“It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer” – William Blackstone
We were barely legal when this nightmare began. One minute we are snuggled up on a chair watching movies until we fell asleep, then BOOM! Our lives have forever been changed, spending 28 years seeking justice within a judicial system that is not in favor of black men. He was wrongfully accused and sentenced to life but a jury of his so-called peers, none of which were people of color. Appointed a public defender that failed to do his job. Administrative remedies exhausted and denied.
New sentencing guidelines have since been put into play, yet the judicial system, built on systemic racism still will not set him free. No compassion in the Compassionate Release Motion that was decided by the same courts that erroneously convicted him in the first place. Sent to prison as a teen and left to fend for himself yet hold it against him when he does. They speak of rehabilitation but do nothing but hold on to the past when making their judgements.
Countless people in similar circumstances have been freed or had sentencing reductions, in the same Circuit but different court. What is the difference with him? If he were tried in Maryland, he would probably be free, but racism still runs prevalent among many judges and people deciding the fate of black men. They hold them to a higher standard yet treat them as less than. What will it take to get him set free?
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