Richard McDonald was a Mormon kid from Southern California with a bright future—until a car accident left him hooked on painkillers. What started as a prescription spiraled into a 16-year addiction, a hidden gambling problem, and a $472,000 embezzlement scheme to fund it all. Indicted by the FBI for wire fraud and sentenced to 24 months in federal prison, Richard shares the shocking truth behind his downfall and how he’s rebuilding his life.

Melo grew up in poverty on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, raised in a single-parent household and surrounded by the harsh realities of the streets. By 16, his life took a dangerous turn — leading to 13 years behind bars in some of New York’s most notorious maximum-security prisons. In this conversation, Melo shares what it’s really like inside the system: the violence, the survival tactics, the mental toll, and the lessons he learned the hard way. Now free and determined to turn his life around, he’s using his story to inspire change.

Travis Hoban always wanted to be a cop—just like his dad, a tough New Jersey correctional officer. But growing up in a household filled with alcoholism and emotional turmoil, Travis carried more than just ambition into adulthood. After finally making it onto the force, his career came crashing down just one year in—arrested for DUI and forced to resign. Spiraling deeper into addiction, Travis hit rock bottom before making a powerful comeback. In this raw and emotional episode, he opens up about law enforcement culture, hitting his breaking point, and the brutal reality of recovery.

Public defender Thomas Leaf gives his unfiltered take on America’s growing immigration crisis. From ICE overreach to broken policies and political hypocrisy, Leaf breaks down what’s really happening behind the headlines. This isn’t courtroom drama — it’s a firsthand look at how the system is failing from someone who sees the consequences every day.

Travis Richey was a successful hedge fund owner with a background in finance — until a paperwork mistake landed him in an Arizona state prison. Raised in Boston with family ties to organized crime, Travis built a career on Wall Street before a technicality changed his life forever. In this gripping episode, Travis opens up about his rise in the finance world, the moment it all came crashing down, and how he’s now using his experience to help others through his nonprofit.