Don’t fret, you’re coming home!
Loop Creative by ANNE POTTER 09/30/2023
Ed | Photo Credit - Beth Lowery Photography
On the long journey to clear his name, he began writing to anyone and everyone who might listen. He said he wrote hundreds of letters and finally one day, Dr. Pamela Laughon, Associate Professor of Law at the University of NC at Asheville took notice of his case. She and her team spent hours with Ed going over his case and she even assigned his case to her law students. It was one of her students who uncovered police withholding evidence of Ed’s innocence. Long story, short, Ed was exonerated for both murders and sent home in 2008.
He said one day, the guard came to his cell and said, “Pack up man, you’re going home.”
It was evident upon release that Ed was struggling with some mental health issues. Considering he had just spent 15 years on death row, this is extremely normal. PTSD, anxiety, and depression all rooted themselves deep within. He began medication, worked as much as he could to stay busy, and spent a few years on a positive track. He explains how difficult it is to find work being a formerly incarcerated individual. He fell in love and married a woman who had 5 children. He said he just so desperately wanted to have a family and he enjoyed helping raise the kids for many years. Eventually, the marriage dissolved which sent Ed on a downward spiral falling back into masking his pain and feelings of failure with drugs and alcohol. He bounced back and forth from the streets to rehab facilities around the country. Most he said were so awful to those who needed help. He said the food stamp office helped him uncover that one facility he lived in was stealing his food stamps.
It was a special counselor who gave the tough love he needed. She said he was too old for all of this and Ed knew he was at rock bottom, well that is rock bottom as a free man. It was the first time he would have to ask for help because he knew he was not going to be able to get well and stable on his own. She and her staff worked tirelessly and found a trusted facility, Phoenix house rehabilitation for adults in Citra Florida to help him get clean.
By the grace of God and an amazing referral from a former friend and advocate, Ed eventually found himself at The Jubilee Home in Durham, NC. The Jubilee Home works with men in the Durham community to create a place that bridges the gap between incarceration and full independence. They are a valued community partner who referred Ed over for employment counseling. Ed receives mentorship from a long-term StepUp Durham volunteer, Cary. Ed sings the praises of The Jubilee Home and our organization because he knows firsthand how unfair life can be and how deception can rear its ugly head at any moment. The Jubilee Home got him in touch with StepUp Durham and we are proud and thrilled to report that Ed is now employed at a local hotel as a cook and cleaner and he is looking forward to moving into one of The Jubilee Home apartments.
Ed | Photo Credit - Beth Lowery Photography
We wish we could say Ed’s story is rare and unusual but this type of situation happens all the time in the justice system. People are wrongfully accused and sent to prison. People make mistakes, do their time, become rehabilitated, and are sent back into society with nothing but the clothes on their backs. They are given zero resources to become a stable member of their local community.
The re-entry process is full of broken systems and barriers such as lack of housing, education, transportation, childcare, mental health and substance use support that keep individuals from obtaining and maintaining stable employment.
Ed says he’s incredibly grateful to The Jubilee Home and to StepUp Durham for being like family and for being honest and credible organizations that folks can truly rely on. It’s one of his missions to help amplify trusting organizations that support and help individuals facing unbelievable barriers like the ones he's faced his whole life. Ed says his future is limitless and it’s up to him. He tells us he’s either going to make it or fall and he is determined to make it and to not be afraid to ask for help. Ed has written and contacted each NC Governor for many years trying to obtain a pardon. He says he will not give up and hopes the current Governor will grant him a pardoning.
Life After Death Row: The true story of Glen Edward Chapman
Ed has been on the talk circuit with Dr. Pamela Laughon has spoken at many schools, colleges, and organizations. He’s had magazine articles written about his experiences and he has written a book, Life After Death Row: The True Story of Glen Edward Chapman (author: Edward Chapman, author: Alex Cury). It’s a story of police misconduct, irresponsible counsel and the team that worked together to prove his innocence and save his life. His book is available on Amazon.
