Everyone said to leave my man when he was jailed for 19 years – we married behind bars but had to wait to consummate it
Everyone said to leave my man when he was jailed for 19 years – we married behind bars but had to wait to consummate it
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MELODY Lorenzo, 35, works in the public sector and lives in California with her husband Anthony, 36. “Waiting for the prison bus to arrive, my heart was racing. After 19 years behind bars, my husband was finally coming home. Anthony and I met in 2001, when we were 12 and 13. He was my best friend’s cousin and we’d hang out in the park and chat.
![[Couple embracing in front of a painted landscape.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_9714jpg-JS952126783.jpg?strip=all&w=687)
We were just kids, but I was drawn to him and we became boyfriend and girlfriend. Then, in 2005, our young love faced a crisis I couldn’t have imagined. Anthony, then 16, was in a car with a friend who opened fire on a group of gang members. It was a classic case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
![[Couple selfie at a baseball game.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/31478867-59e0-4b58-be6f-a036af71ed40.jpg?strip=all&w=721)
Despite the fact he hadn’t pulled the trigger, Anthony was charged with attempted murder and gang-related offences, and was sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison. I was just 15 and deeply shocked that my boyfriend had been caught up in something so dark.
![[Woman in denim jacket and black boots.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/19c6de04-61b0-452b-be69-4e11b1b1680d.jpg?strip=all&w=579)
Family and friends said I shouldn’t put my life on hold until his release. And Anthony told me I needed to walk away, too, but I knew I loved him and that him being behind bars wasn’t going to change how I felt. Resolving to stay together for as long as it took for him to be released, we kept our relationship alive with daily calls and letters.
![[Couple embracing on rocky shore by the ocean.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Kissingjpeg-JS946729977.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
As soon as I learned to drive, I’d spend every weekend driving up to 11 hours to visit him. Seeing him in handcuffs behind glass was so painful. It took him time to adjust to his new ‘home’. He began to focus on improving himself, taking education classes and joining self-help programmes. I was proud of him.
![[A person placing a wedding ring on another person's finger.]](https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IMG_9720jpg-JS952126845.jpg?strip=all&w=960)
