I Was Sentenced to Die Inside Prison - The Marshall Project

Life Inside, a collection of perspectives from those who work and live in the criminal justice system, is a regular feature on The Marshall Project. While some Life Inside contributors experience the system through their work or their loved ones, most are currently incarcerated. Their daily lives are, by design, hidden from the public. There are the physical walls of prisons, jails and immigration detention centers; the tightly regulated visits; the official monitoring of phone calls and mail; and the threat, real or imagined, of retaliation by authorities. These conditions complicate the already-difficult task of blending journalism and creative writing.

The following excerpts are from an essay titled "I Was Sentenced to Die in Prison. But After 27 Years, I’m Finally Free" by Bobby Bostic as part of the Life Inside series.

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For almost three decades, my life as a Missouri state prisoner was a matter of numbers. I was only 16 when I took part in robberies that resulted in 17 felony convictions. I was just released on parole a little over three months ago, at age 43. And one thing I can honestly say is that life is beautiful on this side of the fence.

I can fully appreciate how precious everyday moments are because I lost my freedom so long ago. No one was killed or seriously injured in my crimes, but they took place in 1995, during the youth "superpredator" panic. Among my 17 felonies were first degree robbery, attempted robbery and armed criminal action. I will never forget the moment at my sentencing hearing when the judge told me, “...Bobby Bostic, you will die in the Department of Corrections.” I was 18.

Technically speaking, I didn’t get the death penalty, or even life in prison — a sentence that would have made me eligible for parole in 15 years. Instead, the judge ruled that I would serve my sentences consecutively, for a total of 241 years. As if it mattered. I wouldn’t be able to even apply for parole until age 112.

Thankfully, that didn’t happen: In 2021, the Missouri state legislature passed a law inspired by my case that gives people who committed their crimes before age 18 a better chance at parole. They did so with the blessing of the judge in my case, who had retired and apologized for imposing such a long sentence on a teenager.

I walked out of Algoa Correctional Center in Jefferson City, Missouri, on Nov. 9, 2022 — exactly one year after my successful parole hearing. The weather was great, and my family was waiting for me. So were my attorneys and Evelyn Baker, the retired judge who had sentenced me.

Although I’m out of prison, I’m not totally free. I lost my final appeal in 2018, so I still have to serve the remainder of my sentence. I will probably be on parole for the rest of my life.

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Bobby Bostic, a St. Louis native, was released on parole in November 2022. During the 27 years he spent in prison, he wrote 13 books, including “Dear Mama: The Life and Struggles of a Single Mother” and “Life Goes on Inside Prison.” Follow him on Twitter and Instagram -  @FreeBobbyBostic.

To read the rest of Bobby's essay, visit "I Was Sentenced to Die in Prison. But After 27 Years, I’m Finally Free" from the Life Inside Series at The Marshall Project website.