Independent Lens . A HARD STRAIGHT | PBS

Richard Salazar, with shaved head and visible gang tattoo on his neck, looks up and away from the camera.

“I had $200 coming out of prison… It’s hard, man.
The system gives you enough money just to hang yourself.”
—Aaron Shepard, parolee
Picture: Aaron Shepard looks at the camera with a grim expression

(L-R):
Richard Salazar standing inside a house with his wife, who is smiling.
Regina Allen sits and looks at her young son, who is smiling.
The back of Aaron Shepard’s head as he looks across a desk to his parole officer, who is shuffling a pile of papers.

Two-thirds of U.S. parolees return to prison within three years of their release. Follow a gang member, a hustler and a small-time drug dealer as they walk out the prison gates and face what may be their biggest challenge yet—trying to stay straight.


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