About

During his time in prison, Latif Lamonte transformed himself into the author and advocate he is today.

Latif dedicated himself not only to his education and writing but also to acquiring the legal skills to successfully navigate the judicial system, becoming a paralegal in 2006 and providing critical input on numerous criminal, federal civil, and administrative case reversals. While incarcerated, he held leadership positions as an elected wing representative, worship leader, and choir director, and was an Executive Board Member and Release Coordinator for the Individuals Embracing Better Choices (IEBC) Mentoring Program. He has given speeches to high school and college students through The Speaker’s Forum and served on a Blue Ribbon Panel consulting with Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman and Senator Ray Lesniak on criminal justice reform legislation. Latif’s works, The Cost of a Bullet (available now) and New Jersey’s Hidden Shame (forthcoming), aim to expose the reality of life inside New Jersey’s prisons.

Latif was born in 1960 in Indianapolis, Indiana and subsequently migrated to Newark, New Jersey as a young child. He now devotes much of his time to addressing prisoner-rights issues, the plight of gang members, and at-risk youth. He seeks to influence those outside the system by speaking to diverse groups and encouraging both personal and systemic change throughout the justice system.