On Thursday, October 3, the Cooley Law School Innocence Project will recognize National Wrongful Conviction Day with a free informational event at the law school’s Lansing campus. The event will feature a two exonerees, Darrell Siggers and Kenneth Nixon, as well as Cooley Law School Innocence Project attorneys.
Nixon was represented by Cooley and exonerated in 2021, while Siggers was exonerated in 2017. They remain active in the Innocence movement, working with those who remain incarcerated as well as other exonerees. Both are instrumental in the vital work of the Organization of Exonerees, an exoneree support organization. Nixon currently serves as the organization’s president. The event will be held in the Cooley Law School lobby from noon to 2p.m.
“The goal of the Innocence Project is not only to help bring justice to the wrongfully convicted, but also to raise awareness for the estimated 975 wrongly convicted individuals within our communities,” said Associate Dean Tracey Brame, director of Cooley Law School’s Innocence Project. “This annual event allows community members to meet with our exonerees and hear their stories first-hand.”
Established in 2001, the Cooley Law School Innocence Project is the only post-conviction DNA innocence organization in the state. Since its inception, the office has screened over 6,000 cases and is responsible for the exoneration of nine individuals: Kenneth Wyniemko (2003), Nathaniel Hatchett (2008), Donya Davis (2014), LeDura Watkins (2017), Corey McCall (2021), Nixon, Gilbert Poole (2021), George DeJesus (2022), and Louis Wright (2023). It also helped to exonerate Lacino Hamilton and Ramon Ward, both in 2020, Terance Calhoun in 2022, and Crystal Mulherin in 2024.
The project is staffed by Cooley Law School students, who work under the supervision of Cooley Innocence Project attorneys. Those interested in donating and supporting the work of the Cooley Innocence Project can do so at cooley.edu/academics/experiential-learning/innocence-project.
In its 11th year, Wrongful Conviction Day began as an effort of the Innocence Network, an affiliation of organizations dedicated to providing pro-bono legal and investigative services to individuals seeking to prove innocence of crimes for which they have been convicted, working to redress the causes of wrongful convictions, and supporting the exonerated after they are freed.
Nixon was represented by Cooley and exonerated in 2021, while Siggers was exonerated in 2017. They remain active in the Innocence movement, working with those who remain incarcerated as well as other exonerees. Both are instrumental in the vital work of the Organization of Exonerees, an exoneree support organization. Nixon currently serves as the organization’s president. The event will be held in the Cooley Law School lobby from noon to 2p.m.
“The goal of the Innocence Project is not only to help bring justice to the wrongfully convicted, but also to raise awareness for the estimated 975 wrongly convicted individuals within our communities,” said Associate Dean Tracey Brame, director of Cooley Law School’s Innocence Project. “This annual event allows community members to meet with our exonerees and hear their stories first-hand.”
Established in 2001, the Cooley Law School Innocence Project is the only post-conviction DNA innocence organization in the state. Since its inception, the office has screened over 6,000 cases and is responsible for the exoneration of nine individuals: Kenneth Wyniemko (2003), Nathaniel Hatchett (2008), Donya Davis (2014), LeDura Watkins (2017), Corey McCall (2021), Nixon, Gilbert Poole (2021), George DeJesus (2022), and Louis Wright (2023). It also helped to exonerate Lacino Hamilton and Ramon Ward, both in 2020, Terance Calhoun in 2022, and Crystal Mulherin in 2024.
The project is staffed by Cooley Law School students, who work under the supervision of Cooley Innocence Project attorneys. Those interested in donating and supporting the work of the Cooley Innocence Project can do so at cooley.edu/academics/experiential-learning/innocence-project.
In its 11th year, Wrongful Conviction Day began as an effort of the Innocence Network, an affiliation of organizations dedicated to providing pro-bono legal and investigative services to individuals seeking to prove innocence of crimes for which they have been convicted, working to redress the causes of wrongful convictions, and supporting the exonerated after they are freed.
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