Man works with judge who sentenced him to improve their Philly neighborhood

Kashif Jones admits he made bad choices in life.

“We was poor,” Jones said. “So I got in trouble from trying to get money.”

In the winter of 2009, Jones shot and killed another man in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood.

“I was found guilty of manslaughter,” he said. “I ended up spending 11 years in prison.”

Jones was 21-years-old when he was sentenced. While spending time in prison, he thought about what he would do when he got out.

“You know spending 11 years in prison, I’m not going to just sit here and watch these kids go down that road. If I can help, I’m going to help,” he said.

Jones initially hated the man who sentenced him, the now-retired Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge Benjamin Lerner. Yet his time spent behind bars changed his mindset. So when he was released in 2020, Jones gave Lerner a call.

“Usually when you hear from someone who you’ve convicted and sentenced to prison, it’s all about all the things you did wrong,” Lerner said.

But once the two men got over the past, they focused on the things that they had in common. Both men grew up in Philadelphia’s Feltonville neighborhood where they walked the same streets and spent time at the Feltonville Recreation Center.

“My brothers and I played in this gym in the 1950s,” Lerner said.

Over the past few years, the two men worked together to transform the rec center into a place of hope.

“This is where we do a lot of Christmas giveaways,” Jones said. “We gave out thousands of coats, thousands of toys.”

They also raised money to build a STEM lab as part of what they describe as “relentless community development.”

Throughout his career that spanned nearly two decades, Lerner said he’s witnessed only a handful of defendants like Jones.

“He became my shining example of what you hope will happen when you sentence somebody who you know is going to be out of jail,” Lerner said.

The two became both friends and partners in improving their community.

“I call him, get his input, ask him what we should do,” Jones said.

While Jones knows that nothing he can do can take back the life he took away, he’s hoping his second chance might spare others from the pain.

“I think that’s a hopeful sign,” Lerner said. “It’s hopeful for Feltonville. It’s hopeful for the entire city.”