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Meet Joseph Winters: From Inmate to CEO of a Birmingham Road Builders Company

By Sym Posey The Birmingham Times Joseph Winters describes himself as a “lifelong learner and a student at heart,” and the lessons he’s learned have included a 62-year prison sentence—as well as the recent purchase of the Birmingham, Alabama-based Kelly Road Builders (KRB). Along the way, Winters, an experienced land development manager with a history […]
The post Meet Joseph Winters: From Inmate to CEO of a Birmingham Road Builders Company first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

1 year ago

December 5, 2023

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Joseph Winters, CEO and president of Kelly Road Builders. (Desiree Greenwood, For The Birmingham Times).

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By Sym Posey

The Birmingham Times

Joseph Winters describes himself as a “lifelong learner and a student at heart,” and the lessons he’s learned have included a 62-year prison sentence—as well as the recent purchase of the Birmingham, Alabama-based Kelly Road Builders (KRB).

Along the way, Winters, an experienced land development manager with a history of working in the construction industry, has earned a Master of Real Estate Development (MRED) degree from Auburn University, and helped create two Alabama-based businesses: TWO Oaks Development and TWO Oaks Construction, a homebuilding development and construction company with projects in Birmingham and Huntsville, AL.

After his purchase of KRB last month, Winters said, “I am elated about the opportunity. … I have a long-term vision to increase our presence in the markets we’re in already, in addition to new markets.”

As the new CEO and president of KRB, Winters is taking over a company from someone who has helped him by providing professional direction—Robert Earl Kelly, founder of KRB, one of the largest road milling companies in the Southeast. Milling is a process through which the surface of a paved area (road, bridge, parking lot, etc.) is removed to help restore it to a uniform texture or prepare it for repaving.

“[Kelly] is a servant leader in the Birmingham area with a prominent Black-owned business and a great rep for performing quality work and leading a great competent crew,” said the 50-year-old Winters. “I thought he would be someone who would be a good mentor to me as an aspiring construction business owner.”

Growing up in the drug trade on the west side of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Winters never imagined that he would become a highly successful figure in the construction industry.

Getting Into Trouble

Winters remembers his parents divorcing when he was around age 11. As a result, he became angry, resentful, and defiant.

“My father was actually my best friend. When he and my mother divorced, I didn’t have any immediate male role models that I clung to. I was a little lost when he left, so I turned to my friends and peers in the streets for leadership. Throughout the course of that, I found myself dealing with some criminality,” said Winters.

Although he remained studious, he started fighting and getting into trouble with his peers.

Around the age of 14, Winters found himself incarcerated for stealing. “I would steal purses, belts, and clothes, … boosting with my friends or people from school. It made me a little money and gave me a taste of money and independence. It escalated, and before I knew it, I was selling drugs, … selling crack cocaine,” he said.

Things worsened from there. By the time he turned 18, Winters was “one of the largest dealers in the city,” he said.

Despite his life outside of school, Winters always excelled in his classes at Tuscaloosa’s Central High School. He went to class every day, was an A and B student, took advanced classes, and shined in math and science.

“Because of my lifestyle, I kind of had a spotlight on me,” he said. “My senior year in school, … I had a Mercedes[-Benz] and BMWs, all the toys drug dealers buy at a young age.”

But it would all come crashing down.

On Nov. 1, 1991, Winters’ friends planned for him a what was supposed to be a surprise party for his 18th birthday.

“They tricked me,” he recalled. “They took me bowling and to a high school football game. We left the game because people repeatedly asked me what time my party was. I didn’t even know I was having a birthday party. More than 100, 200 people were in attendance. It was a big to-do.”

Around midnight, a fight ensued. In an attempt to disperse the crowd, Winters fired a gun into the air. At the same time, a police officer pulled up and shot Winters. After shooting Winters, the police officer instructed Winters to put the gun down and get on the ground. Winters said he promptly followed the police officer commands. Pandemonium immediately broke out and Winters found himself in the hospital. “They patched me up, and I was free to go home,” Winters remembered.

Four months later, he was charged with attempted murder of an officer: “They said I was trying to kill a cop that night,” Winters said. But even before those charges, he was arrested for drug sale and unlawful distribution.

Sentenced

By March 1993, Winters was convicted in the attempted murder case and found guilty of three other drug offenses. He was sentenced to serve a combined 62 years behind bars: 30 years for attempted murder, 20 years for drug trafficking, 10 years for unlawful distribution, and another two years for unlawful distribution.

At just 19 years old, Winters was sent to Draper Correctional Center in Elmore, Alabama. Immediately after arriving, he earned his GED. Still, he found himself with his “back against the wall,” he said.

“When I first went in, I didn’t just go in and become a saint,” Winters recalled. “I was smuggling drugs into the prison and things of that nature, and I found myself facing additional charges [because] some fellow inmates implicated me in a drug transaction they got caught in.”

The warden gave Winters an option to straighten up, and in November 1995 he was sent to Ventress Correctional Facility in Clayton, Alabama. After serving approximately eight years behind bars, he found himself in front of a parole board.

“[They were] compassionate and gracious enough to give me parole after I’d served eight years and nine months,” he recalled.

In October 2001, he was released and reunited with his family. “I came home, … got my [commercial driver’s license (CDL)], and worked for an asphalt pavement company. It was my first job, and I worked with them for little less than a year. I went on to work for an oil field company for almost two years. … Then I found myself back in prison again with a fresh 130-month sentence for drug conspiracy,” Winters said.

Once again, Winters was behind bars. His parole was revoked, and he was sent to the ADOC Staton Correctional Facility in Elmore, AL. Eventually, he was transferred to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons and did stints in Yazoo City, MS and Fort Dix, NJ.

Making a Living

Going from state prison directly to federal prison, Winters served an additional seven years, but this time he approached his incarceration differently, he said.

“The first time I went to prison, I learned how to live because all I did was [participate in] drug- and behavior-modification programs and study religion,” he said. “The second time I went to prison, I learned how to make a living.”

While serving his second prison sentence, Winters pursued becoming a certified fitness trainer, a fiber optic installer, and a solar panel installer, in addition to earning two associate degrees: one in construction management and one in computer-aided drafting and design (CADD).

In June 2015, he was released from federal prison and worked as a state highway road and bridge inspector in Birmingham. By 2016, he made plans to return to college to pursue a bachelor’s degree in construction management. Before earning that bachelor’s degree from Everglades University online, he also enrolled in Auburn University’s MRED program. He eventually earned his bachelor’s degree in construction management in 2018 and his MRED degree in 2020. In January 2018, Winters moved to Tennessee, where he worked as a land developer. And in March 2020, he returned to Alabama.

“My daughter was entering her senior year in high school and, because I had been away for so long, I wanted to be closer to her, so I looked for something closer to her,” he said of his move back to Birmingham.

While working for a Birmingham-based homebuilder, Winters gained more construction experience from managing Birmingham-based construction firm Tortorigi Construction. Over the next one-and-half years, Winters bonded with its owner, Joseph Tortorigi, who gave Winters the opportunity to start his own business.

By March 2021, Winters would help found TWO Oaks Development, followed by TWO Oaks Construction in November of the same year. All of that would lead him to purchase KRB and continue the work of his mentor, Robert Earl Kelly.

“I’m looking forward to getting the employees more engaged, helping to strengthen their commitment to KRB, and continuing to share the vision that was set by [the previous owners],” he said.

Winters, a father of two young adults, is currently engaged and is in the process of planning his wedding. In his free time, he enjoys swimming, working out, and reading history and religious texts.

This article originally appeared in The Birmingham Times.

The post Meet Joseph Winters: From Inmate to CEO of a Birmingham Road Builders Company first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

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Recently Approved Budget Plan Favors Wealthy, Slashes Aid to Low-Income Americans

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The most significant benefits would flow to the highest earners while millions of low-income families face cuts

Published

5 days ago

March 21, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown

BlackPressUSA.com Senior National Correspondent

The new budget framework approved by Congress may result in sweeping changes to the federal safety net and tax code. The most significant benefits would flow to the highest earners while millions of low-income families face cuts. A new analysis from Yale University’s Budget Lab shows the proposals in the House’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Resolution would lead to a drop in after-tax-and-transfer income for the poorest households while significantly boosting revenue for the wealthiest Americans. Last month, Congress passed its Concurrent Budget Resolution for Fiscal Year 2025 (H. Con. Res. 14), setting revenue and spending targets for the next decade. The resolution outlines $1.5 trillion in gross spending cuts and $4.5 trillion in tax reductions between FY2025 and FY2034, along with $500 billion in unspecified deficit reduction.

Congressional Committees have now been instructed to identify policy changes that align with these goals. Three of the most impactful committees—Agriculture, Energy and Commerce, and Ways and Means—have been tasked with proposing major changes. The Agriculture Committee is charged with finding $230 billion in savings, likely through changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps. Energy and Commerce must deliver $880 billion in savings, likely through Medicaid reductions. Meanwhile, the Ways and Means Committee must craft tax changes totaling no more than $4.5 trillion in new deficits, most likely through extending provisions of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Although the resolution does not specify precise changes, reports suggest lawmakers are eyeing steep cuts to SNAP and Medicaid benefits while seeking to make permanent tax provisions that primarily benefit high-income individuals and corporations.

To examine the potential real-world impact, Yale’s Budget Lab modeled four policy changes that align with the resolution’s goals:

A 30 percent across-the-board cut in SNAP funding.
A 15 percent cut in Medicaid funding.
Permanent extension of the individual and estate tax cuts from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Permanent extension of business tax provisions including 100% bonus depreciation, expense of R&D, and relaxed limits on interest deductions.

Yale researchers determined that the combined effect of these policies would reduce the after-tax-and-transfer income of the bottom 20 percent of earners by 5 percent in the calendar year 2026. Households in the middle would see a modest 0.6 percent gain. However, the top five percent of earners would experience a 3 percent increase in their after-tax-and-transfer income.

Moreover, the analysis concluded that more than 100 percent of the net fiscal benefit from these changes would go to households in the top 20 percent of the income distribution. This happens because lower-income groups would lose more in government benefits than they would gain from any tax cuts. At the same time, high-income households would enjoy significant tax reductions with little or no loss in benefits.

“These results indicate a shift in resources away from low-income tax units toward those with higher incomes,” the Budget Lab report states. “In particular, making the TCJA provisions permanent for high earners while reducing spending on SNAP and Medicaid leads to a regressive overall effect.” The report notes that policymakers have floated a range of options to reduce SNAP and Medicaid outlays, such as lowering per-beneficiary benefits or tightening eligibility rules. While the Budget Lab did not assess each proposal individually, the modeling assumes legislation consistent with the resolution’s instructions. “The burden of deficit reduction would fall largely on those least able to bear it,” the report concluded.

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A Threat to Pre-emptive Pardons

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — it was a possibility that the preemptive pardons would not happen because of the complicated nature of that never-before-enacted process.

Published

5 days ago

March 21, 2025

Oakland Post

By April Ryan

President Trump is working to undo the traditional presidential pardon powers by questioning the Biden administration’s pre-emptive pardons issued just days before January 20, 2025. President Trump is seeking retribution against the January 6th House Select Committee. The Trump Justice Department has been tasked to find loopholes to overturn the pardons that could lead to legal battles for the Republican and Democratic nine-member committee. Legal scholars and those closely familiar with the pardon process worked with the Biden administration to ensure the preemptive pardons would stand against any retaliatory knocks from the incoming Trump administration. A source close to the Biden administration’s pardons said, in January 2025, “I think pardons are all valid. The power is unreviewable by the courts.”

However, today that same source had a different statement on the nuances of the new Trump pardon attack. That attack places questions about Biden’s use of an autopen for the pardons. The Trump argument is that Biden did not know who was pardoned as he did not sign the documents. Instead, the pardons were allegedly signed by an autopen. The same source close to the pardon issue said this week, “unless he [Trump] can prove Biden didn’t know what was being done in his name. All of this is in uncharted territory. “ Meanwhile, an autopen is used to make automatic or remote signatures. It has been used for decades by public figures and celebrities.

Months before the Biden pardon announcement, those in the Biden White House Counsel’s Office, staff, and the Justice Department were conferring tirelessly around the clock on who to pardon and how. The concern for the preemptive pardons was how to make them irrevocable in an unprecedented process. At one point in the lead-up to the preemptive pardon releases, it was a possibility that the preemptive pardons would not happen because of the complicated nature of that never-before-enacted process. President Trump began the threat of an investigation for the January 6th Select Committee during the Hill proceedings. Trump has threatened members with investigation or jail.

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Reaction to The Education EO

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Meanwhile, the new Education EO jeopardizes funding for students seeking a higher education. Duncan states, PellGrants are in jeopardy after servicing “6.5 million people” giving them a chance to go to college.

Published

5 days ago

March 21, 2025

Oakland Post

By April Ryan

There are plenty of negative reactions to President Donald Trump’s latest Executive Order abolishing the Department of Education. As Democrats call yesterday’s action performative, it would take an act of Congress for the Education Department to close permanently. “This blatantly unconstitutional executive order is just another piece of evidence that Trump has absolutely no respect for the Constitution,” said Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) who is the ranking member on the House Financial Services Committee. “By dismantling ED, President Trump is implementing his own philosophy on education, which can be summed up in his own words, ‘I love the poorly educated.’ I am adamantly opposed to this reckless action, said Rep. Bobby Scott who is the most senior Democrat on the House Education and Workforce Committee.

Morgan State University President Dr. David Wilson chimed in saying “I’m deeply concerned about efforts to shift federal oversight in education back to the states, particularly regarding equity, justice, and fairness. History has shown us what happens when states are left unchecked—Black and poor children are too often denied access to the high-quality education they deserve. In 1979 then President Jimmy Carter signed a law creating the Department of Education. Arne Duncan, former Obama Education Secretary, reminds us that both Democratic and Republican presidents have kept education a non-political issue until now. However, Duncan stressed Republican presidents have contributed greatly to moving education forward in this country.

During a CNN interview this week Duncan said during the Civil War President Abraham “Lincoln created the land grant system” for colleges like Tennessee State University. “President Ford brought in IDEA.” And “Nixon signed Pell Grants into law.” In 2001, the No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law by President George W. Bush which increased federal oversight of schools through standardized testing. Meanwhile, the new Education EO jeopardizes funding for students seeking higher education. Duncan states, PellGrants are in jeopardy after servicing “6.5 million people” giving them a chance to go to college. Wilson details, “that 40 percent of all college students rely on Pell Grants and student loans.”

Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC) says this Trump action “impacts students pursuing higher education and threatens 26 million students across the country, taking billions away from their educational futures. Meanwhile, During the president’s speech in the East Room of the White House Thursday, Trump criticized Baltimore City, and its math test scores with critical words. Governor West Moore, who is opposed to the EO action, said about dismantling the Department of Education, “Leadership means lifting people up, not punching them down.”