Josh Swindell released from prison

Scott Weber Former pro Josh Swindell at the skatepark in his hometown of Diamond Bar a week after being released from prison.

After spending nearly 20 years behind bars for second-degree murder, former pro skateboarder Josh Swindell was released from prison last week in California.

Convicted in October 1995 and sentenced to 15 years-to-life for the 1993 beating death of 31-year-old Keith Ogden outside a bar in Azusa, Calif., Swindell served in half a dozen state prisons before his release on Sept. 5 from the California Men's Colony in San Luis Obispo.

"I had to grow up to get out of prison," Swindell, 40, told ESPN.com over the phone earlier Tuesday as he and a friend drove to the skatepark in his hometown of Diamond Bar. "I learned a lot about why I did that crime, and it had to do with my underlying issues -- a lot of ego, pride and stubbornness that wouldn't allow me to let stuff go."

Riding for Think, Venture and Vans at the time, Swindell said he became enraged that night in the bar after hearing that Ogden had sucker-punched his good friend and fellow XYZ skate shop team rider Danny Way.

"I was drunk and irrational," Swindell said. "And I attacked [Ogden] brutally, no bones about it. It's the biggest mistake a person can make. I took everything from him and his family."