Richard Cabral's neck, chest and arms are covered with tattoos. They depict Mexican gang culture, his friends, uncles, even his daughter Bella. Cabral's intense look and his powerful acting have landed him a lot of TV roles, but his path to Hollywood wasn't easy. Not long ago, Cabral was a gang member in prison, facing a possible 35-year sentence; this Sunday, he's up for an Emmy.
In the ABC drama American Crime, Cabral plays a former gangbanger implicated in a drug-related murder. Cabral's character dreams of a new life with his wife and daughter, away from trouble. His story is remarkably similar to the 31 year old actor's.
Cabral says he grew up in East L.A. without a father. He joined a street gang, and got addicted to crack and meth. When he was 13 he stole a wallet and was incarcerated for the first time.
"That was it," he recalls. "The breaking point to getting those cuffs behind my wrists, and just realizing: This ain't all that bad. Because all my male mentors had done that before, so I kind of knew it wasn't that bad."
[For more of this story, written by Mandalit Del Barco, go to http://www.npr.org/2015/09/16/...prison-to-prime-time]
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