Coulda Been a Contender
I had a shot at being the heavyweight boxing champion of the world. Then I was convicted of murder.
by Kassan Messiah as told to Eli Hager
Jun 07, 2019
5 minutes
I was incarcerated at a young age. I committed a carjacking in Newark, New Jersey, and somebody was murdered. I went to the juvenile court; they tried me as an adult. I think I probably was like 14. It was 1981.
I wound up taking a plea bargain for a max of 30 years. That's how I started.
My younger brother came in maybe a couple years after me. I was in the youth prison at Bordentown, New Jersey. He got put at Yardville. We could each look out the window and see the other facility.
But I wanted to go see him better. And the only way it was possible for us to ever see each other while incarcerated in different facilities would be to participate in some type of sport.
New Jersey was . They had
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