Former public defender’s photos reveal lives of women jailed for life
Sara Bennett spent 13 years photographing women convicted of homicide in New York state, capturing their humanity and struggles inside prison and after release.
Former public defender Sara Bennett spent 13 years photographing women convicted of homicide and sentenced to life in New York state. Her book “Looking Inside: Women With Life Sentences” features intimate portraits and personal ephemera — Polaroids, letters, drawings, handwritten notes — creating a layered narrative that resists stereotype.
Bennett traced the women’s lives inside prison, and for some, their re-entry into the outside world. Linda, 70, incarcerated since 1992, says: “I’ve been scared, lonely, hurt, disappointed and forgotten.” Andrea, 64, released in 2020 after serving 19 years, says she learned to cope by going to church and working.
The photographs also include those who have been released. Karen, 69, after 35 years inside, was sent to a homeless shelter; she notes that the food and bedding were similar to prison but freedom made it an improvement. Jennifer, 40, released after 17½ years, lives in her own Brooklyn apartment and says she is “working on being free.”
Bennett’s book is a striking reminder of the complexity and humanity of women who are far more than the single act that sent them to prison. Judy, 69, who has served 38 years, says: “People ask me why I smile so much. It’s not that I’m always happy. I suffer the pains of imprisonment: separation from loved ones, being strip-searched after visits, being forbidden to hug. Every day I carry the burden of guilt. But I can decide how to wake up each morning and meet the day. I choose love, curiosity, to smile.”
