LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – Cooley Regulation College estimates there are practically a thousand wrongfully convicted people inside our neighborhood. That is why it began the Cooley Innocence Mission which has helped exonerate 9 individuals since 2002.
These 9 individuals served a mixed 192 years in jail for crimes that they didn’t commit.
“It’s hard. It beats you up emotionally. It really punishes you emotionally more than anything,” stated Kenneth Nixon.
That emotional punishment piled on high of the wrongful punishment Nixon was already given.
“I was convicted in 2005 of two counts of felony murder, four counts of attempted murder and one count of arson,” continued Nixon. “I would spend the next 15 years and nine months incarcerated for a crime I did not commit.”
Nixon says there are a lot of systemic flaws that result in wrongful convictions and his case is an ideal instance of suspect-first investigations.
“I was arrested before any investigation had taken place,” he stated. “My name came up, they immediately arrested me and then they sought to look for the evidence to prove I did it…I didn’t know what to do. My family didn’t know what to do. After the conviction, we were completely lost. Totally lost faith in the system.”
That is the place Cooley Regulation got here in and Nixon says it was the primary time his hope within the system was partially restored.
“Being released doesn’t mean that you’re truly free, you still have a lot to learn,” stated Nixon.
Nixon says a variety of exonerees have a tough time adjusting to life outdoors of jail—like discovering a job, a spot to reside, getting used to issues like new expertise, and attempting to make up for years of missed birthdays and holidays.
“We need good people in this space,” stated Nixon.
Thursday, Nixon instructed his story to Cooley Regulation college students hoping to encourage them to be these good individuals.
“Because it was people that never gave up on us that are the reason that we’re standing here today,” stated Nixon.
