Joe Ligon was only 14 years old when he was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole after being convicted of two counts of first-degree murder. He would go on to spend an incredible 68 years behind bars, making him one of the longest-serving prisoners in American history before finally walking free at the age of 82.
When Ligon first entered prison in 1953, the world was completely different. Television was still a new technology, and almost every TV was black and white. The world’s population was less than three billion people, and the Cold War had only just begun. Cars, buildings, technology, and everyday life looked nothing like they do today. By the time he was released in 2021, the world had changed beyond recognition.
Ligon was one of five teenagers involved in a series of robberies in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The group had reportedly been trying to get money to buy alcohol when the crimes happened. During the violent incidents, two men, Charles Pitts and Jackson Hamm, were killed. Ligon was later convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole.
During the 1970s, Ligon was offered clemency, which could have allowed him to leave prison. However, he turned down the offer because it required him to live under parole supervision. He believed that accepting those conditions would mean he was not truly free, so he chose to remain in prison instead.
Everything changed decades later when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that automatically sentencing children to life without parole was unconstitutional. The court later decided that the ruling should also apply to people who had already been sentenced years earlier. Since Ligon had been only 14 years old when the crimes took place, the decision opened the door for his release.
After nearly seven decades in prison, Ligon finally walked out of the State Correctional Institution-Phoenix in Pennsylvania in 2021. Speaking about the emotional moment, he said he almost cried when he realized he was finally free before breaking into a huge smile.
Stepping into modern America was a shocking experience. While walking outside after his release, he pointed to buses and explained that they did not exist when he was first imprisoned because the city used streetcars instead. Although many things had changed, he said he had expected to see taller buildings because he had watched the outside world develop from behind prison walls over the years.
Reflecting on the changes, Ligon said that prison had taken away his freedom but not his ability to think. He explained that while he had been locked up, his mind had remained active, allowing him to imagine how the world was changing beyond the prison gates.
At the time of his release, Ligon became known as the longest-serving person in the United States who had been sentenced to life in prison for a crime committed as a juvenile.
Even after his release, Ligon continued to insist that although he stabbed someone during the violence, he did not kill either of the two men who died. He said he believed he was guilty of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and maintained that he never intended to murder anyone.
Despite standing by his version of events, he expressed deep regret over what had happened. He said he was sorry for taking part in the crime and was saddened that two people lost their lives.
Ligon’s long prison sentence also came with a heartbreaking personal cost. Most of his close family members died while he was still behind bars, meaning he returned to a world where many of the people he loved were no longer alive. Throughout his difficult journey, his niece Valerie remained one of his strongest supporters and stood by him until he was released.
Rather than dwelling on everything he had lost, Ligon said he wanted to focus on the future. He explained that nothing could change the past, but he hoped the years he had left would be better and that he could enjoy the freedom he had waited almost seven decades to experience.
