Special to the Daily

After serving a five-year sentence in the Federal Medical Centers in Rochester, Minn. and in Carville, La. for using marijuana for medical problems, Dan Murphy was released April 21, 1997, and has since made a positive influence on the lives of many ISU students.

When injuries from a 1985 car accident led to three spinal surgeries and diseases of both the spinal cord and spinal column, Murphy, graduate student in sociology, said his only option was to remain bed-ridden for 11 months.

Because he was unable to sleep more than four hours per night, a friend introduced marijuana to Murphy as an alternative to the pain he was suffering. Although he was determined not to touch it at first, a marijuana cigarette was left for him in case he changed his mind, he said.

Murphy began to grow his own marijuana, using it strictly for medicinal purposes to ease his pain and discomfort, he said.

He was arrested in 1992 for marijuana use and served prison time until April 1997.

“I decided that when I got out, I wanted to make a positive influence,” he said.

For the last two semesters, Murphy, graduate teaching assistant, has shared his background with the students of Sociology and Criminal Justice Studies 340.

“I don’t harp on prison issues, but my background is reality. If a prison issue comes up, we talk about it, but otherwise it is not an issue,” he said.

Although it may not be customary to hire a person with a prison background for a teaching assistant position, it is not unheard of, and Iowa State does not discriminate on those grounds.

Martin Miller, coordinator of criminal justice studies and professor of sociology, said there have been others in the ISU graduate program who have experienced prison life first hand.

“They are very intelligent and insightful,” Miller said. “They make excellent sociologists and researchers, and some continue into criminal justice. There is a very educated society of people who have come out of prison and make good contributions as scholars and teachers.”

Miller said Murphy has brought a lot of insight to the class.

“Nothing compares to someone with life experience who is willing to talk about it,” he said.

Miller said Murphy was his TA last semester in Sociology and Criminal Justice Studies 241.

“He is very warm, conscientious, willing to learn and listen, and also knows his own biases,” Miller said. “He is well-respected among his fellow grad students in the department.”

Jared Hill, junior in marketing and a student in Murphy’s 340 class, said Murphy does a good job teaching the course.

“It’s interesting, shocking to think that your TA has been in prison because that normally doesn’t happen,” Hill said.

However, Hill said Murphy’s past is not a factor or a reflection on his teaching ability or the class.

Miller said Murphy has been both his TA and his friend.

“People can change, and Dan is one who has been able to do that and be very productive,” he said.

After putting his prison experience behind him and now studying the academic side of criminology, Murphy said he hopes to earn a law degree.

“It has been a very interesting route from prison to Ph.D.,” he said.