Episode 168: Brandon Brown

A senior in high school suffers an injury that puts an end to his dream of playing college basketball. His life spirals out of control, and one night in 2008, he finds himself pointing a gun at a bouncer outside a Portland, Maine bar. He fires one shot, hitting the bouncer, a sniper with the Marines, in the chest. The bouncer is left paralyzed below the waist, and the shooter goes to prison for attempted murder. While there, the shooter becomes the first inmate to enroll in a graduate program, where he starts a groundbreaking study into rehabilitating prisoners. By 2020, the shooter has made so many strides, that the bouncer supports the shooter’s application for clemency. In Episode 168, Jac, Alexis, and Billy recount the story of Brandon Brown’s redemption after he shot and paralyzed James Sanders.