Kevin Strickland, Ricky Kidd and Lamonte McIntyre all spent decades in Missouri prisons for crimes they didn’t commit.
Today, they’re free and exonerated — the result of years of work by the Midwest Innocence Project.
Founded in 2001, the group provides legal representation to clients seeking to overturn wrongful convictions. The group also offers social services as clients leave prison or cases make their way through the legal system, and conducts research and policy work to prevent wrongful convictions in the future.
Working on just one case can be grueling and time consuming, according to the group’s executive director Tahir Atwater. Investigators spend years looking into people’s convictions, often digging through decades of court records.
“We've got this growing momentum towards the truth and making sure that the criminal legal system can actually become a criminal justice system,” said Atwater. “It's just not there yet.”
The group currently has 14 active cases, and more than 900 people claiming innocence in prison sit on a waiting list. More than 500 of those in line are incarcerated in Kansas or Missouri.
- Tahir Atwater, executive director, Midwest Innocence Project
- Courtney Ellis, social worker, Midwest Innocence Project
The Midwest Innocence Project will host its annual gala “Faces of Innocence” on Thursday, April 30 at the Midland Theatre. Tickets are still available.
