To Senators Durbin & Grassley: A Blueprint to Fix the Bureau of Prisons

Dear Senators Durbin and Grassley (and my Mindful Ethics Readers),

I spent 11 years in prison for a crime that wasn’t defined until after a judicial decision sentenced me.

Now, as the dust settles after the 2024 election, America has just overwhelmingly elected a felon to the presidency—by a landslide.

The people have spoken, and that statement is blunt: they don’t trust the government.

And why should they?

The people’s confidence in our institutions has been fractured, and the government must take notice.

Many of my readers already know my story, my innocence, and the years I spent behind bars.

Senators, if you haven’t kept up, you’ll find my position laid out in back issues of Mindful Ethics.

The purpose of this letter, however, is to address the dysfunction within the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and to offer something many will find surprising: a genuine solution, if you’re willing to consider it.

In 2020, I was released under the Elderly Home Confinement Program, for which I am grateful, as you both (Senator Durbin and Grassley) made it possible. However, let me be crystal clear: whether or not I was guilty, the mission of the BOP is supposed to center on rehabilitation.

Rehabilitation is supposed to be the center of everything they do—but that’s not what I experienced.

Instead, I find myself facing retaliations.

And the Bureau of Prisons, through a vendetta-driven bureaucracy, makes it nearly impossible for people like me to thrive, let alone rehabilitate. Eight months ago, I fought for my right to speak to the press, and the BOP finally conceded that my position was legally sound.

Yet just as soon as I’d won that fight, the retaliation came with a force.

They removed me from the Elderly Home Confinement Program, where I’d been for four years, and placed me in a program far more restrictive, with conditions that defy any rationale.

Senators, let’s be honest—any sane person can see the timing for what it is: pure retaliation.

Come on, four years in one program, and suddenly I’m a “flight risk” to Israel?

No one believes that.

No one buys that.

And it didn’t stop there.

This new program has invented rules that don’t exist for others in similar situations. For example, just recently I have been told that I have to get medication approved by the BOP—even with a doctor’s prescription.

Four years with no issues, no approval needed beyond my doctor’s orders, and now they’re standing between me and my health.

Senators, this is not about “public safety;” It’s about obstruction. It’s about preventing me from building something bigger than myself—something meaningful, like a church that could bring hope and unity.

Every day, my health and basic well-being are put at risk, with no legal grounds, no ethical justification—only the sheer force of vindictive bureaucracy.

The toll on my quality of life is real, constant, and draining.

Adding to the list of retaliations, I was recently informed I am not allowed to call myself “Pastor” despite the fact that I am legally ordained and have been for over a year and a half. During that time, I have preached more than 400 sermons, connecting with people across the nation and building a vision of unity and faith.

This restriction is nothing short of ludicrous.

To deny me the title of “Pastor” as an ordained minister is not only unjust—it is blatantly anti-rehabilitative. This demand does nothing to serve justice or public safety; it’s retaliation, plain and simple, designed to stifle my purpose and block my efforts to bring others to faith.

Senators, every detail of this struggle is laid out in past issues of Mindful Ethics—I urge you, do your due diligence, dig into those back issues, and see the full truth for yourselves.

But today isn’t just about the wrongs I’ve experienced.

Today, I want to focus on change.

Positive change.

Practical change.

Change that would make “rehabilitation” more than just a word in the BOP’s mission statement. I’ve made the suggestions herein to the BOP before, but I’m sure those ideas were met with laughter.

And perhaps those in power find me laughable.

But I’m here, Senators, ready to offer solutions.

Let’s call it disruptive—disruptive in the best sense.

And here’s my proposal:

1) Reducing Violence in Facilities

Let’s start with MDC Brooklyn, a facility infamous for its violence. Gang activity controls this place, with dangerous, unchecked criminals running the show. We’re not talking about “mischief.”

This is a facility that is completely overrun by sociopathic killers.

What I’m proposing would take a miracle—and I have the man who works in miracles.

Bob DeSena, CEO of Council for Unity, is that man.

His organization works with some of the hardest criminals and has transformed killers into men of unity, brothers in purpose. Bob and his organization are based in Brooklyn, and he has a reputation that speaks for itself.

Don’t believe me?

Ask Bryan Fischer, the former Commissioner of Corrections in New York, or Sheriff Vincent DeMarco, both of whom worked directly with Bob to transform one of New York’s worst prison facilities into a place of order, safety, and brotherhood.

Senators, the Council for Unity is not some lofty nonprofit; it’s a miracle machine, and it’s ready to turn things around in places like MDC Brooklyn.

I urge you to investigate these issues thoroughly.

Look into it.

They have references that should be beyond convincing.

2) Bringing Meaningful Education to Adults in Custody

Education is the bedrock of rehabilitation, and the technology exists to make it accessible to every incarcerated individual.

Senators, Harvard University and other top institutions offer free online courses that would otherwise cost tens of thousands of dollars. With just a bit of investment in secure internet access, the BOP could open up these courses to incarcerated adults.

Imagine—a million dollars’ worth of college courses accessible without a dime spent by the government.

I have even volunteered to reach out to professors and negotiate academic credit for these courses. Tablets can be set up for secure educational use, barring any internet browsing but allowing inmates to access accredited college courses.

This isn’t just an idea; it’s a working solution that could empower men and women to leave BOP with something more than a prison record.

They could leave with an education—a real pathway to rehabilitation and self-improvement.

3) Slashing the BOP’s $3 Billion Repair Budget with Smart Financing and Grants

This next point is laughable.

BOP’s supposed repair budget has ballooned to $3 billion.

But from my experience, I’d argue the true figure is closer to $1.5 billion.

Senators, I know how to make cuts without compromising results.

Before retiring as CEO of White-Vogue Industries, I helped secure $849,000 in federal grants for a solar project.

So here’s my question: Why isn’t BOP accessing this free federal money?

Tens of millions in grants are available for infrastructure projects, yet they’re simply overlooked.

Also that $1.7 million job was trimmed down by me (before my recent retirement) to $1.2 million through smart negotiations.

With my help, I could take that $3 billion figure and slash it in half.

That’s not idle talk; I’d be happy to work with people like Officer Caffee (check spelling please), a brilliant engineer and one of the most resourceful officers I met during my time at Devens.

Caffee and I would work well together—I’d volunteer my time to cut through the red tape, secure grants, and make the impossible happen.

If I’m the “Shark,” as they call me on LinkedIn, Caffee is the man who knows the waters.

Together, we could eliminate the unnecessary fat from these budgets, access the grants, and get the repairs done without costing taxpayers a fortune.

I volunteer to help.

4) Working Directly with BOP’s Best Staff to Lead by Example and Cut Costs

There are some great people in the BOP, Senators.

When I was a guest of the government, I found true allies in the rank-and-file officers, men and women who did their jobs with honor. Some of the BOP’s staff are among the finest I’ve met.

These are the people I would like to work with, people who understood me because we were able to speak openly, honestly, and with purpose.

So here’s my offer: let me work with BOP’s best staff. I’m volunteering to help reduce their costs, improve their efficiency, and cut through bureaucracy. Imagine the goodwill, the real savings, and the change we could achieve.

Poster Boy For the First Step Act

Senators, I am the poster boy for the First Step Act.

I publish Mindful Ethics as a testament to my commitment to transparency and truth.

And yet, what I saw inside prison walls was worse than anything I could have imagined. I saw true evil, and yes, some of that came from the staff (right now I am being retaliated against by a very evil man).

But I want to be fair.

Most of the staff were extraordinary.

The real problem, Senators, is a leadership culture that retaliates, bullies, and silences.

Today, I’m experiencing retaliation at the hands of one such high-level manager. And while I am committed to resolving this, I am also willing to offer something unprecedented. Senators, the Bureau of Prisons can become a place where hope and redemption thrive.

But this transformation requires leadership willing to think creatively, to listen to those who have experienced the system, and to act on the belief that rehabilitation is possible.

In the spirit of that belief, I offer you my time, my energy, and my unwavering dedication. Let me work with Officer Caffee—who, during my time as your "guest," stood out as one of the most ethical and honest officers I ever met… and, might I add, a brilliant engineer.

It would be in your best interest to let me work with Caffee and others like him, not just to cut costs but to give the BOP a chance to show what rehabilitation really looks like.

Let’s access the grants.

Let’s reduce the repair budget from that laughable $3 billion.

Let’s make real education a reality, and let’s bring in people like Bob DeSena to reduce the violence that plagues facilities like MDC Brooklyn.

It is time to transform the BOP from a place of punishment into a genuine vehicle for change.

This is my plea, Senators Durbin and Grassley: look past the rhetoric and take this offer seriously.

Together, we can turn the BOP into a true rehabilitation system—the institution it was meant to be—one that believes in rehabilitation, in hope, and in humanity.

With an unwavering commitment to honesty ethics, and doing what is right,

David

P. P. S. ?????? ? If you don’t know who I am, my name is David Vogel, retired CEO turned LinkedIn influencer and Founder of the Church of Unity Society. Six mornings a week Live at 7 AM, I preach to the C-suite, igniting their spirits with the power of God. As the publisher of Mindful Ethics, the unapologetic voice of ethics on LinkedIn, I challenge leaders to elevate their game, lead with heart, and redefine what it means to live with purpose.

? Published by: David Vogel, in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire