True Crime Uncensored with Burl Barer and Mark Boyer

ORANGE COUNTY: The Dark Side! Chris Curtis is our guest

·48 min·4 clips

At 13, Chris Curtis's father sat him down at the dining table and offered him his first line of cocaine.

The episode features an interview with Chris Curtis, guest author of 'Orange County: The Dark Side,' on the True Crime Uncensored podcast hosted by Burl Barer and Mark Boyer. Curtis recounts his childhood in Orange County, where his father's cocaine use normalized drug abuse from an early age. At 13, his father gave him cocaine, hooking him and leading to a lifestyle where drugs were used as rewards and punishments. Curtis describes juvenile delinquency, including breaking into his school cafeteria, which resulted in arrest and probation. His home life involved his father's roommate selling kilos of cocaine, exposing him to large-scale drug trafficking. After his parents' divorce and moving between households, Curtis escalated into gang activity in Anaheim, carrying guns and engaging in violence. He shot two men in self-defense during a confrontation, leading to a six-year prison sentence for aggravated assault. Post-release, he relapsed into drug selling and was sentenced to 20 years to life after another arrest. In prison, Curtis began attending groups and education programs, earning an AA degree and an electrical vocation. He wrote a book about his life and prepared extensively for his parole board hearing with insight papers and relapse prevention plans. In 2021, he was found suitable for parole on his first hearing and released after the governor's approval. Curtis now works as an electrician, avoids toxic relationships and substance abuse, and plans to marry, emphasizing personal responsibility and recovery. The hosts discuss themes of addiction, institutionalization, and the challenges of reintegration, with Curtis offering advice for others struggling with similar issues.

As heard by us

A blunt Orange County story that moves from family collapse to shooting, pursuit, and recovery.

Christopher Curtis tells a hard-lived Orange story, beginning with a childhood that still had some stability at 12, when his parents were together and the family was doing well before his father lost the house and everything started to fall apart.

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Why you'd press play

If you want Orange County with the dark side out front, this one follows it straight into the crash.

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