Whether you feel sympathy for Preston or not, the fact of the matter is that 95% of the incarcerated individuals in the US will one day love next to you and me. Wouldn't you rather they be prepared to live there, to have a job and resources? To be self-sufficient (Preston will not need welfare resources when he returns because of this opportunity)? (Disclosure, I am Preston's employer and formerly incarcerated myself)
Whatever people are incarcerated for, the fact of the matter is that 95% of the people currently incarcerated in the US will one day live next door to one or more of us. Isn't it better to prepare them to live there, self-sufficent and contributing to society? (Disclosure: I am the Cofounder of Unlocked Labs, Preston's current employer and formerly incarcerated myself). I can say without hesitation, Preston is an incredible employee whom I am happy we provided this opportunity for.
This project has really been the make or break for us to be able to do the coding in prisons program, as well as the devshop that develops Ed Tech for prisons at Unlocked Labs. Love at the project has been formalized and will make a huge difference in the lives of many justice involved individuals who just want to return to their communities as productive citizens.