Inmate prevents others from making his mistakes

DECATUR, Ind. (WANE) - A northeast Indiana prisoner is aiming to right his wrongs by preventing others from the same fate.

In 2009, Cody Barkley was arrested for his involvement in a murder in Wells County and sentenced to 30 years in prison, our sister station WANE reports.

Barkley, now 21, wrote a letter in September. In it, he warned the reader of the consequences in going down the same path he did. Barkley sent the letter to ISS Suspension Supervisor at Bellmont Middle School Greg Litchfield. Friday morning, teachers at Bellmont Middle School read it in every 7th and 8th grade class.

Read the entire letter from Cody

"The effort's being called Cody's letter," Litchfield said. "We're hoping that the high school will get a hold of this, the teachers over there will share it and that it spreads across the nation. That everyone gets in on this to try to keep kids out of our prisons."

To read and hear the presentation of Cody's letter in Ben Fowbush's 8th grade class, click on the video in this article.

Barkley attended Bellmont Middle and Bellmont High School.