By Michael Patrick Leahy | Tennessee Star
Unjustly incarcerated January 6 defendant Stewart Parks was moved from the Federal Correction Institute (FCI) in Memphis, a low security prison, to a halfway house in Nashville on Tuesday, Parks told The Tennessee Star on Wednesday.
Parks was convicted on five misdemeanor charges in a bench trial conducted by D.C. Federal District Judge Amit Mehta in May, 2023, was sentenced to eight months in prison, and reported to the Memphis FCI on February 6, 2024.
“I got transferred to the Nashville RRC (halfway house) yesterday,” Parks said in a text sent to The Star Wednesday afternoon.
“I arrived in the evening and intake did paper work all through the night,” he added.
“I am shocked I am here in Nashville, as my family and I never got a time or a clear departure date. The FCI Memphis guards just woke me up at 6:45 am yesterday and told me to pack up and handed me a bus ticket,” Parks continued.
“Halfway house allowed me to have my cell phone back. I am still in federal custody, and they too my social media away,” he noted.
In a phone conversation from FCI Memphis on Monday, just one day before he was moved to the Nashville halfway house, Parks told The Star he expects his complete release from federal custody will come in late August, a little more than six months after he reported to federal prison.
In his Wednesday afternoon text to The Star, Parks sounded optimistic about his future release from federal custody.
“I spoke with my attorney today and we are still expecting more good things to go my way. There’s talk of me going to home confinement very soon, as we’ll. We still have some appeals [of] court rulings we are watching. My good time and First Step Act is accumulating, so the BOP.gov [Federal Bureau of Prisons website] release date is showing as August 20th, as my federal custody end date. It may change again. We are seeking clarification,” he added.
“Thank you so much again for everything. It is a miracle I am here in Nashville,” Parks concluded.
In an exclusive interview with The Star conducted on February 5, just 24 hours before he reported to FCI Memphis, Parks described his ordeal:
“I should not be going to prison tomorrow but due to prejudicial and hatred and unjustness, the judge was adamant that I go to prison tomorrow. So, in about 24 hours, as it stands right now, I will be self reporting,” Parks said.
Parks noted that the Obama-appointed judge has been “astounded” with his post-sentencing behavior, specifically his interviews with The Tennessee Star and other media outlets where he has spoken out about what he calls “unjust” treatment by the judicial system.
“The media needs to know what’s happening. So that’s why I’ve been open accepting invitations to come talk with the media because this is just absolutely shocking and unjust,” Park said. “It’s wild. This is stuff you hear in other countries, not the United States. It’s just shocking, it really is. And it’s like the more I talk to the media, the more I bring this to the attention of the public, the judicial elites in DC want to stomp me down even more and hush me up…It’s like they don’t want other defendants to feel emboldened or encouraged by it.”
Parks said the final hours before he reports to prison will include getting resources to his new appellate attorney and spending time with his parents, essentially “stopping the bleeding” of the situation as he noted his chances of not going to prison on Tuesday are “really, really slim.”
Park added that he appreciates the outpouring of support he’s gotten from members of the community ever since the FBI raided his residence on June 3, 2021 at 5:53 a.m., where agents, armed with machine guns and in full body armor, kicked in his door and shattered his windows before perp walking him in front of his neighbors as he was only wearing boxers and gym shorts.
“I appreciate the love. I get so many messages and feedback from the community and I’m so thankful The Tennessee Star allowed me to share updates because I mean, it’s just appalling,” Parks said.
Upon his release from federal custody, Parks says he intends to return to his real estate business and work for criminal justice reform.
Michael Patrick Leahy is the founder and CEO of the Star News Network, which includes The Tennessee Star. Follow Leahy on X at @michaelpleahy.
