Death Penalty Focus to honor Ohio Exonerees at Awards Dinner
Three men spent decades in prison for a crime they didn't commit
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., May 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Three Death Row exonerees who spent a combined 100 years in prison are coming to Beverly Hills to receive the Rose Elizabeth Bird Commitment to Justice Award at the 24th Annual Death Penalty Focus Awards Dinner on Thursday, May 7.
Wiley Bridgeman, his brother Kwame Ajamu, and Ricky Jackson were teenagers when they were sentenced to death for a murder in Cleveland in 1975. Although there was no physical evidence linking them to the crime and they maintained their innocence, a 12-year-old witness implicated them. Years later, with the help of journalists, lawyers and volunteers, flaws in the case were exposed and the witness admitted he lied. Prosecutors dropped the charges and they were released in November.
Now in their 50s, the men are working to start over. Death Penalty Focus is thrilled to honor these three men and the pro bono attorneys who fought for their freedom.
"These men were unfairly convicted by our justice system and came close to being executed for a crime they didn't commit," said Death Penalty Focus President Mike Farrell. "We can't afford to take chances with people's lives."
Other honorees at the dinner include:
- CNN's Death Row Stories, represented by executive producers Alex Gibney, Bard Hebert and Laura Michalchyshyn;
- Dale Baich, Assistant Federal Public Defender; an attorney who has spent the past 27 years protecting the constitutional rights of death row inmates.
For more information, please visit. www.abolitionawards.com
The dinner program begins at 7:15 at The Beverly Hilton.
SOURCE Death Penalty Focus
Related Links
http://www.abolitionawards.com
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