J.C. Overstreet

J.C. Overstreet

Free J.C. Overstreet

Compassionate Release for J.C. 

When Overstreet was sentenced to 19 years in federal prison, his sentence was not supposed to be torture. But after a life-changing spinal cord injury that left him confined to a wheelchair and eventually a walker and untold physical, emotional, and psychological pain and misery, that's precisely what his sentence became—torture. 

J.C. has served most of his 19-year sentence. Considering time for good behavior, J.C. has about 3 years remaining. 

After Another Inmate Viciously Attacked J.C., J.C. Underwent Three Spinal Cord Surgeries, Leaving Him Debilitated 

In 2017, federal prisoner J.C. was viciously attacked by another inmate. J.C. was violently struck in the back of his neck with a blunt object, leaving him with near-total body paralysis because of severe spinal and neurological damage. His life has never been the same. And his prison sentence became much more of a strain than it was meant to be. Previously healthy and normal, at 52 years old, he's now hunched over like a 90-year-old man, dependent on a walker to assist him in the laborious task of walking from point A to point B. For perspective, J.C. cannot stand up on his own, much less walk, without the aid of a walker.

He spent years in a wheelchair before progressing to a walker.  He'll never heal past his current state. He's handicapped for life. 

After the attack, over five years, J.C. underwent three cervical spine surgeries and years of debilitating, chronic pain. The first surgery didn't correct the issue, so a second major spinal surgery involved cervical vertebral reduction and implantation of spinal hardware, resulting in months of hospitalization and intense pain, all while he was bedridden. When the problems persisted, there was a third major spinal surgery. Prison can be a dark and lonely place. J.C.'s life-changing medical condition has brought immense physical, emotional, and psychological pain and suffering that is incomparably more hardship than the average prisoner experiences. His injuries have transformed his prison term from corrective to purely punitive.

While Going Through Surgeries And Recovery, J.C. is Held in Tiny 9 X 12 Solitary Confinement Cell, Which Deprived Him of Vitally Important Physical Therapy, Thereby Hindering His Recovery

To make matters much worse, after the attack, and while he was going through his surgeries, J.C. was held in solitary confinement, which, for all practical purposes, is a dungeon where even healthy prisoners waste away mentally, emotionally, and physically. Scores of scholars and organizations and even psychologists have characterized it as a form of "torture" that has caused PTSD and other long-lasting detrimental emotional and psychological problems. Even if someone was surrounded by loved ones in the comfort of one's own home, going through such a serious medical issue would be mentally and emotionally challenging. Enduring this suffering in a cage—in a world devoid of love and support is a nightmare. 

J.C. ensured this nightmare within a nightmare for nearly a year straight.  During an interview, he wasted away and he wanted to die. Notably, because J.C. was placed in solitary confinement for an extended period, he was unable to participate in the necessary post-surgery physical therapy.

Given J.C.'s Injury and Surgeries, J.C.'S Prison Sentence has Been Immeasurably Harder Than it Was Intended, Resulting in a Purely Punitive Prison Sentence

Prisons are needed in our society, and so are long prison sentences. But having to suffer from a brutal prison attack resulting in near-total body paralysis, years of spine surgeries and physical therapy, and debilitating chronic pain while in prison serves no corrective purpose and is instead purely punitive. In addition to years of chronic physical pain, this man has suffered immense emotional and psychological pain and suffering. 

We seek an advocate to help us facilitate J.C.'s release via a Compassionate Release. J.C. has suffered and has paid a heavy price for his transgressions. And now he's asking for compassion and mercy.