Jason Rodriguez was born on August 15, 1972 in Spanish Harlem to Jose and Maria Rodriguez. He was raised in the Bronx and, as an only child, Jose and Maria made tremendous sacrifices to be able to send him to Catholic school in order to avoid the perils children encounter in the urban jungle. Even though his mother suffered two failed Kidney transplants, on dialysis and diabetic, she wanted the best for her only son. In 1988, at the age of 16, tragedy struck Jason as he was arrested for manslaughter. He was prosecuted as an adult and tried as an adult and sentenced to 8– 25 years in prison. While incarcerated Jason reflected on his failed life and swore that if he ever got a second chance he would make the most of it. Along the way, tragedy struck again twice more in his life when he lost both of his parents, his mother to a stroke in 1996 and his father to a heart attack in 2002. Even though he was a model inmate, he was denied parole five times and ended up serving seventeen years.