"Here's how about a thousand people incarcerated by the state of California ended up on the frontlines battling the LA area wildfires"

"When he left prison after serving close to a decade after an armored truck robbery, Anthony Pedro found himself sleeping in his car – which, he points out, was loaned to him and didn't even run well.

While incarcerated, Pedro had been part of a firefighter and emergency response program and, once released, he found himself missing the work.

"Leaving from being a firefighter working incidents every day to going to just nothing – it was a hard transition. (I) kind of felt like I was forced into retirement but yet still in my prime," he recalled.

Pedro eventually landed a seasonal position at Cal Fire before becoming a full-time engineer at a local department. He is now the founder of Future Fire Academy, a training program for people like him who want a career in firefighting."

David Sherfinski reports for Thomson Reuters Foundation January 17, 2025. [2]