Basketball changed her life — but not how she expected

Julie Harper is a graduate of the University of Southern California, with honors, and holds a masters in business administration (MBA). She is a leader, media-maker, entrepreneur, and event speaker. She has worked in diverse industries in the corporate world and her own companies: as a director of communications for a technology service company, creating digital training and marketing materials through a partner relationship management system; as a VP of marketing and sales, launching a business education software company; and as a real estate broker and CA notary -- all while raising her young children. In her 20s, she traveled to numerous countries across six continents and obtained her PADI certification for scuba diving, both passions she hopes to return to. Today her vision includes being a storyteller, producing documentaries and podcasts, empowering women and young girls, as well as being an activist to change policy in the criminal justice system for first time violent offenders who are survivors of intimate partner violence, to help them recover from PTSD instead of re-traumatizing them.

Patricia Bellows is a 36-year-old beating a double life sentence real soon. She has conquered mastering the power of the tongue. She has a strong will to be successful in everything she studies and lives. She is from the gang land of Compton and growing on a daily basis from self hatred. She is strongly in love with her big homie and rocking by him by any means necessary.

Stories from inside California prisons