In Columbus, Ohio, JD Vance’s memoir “Hillbilly Elegy” has gone through several twists: it once sat on the New York Times bestseller list, introduced the 31‑year‑old as a “Trump whisperer,” sparked debate among Appalachian scholars, and was later turned into a Ron Howard film. Its newest chapter, however, involves the book being used as an undercover courier for narcotics into an Ohio prison.
The novel was one of three items that a 30‑year‑old from Maumee, Austin Siebert, was found to have laced with drugs and then sent to Grafton Correctional Institution in the guise of Amazon packages. Judge Donald C. Nugent sentenced Siebert to more than ten years behind bars on Nov. 18 for his role in the scheme.
An audio clip captured Siebert and an inmate discussing the shipment. The inmate asked, “Is it Hillbilly?” and Siebert, momentarily confused, replied that he didn’t know and then, “Oh, yeah, yeah, that’s the book I’m reading— (expletive) romance novel.” Whether Siebert understood or cared that “Hillbilly Elegy” chronicles the damaging effects of drug addiction on Vance’s own family and on Appalachia at large remained unclear.
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