Chad Marks
He Secured His Own Release. We Turned His Story Into a Book That Inspired Millions
Kevin Sharp, the same federal Judge who worked with Kim Kardashian to lobby the president to commutate the sentence of Christopher Young, who was serving an unjust sentence at the time, wrote an article about Chad in USA Today that fundamentally altered the legal landscape.
Chad Marks is one of the few souls who actually lived the American Dream. Raised by a single mother on welfare in an urban community Chad eventually found himself sentenced to a mandatory minimum of 40 years in federal prison. He was only 24 years old.
Though he was convicted of a non-violent drug offense, Chad would soon be introduced to violence on an almost unimaginable scale. Stabbings, multiple-perpetrator assaults, and death were daily occurrences at the federal prisons where the justice system required that he serve his time. He would spend 17 years in some of the most dangerous prisons in the United States.
Chad had the presence of mind to write down his experiences, and to hide his manuscript. The hope that he would be a published author one day, free to tell his story, allowed him to fend off desperation, allowed him to forego succumbing to malaise and to keep hope alive.
He educated himself, earned a college degree, began studying law, and became one of the most infamous "Jailhouse Lawyers" in the federal prison system.
He taught prisoners how to read and write, how to advocate for themselves, and advocated for them when they couldn't.
In 2019 Chad wrote and submitted a pro se motion that caused the federal courts to order his release. That motion reduced his sentence by 23 years.
We published this secret memoir, Blood on The Razor Wire not long after Chad's release. Writing Nights' Chad Robertson edited the book in a way that preserved the author's voice and turned an interesting true story into a book that ultimately launched a successful YouTube channel and a Netflix documentary.
After reuniting with his family, Chad founded Freedom Fighters Prison Consultants where he and his team draft and file compassionate release motions, criminal appeals, and assist in civil litigation.
He gives back by serving vulnerable youth who find themselves in the position Chad found himself in when he was young.
Blood on the Razor Wire continues to educate the ignorant, inspire the hopeless, as well as everyone else who needs confirmation that the American Dream is both achievable and real.