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Mission

Our mission at David R. Carrillo Consulting, LLC is to transform lived experience into professional expertise that empowers attorneys, organizations, justice-impacted individuals, and communities. By providing consulting, expert testimony, training, and advocacy — and by advancing higher education in prison — we work to close the information gap in the justice system and promote integrity, accountability, and reform.

Professional Work Today

Since being granted clemency after more than three decades, David has dedicated his life to bridging the gap between legal strategy and lived experience. Through David R. Carrillo Consulting, LLC, he provides attorneys, universities, and organizations with:

  • Sentencing and Plea Bargain Consulting

  • Expert Witness Testimony

  • Training and CLE Workshops

  • Speaking Engagements

  • Higher Education in Prison Advocacy

Each service is grounded in the same authenticity and authority that define David’s story — turning hard-earned lessons into tools for justice, education, and reform.

About David R. Carrillo

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David R. Carrillo’s life embodies transformation, resilience, and leadership. Sentenced to life without parole, David spent over 30 years inside the Colorado Department of Corrections. While incarcerated, he pursued education relentlessly — earning a paralegal certificate, an associate’s degree, a bachelor’s degree with honors, and ultimately a Master of Business Administration.

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But David’s journey didn’t stop at personal achievement. He made history as the first incarcerated individual in the United States to be hired as a college professor, teaching business and economics courses to fellow incarcerated students through Adams State University. His groundbreaking role not only challenged assumptions about education behind bars but also paved the way for broader advocacy around higher education in prison.

The Full Story

​In 1993, at the age of 19, I was charged with First-Degree Murder based on the theory of complicity along with Conspiracy and Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor.  I was ultimately convicted of all the charges and sentenced to Life Without the Possibility of Parole.  While incarcerated I became involved in the prison culture and spent numerous years in segregation and administrative segregation (solitary confinement) as a result.  After reaching a personal point of realization, I began to educate myself.  While incarcerated I earned a Diploma Certificate from Blackstone Institute in Paralegal Studies, an Associate's Degree in Paralegal Studies, a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with an Emphasis in Legal Studies, and a Master's in Business Administration (MBA).

While incarcerated I conducted research and consulted with a small law firm on Legal Malpractice and Bad Faith Breach of Insurance Contract cases, helping to pay for my MBA.  I also helped write several appellate briefs and postconviction relief motions for justice impacted individuals.

I also became the first currently incarcerated individual to be hired by a university to teach undergraduate college courses to other currently incarcerated individuals.

In December 2023 I was granted clemency by Governor Polis and released in January of 2024.

Being intimately aware of the numerous issues surrounding Colorado's complex sentencing scheme along with numerous stories of individuals misinformed about the true consequences of accepting their plea bargains, I decided to take my lived experience and formal education to create David R. Carrillo, Consulting, LLC.

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