Thief to Chief: Grace made the difference

(Photo by Postdlf)

While serving time in prison for bank robbery, Shon Hopwood began morphing from thief to chief.  Chief what?  Ironically, chief attorney.

Now there are many jailhouse lawyers, but Hopwood turned out to be an extraordinary one.  So extraordinary that “a case he prepared was argued before the U. S. Supreme Court, an

extremely rare feat for any lawyer.”

Many inmates are gifted with intelligence.  Maybe not enough to keep from getting caught, but enough to pull off some creative heists.  But smarts alone won’t halt that revolving door.  It often takes nothing short of a miracle.

When miracles came Hopwood's way, he welcomed them.  They came in the form of people who “went out of their way to provide grace.”  People like Seth Waxman, “a prominent lawyer and former U. S. solicitor general” who recognized Hopwood’s ability and actively fostered it.  Waxman became Hopwood’s mentor, and eventually “recommended him for his first post-prison job in the law industry.”

Hopwood now holds “the coveted faculty position” of Associate Professor at Georgetown Law School.  Miracles abound, and this is one of many.

Resources

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/good-news/from-bank-robber-to-law-professor-a-story-of-redemption/ar-AAtmI0U 

Copyright October 14, 2017 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved