ATLANTA — Michelle Morrison was branded a felon and locked up for the rest of her life for a crime she did not commit until she decided to change her life around.
"To see people judge me by those labels, it hurt bad," Morrison said.
While she was in prison, she took every opportunity to expand her mind. She would eventually graduate from college for the first time while in lockup, but she didn't get the big celebration that most college graduates receive.
That is until recently, when the metro Atlanta woman's family saw her walk across the stage with her degree in hand from Life University -- a moment she thought her family would never get to witness.
"I feel honored now. I put away the shame, anything that I had negative feelings, and I feel great to walk across that stage," Morrison added.
In 2007, Morrison was tangled in a web that caused her a life behind bars. She thought she was going to collect a debt with a friend, but while she was in the car waiting, a tragedy unfolded.
A fight broke out inside a home nearby where the debt collection took place. The dispute then escalated into a shootout and a person lost their life. Morrison was in the car when the crime happened, but the justice system slammed the book against her. She was charged with murder and forced to spend the rest of her life in prison for the crime.
Morrison's mom, Cynthia, said seeing her daughter behind bars in a prison jumpsuit broke her heart.
"There's no more interaction, no more trips, no more going to the spa. All of that stuff starts to sink in," she said. "I walked into that courtroom and I heard the judge say, life in prison. It's like my whole world was snatched from me."
She always saw Morrison as her beloved daughter and not the label given to her by the system. Cynthia supported her daughter throughout the entire process.
"She is my biggest fan. And I know, just the rest of her life, I want to be here and take care of her," Morrison said.
Last year, Morrison was the first woman released from prison under Fulton County's new conviction integrity unit after serving 13 years.
"She is like the phoenix rising from the ashes. It's amazing," her mother said. "That's what happens when you don't give up! You just keep pushing, even when they say no, you just keep pushing."
Breaking free of her past and embracing her future, Morrison and her mother are now planning a trip to advocate for other women who are incarcerated and overcharged -- particularly women of color.
The biggest problem for the mother and daughter is what to pack for their new trip after her one outfit was a jumpsuit her entire life.
"Come on now, I had one outfit for 13 years, I need 50 million outfits," Morrison joked to her Mom.
In the United States, Black women are locked up at 1.6 times the rate as white women. Since 1980, the number of women in prison has risen 525%, according to The Sentencing Project.
"Just give them life, they're dispensable, we don't care. So that's the heartbreaking thing, is that this is happening to so many people, and the attitude is, we don't care. They're dispensable," said Cynthia.
In Georgia, 50% of the women serving life sentences are Black, the National Black Woman's Justice Institute said.
Both women are now dedicating their lives to ending mass incarceration and advocating for women of color serving extreme sentences.
Attorney Janis Mann represented Michelle and joins them both in fighting for justice.
Morrison said she will now pursue her masters degree and hopes to help other women who are locked up.
