Growing up in Sheepshead Bay, New York, with my single mother who worked as a bookkeeper, I learned the value of hard work early on. I earned good grades while delivering newspapers, selling athletic apparel, and playing sports. After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminology, I moved to Georgia to become a commodities trader. I worked at multiple trading firms, got married, survived cancer, and had three children. Having grown up without my father, I devoted myself to my children, coaching their teams and never missing a game or school play. I also served on the board of the Cancer Assistance Fund, planning charity events to raise money for cancer patients.

I spent several years in the credit card processing industry until my business ended unsuccessfully. Then, I joined a former associate at a Panama-based foreign currency exchange firm, completing administrative tasks while becoming dependent on opioids. Eventually, I acknowledged my role in the company’s scheme to defraud investors and pled guilty in federal court.

As my sentencing date approached, I discovered White Collar Advice (WCA) through their videos. My lawyer had told me nothing and didn’t prepare me for anything, leaving me in the dark. Watching the WCA videos was like opening a new world of information. The clear message made perfect sense. I wish I’d accessed this information from the beginning.

I worked with the WCA team to prepare my personal narrative for the judge. Before finding them, my lawyer showed up at my Pre-Sentence Interview with a generic acceptance of responsibility that had nothing to do with me. They walked me through my life story, bringing back details I hadn’t thought about. They did a great job with the narrative, and even helped my family and friends prepare character reference letters. My family was relieved to get the help, and WCA made it easy for them.

At my hearing, I expected a sentence of 63-70 months. I read aloud the statement I’d worked on with the team. The judge referenced the character reference letters, noting their quality. Having reviewed my submission, the judge recommended me for the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP) and noted my prison preference. I was relieved to hear the judge hand down a sentence of 51 months.

Working with WCA prepared me for this outcome and gave me confidence. The process got much better once I got into the right frame of mind. I can’t imagine going through this without WCA’s help.

I continue to work with WCA as I prepare to surrender to prison. They’re helping me understand how I can benefit from the First Step Act and take concrete steps to get ready. WCA content offers essential advice for navigating the early phases of a prison sentence, and team members share how they used their time in prison to improve their health and develop useful life skills.

I paid my lawyer a tremendous amount of money, and he turned out to be 100% useless. I figured he knew what to do, but he didn’t. I would 100% recommend WCA to someone in this type of situation. I got a huge benefit and peace of mind knowing that I’d done everything I could to prepare.

I plan on using my time in prison to turn my life around. I’ll take advantage of every course and program available. Coming out better is definitely the hope.