Tyrone Brown Endorses Scott Jewett for Governor of Florida
A friendship forged through one man's fight for a second chance
September 30, 2026 — Tyrone Brown, whose extraordinary story of incarceration, redemption, and rebuilding his life after release drew national attention, has endorsed Scott Jewett for Governor of Florida.
Brown's story became nationally known after he was sentenced to life in a Texas maximum-security prison following a probation violation involving marijuana. Brown had originally received 10 years of probation for a robbery committed when he was 17. The case involved a wallet containing two dollars, and Brown returned the wallet after taking the money. He ultimately spent 17 years incarcerated before being released on March 16, 2007, following a conditional pardon from Texas Governor Rick Perry.
Brown's case later received national attention, including coverage by ABC News' 20/20. Reporting on the case examined the contrasting treatment of Brown and another defendant who had committed a more serious crime and subsequently violated probation multiple times.
It was that reporting that first brought Brown's story to Scott Jewett.
Scott didn't just read the story. He acted. “I read Tyrone's story in the newspaper, and I remember thinking, how does a 17-year-old kid end up spending the rest of his youth in a maximum-security prison over a mistake he made as a teenager?” said Scott Jewett.
Jewett said the story stayed with him.
After learning that Brown was eventually going to be released, Scott reached out to Brown's parole officer to find out whether there was anything he could do to help.
What followed was the beginning of a friendship that has lasted for years.
Scott helped Brown obtain a vehicle, assisted him in finding employment, and helped him navigate some of the basic challenges of rebuilding a life after 17 years in prison—including something as simple as learning how to properly tie a tie for a job.
“I didn't know Tyrone. I didn't know what our relationship would become. I just knew that someone who had spent 17 years in prison was coming home, and I wanted to help him have a real opportunity to rebuild his life,” Jewett said.
“I bought him a car. I helped him find work. I helped him get ready for interviews. I helped him with things that most of us take for granted because he had lost 17 years of his life.”
But the relationship became much more than an effort to help someone transition back into society.
They became friends.
“Tyrone and I have been friends ever since,” Jewett said. “I've watched him work to rebuild his life, and I've watched him become the man he is today. That's why his endorsement means something very different to me than an ordinary political endorsement.”
Brown's story has also shaped Jewett's views about freedom, personal responsibility, criminal justice, and the importance of giving people the opportunity to become productive members of their communities.
“People can make mistakes. People can make terrible decisions. But we have to ask whether our systems are actually making our communities safer and stronger, or whether we're creating lifelong consequences that prevent people from ever becoming productive members of society,” Jewett said.
For Jewett, Brown's story is ultimately about something larger than one criminal case. It is about second chances, personal responsibility, human dignity, and the freedom to rebuild.
“Tyrone isn't defined by what happened when he was 17 years old. He's defined by what he did with the life he got back,” Jewett said. “That's something I believe in deeply.”
Brown's endorsement comes as Jewett's campaign continues to focus on a broader vision for Florida centered on freedom, affordability, economic opportunity, property ownership, family, community, and self-reliance.
“Government should create an environment where people have the freedom and opportunity to build productive lives—not one where a person's worst mistake becomes a permanent sentence,” Jewett said.
“My friendship with Tyrone has reinforced something I've believed for a long time: freedom isn't an abstract concept. Freedom is the ability to get up, go to work, provide for your family, own something, build something, and have the opportunity to become more than the circumstances you came from.”
For Scott Jewett, Tyrone Brown's endorsement is personal.
It represents a friendship that began with a newspaper story and a question—“How can I help?”—and ultimately became a relationship that has lasted nearly two decades.
About Scott Jewett
Scott Jewett is a Florida businessman, entrepreneur, inventor, and candidate for Governor of Florida. His campaign focuses on reducing the cost of living, protecting individual freedom, expanding economic opportunity, strengthening families and communities, and building a more productive and self-reliant Florida.
Scott Jewett for Governor
Libertarian Candidate for Governor of Florida