Should Ex-Convicts Be Lawyers?

While he was serving a 20-year sentence in a Texas state penitentiary, Timothy McManus became a regular at the law library. The cool, quiet place offered relief from the tension and cacophony of the prison yard. As he wrestled with the nuances of depositions and law journal articles, he began to see that the library offered more than a break. He was hooked on the law.

Released in 2011, McManus (an old family name he uses for privacy) has spent years offering inmates and recent parolees free legal research and help preparing appeals. From his home in Georgia, he has closely followed criminal justice news and gorged on industry publications such as PrisonLegalNews.org, which is founded by former inmates, and the Prisoners’ Self-Help Litigation Manual, all with an eye to law school and, ultimately, the bar. In addition to first-hand experience of the justice system, he has recommendations from professors and legal professionals and, in his junior year of an online bachelor's degree program in legal studies, a 3.92 GPA.