John —

Last Wednesday, Innocence Project client Ron Jacobsen was finally exonerated after spending 30 years in a Georgia prison for a crime he did not commit.

For the last 10 months, Ron had been confined to his home and forced to wear an electronic ankle monitor, having been released on a $500,000 bond as he awaited a potential retrial. Even though Ron’s conviction was overturned in 2019 after DNA evidence proved his innocence, the district attorney insisted she would take his case to a second trial and opposed his release on bail. At the same time, she offered Ron a plea deal. If he would plead guilty, he could walk out of prison immediately. Ron refused and the district attorney continued to argue he was “too dangerous” to be released on bail while she pursued a retrial. Ron was released from pre-trial detention on Nov. 4, 2020, after the court set bond over the district attorney’s objections, and he immediately returned to his home state of New York where he reunited with his sister and awaited news of a retrial.

Last week, 10 months after posting bond, the newly elected district attorney dismissed all charges, officially exonerating Ron.

On learning of his exoneration, Ron said, “Thirty years ago, I was called a liar for proclaiming my innocence at trial. Today, I have my freedom by the overbearing proof of my innocence of this crime which I was convicted of, sentenced to life for, and ultimately justice prevailed through the tireless work and efforts of Vanessa Potkin and the Innocence Project. I have my life back and words can’t do justice to my gratitude and appreciation to everyone at the Innocence Project. Thank you.”

Ron celebrated his freedom that night by going out to dinner with his sister — their first dinner out together in more than three decades.

We’re so grateful that Ron finally has justice. Take a moment today to read more about his story [[link removed], and then share it with your friends and family on Twitter [[link removed], Facebook [[link removed], and Instagram [[link removed]

Thank you so much for your support,

— The Innocence Project Team

P.S. If you’d like to support Ron with what he needs to start his life over, you can help by fulfilling the items on his Amazon Wishlist [[link removed]

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Started in 1992 as a legal clinic at Cardozo School of Law, the Innocence Project is now an independent nonprofit, affiliated with Cardozo, that exonerates the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and reforms the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice.

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