In 1980, Malcom Alexander was sentenced to life in prison without parole after a sexual assault conviction. However, throughout his time in prison, he continued to maintain his innocence.
After studying Alexander’s case, the Innocence Project found inconsistencies including eyewitness misidentification and inadequate defense. His lawyer was later disbarred after neglect complaints were filed against him, according to the Innocence Project.
In 2018, Alexander was exonerated and released after 38 years in prison, making him the longest-serving exonerated individual of the organization.
Founded in 1992 by Peter Neufeld and Barry Scheck at Cardozo School of Law, the Innocence Project aims to “free the staggering numbers of innocent people who remain incarcerated and to bring substantive reform to the system responsible for their unjust imprisonment,” according to their website.
“The Innocence Project is an extremely important organization
because it aims to correct injustice,” says Dr. Miltonette Craig, assistant professor in the Department of Criminal Justice Sciences at the Illinois State University. “Their efforts are especially essential for individuals who have been falsely convicted and were sentenced to death. It is imperative to assist with ‘fixing’ these wrongful convictions because the administration of the death penalty cannot be undone.”
By the end of 2015, more than 6.7 million individuals were under some form of correctional control within the United States, including 2.2 million serving time in federal, state or local prisons and jails, according to a report by the Sentencing Project.
