Celebrating freedom, love, healing, and joy at the 2022 Innocence Network Conference

Enjoy images of freedom, love, joy, celebration, and healing!

Boston represented in Phoenix this April at the 2022 Innocence Network conference, the world's largest gathering of exonerees, freed people, their families and advocates, and others who work to create change. At the conference, the people freed after wrongful convictions together spent a collective 6,030 years in prison for crimes they did not commit. 

“It’s always a beautiful thing when the exoneree community comes together. In some ways, it’s because you know that the person standing next to you understands you more than your own family,” said exoneree Sean Ellis, Project Coordinator for the Exoneree Network. “Even if you might not know the person, they understand what you’ve gone through, so there is that relatability. I imagine it’s something like being a soldier at war who returns home. You come back to a world where nobody understands you, but you know that the person you were in the trenches with, they get it, and that’s comforting.”

Exoneree James Watson (center) rides in an airplane for the first time.

“At the conference, you have this cohort of people who, almost to a person, had spent 30 or more years in prison. It seemed like each one of them was experiencing multiple firsts,” said NEIP board member, Lisa Kavanaugh, Director of the CPCS Innocence Program.  “They were different for each person, but there was something very powerful about watching those moments and how they appreciated them for each other.”

For some, it was their first time on an airplane in decades, if not the first flight in their lifetime. For others, after years wrongfully convicted and imprisoned, taking a plunge in the resort swimming pool was likened to “being baptized.”  Basking in the Arizona sunlight, this unique community came together in solidarity, sharing hugs, tears, celebrations, and healing.

“I’ve had the privilege of attending the Innocence Network Conferences with NEIP for the last 10 years,” said NEIP board member, Stephanie Hartung. “I never cease to be inspired by this unique and special community of exonerees and all the people who work for their freedom — family, supporters, attorneys, staff, investigators, and journalists. I’m so proud to be a part of the NEIP team, and the innocence community.”

“For me, it was also awesome to see all of the attorneys, and the people who helped work for our freedom, celebrate with us. It felt great to see how they are still so invested in our lives,” said exoneree Ray Champagne (pictured right at the Innocence Network Conference), Research and Planning Coordinator for the Exoneree Network. “There is a message there that you are important not just because of your wrongful conviction, but as a human being,” adds Ray.

The Boston Globe reporter, Andrew Ryan, even wrote a special front page feature story about the event, as well as the important work of the Exoneree Network and the leadership of exonerees Sean Ellis and Ray Champagne.

The Exoneree Network, a peer-led initiative funded by the New England Innocence Project, fosters a welcoming community for freed people while supporting the practical, emotional, and spiritual reentry needs of exonerees as they work to rebuild their lives in freedom.

While every release and reunion after years of wrongful incarceration is joyous, it is not always easy. There is no existing infrastructure to assist an innocent person who spent decades in prison for a crime they did not commit.  Therefore, exonerees returning from long-term incarceration back into the community must rebuild from almost nothing.

“We have many short and long term goals for the Exoneree Network and one of our larger and more immediate goals is the acquisition of an ‘Exoneree House,’ which is important for so many reasons,” said Sean Ellis.  “When an exoneree is released from prison, oftentimes you have no family to come home to and little-to-no resources and it is a struggle to find secure housing. With an Exoneree House, we can provide a safe and supportive place to stay while offering resources and wrap-around services, including job and tech training, as we start to transition and reclaim our lives back.  With public support, I think we can make this dream a reality, and provide much-needed hope and good will to people who had so much taken from them.”

To learn more about the Exoneree Network and how you can provide support, please click below.

DNA Testing Can Give Us Answers: Every DA’s Office Should Want Them

DNA Testing Can Give Us Answers:
Every DA’s Office Should Want Them

Today is National DNA Day, a day where we celebrate the power of DNA to help us find answers. DNA can help us get information about our ancestors or develop responses to medical conditions. It can also uncover terrible miscarriages of justice: it can demonstrate that someone was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for a crime they did not commit.

At the New England Innocence Project, wrongful convictions are far from theoretical. We receive hundreds of letters from innocent people in prison throughout New England each year asking for our help. In some of these cases, if physical evidence was collected and still exists, we can test it for DNA to show the person convicted was not the person who committed the crime.

To date, there have been 552 exonerations in which DNA testing played a role. So far, DNA evidence has been critical to proving the innocence of two of our own clients in Massachusetts, Dennis Maher and Gary Cifizzari. Both Dennis and Gary were given life sentences. The evidence against them appeared indisputably strong to the juries, judges, appellate courts, and prosecutors who presided over their cases. In Dennis’s case, five eyewitnesses identified him. In Gary’s case, 3 bitemark experts claimed his mouth made the marks on the victim’s body. In both cases, this evidence was wrong, and the DNA evidence definitively proved what they had been saying all along: They were innocent. Together, Dennis and Gary spent 54 years in prison for crimes they did not commit.  And they are not alone. DNA testing has been shown to be a reliable and accurate way to find answers. So, why would any DA’s office deny or delay our requests to conduct this kind of scientific testing?

For the people we represent throughout New England, some of whom have been incarcerated in harsh conditions for 10, 20, or even 30 years, awaiting a chance to prove their innocence, the additional obstacles created by prosecutors simply to get DNA testing can be excruciating and are entirely unwarranted. While there is no denying the accuracy of DNA testing, a request for testing, and even a result that affirms our client’s innocence, does not actually overturn a defendant’s conviction. A court still has to review the evidence and decide how to proceed. In some cases, prosecutors had originally sought scientific testing before conviction, but the technology was not advanced enough to get results. Incredibly, even in those cases, some prosecutors will still oppose post-conviction DNA testing. That’s true even though payment for testing does not come out of a prosecutor’s budget. The New England Innocence Project has paid for testing through donations we receive and through federal grants from the Department of Justice. In one case, our incarcerated client even paid for part of the testing in his own case. Finally, DNA testing is conducted by a private lab and the results are shared simultaneously with the prosecution and the defense.

In some Massachusetts counties – including Middlesex, Suffolk, and Hampden – we have been able to get agreements to testing very quickly, allowing us to get answers without extensive legal filings, hearings, and burdens placed on experts and witnesses. When we have to fight for DNA testing through litigation, it can add months and sometimes years to the process, while our clients languish in prison.

Many District Attorneys have received federal grants to test evidence in old sexual assault cases and have used DNA evidence to pursue leads in unsolved “cold” cases. This April 25, we call on District Attorney’s offices throughout the region to extend their reliance on DNA testing to cases where people assert their innocence, including our current and future clients, and where there is evidence that could provide long-awaited answers.

It is clear to all willing to look that wrongful convictions are not unicorns. In fact, they happen regularly. Where prosecutors are willing to examine old convictions, where they are willing to value justice over finality, we can truly find answers. That’s all we want. That’s what any of us should want. And, at minimum, that’s what we should expect from every District Attorney.

Nobody understands the struggle like an exoneree

"Nobody understands the impact of living in a cage, except for someone who has been there."

— Ray Champagne, Exoneree &
Exoneree Network Research & Planning Coordinator

Photos by Tony Irving Photography

The men pictured above were wrongfully convicted in Massachusetts. They are now part of a community that supports each other through the journey of returning home after long-term imprisonment. The Exoneree Network, led by exoneree and NEIP Trustee, Sean Ellis, and exoneree Ray Champagne, aims to provide essential support for freed people  — from housing assistance and psychological support to phones and technological training.

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Boston Globe features the Exoneree Network

The Boston Globe reporter Andrew Ryan captures the leadership of Sean Ellis and Ray Champagne and the important work of the Exoneree Network in this feature, “As more wrongful convictions unravel, exonerees help one another adjust to life beyond bars”.

Read the article

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On Sunday, March 13, the Exoneree Network hosted a community gathering (see photo slide show above) to celebrate freedom and to welcome home Stephen Pina, who was just released after 28 years wrongfully incarcerated.

“Prison is an ugly place. When you come out, that doesn’t shut off. Guys have a hard time. I had a hard time and I’m still struggling, but I personally have a lot of support and that support has grown through the Exoneree Network,” said Ray Champagne, exoneree and Research & Planning Coordinator for the Exoneree Network. “Nobody understands the impact of living in a cage, except for someone who has been there. We have to be a larger voice for each other.”

“For me, this work is healing. If I can use my experience to help somebody coming after me, so they don’t have to struggle to the degree I have struggled, I’d want to provide that,” said Sean Ellis, exoneree, NEIP Trustee and Exoneree Network Project Coordinator. “This event was an opportunity for members of the community to come together for the first time in a long time, in fellowship, and kind of have a check-in with one another.”

“For me, it was the first time I had an introduction to everybody outside of Zoom. It was just a time for exonerees, those freed-but-fighting, and their people to meet each other and mingle and be free together on the other side of the prison wall,” said Ray. “The Exoneree Network offers each newly released person who needs them a phone and a laptop. We also had a couple of individuals from Roca giving technical training to people who attended for anybody who wanted it.”

“There is a need for the people who have been recently released to be empowered and feel a sense of individuality, rather than property,” adds Sean. “To the extent that we can help someone just coming home to not have to continue to ask how to use a phone or technology, we’re trying to empower one another to try to make this transition out into the world to break out of the subservient kind of relationship.”

“If you don’t have anybody supporting you, you have nothing when you go from your prison cell to walking out of the courthouse. You have no immediate funds. You can’t even go buy a cup of coffee or water.  We have the New Day fund where we give $500 to each individual who is freed. It’s not a lot, but for some it’s a lifeline,” said Ray.

In addition to food and technology training, the Exoneree Network had a selection of toys for people to select from for the young people in their lives. The toys had been donated by the Massachusetts Court Reporters Association and were displayed at the community gathering, providing exonerees with a chance to bring surprises home to their children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. The event space was generously donated by Roca in Chelsea. 

“The event was a chance to welcome Stephen Pina into the exoneree community,” said Sean. “I spent time with Stephen on the inside and then to ultimately see him come home six years after my release and welcome him into a safe community that understands what he’s gone through; to be able to provide him with these critical tools that are going to help him, not just continue to fight his case, but to also help him acclimate to the outside world, I can’t stress enough how meaningful that was.”

“The Exoneree Network event was just a really awesome experience, it was momentous on a personal level,” said Ray.  “When you help somebody, you feel good. Nothing gives me greater joy than to help people do for themselves.”

“We can only do this work with the financial support from our community,” said Sean. “Whatever the Exoneree Network gets in donations, we give to help freed people rebuild their lives, and there is such incredible need. With the community's help, we look forward to doing more of this in the future.”

Learn more about the Exoneree Network

Brown & Rudnick Recognizes Radha Natarajan in Women's History Month Celebration

Brown & Rudnick LLP features Natarajan in “Women Trailblazer” Series

"I am proud of standing with people in their fight for freedom."

As part of their Women’s History Month celebrations, pro bono partner Brown & Rudnick LLP, features a Q&A with our Executive Director, Radha Natarajan, in their “Women Trailblazers”.

We are honored to have strong women leaders at the New England Innocence Project fighting everyday for freedom!

Learn more about the series

NEIP to be Honored at Discovering Justice 2022 Annual Gala, June 22

We're pleased to share that Discovering Justice will be honoring the New England Innocence Project with the 2022 Champion of Justice Award at their June Gala, "Connections & Community," on June 22, 2022.

Discovering Justice provides thousands of students across Massachusetts with access to enriching civics programs that emphasize critical thinking, compassion, and self-discernment, to encourage students to be bold leaders and agents for change in their communities.

The event will take place on the evening of Wednesday, June 22, 6 - 8:30 p.m. at Harborside, on the lawn of the John Joseph Moakley U.S. Courthouse. We look forward to participating in this event!

Executive Director, Radha Natarajan, Invited to Participate in Women of Color Leadership Circle

As part of an ongoing effort to uplift the leadership and voices of women of color in Greater Boston, The Boston Foundation and Boston Women’s Fund has announced the fifteen nonprofit leaders who comprise the 2022 Anna Faith Jones & Frieda Garcia Women of Color Leadership Circle, including NEIP Executive Director, Radha Natarajan.

The Circle is a six-month cohort program that seeks to honor the leadership, strength, and resilience of women of color who do incredible work within their communities and provide them with a cherished space to share challenges and opportunities.

“Undisclosed” Podcast Features NEIP Client

Season 6 of the Podcast “Undisclosed” Features NEIP Client, Jason Carroll
The State vs. Jason Carroll

Our client, Jason Carroll, was wrongfully convicted of murder in New Hampshire. Based on a false confession, one of the leading causes of wrongful convictions, Jason has now spent nearly 32 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. No one in NH has ever been exonerated after a murder conviction. We are fighting for Jason Carroll's freedom and exoneration. Attorney Rabia Chaudry covers the case in Season 6 of the Undisclosed Podcast, the State vs. Jason Carroll. Listen to Season 6 of Undisclosed and look out for updates on Jason's case.

Sean Ellis to Participate in Panel Discussion at UMass Lowell

“Do You See What I See? The Wrongful Incarceration of Sean K. Ellis”
Wednesday, February 16, 4 - 6 p.m.

WHEN: February 16, 4 - 6 p.m.

WHERE: University Crossing, Room UCC 260, 200 Pawtucket St., Lowell, MA 01854

ABOUT: University of Massachusetts Lowell is hosting a panel discussion featuring exoneree and NEIP Trustee, Sean K. Ellis, as well as NEIP Executive Director, Radha Natarajan; Miko M. Wilford and Erica Gagne, PH.D. of UMass Lowell

Event is free and open to the public

A new year in freedom

Exoneree Robert Foxworth reflects on his first year of freedom
and shares hope for the year ahead

“This past year was my first year in freedom after almost three decades in prison for a crime I did not commit. When the state of Massachusetts finally ordered my release, they merely opened the prison doors and said ‘you’re a free man’. For nearly 30 years, while I was wrongfully in their custody and under their control, they held the obligation of providing for my basic needs. In fact, if I had died in their custody, the state would have buried me. Yet upon my release, they offered no assistance in getting my life back on track. I was released in the middle of a pandemic, so jobs were not available. Income to buy food, clothing, and any necessities just wasn't there. How could the state concede that I’d been wrongfully convicted, wrongfully taken from my family for almost 30 years, yet offer me no help?

Thanks to my attorneys, my community, and to my family, I survived. Not everyone is so lucky. And while this first year was hard and painful at times, it was also quite beautiful. I've met people who mean the world to me. To them, I want to say thank you and I love you.

As I enter a new year in freedom, I hope to see the New England Innocence Project, and all of those who work tirelessly to help people like me, keep up their diligence and determination to get those who are wrongfully convicted released from prison. I truly celebrate when someone in our community finds freedom, because I know their situation all too well. For years I told anyone that would listen that I was wrongfully convicted. For so long, my words fell on deaf ears.

So while the New England Innocence Project keeps up their fight to right these wrongs, I will fight right beside them. I honor and respect all that they do on behalf of everyone they fight for.”

— Robert Foxworth,
Exonerated in January 2021

Hear more from Robert: Watch the video

Learn more about the peer-led Exoneree Network, which provides much needed support to exonerees in New England as they work to rebuild their lives in freedom.

Giving Tuesday Special Offer: Receive an Origami Gift

Thank you to all who donated to this campaign!

Giving Tuesday is November 30, a global day of giving, and
we're honoring the day in two very special ways:

• First, donate $100 or more by midnight on Giving Tuesday, November 30 and you will receive an origami crane or wolf (pictured above) handmade by exoneree, Scott Hornoff. Inspired by the Japanese tradition and honoring the history of folding paper for symbolism and hope, Scott saw courage and freedom in these special animals during his wrongful imprisonment. Below, read how origami became a part of Scott's fight to overturn his conviction.

• Second, Giving Tuesday is the official launch of our year end MATCH campaign! Thanks to a generous donor, all donations made from November 30 through December 31, 2021 will be DOUBLED (up to $25,000) dollar-for-dollar for twice (2X) the impact.

Learn more about Scott’s story, how he discovered origami, and the symbolism of the crane and wolf below.

Scott’s Story

Envisioning Freedom Through Origami

"In 1996, without any witnesses or evidence linking me to the crime, I was tried and convicted of first degree murder, and sentenced to life in prison for a crime I did not commit. I was scared, in shock and numb. I knew my fight for truth and freedom was going to take years, and I knew I was going to have a lot of time on my hands. Besides writing thousands of letters asking for help and spending countless hours in the law library researching my case and helping others, I  read hundreds of books, wrote a screenplay, poems, and taught myself to draw, but one of the first things I did was learn to fold origami.

I purchased a book of origami through a popular inmate bookselling company (Edward R Hamilton), and the two folds that I gravitated towards were the crane and the wolf. The wolf symbolizes courage, strength, perseverance and freedom. The crane reminded me somewhat of a phoenix, and I imagined myself ultimately spreading my wings and rising out of the fire and ashes of my confinement. I mailed many to family and friends, and even gave a few to other inmates.

Since my release and exoneration in 2002, I have revisited my book of origami from time to time and folded cranes and wolves, recalling the time I sat on my prison bunk doing that very thing for hours. Recently, a thought came to me of how I might share this art with others while also helping some of my heroes, the New England Innocence Project. This is my small way of trying to give back to a group of people who tirelessly fight for others' freedom and to prove their innocence when they have been all but forgotten."

- Scott Hornoff, Exoneree

Join us for Voices of the Innocent: Amplify!

Lift your voice against injustice!

Mark your calendars and tune in virtually on October 28 at 7 PM for Voices of the Innocent: Amplify!, a special virtual event featuring the stories and perspectives of those directly impacted by the tragedy of wrongful convictions. We’ll recognize local champions who fight tirelessly on behalf of innocent individuals and come together as a community to demonstrate our commitment to racial justice and meaningful change in the criminal legal system.

Funds raised through this event will directly support the work of the New England Innocence Project by providing free forensic testing, investigation, experts, and an experienced legal team to exonerate the innocent and bring them home to their loved ones.  With your help, we can also provide support to exonerees as they work to rebuild their lives in freedom, and use our expertise to educate and advocate for systemic change to prevent future tragedies.

We look forward to sharing with you all that we have accomplished, and can accomplish, together.

Immediately following the formal event, please join us for a community conversation with Massachusetts exonerees, Sean Ellis, Robert Foxworth, and James Watson. Moderated by Phillip Martin of GBH News Center for Investigative Reporting.

Wrongful Conviction Day 2021

Thank you for joining us!

Wrongful Conviction Day Rally & March
Saturday, October 2, 2021

View the video from our 2021 event!

Thank you to everyone who raised their voice with us at the Wrongful Conviction Day Rally & March on Saturday, October 2 on Boston Common as we confronted the myths and challenges we face in the criminal legal system, supported ending life without parole sentencing, and lifted up ongoing efforts to overturn convictions.

Guests and guest speakers included exoneree Robert Foxworth, State Representative Liz Miranda, a spoken word performance by Michelle Garcia Fresco, drum beats by Grooversity, and much more. Stops along the march included the State House and the John Adams Courthouse.

“The Fight Continues…” was the theme of this year’s International Wrongful Conviction Day. During our Rally & March, we invited family members, loved ones, lawyers, and anyone else engaged in the fight for freedom with people who are incarcerated, to lift up an image of that person and say their names. This demonstration recommits our community to continue this fight together.

It takes a movement to overturn even one wrongful conviction, not to mention changing the system. Join us in our fight, not just for Wrongful Conviction Day, but every day.

A Celebration of Freedom and Community

#FreedomParty

We had an exciting and emotional day on Saturday, July 17, for our community! We gathered together in person for “A Celebration of Freedom and Community,” the first time we’ve been able to get together in a very long time. 14 wrongfully convicted people - 445 years in prison for crimes they did not commit. It was a beautiful afternoon full of love, energy, and heartfelt reunions. There’s more we need to bring home. We’ll continue the fight.

Photo Credit: Nicki Pardo

An Investigator's Story: A Search for Freedom

An Investigator's Story:
A Search for Freedom

By John Nardizzi,
Investigator

Pictured from left to right: Don Juan Moses, John Nardizzi, James Watson. James Watson was exonerated in 2020 after being wrongfully imprisoned for four decades.

My name is John Nardizzi and I’m an investigator. Investigating wrongful convictions with the New England Innocence Project is the most meaningful work I do. Our task is clear: Free an innocent person from prison. Yet, the entire legal system is built to keep innocent people in and to maintain and enforce these wrongs. The sense of injustice can be simply overpowering.

I was surprised to learn that the majority of criminal cases have no DNA to test. Many more cases, instead, require investigators like me to take on the more challenging work of demonstrating innocence through other evidence — interviewing new witnesses, finding missing or “lost” evidence, and proving police misconduct or that a witness lied at trial.

With your support, I am able to follow every lead, sometimes engaging 20 or more witnesses for just one case. Most witnesses talk. Some don't. But it only takes one to say, “I’ve been waiting 25 years to talk with someone like you about this” to break a case wide open. Hearing that gives an indescribable thrill. That’s when I know that one day our client may walk free.

Last year, we were able to provide essential investigative work that played a critical role in freeing people, including James Watson, who was exonerated in 2020 after being wrongfully imprisoned for four decades. Supporters like you made this possible.

Sad to say, there are many more people like Mr. Watson in prison in need of help. That's why, even during a global pandemic, my work could not stop. Right now, I am working on over a dozen wrongful conviction cases with the New England Innocence Project. Together, these innocent people have already spent over 200 years in prison for crimes they did not commit. Your support allows us to do the difficult investigative work that can make all of the difference for innocent people and their families.

Make a gift today and every dollar you give will be
matched (2X) until June 30, 2021 (up to $50,000).

This is grassroots work taking place right in your backyard — helping the most vulnerable people in your community. Will you consider giving a matching gift today?

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Annual Impact Report
June 2020 - June 2021

Click below for an interactive PDF of our Annual Impact Report and learn more about
memorable moments and ways we have been making an impact over the last 12 months.

Annual Impact Report

Annual Impact Report:
June 2020 - June 2021

Click below for an interactive PDF of our Annual Impact Report and learn more about
memorable moments and ways we have been making an impact over the last 12 months.

New Hampshire Governor Signs Post-Conviction DNA Testing Bill

Wrongfully convicted people in N.H. now have
access to life-saving scientific evidence

By Cynthia Mousseau,
N.H. Staff Attorney

The New England Innocence Project works on the ground in six New England states. Each state has its own particular traditions and processes within its criminal legal system. What’s unique and surprising about New Hampshire is that there have been only two exonerations in the state’s history. We would love to believe that this is because N.H. has a flawless criminal legal system with perfect attorneys and judges. But studies show that a lack of official exonerations is not likely an accurate representation of the true number of wrongful convictions within a state. Once someone has been wrongfully convicted of a crime, it is a genuine uphill battle for freedom. They're often forced to pursue their cases on their own, without an attorney, and litigation can be daunting and confusing. Just the words “post-conviction litigation” would be enough to send many people in search of a dictionary. Adding science into the stew of legalese only serves to further muddy the waters. 

Science changed the landscape of criminal trials with the advent of DNA testing in the 90s. DNA testing has been critical in many post-conviction cases: The National Registry of Exonerations reports there have been 376 exonerations involving DNA since 1989. Unfortunately, none of those exonerations took place in the state of N.H. Although N.H. adopted a law in 2004 that allows folks to apply for testing of DNA after they have been convicted, the law was extremely limiting. For example, only incarcerated people could apply for post-conviction DNA testing. And to do so, they had to prove a number of different facts, and submit their application within a certain time frame ­– and they had to do it all without the assistance of an attorney. These high burdens made it extremely hard for folks that were wrongfully convicted to prove their innocence through DNA testing after their convictions. 

To fix these difficulties, the New England Innocence Project and the Innocence Project, Inc. recently drafted an amended version of the law, HB 270, making DNA testing more accessible to people who have been wrongfully convicted in the state. On Wednesday, N.H.'s governor signed the new and improved version into law. HB 270 significantly improves N.H.'s post-conviction DNA testing bill.

Some highlights from the amended law include:

1. the right to have an attorney to help people access and test DNA after they have been convicted of a crime;

2. making it easier to get the court to order DNA testing after a conviction; 

3. expanding the availability for post-conviction DNA testing to people who are no longer incarcerated; and

4. clarifying that there was no statutory time limit on the filing of such a request.
   

One of the lessons we have learned from our DNA exonerations in other states is that if the laws allow it, innocent people’s cases can and will fall through the cracks. The new law fills in some of those cracks. By ensuring attorney involvement earlier on in the post-conviction process, we provide innocent people with a means of accessing guides in a foreign landscape. By changing the standard of proof and providing for discovery, we ensure that those that are innocent are given a fair chance to access life-saving evidence. By eliminating a timing requirement, we show that there is no expiration date for justice. We are so pleased to have partnered with our friends in N.H., especially Representative Renny Cushing and Representative Casey Conley, to make these important changes for the wrongfully convicted citizens of N.H.

Policy Change through the Courts

Policy Change through the Courts

A Reflection on the Amicus Work
of the New England Innocence Project 2020-2021

By Radha Natarajan,
Executive Director

Impacting policy and systems is a vital part of the mission of the New England Innocence Project (NEIP) and has fueled our strong amicus practice. We weigh in on cases where the issues at stake impact the people we serve, such as racial justice, reliability of evidence, presumption of innocence, official misconduct, the administration of justice, and the list goes on. Many people think of policy work as the work that happens in the legislature, and it certainly includes that; however, amicus work is policy work too, using litigation tools to inform judicial policy that can create systemic change.

In Latin, amicus curiae means “friend of the Court.” As an organization committed to exposing failures of the criminal legal system, it may seem counterintuitive that we would so often play the role of “friend of the Court,” but I suppose it depends on how you characterize friendship. We are decidedly not the placating type of friend, affectionately praising or celebrating the Court’s wisdom or history. Instead, we aim to be the friend who is authentic and honest, adding a perspective that might otherwise be missed, and who will hold our “friend” (the Court) accountable to its highest vision of itself. Our friendship, defined in this way, has been consistent and persistent over the last year, and includes these highlights among many:

• Race and Policing: With the Massachusetts Association for Criminal Defense Lawyers, Lawyers for Civil Rights, and the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School (CHHRJ), we sought an overhaul of the Court’s approach to the significant racial disparities in traffic enforcement. The Court’s decision in this case, if faithfully applied, has the potential to breathe life into the Equal Protection Clause, ensuring that implicit and explicit racial biases resulting in individual and community harms to people of color are neither sanctioned nor ignored. Commonwealth v. Edward Long
  
  

•  Reliability of Technological and Identification Evidence: With CHHRJ, we addressed the injustice of this conviction that was based on unreliable, suggestive, and racially biased evidence. Here, critical evidence that the prosecutor used to convict Mr. Davis - speed data from a GPS device - had never been tested for its accuracy, even by the manufacturer. In addition, the prosecutor urged the jury to identify Mr. Davis from a blurry image in which you could not even make out the person’s face. The Court reversed Mr. Davis’s conviction and affirmed that it is a prosecutor’s and the court’s duty to ensure the reliability of evidence used to take away someone’s freedom. Commonwealth v. Matthew Davis
  
  

• Police Misconduct: With the Innocence Project and the Boston College Innocence Program, we are seeking a comprehensive and independent investigation of misconduct by the Springfield Police Department. Specifically, after the Department of Justice found widespread abuse and falsification of evidence within the Springfield Police Department, the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office has neither investigated the scope of that misconduct nor disclosed it to people whose cases may have been affected. To prevent and correct wrongful convictions, as well as confront racial disparities, we supported the Petition requesting the Court’s intervention. Graham et al., v. District Attorney of Hampden County

I am incredibly proud of NEIP’s amicus work, and I am indebted to the pro bono partners who have represented us in this work as well as the coalition partners who have been steadfast about their commitment to transformative, not only incremental, change. 

As an organization whose staff and supporters have witnessed significant injustice alongside our community, we are committed to speaking out and demanding better from an institution that is supposed to ensure justice for all. Our amicus work is just one of the ways that we amplify those demands, and with the impact we have achieved, we intend to keep it going.

Sean K. Ellis Exonerated of Remaining Wrongful Conviction

Superior Court Justice Allows Sean Ellis’s Motion for New Trial on Firearms Offense

 UPDATE 5/6/21: This week, Suffolk County DA Rachael Rollins’ office filed a nolle prosequi, officially dropping the charges and fully exonerating Sean Ellis.

BOSTON, Mass. [May 4, 2021] – Today, Superior Court Associate Justice Robert Ullmann allowed Sean Ellis’s Motion for New Trial on the gun conviction remaining on his record from his wrongful conviction for the 1993 murder of Boston Police Detective John Mulligan, which was overturned in 2015 after Mr. Ellis spent more than 21 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.

Attorneys Rosemary Scapicchio and Jillise McDonough filed a motion for new trial on the gun conviction on December 9, 2020. On March 17, 2021, District Attorney Rachael Rollins filed her agreement with that motion, stating (among other things) that "[c]orruption at the root tainted every branch of the investigation into Detective Mulligan's murder, including the gun possession charges." The District Attorney said that if the Court allows the motion for new trial, her office will file a nolle prosequi, ending the prosecution of the case.

Judge Ullmann gave his decision orally, stating “This whole case is a very sad chapter in the history of the criminal justice system. Thankfully, this chapter seems to be nearing its conclusion.” He indicated that “justice was not done” in this case because exculpatory evidence that might have changed the outcome of Mr. Ellis’s trial was not provided to him.

Attorneys Scapicchio and McDonough stated, “We are grateful to Judge Ullmann and to DA Rollins for acknowledging so clearly that with withholding of exculpatory evidence results in an unjust trial.  Here the actions of the Boston Police in actively concealing their corruption and withholding evidence resulted in Sean Ellis serving 22 years of a life sentence for a crime he did not commit.  It took 29 years to get here, but never once, did we waiver and justice prevailed.” 

Sean Ellis is the subject of the Netflix docuseries, Trial 4. Since his release from prison, Sean has made significant contributions to his community, working at Community Servings, a Boston nonprofit, serving on the Board of Trustees of the New England Innocence Project, and leading the charge to provide resources to others wrongfully convicted through the Exoneree Network, a collaboration between the CPCS Innocence Program, the Boston College Innocence Program, and the New England Innocence Project.

Wounded But Not Broken, by Sean Ellis

Wounded But Not Broken

By Sean Ellis, exoneree and NEIP Trustee

Photo credit: Boston Globe

My name is Sean Ellis and I was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for nearly 22 years for a crime I did not commit.  I've been through a horrendous ordeal and as a result, I have been deeply hurt.  I have been vilified in the public eye, I have suffered injuries, I have suffered pain, and I have suffered tremendous loss.  However, despite this grave injustice, I refuse to be broken.  I am unwilling to allow these trials and tribulations to define who I am or put me in a space of inertia or defeatism.  This concept of being wounded but not broken isn't isolated to those who have suffered at the hands of the criminal legal system; it encompasses those who have endured whatever hardships that life has thrown at them and have pushed back against it, refusing to let it crush them, and sought a path toward healing.

How does it feel to still be fighting for some semblance of justice after nearly 30 years?
As I await the Court’s ruling on my motion to overturn my wrongful convictions, I am reliving everything I’ve experienced while fighting this case for more than 28 years. During that time, I lost so much: My dad died, my firstborn nephew died, my next door neighbor died, two very close aunts (both of whom I grew up with) died, my best friend died, and my mother was diagnosed with cancer. They all lived in Massachusetts, but I wasn’t allowed to attend their funerals. The Department of Corrections didn’t allow it because of the Life Without Parole sentence that I was serving. This not only speaks to the inhumaneness of such a sentence, but it also speaks to the trauma and harm I’ve endured at the hands of the Boston police department and the criminal legal system.  When I think about the impact this wrongful conviction has had on my life, I can’t help but think about some of these things, along with the fact that while my mom continues to live, she has more years behind her than she has in front of her.  While my loved ones are happy to have me home, I can’t help but think about the detrimental psychological effects of incarceration, which have negatively impacted the quality of the relationships that I have with my siblings. I am able to keep fighting because, though I am wounded by all of these losses, I remain unbroken.

What would it mean to be fully exonerated of all your wrongful convictions?
I know all too well that the Commonwealth is not usually in the business of pursuing justice, nor are they in the business of exonerating people.  They are in the business of obtaining and sustaining convictions at all costs.  If this was not their standard operating procedure, I would have never spent a day in prison for a crime I did not commit.  I would have been released in 1998 when the information my attorneys and I were seeking (but the former DA’s office withheld) resulted in the arrest of the low-level players in the corruption scheme.  I would have been released when it was learned that in 1994, a year after the murder of Detective Mulligan, there was a simultaneous investigation underway into the conduct of the detectives on my case, Detectives Acerra, Robinson, and Brazil.  I would have been released once it became known that Detectives Mulligan, Acerra, Robinson, and Brazil, along with their supervisor, were present and participated in the kidnapping and robbery of local drug dealers just days before Detective Mulligan’s murder.  The former police commissioner knew the victim was involved in corruption and still placed this cadre of dirty cops amongst who he called “the best and the brightest.” Remember these names…Acerra, Robinson, and Brazil…they infected every aspect of the Commonwealth’s case against me, from the murder to the armed robbery, and right on down to my remaining firearm charges.  They cannot be parsed apart. 

So, when I think about a full exoneration, I first have to divorce myself from the reality of what I know and have experienced personally.  What I can and will say is that for someone to exonerate Sean K. Ellis, the person making that decision has to be of such extraordinary character that they’re willing to go against the status quo in order to do what is right and what is just!  I say extraordinary character because racism and biases exist within the criminal legal system.  Both racism and biases exist within the Office of the District Attorney.  Judge Ball exonerated me when she said that “justice was not done” and the Supreme Judicial Court exonerated me when they affirmed Judge Ball’s decision and referred to the revelations of the withheld evidence, specifically the involvement of Detective Mulligan in the corruption, as a “game-changer.”  I am grateful DA Rollins brought the fortitude and integrity of her life experiences with her to the Office when deciding to assent to my motion for new trial.  I hope that the Court will agree and allow the DA’s office to drop the charges, as they have committed to do, so I can move on with my life.

Why is public acknowledgment of mistakes or injustice so important for people who have been wrongfully convicted?
Public acknowledgment is so important to the exoneree (depending on who you ask) because, as it was in my case, I was vilified in the public eye.  I was vilified to a group of 16 people, 12 of whom decided my fate.  That group of 12 people were given a false narrative and, as a result, they wrongfully convicted me.  I was sentenced to spend the remainder of my natural life in prison based on this false narrative.  A public acknowledgment of mistakes and wrongdoing is equally as important, if not more important, for the proponent of the false narrative, because it’s an opportunity for them to take a step toward justice and say, “Wait, I am not ok with this and I’m not going along with the wrong that was done to this individual.”

Public acknowledgement of injustice in my case is also vitally important because there has been an admission of wrongdoing on the part of the Boston Police Department.  Therefore, there should be an investigation, not just into my wrongful conviction, but all convictions involving the Boston Police Department obtained during the years these corrupt officers were on the force.

As a community, it is our responsibility to fight to ensure that police departments, in particular, and DA’s Offices are operating with transparency and accountability.  Despite how formidable they are, you have the right and the capacity to fight injustices perpetuated by these departments, and we all stand with you in that fight.

Sean is a motivational speaker, and a staunch advocate of criminal justice and prison reform. He is a co-founder of the Exoneree Network and serves as a Trustee on the board of the New England Innocence Project. Sean is a recipient of the 2021 Boston Mountaintop Award for advocacy related to Black innocence within the criminal justice system. Sean’s recently released Netflix Docu-Series, Trial 4 has elevated his voice internationally as he continues to speak about his experiences with racism and injustice within the criminal justice system. Learn more about Sean’s story at www.TrialFour.com.

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Learn More

The Law Offices of Rosemary Scapicchio, the New England Innocence Project, and the CPCS Innocence Program hosted a virtual press conference March 17 in response to District Attorney Rachael Rollins filing in Court assenting to the motion for a new trial for the remaining gun convictions for Sean Ellis.  Watch the press conference video below or click here.

* Edit: Limited edition shirts no longer available*

SHOP OUR LIMITED EDITION “Wounded but not broken” NEIP apparel,
inspired by a Sean Ellis original design

Available until May 16 only!

All proceeds will go to support the work of the New England Innocence Project,
including the work led by exonerees.

Racially Charged: A Film Screening & Conversation

Reserve Your Spot:
April 20 at 6:00 p.m.

Join us on Tuesday, April 20, from 6:00 - 7:35 p.m. for a special screening of the short film, "Racially Charged: America's Misdemeanor Problem" and post-screening community conversation with local leaders from the New England Innocence Project, Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice, and the ACLU of Massachusetts.

This film exposes how our country’s history of racial injustice evolved into an enormous abuse of power using the criminal legal system. 13 million people a year – most of them poor and people of color – are abused by this system. Through first-person accounts of those charged under the Black Codes of the Reconstruction era paralleled with the outrageous stories of people trapped in the system today, the film brings to light the unfolding of a powerful engine of profits and racial inequality. With the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement, this film provides historical context and examines America’s history of racist oppression.

Conversation and Audience Q&A

Moderated by David Harris, Managing Director of the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice, the film screening will be followed by a community conversation about how this abuse impacts our community on a local level with Radha Natarajan, Executive Director of the New England Innocence Project, and Rahsaan Hall, Director of the Racial Justice Program at the ACLU of Massachusetts.