the ones he dreams about most. What Julian Wants You to Know If Julian could speak to lawmakers, advocates, and everyday people, he would not ask for sympathy. He would ask for honesty. "I know what I did. I broke the law. But I don't think people like myself or others should be serving long sentences, especially for something nonviolent or accepted in more than half of America and other parts of the world. I was still a kid when I came to prison. I was still growing up and maturing, and still am today. I didn't hurt anyone, never did, and never will. I don't deserve all this time. I understand I and others have broken the law, but we should not be doing more than 5 years for a plant." His aunt echoes that call. She has stood by Julian since the beginning, advocating loudly and consistently, refusing to let the system's silence become the final word on her nephew's life. Her support is a reminder that behind every incarcerated person is a family fighting to bring them home. Julian hopes that one day he will be able to share his testimony from the outside, to stand in front of others who are struggling and tell them there is a way through. That vision is part of what keeps him moving forward. The Door to Clemency Is Almost Sealed Shut Julian would like to pursue a sentence commutation, but Texas makes that road extraordinarily difficult. And even the path to clemency is nearly out of reach. Texas requires a written recommendation from a majority of the current trial officials, the present prosecuting attorney, the judge, and the sheriff or chief of police of the arresting agency from the county and court of offense, conviction, and release, along with full compliance with the board rules governing commutation of sentence, just to be eligible to apply. The very system that locked Julian up is the same one he'd need permission from to get out. His aunt has stood by him every step of the way, fighting to make sure his story is heard. Now we're helping make sure it is. A System Out of Step Julian's case is a stark illustration of how dramatically cannabis sentencing diverges across state lines. In one state, a person can legally purchase the same substance that earned Julian 75 years in Texas. That disparity is not justice. It is geography. Julian did not commit a violent crime. He was a teenager from Fort Worth who made choices in a life he didn't yet know how to navigate. He is now 22, a man and a father, spending what should be some of the freest years of his life behind bars. The question is not whether Julian broke a law. The question is whether this punishment fits any honest definition of justice. We believe it does not. "I hope what happened to me and others like me stops happening." So do we, Julian. Julian Andrade is a constituent represented by the Last Prisoner Project. If his story moved you, please take action. Contact your representatives, support cannabis sentencing reform, and consider donating to Last Prisoner Project so that we can continue to fight for the freedom of cannabis prisoners like Julian.