Bobby Bostic has spent nearly 3 decades of his life in prison and after getting his freedom from a 241-year prison term the man had to take some time to recover from the culture shock. From people using tech gadgets to everyone treating him kindly and respectfully, Bostic is shocked that a world like this existed all the while he was locked up in prison.
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Bobby Bostic got his freedom from a 241-year prison sentence. The man has now shared the things that he finds strange in the outside world.
Bostic was given consecutive sentences for 17 crimes he committed at the same time in 1995, which added up to 241 years behind bars.
CBS News
The fateful day, which was described as a ‘drug-fuelled day’ in which they smoked weed and PCP and drank gin, 16-year-old Bostic and his friend Donald Hutson went on an armed robbery spree. They stole a car from a woman at gunpoint, stole from a group handing out Christmas presents to those in need, and fired a gun.
However, after being locked up for almost 30 years, Bostic was released from prison and what the 44-year-old got was nothing less than a culture shock.
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He was shocked to see the technology gadgets and looking at the wireless hearing phones the man thought 'why are dudes talking to themselves?' he told BBC. He was also confused about people talking to their speaker and thought, 'I’m like, what is Alexis?' he told the news organization. Self-service drink machines were also a point of confusion.
CBS News
However, the biggest thing that left him shocked was how people treated him. Seeing people wave and smile was something Bostic is not used to and had never come across while being held in the Algoa Correctional Center in Missouri.
"It's how friendly they are, compared to prison.
"You go into a grocery store, and it's 'Sir, can I help you?' In prison, you got nothing but mean mugs [faces] and harassment…"
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Bostic said it hasn’t been hard to adapt after being in prison, 'because deep down inside, you always wanted that humanity. You wanted that human connection… that’s life. That’s beauty. That’s the joy of being a human.’
Bostic was released from prison with the help of a very unexpected ally – the same judge who sentenced him and condemned him to die in prison.
CBS News
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Judge Evelyn Baker, who told Bostic ‘You will die in the Department of Corrections’ in 1995 was one of the well-wishers who greeted him when he was released on 9 November.
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During his time in prison, Bostic became a changed man and started reading self-help books and writing on his typewriter. "I've gotten close to Bobby and his sister. I've seen him turn from basically a juvenile delinquent into a very thoughtful, caring adult. He grew up," Judge Baker told the BBC.
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Bostic’s journey to freedom began in 2010 when the US Supreme Court ruled that juveniles should not get life sentences without parole for non-homicidal offenses.
Six years later it was confirmed that this rule would apply to old cases like Bostic’s.
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The Bobby Bostic law was adopted in 2021, allowing Bostic and other inmates like him to apply for parole.