Jon Schillaci - Incarceration in Texas

Incarceration in Texas

Schillaci, who was already fluent in Spanish, studied French and German in prison. He completed a bachelor's degree and two master's degrees in humanities and literature from the University of Houston.

Schillaci also wrote poetry and submitted his poems to a now-defunct New Hampshire literary magazine called The Fishwrapper, a quasi-underground student-run publication in University of New Hampshire. Schillaci won first prize for poetry with his poem Americans in PEN American Center's prisoner writing contest in 1998. A Deerfield, New Hampshire family had a connection with The Fishwrapper and they started correspondence with Schillaci by letters. They developed a pen pal relationship, which lasted throughout his incarceration, over seven years.

He told family that he was rehabilitated and about his desire for a new beginning. He wrote eloquently about how he was studying in prison and referred to crimes he had committed as "mistakes of his youth". The family believed that Schillaci was sincere and wanted to gave him a place to stay after his release. Another reason for the family's trust was that Schillaci had gained acceptance to a Ph.D. program in Tufts University.

Schillaci has friends and family in Houston and Dallas, but did not receive any visitors in prison.