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PODCAST

Wrongful Conviction

Lava for Good Podcasts

Hosted by celebrated criminal justice reform advocate and founding board member of the Innocence Project Jason Flom, Pulitzer prize-winning podcast host and producer Maggie Freleng, and Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, and podcast host Lauren Bright Pacheco, Wrongful Conviction features intimate conversations with men and women who have spent years in prison for crimes they maintain they did not commit. Some have been fully exonerated and reunited with family and friends while others continue to

true crime

All Episodes

50:09

#450 Lauren Bright Pacheco with Michelle Morrison

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/05/27

In 2009, Michelle Morrison was convicted on a felony murder charge along with aggravated assault, criminal attempt to commit armed robbery, and conspiracy over a 2007 shooting that left a man dead. Not only did Michelle not fire the weapon that took the man’s life, but she never even set foot in the house where the shooting occurred. In fact, she didn’t even get out of the car. And yet, Michelle Morrison, at the age of 26, was sentenced to life in prison plus five years.She is joined by her mother,

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32:42

#449 Jason Flom with Frederick Willie Kearse

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/05/23

On August 6, 1993, Devon “Dog” Brown and Raymondo “Ray” Frazier exited a bodega in Brooklyn, NY, when at least two people fired a slew of bullets from a passing car. Ray was shot in his legs and survived, while Devon was killed. 911 calls came in around 3:03pm describing 2-3 young black men in a Buick Century - a drive by shooting. Primarily on the strength of three questionable eyewitness identifications, Frederick was arrested and charged with murder, convicted and sentenced to 20 years to life in

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36:25

#448 Jason Flom with Chris Miller

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/05/16

On April 28, 2001, two men attacked a woman as she returned home in Cleveland Heights, OH. The men sexually assaulted her and then left with various items, including her cell phone. In the following days, police traced the cell phone to 24-year-old Chris Miller. Chris said that he had just bought the cell phone from someone else, but despite no forensic evidence tying Chris to the crime, the victim identified him out of a photo lineup and he was sentenced to 40 years in prison. To learn more and

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39:16

#447 Jason Flom with Darien Harris

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/05/09

On the evening of June 7, 2011, police responded to a shooting at a gas station in Chicago, IL, and found one victim dead and another wounded. Relying on various conflicting statements from eyewitnesses, and questionable incoming tips, police focused on 18-year-old Darien Harris as their main suspect. Some eyewitnesses identified Darien in a photo line-up while others did not. Nevertheless Darien was sentenced to 76 years in prison for the shooting with no physical evidence tying him to the

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11:11

Introducing: Ozarks True Crime - The Sandra Hemme Story

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/05/06

In season three of Ozarks True Crime, host Anne Roderique-Jones returns to her home state of Missouri to report on the case of Sandra Hemme: a person living with mental illness who could soon become the longest-known wrongfully convicted woman in the United States. Anne speaks with journalists, lawyers, and mental health professionals to try and uncover why Sandra was found guilty of a murder, despite no solid evidence that she committed the crime. Follow along as we travel back to Missouri for

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42:11

#446 Jason Flom with Dan Carnevale

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/05/02

A fire erupted in the basement of an apartment building in Pittsburgh, PA, on January 17, 1993, killing three people. Arson officials believed the fire was set purposefully, but the case went cold for 13 years. Dan Carnevale was arrested for the fire in 2006 based on the questionable testimony of a man claiming to be an eyewitness. All of the physical evidence in this case had been destroyed so the case against Dan relied solely on this witness, the testimony of a jailhouse informant, and junk

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16:49

Introducing: The Burden

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/29

In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname.Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers (who all say they are innocent!) turned jailhouse-lawyers. In prison they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away. They set out to turn the tables on Scarcella while still in prison. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they would

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29:00

#445 Jason Flom with Donte West

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/25

On March 8, 2016, Officer Nicholas Blake became suspicious of two vehicles traveling together on Interstate 70 toward Manhattan, KS due to their appearance and registration inconsistencies. He suspected they were involved in drug trafficking, with one acting as a decoy. Following a series of stops and surveillances by multiple law enforcement officers, a considerable amount of marijuana and methamphetamine was found in one of the vehicles leading to the arrest of Donte Westmoreland and others

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25:47

Bonus Episode | Leo's Parole Hearing Comes to a Close...

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/22

Leo Schofield’s parole hearing in Tallahassee, FL, April 17th, 2024 with reporting from Gilbert King and Kelsey Decker. Bone Valley is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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41:54

#444 Jason Flom with Rafael Martinez

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/18

Authorities believe Rafael Martinez, his brothers Lorenzo Martinez, Daniel Martinez and Isidoro Medina-DeLeon killed Jose ‘Chino’ Jiminez because Mr. Jiminez shot Mr. Martinez in 1987 in Washington Heights, NY. However, Mr. Jiminez was never killed and is in fact alive and well to this day. Nevertheless, Rafael was convicted of murder and is presently serving consecutive sentences totaling 213 years.To learn more,

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39:52

#443 Jason Flom with Mario Casciaro

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/11

On December 21, 2002, 17-year-old Brian Carrick, a stock boy at Val’s Foods, a grocery store in Johnsburg, IL, was reported missing by his mother. Police determined that one of the last sightings of Carrick was a day earlier, on December 20, when he went to the store to pick up his paycheck. On December 22, police found blood spatter near a cooler used to store produce and a bloody fingerprint on the cooler’s exterior door handle. DNA tests identified the blood spatter near the cooler as Carrick’s

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40:32

#442 Maggie Freleng with Amer Zada

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/08

In the early morning hours of June 15, 1979, 17-year-old Amer Zada’s truck stalled out near the waterfront in Nyack, NY. While he waited for a ride, Amer discovered the body of Shirley Smith behind a dumpster in a restaurant parking lot. Minutes later, police arrived on the scene. Amer was thrown into the cruiser, arrested and charged with sexual assault and murder. Evidence proving his innocence was never turned over to his trial attorney. “I guess the first time the reality of my situation hit me

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31:24

#441 Jason Flom with Jeremy Puckett

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/04

On March 14, 1998, Anthony Galati was found murdered along the side of a road in Rancho Cordova, CA. The case went cold until October 1999, when Israel Septs, an inmate in a California prison, told police that he witnessed the crime. Septs claimed that 23-year-old Jeremy Puckett and 18-year-old Angela Dvorsky killed Galati after they robbed him. Despite having an alibi and no physical evidence linking him to the crime, Jeremy was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the

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30:55

#440 Maggie Freleng with Cassandra Black Elk

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/04/01

On the morning of February 19th, 2022, Cassandra Black Elk awoke to find her three-week-old daughter StarLight lifeless beside her. Police insisted the baby had died due to Shaken Baby Syndrome - and that Cassandra was responsible. “They were telling me their story,” Cassandra remembers, “that somebody did something to StarLight…somebody killed her.” Cassandra knew she hadn’t hurt her baby. She asked her lawyer repeatedly - what does the autopsy report say? But by the time she got the answer,

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37:39

#437 Jason Flom with James Kluppleberg

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/03/21

In the early morning hours of March 24,1984, a fire erupted on the first floor of an apartment building in Chicago, IL. The fire destroyed the building and killed six people, including young children. Four years later, James Kluppelberg was taken into police custody after he had reported an unrelated arson case. Police began intensely interrogating James about the apartment building fire until he falsely confessed to the crime. Despite the fact that the only evidence against James was the testimony

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45:09

#436 Maggie Freleng with Evaristo Salas

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/03/18

Jose Arreola was shot to death inside a pickup truck on November 14, 1995, in Sunnyside, WA. Five months later, a police informant identified a local teenager, Evaristo Salas, as the shooter. He was arrested and taken to the adult jail. “I'm 15 years old, I look like I'm 12. I weigh about a hundred pounds,” Evaristo remembers. “I'm five foot and I'm just surrounded. And I'm scared as hell.” Despite the fact that there was no physical evidence tying Evaristo to the crime, he was convicted and

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40:31

#435 Jason Flom with Chris Smith

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/03/14

In 2007, a man wearing a wig and sunglasses entered a Bell Wireless store on the west side of Cincinnati, OH brandishing a gun. He ordered the patrons to the floor, demanded money from the store manager, and fled with the store's till. A witness across the street allegedly saw the man put on the wig and sunglasses, enter the store and flee a few minutes later in a Ford Expedition. The witness later identified that man as Chris Smith. Soon after the robbery, police found the Ford Expedition, a wig

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38:50

#434 Maggie Freleng with Kim Hoover

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/03/03

On November 29, 2002, 7-month-old Samaisha Benson began to struggle to breathe while under the care of childcare provider Kim Hoover. After being taken to the hospital, the baby was found to have a skull fracture and bleeding on her brain and tragically passed away two days later. Doctors and authorities suspected Samaisha was a victim of Shaken Baby Syndrome. A month later, Kim was arrested and charged with murder and child abuse. “I've never hurt anyone in my life,” Kim says. “For someone to make

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32:03

#430 Maggie Freleng with Lorinda Swain

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/02/26

“When I tell people that I was sentenced 25 to 50 years, they automatically assume that I was accused of murder,” says Lorinda Swain. “And I always tell them, no, I was accused of worse than that.” In August of 2001, Lorinda was arrested in Calhoun County, Michigan for allegedly sexually molesting her adopted son, who was seven years old at the time. Although the boy recanted the allegation prior to trial and then again after her conviction, Lorinda remained incarcerated for seven years before being

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39:47

#429 Jason Flom with Greg Brown

Wrongful Conviction ·

2024/02/22

A house in Pittsburgh, PA, went up in flames on February 14, 1995, killing three firefighters while they were trying to put out the fire. A week later, a neighbor of 17-year-old Greg Brown came forward and said that he suspected Greg of lighting the fire. Greg and his mother lived at the house that had caught fire, and authorities suspected that the two of them set the fire to claim insurance money. Despite no physical evidence supporting this theory, Greg was sentenced to life in prison without the

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514 results

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