Deadhead Timothy Tyler Discusses Clemency

In August, Grateful Dead fan Timothy Tyler was one of several inmates whose prison sentence was commuted by President Barack Obama. The Deadhead was subjected to a mandatory minimum sentence of life imprisonment back in 1994 after being arrested selling a large amount of LSD in 1992. With his prison sentence set to expire on August 30, 2018 conditioned upon participation in a residential drug abuse program, Tyler recently gave an interview in which he discussed learning of his pending release.

Speaking by phone from the Federal Correctional Institution in Jesup, Georgia, Tyler spoke to Seth Ferranti of The Fix about his 22 years behind bars and what it was like to be told he was soon to be set free. He also talked about having access to music while serving his sentence, telling Ferranti:

They gave us in the federal prison system access to mp3 players, which finally allowed me to listen to my favorite band’s music. That was a feeling of freedom that I will never forget either. I used to stare at the mp3 player and could not believe I could even listen to it. So thankful to the president for allowing that music player in my life, that I seemed content. Then with this clemency, he has shown me forgiveness and love without perhaps even comprehending the amount of karma he has cured.

Tyler expresses gratitude for the work of Families Against Mandatory Minimums and its founder Julie Stewart as well as the ACLU and Relix magazine for printing his words as part of its “Letters From Prisoners” section. A campaign is currently underway to help raise funds to support Tyler upon his release from prison. His full interview with The Fix can be read here.