What’s it like to come back to the world after 30 years in prison?
I have no idea, but my godson does.
Joshua Puckett walked out of McComb Correctional Facility in Lenox Township, Michigan on July 17, 2024. Exuding joy and wonder upon his release, Josh, 47, had spent nearly 30 years incarcerated in Michigan prisons for aiding and abetting the gang-related murder of a 12-year-old girl. Josh was wearing
a t-shirt that said “wahoo.”
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July 17, 2024 - Freedom!
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Like many of our 2-million-plus American prisoners, he couldn’t have imagined, at 18, that he could be locked up for a murder which he didn’t even witness.
In 1995, Josh was sentenced to life without parole. Had he been 17, Michigan law would have prohibited such a sentence. But he was 18, and judges were trying to make examples of gang members. He was therefore treated as an adult, even though he’d suffered more than his share of trauma as a child; and his brain, we now know from science, was not fully developed.
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Joe Creedon and Josh Puckett kayaking on Lake Washington
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I met Joshua Puckett when he was a fresh-faced red-haired 7-year-old. He charmed me over breakfast at the Sorrento Hotel in Seattle, a fancy spot where people go for special occasions. The occasion was Joshua’s first visit to his dad, Joe Creedon, a good friend of mine from when I lived in Flint, Michigan.
Josh was conceived by Christine Puckett, with sperm donated by Joe. Both were gay, and the plan was for Christine to raise Josh in Michigan. After birth, by mutual agreement, Joe didn’t even see him. When Joshua was five, they finally met on a Florida vacation, and the bond between the two was undeniable.
Joe invited Josh to spend a summer with him in Seattle, and Christine agreed. It became an annual treat for the boy, whose talents and intelligence continued to charm and impress me and Joe’s friends.
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Randy Wells and Joshua, 1991
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Josh couldn’t believe how awesome it was to be with his dad and his community. He was treated more like an adult, and got to go hiking and sailing and traveling in exciting and eye-opening ways. But when he went back to school after each summer, he was bullied, partly because his parents were gay. He had a temper, and he learned to fight back.
In the late ‘80s, after it became obvious that Josh’s mother was physically and emotionally abusing him, Joe filed for custody. He won, and Josh excitedly moved to Seattle. But it wasn’t long before Joe got sick with AIDS. In November, 1991, Joe died.
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| Joe Creedon when I knew him in Seattle |
A circle of Joe’s friends tried to care for Josh, then 14, but he was learning he couldn’t trust most adults. He ended up on the streets of Seattle, going in and out of foster care and juvenile detention. Ultimately, he moved back to Michigan to live with his mother Christine, and her domestic partner Susan Pittmann.
Less than a year after his dad died, Josh came home from school one day to discover chalk marks on the driveway where Christine and Susan had been shot to death by their next-door neighbor. It was a homophobic hate crime that became a rallying point for LGBT rights in Michigan. [https://pittmannpuckett.com]
A Family Beach Drum Circle
Joe’s extended Seattle family let him know that we were here for him. We flew him back for a ritual at Alki beach in West Seattle. With drums and ceremony, we explained to him that he has a family, a circle of friends who care about him and his late dad Joe. Then and there he became my godson, whether we called it that or not.
When he returned to Michigan, Joshua’s grandparents housed him, but his teenage rebellion and disobedience were too much for them. His uncle Mike took him in, but Josh was already involved with a Detroit gang. When the police broke into Mike’s house looking for Josh or his weapons, that was the end. Mike kicked him out.
Josh’s handyman and communication skills made him important to the gang; he loved the sense of adventure and belonging. He enjoyed getting high and dating a series of girlfriends. Ultimately a gang war landed him in prison.
On November 9, 1995, Josh and some gang members headed to a building where a rival gang was congregating. While Josh was in one car driving around the block, a gunshot from another car aimed at the rival gang struck and killed 12-year-old Angel L, who was sitting in her mother’s car.
Because Josh wasn’t present when the gunshot fired, he assumed he could never be convicted of the crime. But Michigan’s laws say an adult can be sentenced to felony murder for “aiding and abetting” the crime. And at 18, Michigan considered him an adult.
His legal advice was sketchy, and he didn’t want to rat on fellow gang members who nonetheless ratted on him.
While he could have gotten a 12-year sentence for pleading guilty, he didn’t feel he was guilty. The plea bargain system wasn’t explained to him. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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| A piece of art created by Josh and prisoners at Jackson Prison |
In 2024, the Michigan Supreme Court, in the decision Poole vs. State of Michigan, raised the age at which a youth cannot be convicted for life from 17 to 18, retroactively. Josh got resentenced to time served, and he was out in about three months. It helped that he had earned two college degrees; written three books, including one on gang violence prevention; taught classes in computing and self-help; worked with guide dogs; saved the prison system thousands of dollars by cultivating food in gardens; and started two nonprofits dedicated to mercy and justice for those convicted as adolescents.
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| Fellow prisoner Steve Nicholson wrote an anthem for TARP, which we played at TARP Villages and fundraisers |
In fact, 501c4 The Adolescent Redemption Project (TARP) lobbied for the judges and other "mercy" candidates whose decisions changed the interpretation of the law. I was a proud founding board member, and enjoyed meeting many incarcerated folks (including Everette Taylor, Breonna's father) and their loved ones as we created a Village to build community around TARP.
When freed a year and three quarters ago, Joshua faced a vastly changed world, and he jumped in with gusto. He found jobs, found housing, spoke to churches and media, and joined Michigan’s movement to get a “Second Look” for others incarcerated unjustly or who were fully reformed. He voted for the first time that November.
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| Thanksgiving, 2025 with Josh and his wife Tanice! |
I guess redemption is possible. Joshua Puckett is no longer a number; he’s a productive, happy citizen, a friend, an organizer, an amazing godson. Josh and I both relish the fact that we can actually talk now for more than 15 minutes at a time, see each other in person (we shared Thanksgiving 2025 in Detroit!), and travel more sanely into each day.
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| Josh in Detroit's Greektown with Jamie L Meade, a co-founder of TARP who was recently released from McComb Correctional Facility |
The Godson reports his feelings:
July 17, 2024
On that day I felt nervous joy as I waited for the gates to finally open and had a feeling of intense cathartic release as I walked into the arms of my family and friends. Yet there was an underlyling apprehension as I realized that I am an alien creature to this new world called freedom. I knew that I lacked the vast knowledge needed to survive in this technologically advanced civilization I had been dropped in. I optimistically believed that the degrees, books written, programs created -- coupled with my rehabilitation -- would be embraced, and I would be embraced as an asset to society.
My hopes were that society would allow me to utilize my skills as a loving form of atonement — I had no idea how wrong I was and how hard fought my journey would be.
April 12th 2026
As my 2 years of parole is coming to an end in less than 90 days, I have had the opportunity to experience the most simple and wonderful things mixed with harsh and cruel realities. The positive and new experiences include being welcomed into rooms with Judges, Senators and Mayors of cities, some of which I once caused great harm to. I am now a catalyst for positive change, speaking in schools and educating future generations on how decisions you make can have a lasting impact. In addition, I got to experience many firsts like concerts, comedy shows, and just today my first Detroit Tigers game at Comerica Park. All things I am grateful to have the privilege to experience.
The barriers to housing which I have faced over that first 19 months, including being homeless and being denied the ability to rent any apartment (because of my felony status), has been a deeply sad and eye-opening experience for me. This coupled with the realization that the 4 books I have authored, the 3 degrees I have obtained, 2 vocational trades and multiple certifications would hold ZERO weight in the job market.
Most recently, I experienced that getting in one car accident would financially drain me and prevent me from attending college in the summer. This shocked me into realizing that freedom is not free.
Regardless of all the struggles and setbacks, being restored to my chosen family, finding love and being able to walk under the stars whenever I choose to, make the hardships of the journey all worthwhile. I can happily say now that despite being so wrong about what freedom would look like, I am blessed beyond belief to have been resurrected from death by incarceration.
