By Julie Reynolds Martinez, The Imprint, September 28, 2021
J.P. Solorio is a community college student at the Correctional Training Facility, a prison in Soledad, California. Locked up at age 15 for his role in a teen gang shootout, he’s been slowly working toward a college degree since he was sent to adult prison in 2003.
In addition to his college courses, Solorio, 35, is active in a program that trains puppies to become service dogs for first responders and veterans with post-traumatic stress. He plans to complete an associate degree before going home, and he credits his education at Soledad with the changes he’s made in his internal life.
“I came in hopeless, immature, reckless, selfish, dangerous,” he said in a phone interview with The Imprint. “I’m a lot more thoughtful and considerate now. I look for positive meaning in my life. I know I hurt so many people and that mindset I came in with, it had to go.”
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