Gov. Ned Lamont has nominated Dwayne Betts, who spent eight and a half years in prison for carjacking, to serve on the Criminal Justice Commission. Courtesy photo.

A man who once spent time in prison now wants to reform the criminal justice system.

Dwayne Betts took up reading and writing poetry and earned his high school diploma while serving eight and a half years in prison for carjacking. That experience led him to get degrees from several universities, culminating with his law degree from Yale University in 2016.

On Friday, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont nominated Betts, a writer of three books and a fourth set to come out in October, to sit on the Criminal Justice Commission. The six-member commission appoints the chief state's attorney, deputy chief state's attorneys and deputy assistant state's attorneys. The state Legislature is expected to sign off on the nominations soon. Commissioners will serve as long as Lamont is governor, as governors nominate their own commissioners.

After he became an attorney in Connecticut, Betts was vocal about advocating for prisoners who have found themselves in circumstances similar to his own.

Betts, 38, said Monday he's honored to be nominated to serve on the commission. He told the Connecticut Law Tribune there are many great prosecutors out there and said he wants to be part of a system where those same prosecutors also look at the person being sentenced and what that incarceration will mean to them in the long run.

“I want to be part of a system that promotes prosecutors that are not just punitive. I've long believed decreasing our incarceration rate means taking the duty and responsibilities of prosecution seriously,” Betts said.

Betts also said there is a mindset among some prosecutors that everyone before them must be guilty. “Too many prosecutors are not willing to acknowledge the existence of doubt of someone's guilt. That's just ridiculous. You can go about your job with a certain doubt involved.”

Betts did say he does not “want to be the person criticizing the system just to criticize the system. I work with prosecutors in New Haven who are great lawyers who work to achieve public safety while they are also not out to be so punitive as the law allows.”

In his own case, Betts, who was a 16-year-old honor student when he was sentenced, said, “I know when I was sentenced to that amount of time, the prosecutor was not thinking about what I might and could be in the future. Prosecutors should think about that.”

Connecticut Associate Supreme Court Justice Andrew McDonald has served as chairman of the commission since June 2017. McDonald said he believes Betts will bring a different look to the body.

“From what I know about his background, it's a story of redemption and achievement,” McDonald said Monday. “He has a unique perspective both from being originally part of the criminal justice system to now with his law degree from Yale. I think the commission will be enhanced by his participation in it.” To his knowledge, McDonald said it would be the first time a former convict would served on the commission.

In addition to helping people with stories similar to his own, Betts said he also wanted to become an attorney to be a good example to his family, especially his two sons.

“I could have made some really profoundly bad choices and been something else,” he said. “Being an officer of the court says a lot about how I've changed.”