Redemption Song: The Story Of Larry Benjamin

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

by WILL FOLKS

***

Four decades ago, a cold-blooded murder took place in Columbia, South Carolina. The man who held the gun and pulled the trigger? Larry Benjamin.

In the aftermath of his crime, Benjamin was sentenced to life in prison – plus ninety-five years. In other words, everyone knew that every breath Larry Benjamin would draw from that moment forward would not be a breath of free air.

I should say everyone knew… except for Larry Benjamin. Thirty-three years following his sentencing – after a chance encounter with attorney Alexandra Benevento of the Strom Law Firm – Benjamin was not only able to make his case for freedom, he was granted parole.

Too often here at FITSNews, we write about those who squander their second chance – often with tragic consequences for themselves and their communities. But that’s not Benjamin’s story. Not only has he made good on his second chance for himself – he’s turned it into opportunity for countless others via his new role as outreach director at Transitions, a Columbia, S.C.-based homeless shelter.

How did Benjamin persevere against the insurmountable odds he faced?

***

***

“I never accepted ‘forever,'” Benjamin told me, referring to his lengthy sentence. “I never bought into that. I’m not gonna participate in that nonsense about this ‘forever.’ It might be ‘forever’ for you, but not me. I’m gonna figure this out.”

In our conversation, Benjamin and I not only discussed how he did his time – but how the situation evolved (or devolved) during his lengthy stay with the S.C. Department of Corrections (SCDC). Specifically, he addressed prison reforms implemented in the 2000s which banned smoking, mandated uniforms and prevented inmates from being able to access currency.

“It stripped the prisoner, it stripped the guys from their ability to teach and to mentor,” he said. “And once they started doing that, all the gang members came in, and the older people were like the old dinosaurs. They were pushing them aside, and the gang members were teaching and mentoring.”

As a result, Benjamin says “the prisons are ten times more dangerous” than they were before.

***

“Prison was not fun and games,” Benjamin said. “Prison was a struggle. Prison was painful.”

But according to him, that struggle and pain was something each individual convict (he eschews the term inmate) had to find a way to face on a daily basis. Every day, he said, convicts must find a way “to kill the demons that dwell within you.”

“You have to kill them off every day,” he said. “The anger, the hate, frustration, the malice in my heart – those are demons.”

In one of the most poignant moments of our conversation, I asked Benjamin what he would say to someone in the same position he found himself in so many decades ago – when he made a choice that claimed not only the life of his victim, but nearly cost him everything.

“Please breathe,” he said. “Please just take a deep breath. Breathe – if you can breathe about ten seconds, oxygen goes to your brain and you’ll be able to think.”

***

***

“It only takes ten seconds to cost you your life, so breathe,” he added. “Breathe. Just relax and breathe. And that’s all it takes. Just take a deep breath. I’m still angry, I’m still upset, but that breath brought me back to reality.”

In addition to his mentoring work in the community, Benjamin plays a pivotal role at Transitions – bringing people into the shelter who might ordinarily refuse to be helped, thus helping them forge a new reality for themselves.

“Larry meets them where they’re at,” said Craig Currey, Transitions’ president and chief executive officer. “That trust is key.”

“It’s very hard to find an outreach person who’s willing to walk around in the dark and talk to unhoused folks and say, ‘hey, there’s a better way to live,'” Currey added. “Larry goes out on weekends. He goes out on holidays. So he’s reaching out in the community at all times.”

FITSNews is far from alone in sharing Larry Benjamin’s inspiring redemption story. In addition to numerous media reports, there’s a documentary film on his life entitled ‘From Darkness to Light‘ which aired this week at the Nickelodeon Theatre in downtown Columbia, S.C.

What’s next for Benjamin?

“Everything that people told me I couldn’t do, I’ve done,” he said. “So now I need somebody to tell me something else I can’t do so I can try to do it.”

***

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…

Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.

***

WANNA SOUND OFF?

Got something you’d like to say in response to one of our articles? Or an issue you’d like to address proactively? We have an open microphone policy! Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Got a tip for a story? CLICK HERE. Got a technical question or a glitch to report? CLICK HERE.