Women and reentry

Experiencing poverty, domestic abuse and sexual violence as a child lead SUSAN BURTON down a long, dark road of emotional despair. Then, after the hit-and-run incident that killed her five-year-old son, Burton turned to drugs as a way to cope with her pain. But, it wasn’t until she entered the California prison system and spent nearly two decades behind bars until she finally received drug treatment and therapy. In this hour, Marty talks with Burton about her memoir, Becoming Ms. Burton which she coauthored with Cari Lynn that tells Burton’s story of prison, recovery and creating A New Way of Life—a nonprofit that supports formerly incarcerated women. MARIE GOTTSCHALK, professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania, and JEAN FRIEDMAN-RUDOVSKY project editor of The Reentry Project, discuss resources available to women in prison and difficult challenges they face when reentering into society.