What does it actually take for someone to change?

On this episode of Lock and Key Podcast, Anthony Payton and Marv Kennell sit down with Valerie Toth, who spent nearly 25 years at FCI Danbury, including 22 years as a Drug Treatment Specialist in the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP).

Valerie takes us inside a program designed to do more than address substance use. She explains how RDAP challenged participants to confront criminal thinking, take responsibility for their behavior, learn from their peers, and begin preparing for life beyond prison.

Anthony brings his own experience as a former RDAP participant into the conversation, while Marv offers the perspective of someone who worked inside corrections. That shared history creates a conversation that goes well beyond the typical discussion about prison and addiction.

Valerie opens up about:

• What it was really like walking into a federal prison for the first time
• Why trust inside prison can be so difficult
• How RDAP used peer accountability and "pull-ups" to challenge behavior
• Why some people embrace change while others go through the motions
• The impact of the First Step Act on RDAP
• Addiction, recovery, shame, and the idea of addiction as enslavement
• What working in prison did to her own life and identity
• Why vocational training matters for people preparing to return home
• The people she still thinks about years after leaving Danbury
• Why she believes that even a failed treatment experience can teach someone something

And in one of the most personal moments of the conversation, Anthony tells Valerie how her encouragement helped him find his voice, overcome stage fright, and eventually step onto a TEDx stage.

This is a conversation about prison, but ultimately it's about people, accountability, recovery, identity, and the possibility of change.

Lock and Key Podcast: Both Sides of Prison.

Hosted by Anthony Payton and Marv Kennell.

When your closest friends become your co-defendants, how do you rebuild your life?

On this episode of Lock and Key Podcast: Both Sides of Prison, Anthony "Tone" Payton and retired Federal Corrections Officer Marvin Kinnel sit down with Dennis "Doc" Dellaghelfa, a former hearing instrument specialist who built a successful career helping thousands of people regain their hearing before everything changed.

After a federal investigation led to a healthcare fraud conviction, Dennis was sentenced to federal prison, losing his business, his professional license, and much of the life he had spent decades building. He shares his experience of the FBI raid, sentencing, navigating the federal prison system, and the unexpected challenges of returning home.

This conversation goes beyond one man's case. It explores trust, accountability, re-entry, and the difficult reality of rebuilding after incarceration. Dennis also offers an honest look at halfway houses, employment barriers, and why he believes the re-entry process needs significant reform.

Whether you've been impacted by the justice system or simply want to better understand what life looks like before, during, and after federal prison, this is a candid conversation about resilience, second chances, and finding purpose after adversity.

In this episode:
• Building a successful career in the hearing healthcare industry
• The FBI raid that changed everything
• Sentencing and entering the federal prison system
• Life inside Lewisburg and Danbury
• Halfway houses and the realities of re-entry
• Employment, licensing, and rebuilding after prison
• Lessons learned about trust, friendship, and moving forward

Connect with Dennis:
📧 delaghelfadennis@gmail.com

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow, rate, and share Lock and Key Podcast: Both Sides of Prison. Your support helps us continue bringing honest conversations from both sides of the prison system.

On this episode of Lock and Key, we sit down with nurse, community advocate, and congressional candidate Paige Beauchemin for a wide-ranging conversation about poverty, addiction, incarceration, healthcare, and the policies that impact everyday people.

Paige shares her journey growing up in New Hampshire while experiencing housing insecurity, watching addiction affect those closest to her, and finding her calling through nursing and public health. Her work has placed her on the front lines of some of society's most difficult challenges, including maternal health, homelessness, mental health, substance use, and caring for incarcerated mothers.

Together, we discuss the emotional realities faced by women who give birth while incarcerated, the cycle of addiction and incarceration, barriers to housing and healthcare, and the importance of treating people with dignity rather than simply punishing them.

The conversation also explores civic engagement, political representation, and why Paige believes working-class voices need a stronger seat at the table.

Whether you agree with her politics or not, this episode is ultimately about people, second chances, and the systems that shape our lives.

Topics Include:
• Incarcerated mothers and childbirth
• Addiction and recovery
• Poverty and housing insecurity
• Mental health and public health
• Criminal justice reform
• Civic engagement and voting
• Running for Congress as a working-class candidate

Listen, share, and join the conversation.