From Foster Care to Trap Doorman: 20 Years Lost to H3roin Addiction

In this powerful and unfiltered interview, Charles Straley sits down with Louis and Aaron to share a life story shaped by addiction, trauma, foster care, prison, and ultimately redemption.
Born to alcoholic parents and placed into foster care at a young age, Charles was forced to grow up fast—taking care of households that weren’t his, surviving violence, and navigating loss most kids couldn’t imagine. By 12 years old, he was drinking daily, catching cases, and spiraling into a life of crime that would eventually lead to prison, heroin addiction, homelessness, and repeated overdoses.
This episode traces Charles’s journey from:
childhood abuse and foster care
early criminal charges and incarceration
years of alcohol and heroin addiction
living and working inside trap houses
overdosing daily and running from parole
…to a turning point marked by spiritual collapse, unexpected legal grace, and ultimately rebuilding his life and gaining custody of his son.
This is not just a story about addiction—it’s a story about survival, accountability, and the possibility of change, no matter how deep the bottom feels.
Viewer discretion advised: This episode contains discussions of addiction, violence, incarceration, and overdose.

⏱ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 – Title of First Chapter
00:01:00 Childhood and entering foster care
00:05:30 Running foster parents’ household at a young age
00:08:50 First time stealing
00:10:45 Physical fight with foster father at 8 years old
00:12:30 Father’s suicide (blowing up a shed)
00:15:00 Catching his first case at 12
00:17:25 Drinking every day starting at 12
00:19:20 Ending up in a trap house with someone wanted for murder
00:21:00 Stealing his mom’s car
00:23:00 Peeing in a friend’s plant & searching for a place to stay
00:26:00 Breaking a cop’s arm — catches an F2
00:29:55 Robbery charge while already facing felony case
00:32:00 Catching a third case
00:33:00 Prison at 22 — cellmate was a lifer
00:35:00 Blacking out in prison, assault charge, 6 months in the hole
00:37:15 P3rcs, failed Florida trip
00:38:30 Finding biological family — mom dying in hospice
00:39:15 Meeting biological father
00:39:56 First time using h3ro1n
00:43:00 Pushing pregnant girlfriend — she leaves
00:45:30 Becoming homeless, becoming a trap house doorman
00:49:40 Getting caught by the cable guy
00:54:00 Trying Subs, then relapsing
00:56:00 Strung out and running from parole
01:01:00 Overdosing daily, strangers Narcan him
01:03:00 Spiritual bottom — losing someone to an OD
01:06:30 Lead district attorney in Columbus represents him
01:09:00 Wrapping up — getting custody of his son

🔥 Expect emotion. Expect truth. Expect hope.

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