In this April 13, 2015, file photo, Jodi Arias, left, looks on next to her attorney, Jennifer Willmott, during her sentencing in Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix. (Mark Henle/The Arizona Republic via AP, Pool, File) In this April 13, 2015, file … more >

Behind bars but not off the grid: Famous inmates are posting on social media — and lobbying Trump

by · The Washington Times

Some of America’s most notorious convicts never really went away — they just went online.

Jodi Arias, Sam Bankman-Fried, Elizabeth Holmes and Joe Exotic are among the high-profile prisoners quietly building social media presences from behind bars, using friends and supporters on the outside to post on their behalf.

Ms. Arias, serving life without parole for the murder of her ex-boyfriend, runs a Substack called “Just Jodi” with hundreds of paying subscribers. She hawks her artwork to fund her legal defense and recently posted about nursing injured birds in the prison yard.

Bankman-Fried, the disgraced FTX cryptocurrency founder serving 25 years in a California federal prison, posts regularly on X — defending his reputation, offering market commentary and praising Mr. Trump. An appeals court rejected his bid for a new trial June 12. He has formally requested a commutation.

Ms. Holmes, convicted of defrauding Theranos investors and serving 11 years in a Texas federal prison, posts on X about artificial intelligence, her two young children and her innocence. She also applied for a commutation, which is pending.

Joe Exotic — the “Tiger King” star serving 21 years for a murder-for-hire plot — posted a grainy Instagram video from a Fort Worth prison pleading for relief. “I just want my sentence commuted,” he said.

Prisoners cannot post directly. Messages must be relayed by outside proxies. A proposed federal ban on the practice remains under review.

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