#243 Guest Host Patrick Pursley with Jacques Rivera

amazing guy. And now he brings us an interview with another innocent man who he knew while inside Illinois Stateville Penitentiary, Jacques Rivera. On August seven, a sixteen year old name Felix valent Team was shot in his car on the West Side of Chicago. At the hospital, responding officers spoke with them identify the shooter and getaway drivers members of

the Imperial Gangsters. However, a corrupt detective name Renando Gavera instead targeted Jacques Rivera, a member of a different gang, the Latin Kings Joes, ran the local recreation center that Govera often targeted for information. Despite the victim's dying declaration to responding officers, Govera claimed to have gotten a different identification during the eighteen days before the victim's death. Guvera then misled in eleven year old eye witness to collaborate

that bogus identification, charging Jocks with the murder. Jockes was tried under Judge Michael Close, who had recently been the focus of Operation Gray Lord, one of the biggest judicial corruption investigations in the United States history. The judge would allow the testimony of the victim's original identification, and with the false testimonies of Carvera and the misled child witness, Judge Close convicted and sends Jacques Rivera to eighty years.

When the Center on Wrang for Convictions took on Jack's case, they found the eyewitness, now an adult, who greeted them with relief, saying that he had been waiting to tell the truth for the last twenty three years since an investigation intok Cavera's corruption has resulted in the exoneration of over twenty innocent men and women, costing Chicago over fifty million dollars in counting. This is raw for of conviction. Welcome to wrong for conviction. This is Patrick Persley, also

known as Free Patrick Pursley. I was previously a guest on rang for Conviction, but today I'm honored the feeling for Jason Flam and we have a very special guest with us, a friend of mine, someone I knew a long time while in Stay Fields over my own wrong for conviction, Mr jackes Rivera. How are you, sir, Oh Patrick, I'm good man, I am really good. So one, thank you for having to trust to me to tell your

story on behalf of Chase of Flom. I know it's hard telling our stories, putting our pain out there on the line. Could you explain to the audience a little bit about yourself and just our connection, our connection unfortunately being in prison together. You know, you was a great dude. Unfortunately for us, we were roughly convicted, so that doesn't change our character who we were before we went in there. We didn't let it change who we were. No, we didn't,

and I appreciate that. Jax, your cases, well, you know, you kind of hit the double reverse jackpot here. You have one of the most corrupt detectives in Chicago history, which is saying a lot, and his name is Detective Ronaldo Cavert. Real infamous guy. It's responsible for so many wrong for convictions over twenty account and it's called the

City of Chicago fifty million dollars. And I can just tell you, as a jail house lawyer from Stateville, you know my twenty three years doing cases down there, his name came up again and again and there was definitely a pattern present throughout. And then on top of that, you've got a judge who was a person interested investigation

judicial corruption in the eighties called Operation Gray Lord. The investigation was meant to root out pay for play scattle on which judges were accepting bribes where basically they were fixing everything from parking tickets to murders. Uh. The judge in your case, Michael Close, was alleged had taken twenty five tho dollars to fix a murder case find one

defendant not guilty and the other definitive guilty. I believe while Judge Michael Close was never criminally prosecuted, he was pursued in civil suits and the Cook County States Attorney's Office they represented him, and basically their position was that he was immune from civil litigation during the commission of his judicial duties. So therefore he was immune from civil liability according to the law. So I think that says a lot of about this case and where we're headed.

And we haven't even started yet. But Jocks, let's talk about your life. What was your life like growing up in the city of Chicago during this time. Yeah, growing up on the northwest side of Chicago, the Humble Park area, varying late seventies, all of the eighties, you know, really gang infested, high crime, and you had like four main gangs. There were the Imperial Gangsters, the same Spanish Cobras, the

main Atlant Disciples, and the Lant Kings. My dad had passed away when I was fifteen, and I had five other siblings that my mom had to take care of, and you know, I was just roaming the streets. I was really distraught about my dad passing, and I did you know, he was kind of my rock, my guide, and um, you know, didn't really have much of a

choice but to join the gang. At that point. They offered protection, and without the protection, you'll be a target in the area, and we couldn't move out that area. So it wasn't like I wanted to do that or go down that path. I just had an all the choice. I was a member of the land Kings. So in Humble Park they had a festival yearly. It was called the Fiestas, the celebration of the Latino culture, and there would be times where the gang violence was real bad

in this festival time. So what the city decided to do, along with the Puerto Rican Institute, was to pay game members to govern their own you know, to stop the violence. So the gentleman from the Spanish coalition suggested that we use this money to open up a community center, which was a great thing and just for people not familiar with Chicago, this was quite commonplace where the city paid the gangs to keep their guys in line. This was

even done in prisons called in maintenant control program. So this community center gets going over the years, gets a couple of name changes, and I believe it's been named the Humble Park Institute, that's correct. Yeah, that's when I really got involved in it, and it was doing so well that the city they wanted to give us more money to open up a recreational center. They did, and we opened it up and that was running. It was

called Mind and Body. We have weights in their foosball, table air hockey games for the kids for after school programs, and people came in there a lot adults and kids, so it was considered like a safe place for a family. Even though it's like in this so called gang infrastructure. There was some good elements that came out of it. Oh yeah, definitely was. And that's why I think the troubles began. The detective Ronaldo Gavera, he used to come

in there from time to time looking for people. I was like, you know, we have nothing to hide here. It seemed like at first that he was just interested in how this program came about, who was involved in it. You know, who's in charges running? And I said, I am, and we're a part of the Humble Park Institute. And he used that as a means to come in there to look for people that he was looking for from the streets of game members, whether it was to arrest them or just to talk to them or whatever it

may be. So now this brings us to the end of Summer nine and the murder you got caught up in. It was a gang related murder, and I remember you tell me it took someone actually come into Stateville laying it all out for you to actually know what was going on behind the scenes, what this actual beef was about. You mentioned like multiple gangs operating this area. I believe it was Latin King's Many at Latin Disciples, the Imperial

Gangsters in Saint Spanish Cobras. What was going on at that time bold with the heavy hitters, if I can say that, And then you had these little block gags and the two of them were in St. Campbell Boys and mainly at Campbell Boys, And from what I understand was they were approached by the Spanish Cobras and the Imperial gangsters and they were telling them, you can either

join us or we're gonna shut you down. Stimulation. Yeah, so I believe the Insane Campbel Boys went went the insane Spanish Cobras I s C. And Many had Campbell Boys. They said, we were gonna become Mania At Latin Disciples sold the Mania at Camel Boys. Now we're at war with the Imperial gangsters about their decision about not riding with them but going with the Many at Latin Disciples. And from what I understand, the victim in this case

we're talking about today, sixteen year old Felix Valentine. He and his brother were many at Campbell boys who were assimilated or basically had flipped into the Many At Latin disciples, who, like you said, they were now at war with the Imperial Gangsters over that fact. And that takes us to the day of the shooting August twenty seven, where Felix Latine got shot was Imperial Gangsters neighborhood. He was over

there with his brother. They were going to a wedding, and his brother went up the stairs and he waited in the car, you know, like saying, hurry up, get up, to get out, because you know where you're supposed to be in this area. So according to the police report in night witness report, a car drove up, pulled right behind Felix while he sat in the mouth of the alley. Thea astenger got out the car walked up to Felix,

and then this person opened fired on him. His brother heard the shots, came downstairs, ran to the car, saw his brother limped over, and he opened the car door, pushed his brother Felix over to the passenger side, and took off to the hospital. There was a Chicago police officer that came on the scene he went to the hospital talked to the victim, so this would be Officer Craig let Ridge, he was responding officer. He also talked

to people at the crime scene. So the next day Felix Valient team stabilizes Officer lect Ridge went to the hospital and Felix told let Ridge and his partner that was the Imperial Gangsters who had shot him, right, yes, sir, And he left the hospital, went back to the police station and came back with an Imperial Gangster mug bug and low and behold, Felix Valentine identifies Jose Rodriguez and

Philip Nevis. And he didn't just identify them, he stipulated the participation that each of and he said that Jose Rodriguez shot him and Philip Nevis was driving the car. So this sho has been like an open and shut case. But that's that's not how this goes down. So even though Felix founcing the victim in this case tells Officer Electric to respond to officers whose attackers were detected, Rivera

led the investigation a whole another direction. Now there's also a witness, eleven year old boy from the Imperial Gangsters neighborhood named Orlando Lopez, whose sister also happened to be dating Felix's brother, and allegedly witnessed the shooting, and he allegedly said, because we're not even sure what he what he actually said is might have been fed to him

by Rivera. But he allegedly says he was standing at an indentation in the alley and saw the shooter from the back and described the shooter as about five tin dressed in black and gold. Now those are Latin King colors, not Imperial gangster colors. What else was alleged? He said that the car turned southbound on Spall Thing, which is in the direction of the Latin Kings, and was for certain that the shooter's hair in the back he had a ponytail, and it was dyed like a blond gold color.

And Gevera starts looking for Mark's depending on in Latin King's territory or maybe even had you in mind. So how how did you do it? How did you get caught up in this? Gevara came into the neighborhood. I was out there with the guys. He drove up on us and he said, I need to talk to you. What they used to do was use people as fillers in lineups, and I stood in a few lineups before. They just said, you know, don't worry abody. We know

you didn't do it. We just need fillers. So and Gevara drove up and he said, you know, we won't know if you're standing in the lineup, and I just knew it was funny because it's like seven to ten guys there, and you picked me out of everybody. Did you fit the description? No, not at all. I mean my hair was long in the back and never wore it in the ponytail, pigtail, none of that, or had it dyed that color or any color for that matter.

So your very approaches you and you feel kind of strange about this lineup being a filler, but you did it before, So what's going through your mind? Is this is happening? And what happened? I said something was wrong? And when I hesitated, he opened up his coat and moved his coat from around his revolver as to say, you could come peacefully or you could come fortually. I said, I know they do nothing wrong, So I went with him.

I was held in the police station for that day and the whole next day, and then on the third day they put me in a lineup with Imperial Gangsters. Why would you put me in the lineup with Imperial gangsters? He was the Late Kings. You did it right, That's crazy. And for Lando Lopez is from the Imperial Gangsters territory, he probably knows all those guys. It looks a little bit like they might have been trying to lead the witness to pick someone that they didn't know. So were

you identified at that time? No, I was not identified. They let me go. So that was your first line up with this case, and they let you go. A little time passes, so you probably think the whole thing is behind you is blown over. But then at this time, if we could kind of see like a split screen behind the scenes, you live in your life and these two other things are going on. First, Felix Mounteam's health is rapidly going down. He now slips into a coma

and eventually dies eighteen days after the shooting on September fourteenth. Meanwhile, Carvera, he's working in this Orlando Lopez kid. It's believed that Carvera told Lopez that he had visited Felix in the hospital and Felix identified you. So then he starts pulling Orlando's heart string and say, this is your sister's boyfriend's little brother that could have easily been you. So Carvera relates to Orlando. You know, the victim told him it

was Jacques. Rivera basically puts it on this kid, like what would you want someone to do for you in this particular situation. So now Carvera, he rolls up on you again exactly. So, I was at the Humble Park Institute and here the screeching of a car and it's Cavera and it's partner Harveston, and he said, hey, hey, came here, and I went up to them. I put my hands up right away. He cut me up and he says, what car are you driving? I said, a white Apolo? So why Gavera went to such my car?

I'm asking his partner said that what's going on? Man? Jall picked me up about two weeks ago. You asked me to stand in the line, and by standing in the line and I'm let going. He says, I don't know. This is the Varia's case. So de Vera came back. He sat me in the squad car and started proceeding to Area five police station, and I just kept handling,

and I was like, man, what's going on. They didn't buckle me in the back seat, so he stopped the car real quick, and as I flew forward, he grabbed me by my shirt and he says, you're being trying to murder, motherfucker. And he pushed me back and he said, now shut the funk up. This episode is underwritten by A i G, a leading global insurance company. A i G is committed to corporate social responsibility and is making a positive difference in the lives of its employees and

in the communities where we work and live. In light of the compelling need for pro bono legal assistance, and in recognition of A i g s commitment to criminal and social justice reform, the A i G pro Bono Program provides free legal services and other support to underrepresented communities and individuals. And we get to the police station. They put me in the lineup with Latin Kings and

this was the second line up. So I said, this time, I'm gonna stand dead center to make sure what were this witnesses, so you can see me to know that this is not me. Another detective came in and he made the noise like a gang show thing b b b bing bing. He said, we got a winner. They identified you as a shooter. They removed the other gentleman that was in the lineup, and they said, did you want to talk about this? I said, there's nothing to talk about, man, I said, I don't even know what's

going on. What do you want me to say? And then Vera came up to me. He goes, you know, you can make this easier on yourself. Tell us who the shooter was, and we're gonna put you down for the driver and we're gonna help you out. I first thought to myself, not only do you want me to implicate myself it's something that I didn't do, but you want me to implicate somebody else? There was someone else under the bus too. Yeah, And I told him you got to be crazy, man, I'm not gonna confess to

somebody didn't do or inplcate nobody else. He's like, WHOA, that's okay. You don't have to tell us something anyways, because you're going down for this. And I was like, well, let the procedures begin. So during Kiki jail. I know the experience as far as getting locked up, everything that's the fan, So can you describe that? Honestly, it was just a horrific time. Man. I had no contact with my family. My wife was there when he picked me up the second time, so she vested gout a lawyer

that was a family lawyer to a friend of hers. Now, leading up to the actual trial, did you take a jury or bench trial? I asked to feel my friends and they're like, well, I of they have twelve people to sign. My faith stood of one person. Man, I would take a journey. I would take a jury. I would take a jury. So going back to court, my lawyers like, have you come to a conclusion what you want to do? I was like, well, I think I

want to take a jury. And you're like, oh no, no, no, no, no, listen, listen. We're out here and Skulkie. These people out here read and see on the news all day long about gang related murders. He's like, I think we're standing a better chance of this judge. He's a good judge. And not knowing the judge's background all being involved in the Great Lord operation, I was like, well, you're my attorney man, I got confidence in you, so we took a bench trial.

Now you mentioned Operation great Lord, which is perhaps even more weighty as far as judicial import even more important

than this Roague detective Convera. And for the listeners who don't know, Operation great Lord was the largest corruption bus in United States history comes straight out Cook County, or should they say Crook County, Illinois, led to an unpresidented number of indictments against pub of an officials that got seventeen judges for the eight lawyers, eight cops, ten deputy sheriffs, eight court officials, and one good old legislator. Can't leave him out your judge was one of the many judges

investigated in this sting operation. The Honorable Judge Michael Close was alleged to have taken a bribe in a case not connected to this one, but nevertheless, it was still alleged that one of these two defendants, fighting a murder case and front Judge Close, Robert Bridges, paid twenty five dollars so that he would obtain a not guilty verdict in his bench trial. And this rappi John Carterlino, who

also had Judge Close, would be conversely found guilty. So, unbeknownst to you, Jock, you're having a bench trial, So your whole life is placed in this judge's hands, who's obviously morally compromised. So, Jack, what was presented against you? What did they actually use during the trial the prosecution port Alano Lopez understand he was primed up by Gavera to say that he saw a man from the back about five ten wearing a black and gold with a

gold dyed ponytail. He said that the man shot Felix and hopped into a getaway card that went down Spaulding. When asked if he got a look at the shooter's face, he said that he only caught a glimpse of the shooter, always looking at the back of the shooter. When asked if he could point to the shooter in court today, he said it was me and he pointed at me.

I was going crazy at that moment, you know, and in my mind saying, you're fucking lying man, Why are you doing this, Why are you saying that this is me? And you know, dan Way, I didn't do the shooting. The Gavera got to understand had said that when he arrested me that I had a ponytail which was dyed gold or blind in the back, which of course it

never was. And then Vera said he visited the victim, Felix Realiteen in the hospital, maybe a couple of days, if not a week before he died, and that he identified me as to shoot her out of a photo lineup. My defense put on Officer Electrics was the officer that

was on the scene who spoke to the victim. So upon Officer Electric she didn't understand, the state intervened and they had a sidebar and Judge Klose said, I'm only gonna allow competent evidence, and so he would not allow Officer Electrics to testify that Phelix Valuctin, the victim has said that Jose Roger was the one who shot him and Philip Meevz was the one that was driving the car. He was only allowed to say that he was on the scene and he visited the victim, and he attempted

to arrest two individuals in this case. And basically that was it. So if I understand, as you're saying, the rich who's got a dying declaration from the victim in the hospital who shot him for some reason, this is not competent or credible evidence in his eyes exactly. I couldn't believe it. And then my alibi was the mother of my kids. Saw my atturn Me's telling me, well, they're gonna say she's biased because she's the mother of

your kids and that she would life you. The state trying to say that, well, if Mr Rivera was actually at home with his wife at the time of the shooting, the defense would have put her understanding. My lawyer was like, we object, your honor, we're not unnethal obligation to present a defense from the corner. Hell told him that you represent me, you know. And then my lawyer says, well, the state would have said she was biased anyways, So

you found guilty. Bring us to that moment right then, about the closing arguments, I actually thought that Judge Close was gonna take some time and go back into his chambers and consider all the evidence and come back and gave his decision. But right they understand after the closing arguments, he said, well, I came to my conclusion and I find the defended guilty. And I was like, wait a minute, man,

you know, he didn't even take ten fifteen minutes. He just came straight down and said I found the defended guilty, and I was like, oh my goodness. He went back for sentencing and he gave me sixty years for the murder, for the shoot, he gave me twenty years for routine hideous, and then he gave me five for the u U W the gun, which they never had. First of all, I was worried about my family, one of my kids,

my kids, What's gonna happen to them? But I knew at that point that I had to prepare for what I was going into. I wind up at the Stage Correctional Center June of right. I was actually there in the eighty nine. So can you describe that? What's this like? What's this environment to you? Well, the only thing that saved me was the gang that I wrote with. They were ready waiting for me to come in. They meet you downstairs while you're in the bullpen, and they go

tell the sergeant, hey, this is one of ours. Put them up there with us, because the gangs at that time they consider themselves owning the cells exactly. And the officers put the response building on the gang chiefs to keep the Indians in mind and find him with sell.

So if I'm walking out seven gallery, I looked down to one gallery and I see this guy hit this officer with a baseball back and I went, oh, my goodness, and they put me in The cell was an empty cell, and we went on a ninety day lockdown in the middle of June andree Weather. I had no salt, no shampoo, I had nothing. And then during the second month of being on the lockdown, they sent another key up there, who're just coming in, and they put him in a cell with me. So we got along pretty good, and

we came up a lockdown. You know, we never even made it to the child hall. Also came up there, key us out. We came out the cells and you hear the gun go out, boom boom. Back on lockdown, Home, back on lockdown. Six months of lockdown, A first entering the prison system, and it was hell, pure hell. Did you try to, like study law? What was your mental process as far as how you were going to get out of there? Well, I couldn't study nothing because we

was on a lockdown. We couldn't go nowhere. Nobody really had any law books. Amazingly enough, before I left the county jail, somebody told me, listen, man filed for your notice of a pill because you only got thirty days to do this. So I fouled it in the county jail. I was telling my wife. I was like, listen, I got all this time. Ain't no suching you went around for me, you know, just move on with your life. She said, well, it's wait to see what happens to

the appeal process. I got that dreaded letter, sorry Jaques to farm you that the appoll a cart they denied our petition today and bla blah blah blah blah. I think at that point I started to lose hope. And so now you're done with your direct appeal. Do you remember, like what year this was? Maybe? So, how did you first hear about Northwestern Center Wrong for Convictions. I know they get thousands of letters every year from inmates seeking representation.

They represented me, but they had told me no three times prior. Do you know what what major case stand out to them actually was Detective Guvera. After losing that director pill and knowing what was ahead of me, I got to start reaching out to people, and the law liberied in Stateville. They have a list of pro bonn attorneys and law firms that would help with cases and stuff like that. So I wrote Northwestern and Katherine Crawford was one of the attorneys there who contacted me because

we're not taking your case. We're just investigating Detective Guevera, and we just want to ask you some questions. If we should happen to come upon something, then we'll be interested in taking the kids. She stated that they were trying to find the eye witness, which Islando Lopez. She goes, you know, you have a good case, but you have

a bad case. You got a good case because you was convicted on a single identification, no physical evidence, but it's a bad case because there's no evidence that's notfing for us to go on other than this eyewitness. And we've been trying to locate them. So then in two thousand and ten, with the advance of the search engine tech, Northwestern locates the only way against you, Orlando Lopez. It's been twenty three years since his false identification you. So

what happens next? They went to his home and he answered the door and they give him their car to tell them who they was. He goes, I know who you're here for. You're here for Jacques Rivera, and according to dark statement, he just kept saying, you know, this is all about redemption. He says, first of all, I didn't even know if Jacques Rivery was still locked up. He goes, I don't even know what happened to the case. He needed to clear his conscience so this and he's

got three boys. He said he couldn't look at them in the face knowing that something like this can happen to them. They asked him about the Fetix volunteer shooting and he proceeded to say what transpired that day, and he just stated that he was there and he saw somebody and detect Ever, another Rivera picked him up two

days maybe three days after shooting. He was showing a line up to identify somebody and he made no identification, and then he proceeded to saying that A couple of days later, as he's walking to school, he sees the guy who actually shot and killed Felix Valentine and he says he knows he's the guy because he had the same pants and jacket on, and he said to himself, this is the guy who did it. It was a Jacques Rivera. But he told you old, you don't know

what to do. So Orlando knew what Phelix knew, but none of this mattered to Detective Gevera, So how does he handle this eleven year old kid or miss Sandal? However, you won't put it. So now here we go with the technico Rivera telling him that this is the guy we believe who killed your sister's boyfriend's brother, and we need you to get this guy. We need to get him off the streets so he doesn't kill nobody else. And Lando Lopez is like, you don't understand, it's not him.

He said, I've seen the real guy. This is not the guy. So Goevera proceeds with saying, well, this is what Felix Valentine said. So Lindo Lopez, he says, they weren't listening to him. He said, well, if they're not gonna listen to me, and this is his decimon he said, he proceeded to make the identification of me, knowing that it wasn't me. So now the only witness in the case, Orlando Lopez. He becanning a record you got also electrics.

He's standing by this original identification that Felix made prior to his passing. So all you really have to get around now is whether Felix had changed his story prior to pass and made a dying declaration to Guvera to somehow implicate you, that is when and if he ever even spoke to Calvera. So now my attorneys they find the doctor that was taking care of Phelix Valentine while

he was sat in intense of care. The doctor said it was impossible for the Felix Valatee to identify anybody because at that stage he had stipped into a coma. So they very fabricated that whole line of procedure. And when my lawyer's asked for that lineup, they said, what was these kN of photos? Because when you make an identification of somebody, you put that into evidence. Could have produced the photos because it never took place. So as this evidence is coming out, how is the cooclarity State's

Attorney's office, how are they responding to these allegations. Darren O'Brien, who was the station attorney, offers me a plea deal. My attorney came down to State Billed to see me and she said, I know how you felt about this, but I still have to bring it to you. They offered you a plea deal. It's Wednesday, you could be home by Friday. Now you'd be surprised because a lot of people would jump on this. I know people personally have jumped on this. Myself, I wouldn't even have no

talk of a plea bargain. Now. I've also seen the state's attorneys when they're about to lose one of these long protracted court battles with someone locked up, start using continuance after continuance. It's almost like a weapon of choice, not just to wear down the resolve and get you to take a plea deal, but even wave your right to file for a certificate innocence and not come after them with any type of civil I builty, you know, knowing like this is out there playbook, this is what

they do. They try to wear you down where you tempted it all. Take the plea deal. Absolutely not, because my heart was for the victims family, and that's the guy on the street. What price would I pay for my freedom? So mental something that I didn't do, and to lie to this victim's family and tell them, yeah, I killed your son, Absolutely not. I said I got twenty plus years left. If I have to go back to do this, I'd be more than happy to go back and do it with it not only a clear conscious,

but with a happy heart. So from the time they brought you to plea deal, how much longer before you're actually accord on the hearing? It's about six months. And then uh January two thousand and eleven, Judge Closed retired and passed away. You know, the state attorney said we're gonna keep it here in county, and they appointed me a judge which was near Walsh, who just came out

of the stage attorney's office. Lando Lopez came into testify, and this testimony was what matter to me is that I'm here today the state that dead man and he pointed right at me, Jacques Rivera was not the man who shooting killed Felix Vanit team back in nine and I was like, hallelujah. So Judge Narra Wash ruled that Lopez's recantation was credible, stating that the only reason the court sees for this recantation now is a desire to correct the mistake. And she ordered a new trial for you.

And then October four, eleven, Cookarrey prosecutors announced that they did not intend to proceed on new trial and dismiss all charges, and you were freed that day. Take me to that moment. Oh my gun, as I finally said. And it took this long to do all this, twenty three years man. So you were awarded a certificate innocence, and you were awarded two hundred eight thousand dollars state compensation.

And that same year you filed a lawsuit against Chicago Police Detective Grevert and others for airing evidence impression witnesses the false to identify you and June you were awarded for seventeen million. Yes, that is amazing. How do you look back on this? I mean, for me, it's water under the bridge, although it does still affect me in some ways. Right now, this is a long ordeal. Yeah, and I'm just glad to be home with my friends. Most a party of my kids, which devastated our relationship

being away from them. My daughter, she was six months old. She don't even know who I am. Well. My boys, on the other hand, is different, but we still have issues. We're working at them, trying to be a family. I'm just grateful for it, only because I don't really need nothing, Patrick. I try to help other people, and that's what I'm doing.

I'm and restore to justice working out. I accept calls for guys from the prisons, anything they might need, try to hook them up with attorneys or put them involved with for Convicious Centers. I just try to do my part. You know. I know that I left behind a lot of good brothers who are innocent, and a lot of them who said they're guilty but they have remorse. But I'm not going to leave them there just like that.

So if you could get the listeners to help out, to join in, what would you implore them to do. There's so many Raw for Convicious centers. Exoneration Project, the Innocence Project in New York, the Center Raw for Convictions, the Blum Legal Claim a Kid in Chicago definitely could use of support. Some of its finance, some of it's just volunteer words. So many innocence projects that could be supported need attorneys to volunteer to time pro bono investigators.

But help is always needed. We'll have links in the bio and now we'll go to the closing portion of our shows. I want to thank the listeners and I want to thank Jason Flam for having me. I want to keep the tradition going. I want to allow Jack Rivera had the last word. So I'm going turn my mic off, turn my headphones up, and let you just say, you think, don't ever give up hope, man and and and that's not only done with raw for convictions. That's

dealing with everyday life. Our that as a great God, and he loves us and he cares about us. A lot of people don't realize that. I didn't realize that. I'm then you know there is a God and he delivered me from an eighty years sentence on a wrongful conviction. I'm a part of our program called Innocent Demand Justice, just the families of loved ones and learned carcerated wrongfully. And we try to show support anyway that we count, either by March's protests, going to court hearings. You know

how hard it is for loved ones. Anything could happen in prison and they're scared for their loved ones. Yeah, don't ever give up hope, keep hope alive. Thank you for listening to Wrongful Conviction. I'd like to thank our production team, Connor Hall, Justin Golden, Jeff Clyburne and Kevin Wardis with research by Lila Robinson. The music in this production was supplied by three time OSCAR nominated composer Jay Ralph.

Be sure to follow us on Instagram at Wrongful Conviction, on Facebook at Wrongful Conviction podcast, and on Twitter at wrong Conviction, as well as at Lava for Good. On all three platforms, you can also follow me on both TikTok and Instagram at it's Jason Flom. Wrongful Conviction is the production of Lava for Good Podcasts and association with Signal Company Number one