Episode summary
In this short episode of Armchair Expert, Dax Shepard speaks with Chris Young about his incarceration, health problems, and the events surrounding his release after receiving presidential clemency. Young describes being held in “the hole” (solitary confinement) during COVID-era lockdowns, including being placed in a single cell he says was flooded and cut off from basic comforts such as commissary. He explains how he maintained a strict daily routine of exercise and reading to cope with isolation, and says he began writing a memoir to ensure the public record reflected his “humanity”.
Young also recounts the moment he says he learned he was being released: a prison lieutenant asked if he wanted to “go home”, after which Young says he was taken to sign paperwork bearing the US presidential seal, ordering his immediate release on 20 January 2021. Elsewhere, the conversation turns to Young’s sickle cell disease and chronic pain; he and Shepard discuss perceptions of pain medication-seeking and the limitations and cost of gene-editing treatments. Young describes the emotional impact of leaving prison, including grief for family and friends who died while he was incarcerated and guilt about others still serving long sentences. He contrasts his drug-dealing offence with what he argues are disproportionate sentencing outcomes, while acknowledging the harm caused by trafficking crack and cocaine.
