The hot afternoon sun beat down without mercy on the dusty, narrow road just outside the city limits. Heavy black flies buzzed around the overgrown grass near the drainage ditch. The air smelled of hot tar, dry dust, and exhaust fumes from passing cars.

Along the side of the hot asphalt road stood a row of men dressed in matching bright orange prison uniforms. Heavy iron chains rattled around their ankles with every step they took, making a harsh clinking sound that reminded them every second that they were no longer free men.

Among the prisoners holding a heavy wooden broom and a rusty iron shovel was Liam Vance.

The...