Isaac is Released!

Isaac is out of Prison. Thanks to Pepperdine’s work, he is now working in Kampala as a welder.

In March, the Pepperdine legal team met Isaac while he was being held in Mbarara Main Prison, about 5 hours west of Kampala. He resolved his case through plea bargaining several months ago, obtaining a reduced sentence in exchange for a guilty plea. He was recently released after completing his sentence.

Isaac grew up in Northern Uganda and reports that he was abducted by Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army as a child. Although he was eventually rescued from the LRA, when he returned to his village, his family was gone. He never found them.

Isaac was eventually connected to a non-profit that provided housing, training and tools to start a trade. Isaac was working in Mbarara when he was arrested.

Isaac ended up in prison as a result of an unpaid loan. When a friend who borrowed money from Isaac would not pay it back, Isaac took that friend’s motorcycle without permission. The friend, of course, reported the “theft” to the police and Isaac was arrested. To make matters worse, while Isaac was in prison, the borrower also sold off all of Isaac’s work tools.

Upon his release, the only contact number he had for help was Richard, the Pepperdine attorney he met during plea bargaining. Richard helped Isaac copy his school transcripts and work certifications and put them into a file on his phone. With these official papers, he could apply for work.

Richard’s investment in Isaac, from helping him resolve his case to helping him obtain and copy his work documents, enabled Isaac to secure steady and well-paid work in Kampala. Richard met Isaac at his job site last week and made this video as a “thank you” to the Pepperdine community for helping Isaac move into a new season of hope and healing.

Richard’s words of encouragement at the end of the video speak for the entire Pepperdine team as we watch this work grow in East Africa.