- 24 years is a long time.

I'll be happy when I finally walk out the gate.

- [Parolee 1] When I got outta prison, I was happy to be getting out, but you started hitting all these roadblocks.

- [Parolee 2] The stigma of who you were never leaves.

- For years, I've been told society hates you.

- [Parolee 1] It's like having a scarlet letter.

There's an X for employers, getting housing.

- Why are you gonna deny a person basic civil rights for making poor choices in the past?

- The first month I slept with this big old knife under my pillow because of the fear.

- You demand that we serve our time, become corrected and come out better than when we came in.

- You know, stuff happens but it's how we respond to what happens.

- [Parolee 3] If we're given the tools to be able to change, we will change.

- [Parolee 4] I know that I was wrong.

It didn't just affect me.

It affected a lot of people.

- I hurt my family very badly.

I have a lot of work to do to make things right.

- You got to focus on never proving yourself to them, but always knowing who you are.

- You're talking about restoring people to civility.

That is a big task.

- [Parolee 2] This is my new beginning.