His unusual legal journey began not at law school, but federal prison, where he learned to write briefs for other prisoners. After serving almost 11 years in federal prison for bank robbery, shon hopwood is a law student at the university of washington. Hopwood to speak at annual prayer breakfast local news. Apr 21, 2017 shon hopwoods life didnt start out as remarkable.
Block was in washington, shon was in seattle and i was in lincoln. Hopwood was working in the prison law library, checking out books, when a fellow prisoner asked him for help with his case. The incredible case of the bank robber whos now a law clerk. Shon hopwood federal prison consultant prison professors. Shon hopwood associate professor of law georgetown. They have also lived in david city, ne and council bluffs, ia plus 4 other locations. There, the bank robber became a jailhouse lawyer who got a fellow. Aug 08, 20 shon hopwood may be the most famous law student currently enrolled at the university of washington. See all books authored by shon hopwood, including law man. Shon hopwoods unusual legal journey began prior to him attending law school and included the u. And what is even more amazing is that he apparently wrote this book while he was a second year law student. Shon slowly taught himself criminal law and began to help fellow inmates.
Follow shon hopwood and explore their bibliography from s shon hopwood author page. The following interview is with shon hopwood, author of the newly published book law man. After spending the late 1990s robbing banks across rural nebraska, time and justice finally caught up with shon hopwood. The story of professor shon hopwoods astounding life journey from federal prisoner to georgetown law professor has been told many times. The new york times, the washington post, the new yorker, and on npr and 60 minutes. It was chosen to be heard from over 7,000 other petitions submitted by the greater legal community that year. Shon hopwood appears on 60 minutes for interview with steve kroft. Gods hot pursuit of an armed bank robber christianity today. Unlike the students who come to law school after 17 years of playing by the rules, kindergarten through college, shon hopwood made some significant mistakes. Hopwood became wellknown as a jailhouse lawyer who served time in prison for bank robbery. There, the bank robber became a jailhouse lawyer who got a fellow prisoners case heard before the supreme court. More life reflections from the bestselling author on themes of societal captivity and the catharsis of personal freedom. Shon hopwoods path to becoming associate professor of law at georgetown.
Shons unusual legal journey began not at law school, but federal. Circuit for judge janice rogers brown an incredible redemption story. My story of robbing banks, winning supreme court cases, and finding redemption hopwood, shon, burke, dennis on. Less than five years ago, shon hopwood was an inmate in fci pekin, a federal prison. He is a founding partner at and he works to create content that will improve outcomes of our nations criminal justice system. That exchange will air today thursday, september 5, 20, 4. Shon hopwood received a 12year sentence in 1998 for robbing five different banks. The npr program and podcast explores the invisible forces that shape human behavior, and we here at shots are joining in. How trump went from tough on crime to second chance for.
Like most secondyear law students, shon hopwood will be spending most of the winter huddled over casebooks, frantically typing notes in lecture halls, and scrambling to balance academic, family, and extracurricular obligations. Shon hopwood, a secondyear fellow in georgetown laws appellate litigation clinic, will be joining the georgetown law faculty as an associate. My story of robbing banks, winning supreme court cases, and finding redemption. Carr has authored a set of christian biographies for young readers and today i am giving away five sets of all five of the books she has written so far.
My story of robbing banks, winning supreme court cases, and finding redemption by shon hopwood and dennis burke. My life of robbing banks, winning supreme court cases, and finding redemption, has been published by random house. When i sat down for an interview with the owners of cockle law brief printing company in omaha, neb. Shon hopwood may be the most famous law student currently enrolled at the university of washington. This led npr s alix spiegel to ask, how much do the patterns of your past behavior predict your life. I had no prior history with the law other than breaking it. Shon hopwood, a david city native, began corresponding with his wife, anne marie, while he was serving time in federal prison for bank robbery. President trump, with vice president pence, poses with a plaque given to him by sheriffs from across the country during a meeting in september.
Oct 26, 20 shon hopwood was in prison for more than a decade. View phone numbers, addresses, public records, background check reports and possible arrest records for sharon hopwood. Shon hopwood books list of books by author shon hopwood. My story of robbing banks, winning supreme court cases, and finding redemption, and more on. By all accounts, shon hopwood was a good kid from a good nebraskan family, but after high school he grew bored. He cofounded prison professors, a blog about the criminal justice system, and he wrote a memoir called law man. The best result we found for your search is shon robert hopwood age 40s in washington, dc in the southeast washington neighborhood. Hes landed a prestigious law clerks position with the u. Shon hopwood and richard kopf on npr business insider. Hopwood a top jailhouse lawyer a former bank robber, shon r.
Cases, and finding redemption by shon hopwood and dennis burke. Meet a convicted felon who became a georgetown law professor. Shon hopwood was a young man when i sentenced him to prison for a long time in the late 1990s. Law man is an improbablebuttrue memoir of redemption the story of a young bank robber who became the greatest jailhouse lawyer in american history, and who changed not just his own life, but the lives of everyone around him. Hopwood entered a guilty plea to five counts of bank robbery, and one count of using a firearm during a crime of violence. Remember shon hopwood, the bank robber who won a scotus case as a jailhouse lawyer, went to law school, and clerked for the d. Shon hopwood was a good kid from a good nebraskan family, a smalltown basketball star whose parents had started a local church. On paper, shon hopwoods life doesnt make a lot of sense, not even to. This juggling act may not be easy, but he is used to hard times. Shon hopwood is an associate professor at georgetown university law center. At his home in omaha, his wife, ann marie, held their six week old son mark. Shon hopwood was serving time for armed bank robbery when he discovered he had a brilliant mind for the law. Hopwood emerged from more than a decade in federal prison as a skilled supreme court practitioner.
His transformation from a bank robber, prison inmate, to law student was intriguing reading. Hopwood has been profiled by the new york times, npr, and other media. While his own story moves from bleak to fairytale fantastic so swiftly you halfexpect the inmates to line up and start singing dont stop believin behind him, he notes in a sobering aside that the. When he was younger, he robbed five banks in rural nebraska.
While in prison, he started spending time in the law library, and became an accomplished united states supreme. Shon hopwood found love, a professional calling, and redemption while in prison. Shon hopwood, associate law professor at georgetown. It began with a happy childhood in a town of 2,500 people in nebraska. This weeks free stuff fridays is one youre going to like. View shon hopwoods profile on linkedin, the worlds largest professional community. Shon robert hopwood born june 11, 1975 is an american convicted felon, appellate lawyer, and professor of law at georgetown university law center. Discount prices on books by shon hopwood, including titles like law man. Hopwood was working in the prison law library, checking out books, when a fellow prisoner. Bellevue university alumnus shon hopwood contacted the university this summer with an update. Sharon hopwood phone, address, background info whitepages. Shon is related to rebecca l richards and brett nathaniel hopwood as well as 6 additional people. Today, hopwood who joined the georgetown law faculty last year works for criminal justice reform and prison reform so that others may have a second chance, too. Shon hopwood is an associate professor of law at georgetown law school.
It is sponsored by reformation heritage books and features some great books by simonetta carr. Shon hopwood, justin paperny and michael santos are cofounders of prison professors. Dec 17, 2018 photo by nicholas kamm afpgetty images. Shon hopwood wikipedia hopwood s memoir, co written with dennis burke, was published in august 2012. A mediocre criminal, but an unmatched jailhouse lawyer. Shon hopwood phone, address, background info whitepages. Shon put his prison time to good use by studying law. His amazing story of success has been featured in the new york times, the washington post, the new yorker, and on npr and 60 minutes.
Book excerpts are provided by the publisher and may contain. Hopwood is an expert on federal courts, criminal procedure including federal sentencing, and prisoners rights. My story of robbing banks, winning supreme court cases, and finding redemption with dennis burke, published by crown law man is the true story of shon hopwood, who grew up in nebraska. Shon hopwood is a gates public service law scholar at the university of washington school of law and author of law man. Hopwood spent time in federal prison for bank robbery, reformed, found a passion for the law, wrote a book about it, and will be clerking on the d. Shon hopwood is an associate professor of law at georgetown university law center, where he is an expert on federal courts, criminal procedure including federal sentencing, and prisoners rights. Shons unusual legal journey began not at law school, but federal prison, where he learned to write briefs for other prisoners. In the memoir, hopwood details both his life as a jailhouse lawyer and his romance with his wife, ann marie hopwood, who hopwood wrote during eight years of his imprisonment. Ann maries journey with the law began when she wrote the first of hundreds of letters to her now husband, shon hopwood, when he was in year 2 of a 12 year prison sentence.
The inmate then poured his energy into reading books about law in the hopes of getting a legal relief on his case. At that time, she had very little knowledge of the law and no interest in ever going to law school. Four years ago, she writes, married to the father of my three children, i. Shon hopwood talked about his path from prison to a professor at georgetown university law center and his fight for criminal justice reform. All things considered, shon hopwood and me hercules and. The twoway shon hopwood was in prison for more than a decade. All things considered on thursday catches up with the remarkable story of shon hopwood, who has gone from being a 23yearold bank robber sentenced to spend about a decade in prison to become a 38yearold father whos soon to be clerking for a judge on the prestigious u. Shon hopwood assembly series washington university in. The justices voted 90 in favor of hopwoods petition when the case was finally heard. Shon hopwood is an american appellate lawyer and professor of law at georgetown university law center. Patterns matter, and theyre the latest focus of npr s invisibilia, which is back with its fourth season. Shons research and teaching interests include criminal law and procedure, civil rights, and the constitutional rights of prisoners. A magnificent book that captures the complexity of the american prison. The incredible case of the bank robber whos now a law.
He wrote one petition to the supreme court on a typewriter. By the age of 22, he had dropped out of college, spent two years in the navy, then found himself back in his sleepy hometown, drinking and using drugs to help quell the boredom. Shon hopwood order your copy of shons book law man today. See the complete profile on linkedin and discover shons. Whitepages people search is the most trusted directory. Shon hopwood s law man shon hopwood is a law school student at the university of washington school of law who, prior to law school, served over ten years in federal prison for a. Hee is or can be a catalyst to those in our society who only see things through a very small window. He then served ten years in federal prison, where he discovered that he loved the. I sentenced hopwood to 147 months in prison and concurrent terms of supervised release. Hopwood was working in the prison law library, checking out books.
Shon hopwood, mediocre criminal turned top jailhouse. Former prison inmate shares how jesus grace changed his. Shon hopwoods story about going from bank robber to law professor at a prestigious institution will be featured on 60 minutes sunday, detailing his unlikely rise with the help of some prominent individuals who saw his talent while behind bars, cbs news reported. Opening general session with keynote shon hopwood aall. While serving time, prison officials assigned him to work at the correctional facilitys library.
Shon works as a law professor, an advocate for criminal justice reform, and as keynote speaker. Shon robert hopwood born june 11, 1975 is an american convicted felon, appellate lawyer. Robert siegel reads an email from a listener about shon hopwood, a bank robber turned law clerk. Oct, 2017 shon hopwood s story about going from bank robber to law professor at a prestigious institution will be featured on 60 minutes sunday, detailing his unlikely rise with the help of some prominent individuals who saw his talent while behind bars, cbs news reported. Click this link to order copies of law man today shon hopwoods unusual legal journey began not at law school, but federal prison, where he learned to write briefs for other prisoners while serving a 12year sentence for bank robberies. On paper, shon hopwoods life doesnt make a lot of sense, not even to him. And what started out as a rather unremarkable life has gone full circle for shon hopwood and become a remarkable one, because hes now been offered a job as a tenuretrack faculty member at the georgetown university law center.
His dad managed a cattle feed yard, and his parents helped found a. The david city, nebraska, native reported he has completed his first year of law school, and an autobiographical book, titled law man. Supreme court granting two petitions for certiorari he prepared. Shon hopwoods remarkable journey from federal inmate to. Shon hopwood is an amazing guy who has done amazing things with his life. Can a computer predict the pattern of your life based on. Jan 01, 2012 law man is secondyear law student shon hopwood s memoir of his unusual path to law school, written with dennis burke.
Sep 11, 2018 shon hopwood is an associate professor at georgetown university law center. This week, shon hopwood and i participated in a joint interview with melissa block of npr. Shon r hopwoods unusual legal journey began not at law school, but federal prison, where he learned to write briefs for other prisoners. Well also attach a link to an excerpt from a book hopwood has written, law man. Which brings us back to the unusual trajectory of shon hopwood.