John,

I was finally exonerated on my 72nd birthday after nearly 50 years of wrongful conviction. It was autumn in White Plains, NY. My Innocence Project attorneys, Susan Friedman and Mary-Kathryn Smith, called me up and told me the good news. Indisputable DNA evidence had proved my innocence of a crime I did not commit. I walked out of the courthouse, cane in hand, and shouted, “Free at last, thank God Almighty, I’m free at last!"

I’ve lived with this injustice for nearly five decades. But throughout my seven-and-a-half years in prison — and the decades after with my wrongful conviction hanging over my head — I never gave up hope that my freedom would one day come. Then, the Innocence Project came in with a talented and tenacious legal team. It’s because of their fierce and relentless commitment to justice that I am home today, and I’ll be forever grateful.

The Innocence Project's end-of-year fundraising deadline is fast approaching. Their work transformed my life and can transform countless others who deserve freedom. Every contribution, no matter the size, brings them closer to reuniting innocent individuals with their families and loved ones. Your donation today can help make this possible.

For now, I just want to love, live life, and spend time with my family. 

And thanks to the work of the Innocence Project, I have the freedom to embrace those things.

So please, if you can, donate to the Innocence Project before the end of the year, and join their fight to free innocent people like me.

Thank you for your support,

Leonard Mack
Exonerated in September 2023