An organization that freed St. Louisan Christopher Dunn after he was convicted of a murder he didn't commit, along with many other wrongly convicted individuals, could close its doors following last year's federal grant cutbacks.
For the past 25 years, the Midwest Innocence Project has worked at no cost to free incarcerated individuals who believe they were wrongfully convicted of crimes in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa.
"Right now we estimate roughly 4% — and that's a low estimate — of people incarcerated in the United States are wrongfully imprisoned," said Tahir Atwater, the project's executive director. "That accounts for about 4,000 people in the five-state region we serve that are currently in prison for a crime they didn't commit."
Historically, the organization has operated through grant funding and donations. But Atwater said federal grant cuts from 2025 and other financial issues have led to the financial strain. Last year, the organization cut its staff by 25% and reduced executive pay to continue operating.
Atwater said if things don't change by this October, the organization's board may have to decide whether to continue work with even fewer employees or close its doors. The organization currently employs nine lawyers.
"We've got clients who are counting on us," Atwater said, noting that if the organization had to cut back any further, it might not be able to serve its clients. "Part of the reason that some of our clients are in prison right now is because they had attorneys that weren't doing the best job they could, and we never want to be a part of that story."
The organization is currently investigating or litigating 14 cases.
The project famously won the freedom of Dunn, who served 33 years in prison for a St. Louis County murder he did not commit. The group also freed Kevin Strickland, a Jackson County man wrongfully convicted of murder, and Lamar Johnson, who served 27 years for a St. Louis murder he did not commit.
The group's lawyers work in habeas law, reviewing cases involving individuals who believe they were wrongly convicted.
Atwater said the group currently has a backlog of 900 incarcerated individuals who have requested the Midwest Innocence Project review their cases. He said it often is a final effort for freedom for people like Dunn, Strickland and Jackson.
"When we talk about an organization like MIP having to shrink itself to the point that it's not able to move forward with as many cases as it needs to, that means that the hundreds of people who are waiting to have their cases investigated likely don't have any other recourse to seek out that help," Atwater said.
The group is seeking donations from the public to continue its work. Atwater said a group of donors is matching donations until the group raises $50,000.
"Some of those people are facing decades, some of them are facing life, some of them are facing a death sentence," Atwater said. "When we talk about innocence, agencies like ours across this country that are facing these financial headwinds, we're not talking about just people possibly losing their jobs, we're talking about people losing their lifeline to freedom."
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