Lifers On Tile

 Mary DeWitt has been shining light on women serving life sentences for many years. Her latest project Lifers On Tile aims to highlight 7 woman currently incarcerated. IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL AND INSPIRING CHECK IT OUT! The portraits line the walls of a community garden.

Follow the link to Lifers on Tile 

Mary also has a page on Juvenile Lifers which highlights our beloved AVIS!

The following is from the Eastern Penitentiary Website with link to an audio interview with Mary:

Artist Mary DeWitt began working with a group of life-sentenced women in Pennsylvania's State Correctional Institution at Muncy in 1990. The women were all sentenced between 1969 and 1974. Ms. DeWitt has returned to this portrait series again and again, in formats including tile murals, large canvases, and reverse glass paintings, as seen in this installation. Each painting is accompanied by a recording of the woman's voice.

Listen to an Audio Recording of Mary by Following this link

This American Life has Story on Lifers in California

It originally aired in 2010 but i just heard it. And - the case involves someone who was sentenced to Life WITH the opportunity for Parole - unlike Pennsylvania. 

Act One. Hasta La Vista, Maybe. 

In California, Maryland and Oklahoma, the governors can over-rule parole boards' decisions to free prisoners serving life sentences. In all three states this has evolved to the point where very few prisoners get released. For years Nancy Mullane followed the case of Don Cronk in San Quentin Prison, to see what would happen as Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger reviewed his case. Though Cronk knew the odds were against him, he found it hard to stop himself from believing he'd get out. Nancy Mullane is the author of a book called Life After Murder and putting together a two hour documentary on other lifers in Don's situation. (27 minutes)