My name is Lee-Grace Elizabeth Dougherty. I was born in Orange County Florida in 1982, and raised in Seminole County and Flagler County, on the Eastern Seaboard in the central part of the state. I had a great childhood and I am the eldest of five children. I have 2 younger brothers, and 2 younger sisters. Until I was about 9 years old, I had the typical Southern upbringing with 2 parents and a lot of family involvement from my immediate family. Behind the scenes my parents weren’t able to live in the same house and had a dysfunctional relationship that lasted until the day my Dad died. He passed away in October 1996 from a sudden heart attack and after that, nothing was the same in my life. I had always been really close with all my family and an overachiever in school. But when my Father died, I suffered from anxiety, depression, and started acting out and attention-seeking behaviors. Prior to that, I had strong ties with my Dad’s family. But once he died, all of his family blamed my Mom for his death and that caused me to gravitate to my Mom’s parents more and more. Even before my Dad’s death, I could see my family was having problems; We have alcoholism and mental health disorders throughout both sides. My maternal Grandparents played a huge role in my life when my parents started fighting and got divorced in 1992. My youngest brother and I were very close, I was his primary caretaker from his birth until he was 6 years old. I consider my brothers my best friends and we remain close to this day. My brothers and sisters were the most important thing in my life and still are. My middle brother is my other ally and I seek his advice for almost everything.
At 14, I lashed out at my Mom physically, punching her and the neighbor called the police. March 7 1997 was the first interaction I had with law enforcement and I went to a Juvenile Denter Center for 7 days at the age of 15. I will never forget the anger and embarrassment I felt inside and the bitter feelings I had toward my Mother. I blamed her for everything bad that had happened to me in my life and I started a years-long battle with her and my stepfather. I felt they were both bad parents and us kids were not taken care of properly while we remained in their care. I moved out at 15 with my boyfriend and we resided in Orlando. I decided I would never go back home to live in poverty or dysfunction. When I began working full-time at 16, I met my next boyfriend, and started a pattern of dating older men in an attempt to regain a father figure. I was constantly moving, spending money, changing jobs, and trying to position myself to be a success in life. I started college in August 2000 and had 2 career plans, one in medical and one in real estate, that never panned out because I could never focus on anything. I could never finish anything. I couldn’t ever relax or just be happy with what I had. I always obsessed over how much money I had and soon I had a severe addiction to shopping and credit cards. I filed bankruptcy at 19. In order to get a new career, and more money, I joined the Air Force in April 1 2003. I was given a separation from the Air Force after only 31 days because I was not willing to follow the rules and regiment of the military, so I signed my discharge papers and flew back home to Florida to resume my career in the adult entertainment industry, which I had been doing since I was 18 on and off. I worked as a dancer for 10 years because I was addicted to the fast money and the lack of structure. It allowed me to sink into heavy drug use. I couldn’t get out of bed unless I had motivation from a substance. I lost all my job opportunities since I had quit so many jobs, I just gave up on any real career options. I was so upset internally that I didn’t graduate from a real college and become what I thought would make me happy: a working professional.
I was diagnosed in 2004 with Borderline Personality disorder and didn’t understand that I had a disease so I just self-medicated in order to deal with my real issues. I used opiates and amphetamines to mask the symptoms of BPD and told everyone that I was bipolar so that I could continue to manipulate the remaining relationships I had with my friends and family. Obviously, I was seeking validation and love but since I never received therapy, I wasn’t able to articulate my mental anguish. Instead I was a serial monogamist and used substances to cope with life. My coping mechanisms were relationships with men who were toxic and unhealthy for me. I loved the chaos and was addicted to the dysfunction in toxic relationships. I was in love with falling in love and not the person I was actually with. I had to control everything or I couldn’t relax. I wasn’t happy unless I was in charge of every detail.
On April 20, 2004, I had Lasik surgery, which changed my life for the better and motivated me to shift my goals. I decided I wanted to get back into the medical field. Shortly after my surgery, in Summer 2005, I met the man who would change my life permanently. We got engaged in 2006 and I was still unhappy about my life and blamed him for my depression and lack of success. We got into a physical altercation, I attacked him and I was arrested in October 2006 for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He pressed charges and I sank into a deep depression and then manic state for over 6 months. In March 2007, I met my next significant other in Daytona Beach and moved to Brevard County with him and his family. He introduced me to selling and transporting drugs and I started doing drugs all day every day until late 2010. From 2008-2010; I was using some form of drug every single day. My family and friends were trying to get me help but I was in such a state of chaos, I couldn’t allow them to help me. Eventually, they forced me to get help with ultimatums and bribes. Within 4 years, I had been to countless detox facilities, rehabs, and was hospitalized for suicide attempts, overdoses, and several car accidents. I was arrested twice in May 2011 for multiple assaults and DWIs. My finance’s parents bonded me out and I was free to continue to use drugs and traveled to Orlando to meet my friends for drugs. I was put on Felony Probation for 1 year. I decided I couldn’t live with my fiancee’, we had a bad separation and then I had a mental break with reality. I was so angry that I was losing my relationship and felt like my whole life was over. In August 2011, I went on a crime spree with my two brothers and traveled from Central Florida to Utah to avoid the police. I was convicted of (7) violent felonies in 2012 and received 18 years in Colorado State, 30 years in Federal Prison (FBOP) and in 2022, I was sentenced to 40 years in Florida State Prison. Currently, I have served 157 months of a 300 month sentence. My primary goal is to be out in 2035 and work in Legal Studies until I can rejoin society.
Since I have been incarcerated, I have studied many subjects and read many many books. I would estimate I have read approximately 1600 books in roughly 14 years. I do love to read but recently I have been reading more and more non-fiction, trying to learn about the world.
Currently, I am working as a Coordinator for the Peer Mentor Program. I am also working as an Elderly Care Companion for the medically needy here at Aliceville. I work full-time with several inmates each day, helping them with their care plans and hopefully getting them the medical attention that they truly need. This is a brand new pilot program that one of my friends implemented.
Since 2013, I have taken most of the classes they offer here. I have completed World History, Native American Studies, Geography, Creative Writing, drawing, American Sign Language, card making, Healthier Me In the BOP, and studied Exercise Instruction, Yoga, and Mathematics. When I am free one day, my hope is to work in the medical industry. My ultimate career goals are to become a forensic scientist or a DNA researcher/private investigator and help families who have been affected by crime and help them get answers to their problems, working with DNA and Genealogy. I believe this would combine my love of people and science perfectly.
