Erwin James
Erwin James was born to Scottish parents in Somerset in 1957. A family lifestyle described as “brutal and rootless” by a prison psychologist following the death of his mother when James was seven, led to a limited formal education. Aged ten he was sleeping rough when he gained his first criminal conviction, for the burglary of a sweet shop, which resulted in him being taken into care. He left the care home at 15 and spent the rest of his teenage and early adult years drifting, living with extended family members, and again often sleeping rough. During that time he worked in various labouring jobs, but also committed relatively petty, mostly acquisitive, but occasionally violent crimes (criminal damage, common assault.) His directionless way of life continued, including several years in the French Foreign Legion, until August 1984 when he received his life sentence.
James went to prison an inarticulate and ill-educated individual with, in his own words, “massive failings to overcome.” Despite the dehumanising nature of prison life, the violence, both physical and psychological, and the sheer uncertainty of living for years on end on the edge of hope James managed to use his time constructively. He remains grateful for the encouragement he received from a significant number of well-intentioned staff members and fellow prisoners he encountered as he served his time, and for the opportunities that prison gave him. In 1994 he gained a history degree with the Open University and in 1995 won first prize in the annual Koestler Awards for prose. His first article for The Guardian appeared in 1998 and later he chronicled the last four years of his time in custody in his column in the paper entitled A Life Inside. The columns were the first of their kind in the history of British journalism and to this day James remains a Guardian columnist and contributor.
Following his release from prison James has become a trustee of the Prison Reform Trust, and a Patron of the charity CREATE, an organisation that promotes the arts and creative activities among marginalized groups. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of the Arts (FRSA) and an Honorary Master of the Open University.
Titles
The Home Stretch: From Prison to Parole (Guardian Books, 2005)
A Life Inside: A Prisoner’s Notebook (Guardian Books, 2003)