This past week, Loyola welcomed Tray Jones, a former inmate at the Maryland State Penitentiary, for a guest lecture titled “Criminal (In)Justice: Laws Without Mercy.” At 16-years-old, Jones was wrongly convicted of murder and served 37 years in the penitentiary before being released in 2022. Now a free man, Jones shared his experiences in hopes of advocating for a better justice system.
Jones began the lecture by sharing some experiences he had while in the penitentiary. He told the audience about the eerie sound of men losing their minds in the segregation unit due to lack of social and psychological stimulation. This lack of stimulation was also driven by the difficult process inmates must go through to receive higher education while incarcerated. He firmly believes that this is a tactic used by prison officials to keep inmates under their control.
“That’s the thing about a genuine education; it inspires a revolt…When you go into the prisons it becomes that much more difficult to get an education because it is so essential to practitioners of tyranny to keep us ignorant, dumb, and afraid,” Jones said.
Jada Brooks ‘27 was surprised to hear just how difficult it was for imprisoned youth to receive an education. She believed that the prison systems were set up to give them a better chance at life when they got out, but now she no longer believes that is the case.
“I thought it was really interesting how he talked about the prison system and how, in a way, it’s setting up the youth for failure. There are so many loopholes that they have to go through, and the system is not really equal for them,” Brooks said.
One audience member asked Jones what he would say to those who imprisoned him if they came to him and asked what they should do to help reform the prison system. Jones, without a moment of hesitation, said the best thing they could do is destroy it.
“Burn the prisons down immediately. I do believe that society needs to have a place where the wrongdoers are put. But when you are put in a situation where you are going to be stripped of your humanity, it shouldn’t exist. You must extinguish it and reimagine the prisons,” Jones said.
Loyola Forensic Science Professor Marion Davidson supported Jones’ answer. She said that before attending this lecture she didn’t think that the system was working as well as it should have been. Her standpoint was only further solidified when she heard what Jones shared about his experience in the penitentiary.
“Personally, I agree. I don’t think the system can be fixed. I think we have to abolish it and create a new one. It is beyond reform in my opinion,” Davidson said.
Jones acknowledges that getting the government to reimagine the entire prison system will be an immensely difficult task. In the meantime, he plans to continue sharing his story in the hopes of inspiring others to join him in this fight against an unjust system. He believes that if people work together to deter youth from violence and crime, they will have a chance to educate themselves and create a new system that ends this cycle of tyranny found in prisons today.
