Activist + Author Shares Experience at Colorado’s Supermax

As a youth, Eric King was passionate about activism, a passion that saw him commit numerous acts of violence, which led to numerous arrests, including one that earned him a lengthy stay in our country’s prison system.

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While ADX Florence, commonly known as Supermax or Alcatraz of the Rockies, is typically reserved for the biggest criminals in the world, like drug Kingpin El Chapo, Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, and Oklahoma City Bomber Terry Nichols, King also spent time in the notorious prison, an experience he has recounted numerous times since being released.

How Did Eric King End Up in Colorado’s Supermax?

While participating in a protest revolving around the murder of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, King threw two Molotov cocktails into an unoccupied building owned by the Federal Government, an act that would result in a 10-year prison sentence.

King spent time in numerous prisons, including the Federal Correctional Institution in Englewood, Colorado, where he encountered disgraced former Subway spokesperson Jared Fogle, but a violent interaction with a guard would prompt King to be ultimately moved to Supermax.

What Was King’s Experience at Colorado’s Supermax Like?

Since being released from Supermax, King has conducted several interviews and even wrote a book titled ‘A Clean Hell: Anarchy and Abolition in America’s Most Notorious Dungeon,’ a title inspired by a quote from former Supermax warden Robert Hood.

Read More: What Former Warden Robert Hood Reveals About Supermax

He tells stories of isolation where the majority of his days were spent cleaning his cell and walking laps around his concrete room while eating what he describes as food that he wouldn’t give to his dog.

Since being released, King still believes in activism but refuses to engage in violence due to the fear of reoffending and being once again separated from his wife and children. He now works for one of his former attorneys as a paralegal.