Prison Diaries (Series)

Episode 1 — Doing Time: John's Diary

John Mills, a 21-year-old inmate, is serving seven to nine years. As a kid, John dreamed of becoming a police officer, but by the time he was locked up at the age of 17, John had committed more than 75 armed robberies. John is trying to make a change in prison, but sometimes it is hard for him to forget the thrill of putting a gun to someone's head.

Episode 2 — Going Home: Cristel's Diary

Episode 3 — Matthew and the Judge: Juvenile Court Diary

Episode 4 — Serving 9-5: Diaries of Prison Guards

Polk Youth Institution in Butner, North Carolina is a prison for young men between the ages of 19-25. For our series Prison Diaries, I gave tape recorders to a handful of inmates at Polk to tell the story of life behind bars. After visiting the prison for a few months, I realized I had been overlooking the stories of the guards. Pretty much every guard I talked to said they serve time too – in eight hour shifts. In this episode of the Radio Diaries Podcast, listen to the audio diaries of prison guards.