Ex-prisoner says he felt 'set up to fail' by criminal justice system on John Oliver

On Sunday night's "Last Week Tonight," John Oliver spent nearly 20 minutes on the topic of prison re-entry.

The topic is especially timely given the recent early release of 6,000 prisoners, the largest one-time release of federal inmates.

But as Oliver explained, about half of those prisoners will end up back behind bars.

"The fact that around half of people who leave prison end up going back is horrifying, but when you look at the challenges they face, it gets a little less surprising," the host said.

Oliver described many of those challenges in detail, including the inability in many states for ex-prisoners to use the same benefits as everyone else, or to even get to the interview stage of a job application.

He also sat down with one former prisoner, Bilal Chatman, who said that when he was released, he felt "set up to fail" by the system. Chatman has managed to hold on to a job and is proud of his success, but says he still worries about "being judged by what I used to be."

"This takes me back to being that prisoner again," Chatman said. "I'm not that prisoner today. I'm a taxpayer. I work. I'm a citizen. I'm a voter. That's who I want to be. Those are the things that define me today."

Watch the segment below:

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