Eugene Youngblood was arrested in 1991 at 18 years of age. He was set to spend the rest of his life in prison, but in June 2019 the Clemency and Pardons board voted unanimously to recommend release after finding that his personal transformation and the work he did with other incarcerated people was extraordinary. He was released in 2021 at the age of 48 spending nearly 30 years in prison.
Eugene is now the director of community organizing for Look2Justice a grassroots organization of system-impacted organizers and researchers who work to cultivate justice, fairness, and accountability in Washington State’s criminal legal system through civic education and empowerment.