SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Reentering the workforce as a person previously involved in the justice system can be difficult. It's a second chance that many continue to fight for, and one that took time for United Levao.
For him, it started with one step, through the door of Restoring Citizens.
"It feels surreal, I never thought I was ever gonna come home free again," United says. "I thought like that for a very long time.”
United was just 15 when he was tried as an adult and sentenced to 50 years to life for a gang-related homicide.
"I was incarcerated from 2004 at the age of 15 to 2024. 20 years," United explains.
In prison, he took every opportunity to find a purpose.
"Upon release, I had all these ambitions. I wanted to do good because I knew better, so I wanted to do better.”
Today, he’s a case manager at Restoring Citizens, using his experience to help others start over.
"That whole process I pulled, alongside my training... Now I get [to] help people get reactivated to society," United says. "I'm helping them through barriers that I faced on my own."
Restoring Citizens, which partners with the San Diego Workforce Partnership, or the SDWP, is fueled by those who know that even small acts of kindness can break the cycle.
I think just giving a little bit of love, giving something to wake up for, and just eliminating barriers and knowing that you know this part of me is part of them," San Diego Workforce Partnership Program Specialist Izzy Moreno says.
For 40 years, the SDWP has helped over 200 people a year get job training, certifications, and hope.
"Even getting a simple ID. We celebrate every milestone," Izzy says.
Statistics from the US Chamber of Commerce back it up:
Those who hold jobs for a year after release are 3x less likely to return to prison. That's compared to 52% for those who remain unemployed.
For United, the name fits. After spending 20 years behind bars, he’s now uniting others with the second chance he once needed.
"That's my moral obligation," United says. "Being out here and returning back to society is giving back to the community that I took so much from.”
