Beyond the Barriers

Harold Morris spent eight years in prison for crimes he did not commit. Now a minister, he has produced a page-turning, anecdotal book about life on both sides of the prison bars and on both sides of the church altar. By the author of Twice Pardoned.

Harold Morris began writing in 1984 when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. He wanted to use his last few months to share the story of his life: falsely convicted of armed robbery and murder at age 29, he spent the next nine years behind bars, struggling to survive in what was widely recognized as the worst prison in the United States - Georgia State Penitentiary. But inside prison he found something unexpected; he found hope.

After almost a decade behind bars, Harold Morris was paroled in 1978. He finally received a commutation from the state of Georgia, restoring all of his individual and civil liberties, in 1981, on the day before he was graduated from college.

Once again a free man, he dedicated his life to speaking to millions in the United States and around the world about the dangers of drugs and alcohol and associating with the wrong crowd - the very things that had landed him in prison. For years he shared his tragic story, emphasizing the importance of making the right choices early in life.

In 1991, thirteen years after his release from prison, Harold Morris received the Vice Presidential Humanitarian Award of Honor in Washington, D.C. for his contribution to the lives of youth and prison inmates.

Unshackled is his third book. His first two books, Twice Pardoned and Beyond the Barriers, were both best sellers with over 1 million copies in print, and his books have been translated into eight languages.

Mr. Morris has also produced a video, Twice Pardoned, which was broadcast in over 60 major U.S. cities and deals with the subject matter from his book, The Law of the Harvest. He currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.