EL RENO, Okla. (AP) – Federal inmates at an Oklahoma prison said Wednesday they are hoping a documentary featuring President Barack Obama’s July visit to the facility and in-depth interviews with six of the prisoners will influence policymakers to re-examine harsh sentences for nonviolent drug offenders.
About 50 inmates gathered inside the chapel of the Federal Correctional Institute at El Reno to watch the premiere of “Fixing the System,” a Vice on HBO special report. Nonviolent drug offenders who talked to Obama during his visit said the one-hour documentary, which begins airing Sunday on HBO, will make people more aware of the impact that lengthy sentences have on inmates’ families and communities.
“It takes people away from their families for years and the crime doesn’t fit,” said Tyrone Ramsey, 39, a first-time offender who has served five years of a 15-year sentence for conspiracy with intent to distribute heroin.
The documentary shows interviews with relatives of Ramsey and images of his children playing at the family’s Kansas City, Kansas, home – sights and sounds that Ramsey said made him realize how much he misses the people who were part of his life before prison.
“When I saw it, it was very emotional, especially when I saw my children,” Ramsey said. “It really hit me. It really sparked some thoughts in my mind like: ‘Man, I really messed up in some ways.'”