In accordance with supply, Travis Cullen, a convicted peaceful hashish felon and now authorized hashish enterprise proprietor within the US, he has alleged that the Final Prisoner challenge, has, over the past yr been diverting funds away from prisoners and their households and into the organisation’s payroll construction.
Just lately CLR printed the next story making an attempt to outline by way of publicly launched annual stories the place donation funds have been being allotted throughout the organisation
Learn
Final Prisoner Venture Is Proud Of It’s Transparency However What Do The Numbers Say?
As we highlighted within the piece. Relatively than defining numbers of their 2024 report, as a substitute, all we see are pie charts detailng % expenditure beneath the catch all heading, “Applications” totalling $US2,270,151.00.
One other supply has additionally alleged in dialog with CLR that sure executives in 2023 and 2024 had been paid bonuses not outlined in LPP annual stories for the corresponding years beneath Administration & Common.
Please see our prior story outling official govt funds as outlined of their annual stories.
Regardless of elevating $3 million in donations as documented of their newest official annual report, Cullen alleges that LPP now solely sends $300 to pick inmates each three months, totaling roughly $110,000 yearly.
This quantity, he notes, has already been slashed from earlier years, and he says their present plan is to chop grants for launched inmates from $5,000 to $1,000 in 2026 and transferring ahead.
In the meantime he estimates that LPP’s payroll has “skyrocketed “from $271,975 in 2021 to $1,345,995 in 2023.
Cullen writes,
Founder Mary Bailey, who leads this group, lives a lavish life-style whereas inmates proceed to wrestle.
She and LPP aggressively chase credit score for others’ work, taking on platforms meant for real grassroots organizations and leaving smaller nonprofits struggling to make a distinction.
Primarily based on obtainable data, there isn’t any public estimate of the full web value for Mary Bailey, co-founder and Managing Director of the Final Prisoner Venture.
Info concerning her funds {and professional} background consists of:
- Nonprofit Compensation: Tax filings for the Final Prisoner Venture (a non-profit group) point out her annual compensation as Managing Director has been reported within the vary of roughly $82,000 to over $119,000 lately.
- Business Background: Earlier than becoming a member of the Final Prisoner Venture, Bailey was the manager producer of the Maui Hashish Convention and CEO of Alpha Company, a Hawaii-based manufacturing firm.
- Recognition: She has been acknowledged within the Excessive Instances checklist of the “Prime 100 Most Influential Individuals within the Hashish Business”.
Supply: Google
Right here she is doing the speil at MJ Unpacked
Right here’s her linked in
What does this imply in apply?
Cullen..
It signifies that each time politicians or different nonprofits make significant progress in hashish reform, the Final Prisoner Venture swoops in to take credit score.
This clout-chasing damages the motion, undermining organizations which might be truly serving to prisoners.
See Politico Story
Additionally
In a Linked In submit dated 25 January 2026 Cullen highlights the current expertise of Edwin Rubis who has spent 27 years in federal jail for a hashish offence who, Cullen says, has had his direct help reduce from round $USD300 each quarter to solely $USD60.
That’s $USD20 a month.
To place this into perspective, if Mary Bailey, popped all the way down to her native Island Lava Java in Hawai. for a espresso that $US20 would barely final just a few days
Cullen writes
Edwin requested them to deliver it again up… and as a substitute of stepping up, they quietly eliminated Edwin from their web site.
No submit. No clarification. **Simply gone.**
Right here’s cullen’s screenshot
CLR searched utilizing google “final prisoner challenge Edwin Rubis’” Monday 26 Jan 2026
Mentioning two outcomes
The primary consequence ( https://www.lastprisonerproject.org/edwin-rubis-thanksgiving-as-an-incarcerated-cannabis-prisoner) Introduced Up…
The Second Consequence ( https://www.lastprisonerproject.org/prisoners-of-prohibition ) Introduced Up
This stated the latter could also be a cached web page not but de-indexed by Google as a guide search of thir web site url https://www.lastprisonerproject.org/ solely brings up one web page straight mentioning prisoners by identify https://www.lastprisonerproject.org/takeaction and on that web page the fiollowing people are highlighted.
Cullen Concludes
So let’s be actual: In case you’re elevating thousands and thousands yearly within the identify of prisoners… how is a person doing **27 years for hashish** dwelling on **$60 each 3 months**?
That’s not justice. That’s advertising.
✅ Edwin is a **Latino father**
✅ **27 years served** on a **40-year sentence**
✅ About **8 years left** if nothing adjustments
✅ Nonetheless wants **actual help** whereas we push for clemency
In reality, LPP has become a PR machine rather than a lifeline for inmates. The flashy campaigns and big claims distract from their lack of substantial support for the very people they use to fundraise.
As an eight-year federal prison veteran and first-time felon, I urge you: do not support Mary Bailey or the Last Prisoner Project. There are better, more accountable organizations working for incarcerated individuals. The prisoners deserve real support, not empty promises.
Written by Travis Cullen Through the lens of serving 8 years in federal prison on cannabis charges
Travis Cullen Background
Travis Cullen was just 21 when he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for a non-violent cannabis offense—his first felony. That experience changed his life and sparked a passion for advocating for others still behind bars for weed. Now, as a cannabis entrepreneur, Travis uses his platform to push for justice and reform, determined to make a difference in an industry that once cost him his freedom. He currently is the CEO of Laughing Waters Smoke Shop in Rochester, MN and Freedom Soda.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/travis-cullen-514aa7a5/
United States v. Travis M. Cullen, No. 04-4206 (8th Cir. 2006)
APPEAL
https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca8/04-4206/044206p-2011-02-25.html
