Can you talk about - what does that mean to you? And even though I've been home three years, I'm still lost, you know, because this world moved fast. You know, Im gonna be the baddest dude on the block.. PRX is also home toRadiotopia, known as one of the most creative and successful podcast networks. Thank you Suave for seeing life in a different light and changing our world. Suave moves to a transitional housing unit at SCI Graterford where he will spend the next few months as he waits for his parole hearing. But as Suave readies for life on the outside, his excitement gives way to a never ending list of fears about what life outside of prison might be like. kevin@deathbyincacerationpodcast.com. For example, I dont know how to use a cell phone. Ive never seen one in my life. PublishedFebruary 23, 2021 at 3:14 PM CST, A German woman returned the kindness shown to her husband by helping a stranded teen, Thousands fleeing violence in Sudan are crossing the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia, NHL Playoffs 1st round: A curse lifted, defending champions ousted and 14 overtimes, Cookbook celebrates the tradition of Gullah Geechee cuisine. HINOJOSA: That's the thing. It has a value and people care. CHANG: I want to bounce what you just said off of Suave. If I had not decided to stay in touch with Suave, decided not to take his phone calls, decided not to send him a Christmas card and a birthday card, we wouldn't have the kind of journalism that we're able to do now. I said, I want to be part of that. So when I went in, everybody looking at me like I was crazy-like, here comes this troublemaker. So I signed [in 1998] up. Suave returns to prison. And I'm still honored to be that source. "I was given a second chance for a reason," says Gonzalez, who spoke with WHYY host Cherri Gregg. Hinojosa and David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez, the namesake for the podcast, first met in 1993 while speaking at the Graterford State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania. You could be the source - my source. And the more she learns about Suaves crime, the more she comes to question the events that put Suave in prisonand the system that puts away children to life in the first place. The fifth fellow, Luis Suave Gonzalez, will appear Nov. 2 at a public symposium on overhauling the criminal justice system. I'm still learning. A new podcast about the system that sentences juveniles to life in prison, a story of incarceration, redemption, and the unusual relationship between a journalist and a source. And Suave reveals to Maria a shocking story shes never heard before about the night of the murder in 1986. He had gotten a life sentence as a juvenile without the possibility of parole. All rights reserved. Two lifers on the role of college in prison: 'I found a new habit And so it was like this long-haul battle. CHANG: I want to bounce what you just said off of Suave. CHANG: So Maria, I want to start with you because you met Suave back in the early '90s when the conversation around the criminal justice system was so different from the conversation we are having now about the criminal justice system. As Suave adjusts to his new life on the outside, the challenges that come with his newfound freedom and the expectations from everyone around himhe ponders if things are too good to be true. This week, a story three decades in the making. Thomas, who was sentenced to 55-years-to-life in California, is the inside host of the Pulitzer-nominated podcast Ear Hustle. HINOJOSA: Yeah. Jones committed his horrible crime when he did not have access to medications he was taking for his mental health issues. And that someone was Maria. I went to college really like 25 years ago. "Suave" Podcast from Futuro Studios and PRX Wins A Pulitzer Prize That means he was never going to get out. The Suave podcast was always scrappy from the start. A new podcast from Futuro Media follows Suave's path to freedomand . Then in 2016, the Supreme Court decided the case of Montgomery v Louisiana and ruled that Miller had to be applied retroactively. Mike Levin/Getty Images David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole when he was 17. America is infatuated with prisons and incarceration. And the more she learns about Suaves crime, the more she comes to question the events that put Suave in prisonand the system that puts away children to life in the first place. The story of David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez on Latino USA - Saturday at 6pm This week, a story three decades in the making. Suave reckons with the last three decades of his life. You may have heard some of our reporting over the last few years about a man named Suave, who is serving a life sentence for murder at a prison in Pennsylvania. Totally written off by the system, given an IQ of 56 and told he was retarded and would never amount to anything, Suave taught himself to read. Do you feel that you are simply a source to Maria, or is there something more? I failed all that shit. He's a source. Group, a Graham Holdings Company. You can avoid it by skipping between minute 4:45-6:45. In 1988, David Luis Suave Gonzalez was found guilty of first-degree homicide. If we would just stop our chaos and look at people individually! And then I started believing that maybe there's a possibility because I started seeing different cases happening across the United States dealing with juveniles. Podcast 'Suave' Explores 1 Man's Life After His Release From Prison And it was just the most unbelievable thing, truly. More at hsfoundation.org. Youre a victim, so you victimize other people because youre hurt. In addition, PRX distributes trusted and treasured public radio programming to hundreds of stations nationwide, including The World, The Moth Radio Hour, This American Life, Snap Judgment, Reveal, The Takeaway, and Latino USA. PRX programs have been recognized by the Peabody Awards, the duPont-Columbia Awards, the IDA Documentary Awards, and the Pulitzer Prizes. Suave had a rough startas a teenager walking into a maximum-security prison he says he was a target, and much like in the neighborhood where he grew up, Suave decided he had to be tougher than everyone else. Meanwhile, Maria travels to Philadelphia and Suave anxiously awaits the decision from a judge that could finally grant him the opportunity to experience life on the outside as an adult for the first time. Former juvenile lifer offers hope for others now incarcerated - WHYY They kept in touch over the decades by phone, letter, and occasional visits. David Luis Suave Gonzalez: Tenth grade. GONZALEZ: Well, whatever I missed in between, I just missed. David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole when he was 17. If you ask me, go on the Internet and Google something, Id be lost. View local obituaries in new jersey. In the series premiere we meet Suave, a man who has been serving a life sentence at a Pennsylvania prison since he was just a teenager. Northern California I didnt even know how to read, bro. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. Back behind bars, Suave suffers flashbacks and struggles deeply to adjust, and Maria questions the entire parole system. Maggie was also a TV documentary host for VICE and Oxygens The Disappearance of Maura Murray. I don't know - because, Suave, we didn't even talk about it 'cause it's like you're in for life. But in journalism, a source is somebody that could report what - the injustices taking place behind these prison walls that society don't know about. As the decades pass, Suave becomes a mentor for younger men and a model citizen inside the prison. Suave had a rough startas a teenager walking into a maximum-security prison he says he was a target, and much like in the neighborhood where he grew up, Suave decided he had to be tougher than everyone else. Look. Maggie Freleng is an investigative journalist, producer and the host/producer of Unjust & Unsolved, a podcast about wrongful convictions and the crimes that are consequently left unsolved. And I want to talk to Maria about that because, Maria, you essentially become a character in this podcast, which is a choice - right? So this is the particular thing about journalists' source - is that it doesn't look like just one thing. So thats what I did. Edmond, Oklahoma. And he finds that there are still a few things he needs to do, so he asks Maria to join him. MARIA HINOJOSA: Thank you so much for having me. That's when it hit me. What starts as a brief conversation leads to decades of communication between the two, walking the boundary between a journalist-source relationship and true friendship. Earlier this week, the United States Supreme Court ruled in the Montgomery v Louisiana case that people like Suave, called juvenile lifers, have the right to be re-sentencedwhich means his life sentence could be reduced to time he has already served. But over the years, they became close. He also co-hosts Death by Incarceration, which will be featuring episodes this fall focused on the various ways people in prison get an education. But what I didnt know was that the college program was only part-time studies. The crime was a robbery-turned-shooting that resulted in the 1986 death of 13-year-old Danny Martinez in Philadelphia. She has also mixed and done sound sweetening for indie films and documentary series, such as America By The Numbers and Miss Sharon Jones! Journalist Maria Hinojosa met David Luis "Suave" Gonzalez in 1993 while speaking at the Graterford State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania. - 'cause it was like it was not going to happen. In 2019, she was named the inaugural Distinguished Journalist in Residence at her Alma Mater, Barnard College. So when did you start going to college? The Pulitzer is an example of American excellence. And to me, it was just them simple words - you could be the voice for the voiceless - nothing else. Futuro Studios and PRX Present "Suave," A New Podcast About the System That Sentences Juveniles to Life in Prison, A Story of Incarceration, Redemption, and the Unusual Relationship Between A. Maria ponders how her relationship with Suave might change now that hell be free and theyll have a chance to explore their connection beyond a journalist-source relationship. Now, Gonzalez is a support coach with I Am More, a reentry program for formerly incarcerated students at Philadelphia Community College. When you first heard the news that juvenile life sentences were going to be reconsidered, how much of you actually believed that you would be released back then? He had gotten a life sentence as a juvenile without the possibility of parole. Journalist Maria Hinojosa who has communicated with Gonzalez for nearly 30 years also realizes there are limits to how much she can help as he navigates the realities of conditional freedom. 116 in July 2010. After expecting to die in prison, suddenly Gonzalez had another chance at freedom. I don't know - because, Suave, we didn't even talk about it 'cause it's like you're in for life. Look. I'm never going to catch up. Newsletter. Our team of podcast producers, editors, sound designers and engineers have collectively won some of the highest awards in narrative and investigative journalism. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. If you wait for the DOC to give you permission to do it, its never gonna get done. They kept in touch over the decades by phone, letter, and occasional visits. Suave leaves Graterford and kicks off his first day of freedom by checking things off his bucket listincluding a long overdue conversation with his brother and an apology to students at a school in his neighborhood in the Badlands. At Graterford State Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania, Suave joined the largest population of juvenile lifers in the country, young men considered by the U.S. justice system to be irredeemable. Then, in 2016, a Supreme Court decision changed everything. You could be the voice for the voiceless.. From prison to podcast: 'Suave' explores the friendship between a
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