Daniel Gwynn Update
Date: 4/15/12

It's been a rough 17+ years sitting here on PAs death row. It's 24/7 lockdown; 2 hours of yard five days a week (weather permitting); no family or friends; shaky friendships; and immasculating conditions. Your life is no longer your own.

I don't react to my incarceration. If anything, I've utilized my time to empower myself: I taught myself to paint; educated myself on the law and my case; acquired my GED; and learned to be happy in spite of my current misfortune. I tell you, it's been some hard lessons learned here.

There's so much negativity trying to drag me down on a daily basis. I paint to escape, feeling the warmth of the sun upon my face as I'm in comtemplation. I can hear the world around me like the soft melodies of a Patti LaBelle song. I guess the artist in me allows me to view the world differently. I see a special uniqueness in each individual life, and I've come to appreciate life itself a whole lot more. How can life be so bad, when you are so alive?

For a long time I wasn't living. I just felt sorry for myself because I was doing someone else's bid. So I refused to feel the sunlight of each God given day until I'd been exonerated. The funny thing is that the clock never stopped ticking. How foolish I was, sitting here holding my breath like a child, as if someone would care. The courts felt they'd already convicted the right man, so why would they consider giving my case a second thought until it was time to execute me?

My attorneys cared though. At first it was out of duty, but then it was out of their belief of my innocence. To have their belief in me gave me a foundation upon which to stand and hold my head up once again.

I don't know about what my family thinks, because my death sentence, and the location of my incarceration, has put a strain on our relationship. I feel like I'm in this fight alone. Even though I do receive the occasional letter of love and support.

I'm still facing this each and every day alone.

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Daniel Gwynn Blog Update
Date: 4/15/12

"Aspirations, (2010), is now part of Art for Justice's collection exhibited around PA at museums and universities to promote dialogue on crime prevention and wrongful convictions. Ann Marie Kirk, director, has also created a "Road Map for Life" workshop that challenges at risk youths to make better choices.

"Power of Prayer", (2008), won a statewide art competition held by Critical Resistance, an organization seeking to abolish the prison industrial complex.

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Two paintings, one entitled: "Power of Prayer" (2008) acrylic paint