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From the Dear Katie: Survivor Stories podcast: “Living in fear of violence in his own home, young David is faced with an impossible situation. Unable to tolerate the abuse any further, he and his brother make the tragic decision to end the life of their abuser. Waiting in jail and confronted with the prospect of the death penalty, David finds faith and makes the powerful choice to do his time, not let the time do him.
“David Garlock [Leading with Conviction™ 2019] is a successful returning citizen, reentry professional, and criminal justice reform advocate. David and his brother received 25-year sentences in Alabama after taking the life of their abuser. A client of the Equal Justice Initiative, he was released on parole in 2013 after serving more than 13 years and pursuing several educational opportunities while incarcerated. He subsequently obtained his bachelor’s degree from Eastern University and was the Lancaster Program Director for New Person Ministries, a reentry program for people convicted of a sexual offense and other returning citizens. He is a frequent speaker at colleges and universities, criminal and social justice conferences, and community events.”
Listen now:
David also recently appeared on The Shadow Sessions podcast: “He was 11 years old the first time it happened. For eight years, nobody knew. Not his mom. Not his coaches. Not a single person. Because on day one, the abuser looked him in the eyes and said: ‘If you ever tell anybody, I’m going to kill your family and you.’ So David wore a different mask every single day. One at church. One at school. One on the football field.
“At 19, he and his brother killed their abuser. And buried him in the backyard with a shovel. They were sentenced to 25 years in Alabama’s most violent prisons. Their mom found out they were in jail from a coworker. They wrote her a 30-page letter, front and back, about every detail of the abuse and the murder. She died of a heart attack halfway through reading it. David served 13 years. Got a pardon that almost never came. And walked out with one mission.
“In this episode of The Shadow Sessions, Hiba Balfaqih sits with David Garlock to talk about eight years of sexual and physical abuse, the night everything broke, what survival looks like inside Alabama’s most violent prisons, and what it finally took to turn the worst years of his life into a superpower. This isn’t a story about violence. It’s about what happens to a child when no one comes. When rage has nowhere to go. When the system protects the wrong person. And what happens when that child grows up and decides to use his pain to protect others.”
Watch now:
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