Locked In with Ian Bick - Police Raid Gone Wrong: Cops Left Me with a Broken Neck | Danny Owens

Episode Date: October 10, 2024

Danny Owens found himself at the center of a high-intensity police raid that took an unexpected turn. What began as a routine bust escalated quickly, leaving him with a serious neck injury and ultimately handicapped. Forced to navigate the realities of prison life with a disability, Danny’s challenges didn’t end there—he continued to find himself in conflict with law enforcement. #PoliceRaid #PrisonLife #SurvivalStory #DisabilityAwareness #LawEnforcement #PrisonExperience #OvercomingAdversity #TrueStory Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick: https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en https://ianbick.com/ Presented by Tyson 2.0 & Wooooo Energy: https://tyson20.com/ https://woooooenergy.com/ Buy Merch: https://lockedinbrand.com Use code lockedin at checkout to get 20% off your order Timestamps: 00:00:00 Danny's Hyped Welcome to Locked In 00:03:51 The Impact of Lack of Structure on Life Choices 00:07:16 Teenage Experiences in Germany 00:10:43 Military Experience and Challenges 00:14:05 Early 20s and a Life of Crime 00:17:31 Experiences and Challenges in County Jails 00:21:01 Learning how to cook 00:24:40 Identifying Good vs. Bad 00:28:23 Cop Incident and Neck Injury 00:31:36 Legal Battles and Regrets in Kentucky 00:35:12 Challenges of Inadequate Medical Care in State Prisons 00:38:43 From Small Connections to Big Deals in Atlanta 00:42:34 Arrest and Court Appearance: Facing Federal Charges 00:45:39 Navigating Prison Life: Challenges and Experiences 00:49:05 Prison incidents 00:52:58 The Turning Point 00:55:45 Farewell from Kentucky Powered by: Just Media House : https://www.justmediahouse.com/ Creative direction, design, assets, support by FWRD: https://www.fwrd.co Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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even if you've shopped with us before. Danny, welcome to Lockton, man. I think you might be our most hyped up episode among all of the staff here at Lake Cumberland Recovery. They're like, his story is crazy. You have to have him on. I think when I asked Jessica, who is ducking coming on the podcast so far, but she'll be later in the day about who to interview.

You were the top of the list. Well. It's a lot of pressure, right? How do you feel about that? I hope I can live up to it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We're hyping up this episode from the get. So you got big shoes to fill, but I'm sure you're spoken of very highly here, which is awesome.

Did you grow up in Kentucky? A little bit. My dad was in a military, so we moved around a lot. But Fort Knox is where I went to like elementary school and started middle school. and then I started bouncing around a lot from my aunt to my granny to my mom. Just didn't like the structure in the military, you know, was a little bit more than what I wanted. I bet.

Were your parents together? Are they separated later on? Well, it's actually my stepdad. I never knew my real dad, but I claim him as my real father because I knew him. You know, that's the only dad ever knew. Did you ever find out who you're? I might have found out his name when I was younger, but never, nothing ever materialized. And what about siblings? Did you have?

I got two half-sisters, but they're, like I said, they're my sisters, you know. One of them is actually a police officer in Alabama. Oh, really? Yeah. Wow, that's a whole different life. Yeah, yeah. She's actually lieutenant now. She just got promoted.

She's been a cop for over 20 years. Are you guys close? Yeah, pretty much, you know. What does she think about the path you went down? you know, she's my sister, man. She loves me. Yeah, I mean, that's a right answer, you know, that's good to hear that. She don't really hold nothing against me, you know. She knows how I am and how always was, but she just wanted better for me.

Oh, I wonder if it helps also make her job or do her job better, you know, knowing you and being a part of your life too. I'd say it probably does. I'd say she's a lot easier on criminals than most cops. Yeah, I mean, we can learn a lot from the people. So many people are affected by the criminal justice system, you know, and to have like a sibling that has been in prison or involved in the process, you know, it gives you a perspective. Oh.

So when you guys were in, you know, elementary school in Kentucky and stuff, what was it like being an outsider in this area? Well, I really wasn't an outsider, man, because, you know, when I come back to living with my granny here in Kentucky, man, I just fell right in, you know, just one of the guys. Was it hard switching around? Like, I know military families. I got used to it, man.

It was pretty much normal to me to pack up and move and be somewhere new, you know. I made friends pretty easy almost anywhere I went. You don't think it affected your life and upbringing at all in a negative way? I don't think so, not really. I think it just made me more outgoing, you know, easy to get along with. And tried to blend in everywhere I went. Yeah. High school, did you do high school in Kentucky?

I did. I didn't do too good in high school, man. That's when I really started getting in a lot of trouble. Started, you know, smoking weed and drinking a little bit and just being really rebellious. What was it that you think was that trigger in high school? I don't know, man. Probably not living at home with my mom was probably a big deal, you know. She just wanted me to be happy.

And I just didn't want to listen. And so, you know, she let me do what I wanted and move where I wanted. And I think that really, I probably held some resentment for that, you know, because my sisters were there and just, I don't know, I don't know, you get it. Yeah, it's kind of weird. Do you wish, looking back on it now, wish you had a little bit more structure and strictness? Well, I wish I would have probably stayed home, you know, where I belong. But like I said, my mom wanted me to be happy, so she let me do whatever I wanted.

Now, a lot of the guests I talk to, you know, they say that they started out smoking weed, But when you compare that to now, like that's just a casual thing. That's just a casual thing. Yeah, but do you think back then it was like a stepping stone to lead into worse? Oh, yeah, definitely. Because when I found crystal meth, then my whole life changed. And that was in high school that you discovered it? Well, I think I was, I think I'd already quit high school probably and was doing drywall,

started doing drywall to about 18 probably, somewhere 17, 18 years old. and one of the guys I worked with, he was an old biker dude, and they had some crystal, and I tried it, man, and I knew right then, hey, that was my thing. What was it about the crystal that?

Man, it made me focused, man, got me working, you know, and I could just work. You could work while I? Yeah, man. Yeah, it was good stuff back then on them days. It's not like that now, isn't it? No, no, I didn't like that no more.

So it kept you, it was like, one of those, like, ADHD-type drugs? I think probably, yeah. Interesting. I've never heard this before. Yeah, it focused me, man. I could, you know, I was normal on it. It really was.

Now, how are you getting it? Were you making it yourself? Not then. Later on, you know, I learned how to make it. But in the beginning, it was just, it was always hard to get back then. This is, you know, I don't know what year that was. It was probably late 80s, early 90s.

It was pretty hard to get, you know. You had to know some people that knew some people that knew some people. So it was pretty rare It was kind of rare back then, yeah And it's nothing like what Like you were just saying it is now And how accessible it is Right, yeah

So since it was so rare What was the cost of it? I mean it was like 50, a half gram, 100 a gram Just like same price as cocaine back then I guess Which is, I mean looking now That's pretty expensive when you could buy weed for a half gram as what, you know?

I don't even know, man. I quit smoking weed after I ran into meth. I never really did like the weed too much. It made me too paranoid. Now, since this meth was so good, was there physical effects of that? Like, you know, like your skinny irritation's face? I never had none of that, man.

I mean, I'm old now, but, you know, I've lost a lot of teeth from it, but I don't think it had the effects like skin crawling and picking myself to death. Like, I have seen people do that, you know. And you were smoking it out of a pipe? Oh, yeah. Would they inject it back then?

You know, that was kind of taboo when I was growing up, man. People didn't really do that. They shied away from needles. You know, that was, I mean, the people I was around didn't really. I wonder when that changed, like how the whole needle thing came in. That's crazy. I mean, nowadays, man, that's everybody wants to do that. They think it's the only way to do it.

I think it's kind of gross. Yeah, I do. The whole needle thing. The only needles I'm putting in me are tattoos. Right on, right on. And probably same to you. Right on. I mean, I did try the needle before, but it wasn't my cup of tea, man.

You know, just the crowd I was hanging around with, I tried it once or twice. I just, it wasn't me. I like to smoke. Before you started drugs, did you have, like, aspirations? Did you have a mindset of what you wanted to be? You know, man, really, I never, I don't think I ever really thought that far ahead, man. Ended up in Germany for a little while with my folks when I was like 16. and, you know, I could drink over there,

and I started drinking pretty heavy and smoking hash because you couldn't find no pot over there then. And I think that's really when my life really changed, and I just started drinking and, man, and hitchhiking all over Europe and having a blast. That must have been an experience. That was great, man. That was probably the greatest time of my life, man, for real.

Now, back then, was it safe to do that to the hitchhiking and the bouncing around? I mean, and I didn't. I couldn't speak German back then. Man, German people would pick me up, and I couldn't even communicate with them. They'd take me down to wherever they were going and drop me out. You know, we'd hang out in Amberg, Germany, panhandling, trying to get money to get hash. It was crazy, man. Yeah, how would you support yourself?

Just panhandling? Just panhandling and hanging out. And you'd actually make money for you? Oh, yeah, man. Me and a couple other guys could go down in Amberg, man, and an hour or two get 40 or 50 marks apiece. Go see the Turkish people and get us some hash. and just and drink for the rest of the day. And would you spend any money on food, too?

I mean, you had to live. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. But, I mean, I still lived at home with my folks, man. Okay. Yeah. What a lifestyle. That was pretty crazy, man. And, I mean, your stepdad.

That was in that, that was like 1988. I think we came back from Germany in 88 around Thanksgiving that year. And your stepdad was with you? Yeah. He was in the military. Wasn't he strict at all? Oh, yeah. And he was, he drank all the time.

And he drank every day. But he was a good dude. man. Do you think you got that drinking tendency from him? I don't know, man. Probably where I might have picked it up at, you know. Yeah. Have you ever talked to him and sat down with him about where he is? He passed away while I was in jail in the 90s, man. He got cancer,

prostate cancer, and he, me and him didn't really see eye to eye. You know, he really disappointed in me, man. Because I actually tried to go in the Army while I went in the National Guard and I got kicked out real quick for going AWOL. And, you know, that pretty much really probably disappointed him big time. Yeah.

And he just told me before he died, man, don't take advantage of my mama, you know. Why did you go AWOL? Like, why go through the process of getting in just to go missing? You know, the thing about it is I really enjoyed the Army, man. It was great and it was really good for me. But there was a guy from Texas, man, he wanted to leave. And he offered me some money to get him off base. and I went to basic training at Fort Knox,

and I knew the base like the back of my hand, man. I grew up there, and so I told him might help him get off base. But I got him off base to the bus station, man, and it was too late to go back. Man, I missed formation, so I just left with him. We ended up down in Nashville getting high on Coke. Well, what would have happened if you went back and at... Well, we ended up going back,

and they put us in the stockade for 30 days and give us a dishonorable. Oh, you were in the actual military. Prison. Yeah, yeah. Holy cow. RCF at Fort Knox, Kentucky, did 30 days there. What was that like compared to like a county jail that I'm sure you've encountered? I mean, you're in the military still, you know, and it's kind of federal.

Like, you know, we've been to federal prison, but everybody's in uniforms there and you've got to work. You got to, like, I think I worked at the recycle center while I was there. It's just a job. Man, you get paid just like normal. But you're still detained technically. What are your fellow soldiers saying to you? Are they disgusted by you for you? Well, you know, man, I was in basic training.

I went AWOL and actually I didn't know this, but it was during wartime. They could have actually give me a firing squad. For that? Yeah. You could have got the killed for that? Yeah, it's on the books, but they, you know, they wouldn't push him nothing like that. So then they just ended up kicking you out. So once you got kicked out, what was your headspace at?

Man, I just had it was crazy, man, because that guy that I'd went AWOL with. We ended up in Atlanta, Georgia. Our planes were going separate ways. I was going to Alabama back to my folks, and he was going home to Texas. So we ended up going downtown and smoking all her money up and crack. Then I just went on home the next morning, man. Did you stay sober in the military during basic?

No, no. I was doing coke, smoking weed, whatever. Back then, did they even have drug tests? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, they drug tests us. That was another thing that they hit us with on our discharge. was being dirty on cocaine. So either way, whether you went AWOL or not, you were done.

I was done, yeah. You ever reflect back on if you stayed? Man, I wish I'd have stayed for real. That would have been a real good life, man, probably would have. Your whole life would be different. Been way different, yeah. I mean, granted you ended up where you're supposed to now. Right, right, right.

I mean, all those years of pain and suffering in between, man. I think a lot of people think about like that, you know, the pre-mistake that they make and the how, all kind of unwinds and unravels. Something to think about, but I mean, what can you do now? Yeah. So you make it back to after basic, what happens next? Yeah, well, and then my folks tell me, you know, you can't stay here, man.

You got to get a job. And I just ended up, I'd saved up a little bit of money that I'd sent home. And I think I had like $500 or something. I bought me old cheap car, man, and headed back to Nashville to my cousins down there that I had. And this is early 90s now? Yeah, something like that. I'm not too good on years, man. I mean, it all fades.

Yeah, but it all fades. I'm not asking for the day, month. Yeah, but yeah, something like that, man, I hung out there for a little while, homeless and living in, you know, sleeping in couches or whatever, man, just really having a rough time. What was Nashville like back then? It was pretty cool, man. I lived in a real rich part of Nashville called Bellevue.

It's pretty uppity, man, and I worked at Applebee's while I was there. They had Applebee's back then? Yeah. Oh, wow. And that's how I lived, man, because I worked there, and that's how I ate, you know. Yeah. And spend all my money on drugs.

Oh, they'd give you free food, too. Yeah. Well, I mean, I don't know if they'd give it to you, but we'd take it. Yeah. A lot of these restaurants are kind of doing away with the give, like, they'll make their employees pay 50% or 60, which I got like the cost of the food, but I don't know. That's a whole other rabble. So in Nashville, where do you go after that?

I see. I think I end up in Clarksville, Tennessee, at an aunt and uncle's house maybe for a little while. They helped me get me my driver's license and a motorcycle. And so I stayed there until I burnt that bridge, you know. That's how we do, man. As addicts or whatever, we just keep... Father's Day is June 15th, and Point Reyes Farmsdale cheese has a gift dad will actually love.

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How old are you at this time, like early 20s by now? Probably early 20s, yeah, something like that. And your friends, were they all in college at this point? Was college a big thing back to them? Man, you know, like I moved around so much. I really didn't, you know, didn't really consider having many friends, you know, just people that I knew. Yeah, kind of late.

Did you feel like you were a loner? A lot, yeah, yeah. That sucks. Do you wish you had, like, that group of friends that, you know, you were with? Well, I do now, I mean, from being around here so long, you know. But back then. Back then, I just was running wild, man, just seeing the world, really. Now, during this, like, running wild phase, were you having a lot of encounters with police at all,

or did you stay kind of under the radar? Well, for a little while. After I got out of the military there, that's when I started getting in trouble with the law. lot. I got into some trouble in Alabama and ended up in prison down there, broke into a grocery store. We went in through them big ceiling fans that they got. And we stole all the meat and beer and cigarettes. And the guy that I did that with, he got a DUI or something. And I just told everything, man. And I had all that stuff in my apartment. So the cops came and got me. And that was pretty bad we'd been breaking in a bunch of storage buildings too.

And, uh, that, that didn't go to get. Wait, they caught you red-handed with the deli meats and everything and the, pretty much, man. Well, mostly beer and cigarettes, you know. So you go, you go through the fan on the roof? Yeah. You went through the ceiling. Break in and then what do you leave through the front door? Yeah, yeah.

There was, no alarms or anything back though? Wow. A little small town Ozark in Alabama. How much, uh, groceries do you think you got? Man, that's been so long ago. I don't even know, man, but we took everything. thing we could haul in a car, you know, for real. So then he gets pulled over with a DUI and rats you out for an unrelated.

Unrelated. And so I ended up, I ended up getting a pretty sweet little deal, man. It was the first time I'd ever been in any real trouble. I got a three-year sentence. They gave me a split sentence under the Useful Offender Act. I did six months in prison in Alabama, which was pretty rough, man. It was in prisons down there. You actually did prison time for this?

I actually did prison time. Went to straight prison. As a first-time offender. Did the military thing play any part in this or no? No. No. But I did get the useful offender act and when I turned 21, them felonies fell off my record.

That's the only ones I've ever got rid of. Now they say those Alabama prisons are... They're tough, man. They're tough, dude. For real, it ain't no joke. It's serious. That's serious. Now, back then, were they doing the things where it's like in the desert

and they do the pop-up tents and they have like... No, no. I was actually at a brand new facility in Clio, Alabama, called Easterling Correctional facility. I went through Kilby. It's their intake in Montgomery, and then they sent me to Easterling. And I did my six months there, man. And what was that like?

It was different, man. Why do you think different? Well, I mean, being a young white guy, and it's just tough, man, I was fighting all the time. I'm sure the population is pretty white out there in Alabama. No. It's not. In certain areas it is. I mean, you got areas, yeah, but it's,

it's mostly black people, man. And they took a not so strong liking to you? In the beginning, yeah, but once they seen, I had some fight to me, man, they didn't, they didn't much bother me anymore. Now, the sheriffs and whatnot that run these facilities, they're pretty brutal. Yeah, and the sheriffs actually run the jails down there, you know. Yeah. It's a whole different experience when you have a sheriff running a,

because they have so much power and freedom. I mean, that's how, like, the influencers are able to get into these facilities because they're the ones running it and they have the say, You don't have to, like, go to your, you know, governor and say, hey, can I have access to this or that? Yeah, it's a whole different ballgame. It is a different ballgame. What was the food situation like in this? You know, the food didn't seem too bad back then, man?

I mean, jail, you know how jail is, but it's better than most. Little Oak County jail in Alabama. What would you say is the biggest comparison between that, you know, Alabama jail and the federal system that you would later experience? They're both pretty violent, man, so I'd say they're pretty on par. They're about the same. Really? You would say that is the same as the feds? Yeah, I mean, except the feds will pay you.

They don't pay you in Alabama. You get a dollar a month. That's like Texas, right? And I think, does Kentucky pay? Yeah, you can make money in Kentucky. I can't remember. I think it's like when I was in state prison here in Kentucky. I think I made $1.25 a day or something.

Isn't it wild that they can literally have, like in Texas, they'll have you on the farms and whatnot for free? In Alabama, too, man. They had chain gang down there. That's so wild. It is crazy. And did you do that while you were at the county? I actually didn't. I got lucky. I didn't have to do that.

Okay, so you get out of Alabama after a few months. And then I come to Kentucky and catch some more felonies and then end up in prison here. Were you back on drugs when you got out of Alabama? I never got off drugs then. Man, that was for until I get out of the feds. I'm on drugs. Were they easily accessible in the county? You know, drugs are pretty hard in some county jails and some are pretty easy, man. you know, it's just cornered them where you're at.

And it's always going to be expensive no matter what. Do you think if you had gotten clean in Alabama, you wouldn't have gotten in trouble in Kentucky? I don't know, man. I don't know. It's hard to say. Yeah, I guess you never really know. I never know. So now you're in Kentucky at this point.

Yeah, I got a Class D felony, so that's a little different. You don't really go to prison, prison. You go do it in a county jail. So I started out in Plasky County, and then they shipped me to Laurel County. and I did most of my, I can't remember how much time I was doing. I think only a two-year sentence, but I did it in like 14 months or something. Isn't Pulaski County the famous one that's in like 60 days in? I don't know.

Is that or is that a different Pulaski County? I think that might be like in Arkansas or something. Is there a Pulaski County in Arkansas? I think there is. Oh, there's two Pulaski counties. Okay, that makes sense. Interesting. So what were those charges for?

Um, burglary, assault, just minor, really minor stuff for real that they blew up. So you're building up a pretty hefty rap sheet. I'm getting there, I'm getting there, I'm learning. You're learning, you're getting experience. Yeah. So I'm sure later on that didn't help you in the least bit. No, it gets worse. Okay, so walk us through what happens next.

So, you know, I get out of jail. Excuse me. I've been fighting COVID, man. It's still lingering. but let's see. I think I might be learning how to make methamphetamines now, getting in with some people that know how to make it or whatever, and I'm starting to learn.

I don't learn full-fledged yet, but I'm getting some basics down and hanging around people that know how. And when I finally learn how, that's when my life really changes because it just, that's all you do after you learn how to do that, man, it's every day, every day. You know, every day.

Yeah, Michael said you're the real Walter White. No. That's what he says. No. I mean, I used to take a lot of pride in what I did, you know, but it was just stupid stuff, man. Just ruin my life, man. It really did.

Was there something about the process of actually cooking it that made it different that you like how in love it? You know, a lot of people love that, man, but I always hated it, man, because that's where I felt like I was going to get hit. at, you know, when you start smoking it off or whatever, and it starts forming in them jars, man. It's just, it just terrified me, man, because I always felt like, hey, they're here. They're fixing to kick my door in, you know. Now, isn't it dangerous to kick down a meth lab?

I mean, I've had a couple accidents, but the worst thing ever happened to me, I caught my hands on fire one time, but, I mean, it can be dangerous. Well, you've got to tell us that story. Well, I used a red phosphorus iodine reduction, and I had to make my own red phosphorus, and doing that, you strip matches down just to the strike pad, and you put it in rubbing alcohol or acetone, and you shake it up, and then you'll pour it in like a pirex or whatever, and let it settle, and then you'll pour some off, and if you're using rubbing alcohol, man, you can set it on fire and let it burn that alcohol off and kind of dry your red phosphorus, and I'd always try to hurry it, and I'd blow it out or whatever.

And I was doing my pan side to side, and it just spilled on my hands, and I had rubbing alcohol on my hands, and it caught on fire, man. It was pretty tough. How did you put them out? Well, I threw that pan. I was over a sink. I threw the pan, and it caught my curtains on fire, and my hands were on fire, and my cousin was there, and he didn't panic, and he helped me get them out.

And the burns, how bad were they afterwards? It was, I mean, it was pretty bad, man. Really, for a few days, man, I had, like, socks and Vaseline on my hands for a few days, man, because it's pretty bad. Now, don't some, like, I know it's depicted in TV shows, but they'll wear, like, the rubber gloves when they're cooking. You guys didn't think of that? I didn't, man.

We were just old country boys, man, making dope. Now, are there different ways, or how many different ways are there to cook dough? Well, I couldn't tell you how many. I mean, I know a couple you can use anhydr some on you and lithium batteries, or you can use red phosphorus and iodine, or you can use that new shake and bake method, or you can even make your own anhydrous. There's several ways.

How important is the chemistry aspect of it, like measuring portions? I think a monkey could do it for real. You know, just mix stuff together. It's going to come out. And that first batch, like when you perfected your batch? Oh, man, I thought I was the man, man, for real. How do you know when you have that perfect batch? When you try it.

So do you try it, when you were first starting, were you trying every batch? Oh, yeah, most definitely. First one, man. So what's the difference between a bad batch and a good batch? Like, do you have something you can relate it to to give people that aren't, you know, meth cooking? To me, what I thought made it good was how you would melt it down and how it would crystallize back. You know, if it was pretty clear and it cracked right back, I thought it was good.

If it didn't, and then start over. So once you started to learn how to cook meth, could you spot bad meth like out when you were, you know, buying from people? Well, I mean, when you start making it, man, you really don't buy off nobody else. So were you guys, when you were making it, were you just making to use, or were you making to sell? Well, we'd make enough to sell to make a new batch, you know.

Just trying to stay high. And what's the cost, though, at the breakdown on a batch? It could be anything. I mean, you could take $100 and make a batch if you wanted to, you know, and that's just whatever you had, man. You guys really had a redneck-like type, operation going. Did he watch

Micklehampton's episode? I did actually. I called him Redneck Walter White. I think it's fascinating like the whole, because I don't come from that, you know, area. It's just, man.

That stuff is just so bad, man. It just ruins people's lives, man. And it just takes everything from you. And that's all you do. You're consumed by it. Now what about the dangers of cooking meth? Like if you, how, like, if you get the chemistry wrong, what happens?

I mean, I guess it just flop. I don't know. So it's not going to blow up? I mean, I guess it could. I mean, actually, you know. You guys are just running wild. Running wild, man. So how long did this go on for?

For many years, man, many years until I got my neck broke. And this is when it comes to the federal case? Not yet. Not yet. That's what gives me my street cred enough to go fed. Okay, so tell us about the neck. Well, I'm at home. My wife and children are.

gone. I'm getting ready to get everything together to go in the woods and make a substantial batch this time. You know, I'd been saving up a lot of stuff, trying to do a big one. And I waited until everybody was gone, and some dude shows up at my house with a motorcycle. He can't get us started, and he's just wanting to get high. I'm trying to get rid of him. Finally, I told him, man, here, help me peel these batteries. And while we're doing that, man, two county sheriffs roll up in the yard. and I told him, man, here, let's put this stuff up, man, cops are here. He immediately runs to my back of the trailer I was living in and jumps out a window. And I met the cops at the door trying to keep them out because I know I'm hit, man.

And they're wanting to check on the welfare of my kids. I'm telling them they're not coming in without a warrant. And while I'm talking to that cop over the radio, dispatch had called saying that somebody had fled the scene out of bedroom window. and when that cop heard that, he just busted in past me. And that guy had left a gun laying on my counter. And that cop had known me. He knew I was a convicted felon. And he said, all right, man, it's over, buddy.

You're going to jail. And I said, no, sir, I'm not. And he got one hand in a handcuff. And I tried to just flee, you know. And it didn't work out. He wheeled me around, slammed me down, and just beat the crap out of him. And broke my neck, paralyzed me from my neck down. Was it both officers?

No, just the one. Just the one. The other one was chasing that other guy. And how did they even know that someone was fleeing out the back? One of my neighbors had called in, you know, because they hated me, man. We had traffic all the time there at that spot, and they just was trying to get rid of me. When they seen the cops there and they seen him go out that window, they immediately called 911. Did they know you were like the trap house of that lab?

Definitely, definitely knew that. Holy cow. So the cop breaks your... slams you down, breaks your neck. What is that like going through that? Man, that was crazy, man. It was like a big lightning flash. It went off in my head or something, man.

And just like electric, it went through my body or something. And I knew immediately, man, something was bad wrong, you know. And I was having trouble breathing. And I was trying to tell him, man, I think you broke my neck. And he didn't want to hear that. What was he saying to you while this was going on? I don't even really remember, man. I was just in a panic.

And when your neck breaks her, Are you just laying there flat? You can't move. I felt like I was actually folded in half is what I felt like, man, for real. I knew immediately he had broke my neck, though. Now, were you fighting him at all? Were you... I wasn't really fighting him, man.

I was just trying to get away because I knew I was in a lot of trouble. Were there other alternatives he could have used despite doing what he did? Yeah, probably. I mean, he was a little excessive. Did he have like a taser on him or any, or they didn't have that back then? I don't even know. He just... He's a pretty big old cornbread.

bred-fed country sheriff, man. Yeah, younger guy or older? He was about my age, in his 30s probably at that time. And do you think they knew who you were? Oh, most definitely. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, I know the other guy that said about the gun, he knew that.

Okay. Yeah. Oh, wow. So what happens after your neck breaks? Do they call an ambulance? Finally, I convinced them something's wrong with me, and they called an ambulance, and any EMTs come got me, and they didn't really, you know, I'm at a active meth lab, man.

They think it's all BS. you know, for real. And I felt like they wasn't giving me no attention like I deserved. But they got me to the emergency room. And, excuse me. And a doctor came in there, man, and they were actually fixing to release me to the sheriff's department, man, and sent me to jail.

And a doctor came in there and said, man, I'm going to have a specialist look at this guy because something is wrong with him. And they said, you can't take him right now. So had a specialist look at me, man, and C5, six, and seven was broken my neck. And they did a cervical bone fusion, took out part of my hip, or made me three new vertebraes,

and hooked me up with a steel plate and some metal screws and a new neck bone. And I'm sure they still had you handcuffed to the bed and all. No, actually, they didn't. Wow. No, after that happened, one of the cops, I mean, I knew them all, and they come up there, and he said, look, Danny, he said, when you get out of here, man,

just come on up here and turn yourself in and don't make this harder on yourself and what it needs to be. Wow. But when they found out they broke my neck, man, mysteriously, all the charges was never talked about until I sued them. So you dropped, they dropped all the charges right then there. Until I got me a lawyer and sued them. Did any attorneys like that knew about a come right away,

like the personal injury attorneys? Well, they didn't. A friend of mine hooked me up some lawyers in Laurel County that jumped right on it, man. They were all in. Wow. Yeah, but they wanted 50% of whatever we got. Like a contingency, yeah.

But you didn't have to pay them. They just took the cut. So do you end up winning a lawsuit against the cops? Well, I didn't really win. We settled. I don't even know if I'm allowed to talk about that or whatever, but it wasn't much. So after that happens, you kind of have a fresh slate,

not physically, but mentally you have a fresh slate from, you know, you have no charges against you. Well, actually, after I sued them, man, when they got that, see that. went to Plaskey County Circuit Court first. And when that hit the circuit court, then they brought manufacturing charges against me, manufacturing while in possession of a firearm,

class a felony, 20 to life in Kentucky. And that's the state charge. The feds didn't get involved at all. No, feds didn't get involved yet. So looking back on it, do you regret that you ever tried to sue them? No, because, man, it really, it started the change, you know, what I mean?

It started, and it, I don't know, man. I really don't know. I thought I was going to really get paid. You know, they broke my neck, man. They crippled me. Do you think that if it happened now, present day, the outcome would have been different? Way different in this climate.

Oh, yeah. Yeah. I really would have got paid. So was it pretty normal that police would use this type of force in your area back then? I mean, yeah, they're pretty rough, man. But, I mean, they didn't go around just breaking people's necks, you know? Yeah. But, yeah.

Do you think it was more of, like, those? small town sheriffs that were doing this, like what happened to you? Is that where it's like predominantly from? Because you don't see like the feds, federal agents going around doing this type of stuff or a big city office to a certain degree. I mean, it does happen. It does happen, but it's rare, you know. So they hit you with all those charges.

How does that end up? Well, it ended up with them offering me a sweet little deal to plead guilty, give me 10 years, and they were going to give me probation for five on paper and then squash it or whatever. But, you know, being a drug addict, man, what happens? It wasn't long after that. I started that 10-year sentence. So you messed up the probation?

Oh, most definitely. Because of a drug violation? Yeah, the dirt. Wow. How many drug violations did they give you? Just one, you know. All it took was one to send you in there? Oh, yeah, yeah.

So now you're in Kentucky State prison. I went to Kentucky State Reformatory KSR. And this is a low, medium-x? No, it's a... It's a prison. It's one of the older prisons here in Kentucky. Okay. But it's kind of like a medical facility a little bit,

and that, you know, I was in a wheelchair or whatever, so that's where I ended up. Now, going into prison now paralyzed. Yeah, it's different. Yeah, explain how that's different, how people are treating you. You know, people, man, people treat other handicapped people pretty good, man, honestly, you know, criminals ain't that bad of guys, man.

Most of them look out for you. You know, you get some that, can be jerks or whatever, but for the most part, man, people, people are pretty good. Yeah, I saw in the feds, even like the pedophiles that were handicapped, got treated, you know, pretty... Not where I was that. So there was handicapped pedophiles, or... I don't know about any handicapped. Just regular pedophiles, they weren't.

Now, you being a white guy in a wheelchair, did they make assumptions? No. Okay. No. I mean, people might, but they never did. Now, how does your time differ? from someone that's not handicapped? Like, are you limited to what you can do, can't do?

Well, I mean, you know, in the beginning when I first went to Kentucky State prison, man, I was in pretty bad shape still, man. I was still recovering, you know. And life was pretty hard for me, man, for real. But I just kept working, man, and just like trying to get better, man. And do they keep you on, like, just the bottom floors? Always. Do they have a handicapped sell?

Yeah, they got handicapped sales. Well, this was an old, old prison, man. They had like cubicles or whatever on the bottom floor and bottom bunk. What about the medical? Were they giving you the treatment, that your medicine and everything? Do you think you got adequate care? Most definitely not. Do you think that made your physical ability even worse?

Not really, man. You know, I was just in pain, mostly, most of the time. So, you know, ibuprofen, I guess, is about the best you can get in the state prison. The fed's a little different, though. really try to curb your pain if you got a legitimate problem, but not in state prison. They won't. When you're handicapped, are you able to hustle and make money at all, or is it?

Well, I mean, it's not really. I didn't really try. I didn't have to. I always had people, you know, looking out for me, man, on the streets. That's good. And were you using it all while you're in state prison? I mean, you know, if I could, whenever, you know, if it arose, if it was around or whatever, yeah, sure.

And out of the 10 years, how much do you have to do on that? I did 24 months. I made parole first time up. And I actually got lucky, got me a good parole officer when I got out. And I did it all on the streets, man. And first time ever. So parole, what's the difference between parole, right? Everyone gets confused about this, parole and then like federal supervision.

Right. Because there's no parole. I mean, right. It's basically the same thing, man, you know. And when you're on parole, like when I first came out, I had a report every, every month. go in and see my parole officer and usually they'll give you urine test or whatever but I got lucky man I wasn't getting tested too much that I guess they figured you know hey man they done broke this guy's neck and they they I had a good P.O man he just didn't bother me much man long as I wasn't getting in trouble

he didn't care and but I kept using and doing my thing and just got lucky man made it how important do you think a good parole or probation officer is to people returning to society? And if you ain't got a good parole officer or a probation officer, man, you can, it can be bad for you. Yeah, it really changes the whole outcome of your situation. It does. It really does. So once you completed that, you made it through that. Are you working? Do you have a job? Do you have a family and apartment? I've got to, I've been actually married to my wife, man, for almost 30 years. We've been together. She's stuck with you through everything. She's not no addicts. He's not one of us.

man she don't you know she's just a real good woman man that's awesome and she's she's she's the greatest where is she today she's at work she's at work man she works too what does she do she she manages a dollar general in the town i live in that's so cool that's she's a good woman that's awesome that she's stuck with you the entire time she's she's something and how did you two meet just happenstance run into her one day getting dropped off by one of my friends she was there i was just start started aggravating her from that day on. It's funny how life works. It is.

So now you're kind of in the phase of rebuilding your life after you got out of that Kentucky State Prison. How does that lead to a Fed case? Well, you know, man, when a cop breaks your neck in the criminal community, man, you know, gives you a little bit of credit, man. And then people just started that I normally couldn't deal with, started letting me come around, man, I started making bigger connections and meeting new people and ended up down there in Atlanta, Georgia,

some cartel guys through some other people and started getting some weight in crystal and supplying my little area of home. Wait, you just randomly link up with the cartel? Well, it wasn't random. I mean, I knew some people that knew some people, man. That's pretty random. You were a guy from, you know, this area.

This chick that I knew in the town I live in now, man, she actually knew a guy down there in Atlanta, and she didn't like making them trips. So she had me make a couple trips and got me in, and then went from there. Were you scared to meet with the cartel for the first time? I mean, it really wasn't like that, man. It was just a regular dude, man.

You know, he was just a regular guy, and his old lady was with the cartel, and he was just a regular guy, man, good enough guy, man, you know. Didn't have to worry about anything with him. Now, was this a Spanish guy or a white guy? Yeah, he was like part Spanish. part of American. And that first transaction, are they just giving you weight right off the

riff or are they doing due diligence? I was, no, they didn't do no due to do. Not at all. The chick that I knew, she sent me down there with her money and told me to pay the guy and get what he gave me and come on back home. And then she started fronting me stuff and got me going and I just kept making them trips, man. And you're out of the wheelchair by this?

Well, I mean, I struggled for a long time, man. And sometimes, even when I was in the feds, I used a wheelchair a lot sometimes. But, you know, I can get around pretty good. So transporting it back? That's what got me. I got pulled over in Knoxville, man, coming back one time. I had it like four ounces in the car with me. And got pulled over with no driver's license like an idiot.

Next thing I know, I'm in jail in Knoxville, Tennessee. How many trips was this that you made at there? Oh, man, God. I couldn't even count. So you made it successfully a lot? A bunch of times. And luckily, that's all I only had four ounces on me, because usually it was more than that, you know.

And how much you get paid to run a load? Well, I wouldn't, I would say, that was just mine. It wasn't, I went down there and picked it up and brought it home. And then it was your job to sell. Oh, yeah. Okay. So you weren't necessarily the mule. You were more picking up your own product than selling it.

Yeah, yeah. Now that does add, that's the risk factor with the feds because you're crossing state borders. Well, I mean, actually the feds didn't get me, man. it was just a, like a highway patrol guy there in Knoxville. And they arrested me. I make bond and went back to court. And that's when the feds picked me up when I was in court. Did they know you were working with the cartel at all?

Did they know what you were doing? I don't think so, man. I think I really got lucky, you know, for real. Looking back, because, you know, it could have been a lot worse. Really, I could have been a conspiracy indictment or whatever. And all I got was just possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams. Why do you think you changed up kind of like what you used to do with, you know, cooking it on your own and selling? Well, because it was so much easier to go down there and get so much cheaper, man, and just make so much.

I was actually making money, you know, and staying high all the time. Wow. And when you were high, you were able to function well enough to do the runs, do this operation. I couldn't function unless I was high, man. That's the only time people knew something was different if I wasn't. And you were married still at the time. Oh, yeah. What is your wife thinking about this at the time?

She just lets me do my thing, man. You know, she don't. Did she ever try to, like, knock some sentence into you? Or did she know the full extent of what you were doing? Oh, I don't really want to say. Yeah. Well, it's just, you know, it's interesting how, you know, people are there for you and support you,

but you could be doing harm as well. Right. So they, you get pulled over. Now you're in Tennessee. You get bonded down. You go to court and the feds are waiting for you. Yep, they were there waiting on me. D.E.A.

or FBI? FBI. And what are they saying to you? Well, man, I knew something was wrong. I was down there trying to just get me a lawyer. Actually, I was down there with the person that was in the car with me. And so I wasn't even posted being in court that day. So it's kind of weird.

And I kept seeing these guys walking around, man. And I told my wife, I said, man, something ain't right. And a few minutes later, they walked up to me and said, are you Danny Owens? And I was like, yeah. And they're like, well, we thought you'd be here. and they scooped me up, man, took me over across the street to the federal building. Oh, man. And I thought, hey, man, you know, because I'd heard about the feds, I thought, man, this is it, I'm done.

I didn't think I'd ever get out. Now, these were, I'm sure you were facing mandatory minimum drug laws. Yeah. And that was, what, five years? Five. Yeah. But I ended up with 87 months because of my points or whatever. Because your previous history.

Yeah. Which, you know, I guess enough time had passed with the, 10 years sentence I had in Kentucky that that one really didn't affect me man got lucky again because that was back in 2002 when I'd caught that case so it was over 10 years so now you're in the feds yeah and you take the plea deal I'm guessing yeah I took it to get the two points okay you got to get every point you can't get every point you can so and where do they send you that first so uh actually had it made man I got sent to FMC Lexington man and that's right in my backyard man man

So that's a camp, right? Well, it's administrative low. They got everybody there, USP, all the way down to camp. And I actually had camp points when I started out. Okay. But you probably couldn't go to it or because you had a detainer or anything? No, they just sent me there because, you know, medical. I got a medically implanted device in my admin for medtronics for muscle spasms.

It helps me walk or whatever. And I got to go to the doctor every so many months and get it filled up. So they had me there to check me out or whatever. You did your whole sentence at the medical center? No, no, no. I screwed that off. What are these? Yeah, how are, describe these medical centers, like how they are?

You know, FMC. Lexington is one of the oldest federal prisons around, man, besides maybe Leavenworth, I guess, and a couple more, but it's real old, man, and it's dilapidated, you know. It's the part I was in didn't even have AC, so it's just an old rundown building, man. What were the living situations like? So you got open dorms, you got, they got a few sales that got like four-man, six-man. You might have two cells connected by a bathroom in a shower. It was all right, though, man. It was a pretty good spot, to be honest.

But, you know, it was the only federal spot I'd ever been to, and I hated it. There was a lot of chomos there. And, you know, the people I ran with still, you know, they check paperwork. You know, you can't sit at the TV or whatever. if you got bad paperwork. It wasn't really a whole lot of politics there. There was a few little things that, you know, they went by. So even at the medical centers, there are politics.

Yeah, yeah. Wow, that's interesting. Because there's people from all different classifications at the medical center. Yeah, yeah. Okay. Yeah, I've always heard there it's like a mix because then they remove the whatever, the detainer or whatever. And it's pretty much the same.

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is won more awards over its lifetime than any other SECB branch. Even the Jeep Grohl or registered trademarks of FCAUS LLC. Four and 0-3-2s, Kentucky and Tennessee or whatever. So what did you do to mess that up that got used? Well, I just kept getting high, man, getting dirty, he's got put on the hot list. And, you know, when you get on the hot list in the fed, you get drug tested every month.

And I ended up, you know, they had me on medication for pain or whatever. I lost that because I just couldn't act right, man. So where do they send you once you got? Well, actually, the reason I got in a fight, that's crazy, but I got in a fight with one of my friends, actually, over something dumb, and he blacked mine. We tried to hide it, but it, you know, they ended up putting a threat assessment on me, man, because I wouldn't tell them who'd done it.

So I ended up in the shoe nine, 10, 11 months, something like that, waiting to get shipped, and they ended up sending me to Butner. Well, you were actually able to fight? Well, I mean, I'm not going to lay down. I give you credit, man, paralyzed and still fighting. tough cookie. Yeah. So they keep you in the shoe for almost nine months.

I can't remember. It might have been nine, maybe 11. It was a long time, man. It sucked. It was terrible. The shoe was awful. And that was when Epstein killed himself too, so. Oh, so this was a couple few years ago.

Yeah. What year did Epstein kill himself? I think I was in prison when this happened to. Like maybe 17, 16? Yeah. I think so. 18 maybe at the latest. Wow.

So everything was different in the shoe when that happened. Oh, yeah. man, I had my own sell for the whole time, man, had radios and could order a little bit of commissary. It wasn't that bad. Yeah, but was there AC in that one or no? Yeah, they had AC in the shoe. That's a one good thing about the shoe.

I hate AC, man. I freeze it. You don't like AC? I hate it, man. The shoe is freezing, but it's better than being in the hot sun in some of these prisons. Like at Fort Dix, we had to put, like, sheets over the windows and stuff. I had a buddy from, come to Lexington from Fort Diggs, man.

Ford Dix is a whole different beast. It is very interesting. So you got transferred to the new location. What was that like? I didn't like it at first, man, but after there a little while, man, I ended up liking it a lot better, man. Yeah.

And how are you treated going to their new meeting people? Well, it's kind of a button or deuce. It's a medium, but it's kind of a medical offshoot kind of, but not really. Wait, were you there with Bernie Madoff? He was down at the low. Okay.

Or the camp, maybe. Oh, I thought he was at the medical. It's all the same. It's all the same Butner. They got a low. They got a camp. They got a medium and a medium high. The buttoners kind of looked at as like a sweet spot.

It is. It's not bad, man. It's not bad after you get used to it. So they did you a favor by sending you there? Well, I mean, they sent me so far away from home, man. I used to get visits every week when I was at Lexington. My wife comes to see me every weekend. And then I didn't see her for years.

Yeah. How much good time did you lose? All of it. You lost all your, so what is that? That was that like almost two years? Yeah. Wow. So you did almost, you did the whole 86 months.

And then I got a violation after I got out. What did you get the violation for? For a dirty. So you kept, holy cow. And I wasn't out about like three or four months, man. And I thought the feds normally, though, they'll give you a couple dirties before. They didn't give me none. They gave me one and bam.

Wow. Go get it. Did you do the drug program at all? You know, I tried, but I couldn't, I couldn't complete it. I did the end app. I tried Ardap and couldn't. It's tough. It is tough, man.

It's very tough to make it. It's set up for you to fail, man, for real. Yeah. And even like when you do complete it, it's even stricter on the outside. I actually had someone reach out to me. You've probably heard stories of this. They got pop for the poppy seeds. Yeah.

And she ended up suing the government and won. And the judge released her. But I met, I had guys at the camp that came back. They got the year off at Ardap. We're doing their last few months at the camp. Then they came back. They lose that year and everything. Yeah, all because of a poppy seed.

And they don't even know. Like, if you're having an everything bagel, you're going back to prison if you do the drug program. Yeah, man. So wild. So you do all, you do that, you get brought back in for the violation. How long did you do on that?

Man, 11, 18, I don't know. It was either 11 or 18 months. I can't even remember. And did they reset your probation? So, yeah. But I ended up going, when I went back, they sent me to the low this time. So I got to go to a low finally.

You were at mediums all before. Yeah, but I went back to Buttoner Low. Okay, and was a low different for you? I didn't like it. It wasn't me. Too much freedom? It just, man, it wasn't. It really sucked.

But they did have the iPads or the tablets in there when I went back, so I got me a tablet and just watched movies. Yeah, what are those? I didn't experience that. So, yeah, it's pretty cool, man. They put movies on there. You can buy movies now. And how much is the tablet? I think there were $100, something like that, 100 bucks or so.

So with the tablet, are people still buying the MP3 players? I don't think so as much. Okay. So the tablet, you can, movies? You put movies. Like ones that are still in theaters? They got some new releases, but they're not like that new. And then games on there, too?

Games. They don't games suck, man. And can you video chat on there or no? You couldn't yet. I think they were talking about doing that. I don't know yet. Do you think that these tablets reduced violence and? See, when I left, they were just getting them in or whatever,

and they really didn't even have a whole lot of movies on there yet, but I don't know. I left too soon to tell. Thank God. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Thank God. The tablet thing, I know, like, the states have been years ahead with tablets, with PlayStation. I feel like in the feds, there was nothing to do.

Like, what are you going to do all day except for read or work out? You know, they need some type of activity. Yeah, feds suck. They suck, dude. They're good, and they suck at the same time. They suck so bad. The food's good, depending on where you are. Yeah.

So what year do you end up getting out completely? 22, I think. And you still... January of 22. You're on paper still now? Yeah. They won't let you off early at all. Well, I think I'm coming up on my two years being out.

I got four years paper. I don't know. Man, they keep switching my POs. I've went through like four or five since I've been out. It's crazy. When you switch POs, do you have to rebuild that trust that you make with the original? Man, I ain't really... The only one I had was the guy that.

that violated me and man. And when I got out, I had him again. And me and him started getting along pretty good, man. So I really hated losing him. I mean, he was a little strict, but I mean, I'm doing the right thing, no. So it didn't matter, you know. It takes time to build that rapport with someone. It's always tough.

I kind of don't like keep changing, you know. Yeah, change is tough. I just got a new one, just met him like Friday. Oh. And how's that going with him? Did he like him? Yeah, he's going to be all right, maybe. See, if he wants to come on the podcast.

So when was the final decision then to get clean? So the thing is, man, when I did all that time, man, and then I get that violation right off the bat like that, man, it just, that was it. That's when it clicked, man. You know, look, man, I'm tired of hurting all these people that care about me, man. I'm tired of being this disappointment, man. I can do so much better.

Do you think that if you didn't have that, you'd still be doing drugs to this day? Like, it's almost like you need to. I don't know, man. It's just, man, I'm, you come to the time you just get sick and tired, man, of being sick and tired. And you know, that life, that's all it does is wears you down, man. How do you feel about the people that don't make it to that reality to that point?

I hate it for them, man. Hopefully they'll get to that gift of desperation like I did. Do you reflect back on how many years of your life you've spent, you know, in prison or battling addiction? I do. And, you know, I'm just grateful, man, that I'm home, doing good. and just living a better life, man. It's so much better.

Yeah, tell everyone what you're doing now, you know, like at the Recovery Center and how you're using, like, your past experience to help others because that's huge. Yeah, so I'm a peer support specialist at Lake Cumberland Recovery. I can't praise them people enough, man. They help save my life, man. For real, they're just, now I'm giving back,

trying to help other people. And tell people what a peer recovery. every specialist is because I think it's great. So what I do, I just, you know, I share my experience with other people, man, and let them know, you know that you can get better, man, and life can get better. And people care about you. You are worth it. And you just got to keep chugging along.

Keep chugging along, man. Keep showing up. Do you feel like these individuals relate to you better because you've been in their shoes? I do. And I think I connect with a lot of the guys there, man. And I think that they, you know, see that it is possible. that you can change. That's huge.

And life can be better. I'm happier now than I've ever been in my life, man. What are some goals you want to accomplish with this newfound life? I just want to keep helping people, man, and just keep moving forward, man. And just rebuild the relationships with the people that I've heard over the years and just try to do better. If you can go back to your teenage self,

what advice do you give him? Before you ever even, you know, picked up a drug, what would you say? Man, wake up. Man, you can do so much better. You know, you really can. You could have been anything you wanted. And you still can. It's not too late.

It ain't too late. It's never too late. It's never too late. You just got to keep pushing. Keep showing up, man. Well, Danny, thank you so much, man. I'm glad we got to do this. I know you were excited about it.

I was excited about it. Thank you, man. You definitely lived up to the hype. Thank you. You did really well, but we're going to have to check those papers. Thanks a lot, man. Thank you, Danny. And, you know, I'll keep coming back to Kentucky and seeing you guys.

You guys are awesome here. had a good time