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Up To Date

Kansas City exoneree now teaches prosecutors about innocence

By Steve Kraske,
Danie Alexander
Published October 3, 2022 at 5:15 PM CDT
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Andrea Tudhope
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KCUR 89.3
Ricky Kidd on the day he was released from prison, Aug. 15, 2019.

Since his exoneration and release from prison in 2019, Ricky Kidd has developed a workshop for lawyers who bring accused people to trial. The first district attorney's office he presented it to was Jackson County's — the same one that prosecuted him.

For Ricky Kidd, innocence is not an abstract idea. Wrongfully convicted of a double murder, Kidd endured 23 years in prison and 11 appeals before he was exonerated of those crimes.

Now Kidd works to bring prosecutors a "closeness to innocence" with The Cost of a Prosecutor's Decision, a training program he and his wife created.

During the workshop, Kidd stands in front of district attorneys and prosecutors as a real-life example of an innocent person who nonetheless was convicted and sent to prison.

"I just think it bodes well and it feels different," Kidd says, "when the prosecutor get to see the result of a mistake in their face."

Tags
Up To Date PodcastRicky Kiddwrongful convictioncriminal justiceJackson County Prosecutor's OfficeKansas City Missouri (KCMO)
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Steve Kraske
When I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
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Danie Alexander
As senior producer of Up To Date, I want our listeners to hear familiar and new voices that shine light on the issues and challenges facing the myriad communities KCUR serves, and to expose our audiences to the wonderful and the creative in the Kansas City area. Just as important to me is an obligation to mentor the next generation of producers to ensure that the important conversations continue. Reach me at alexanderdk@kcur.org.
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