John —

2021 has been a big year for the Innocence Project. 

We helped exonerate six innocent people, who collectively spent 138 years behind bars for crimes they did not commit. People like Philip Barnett and Eddie Lee Howard were finally exonerated and Rosa Jimenez was reunited with her children after 17 years of wrongful incarceration — she was even able to attend her daughter’s wedding right after being freed. 

History was also set straight with the exonerations of Muhammad Aziz and the late Khalil Islam — two men who were wrongly convicted of the assassination of Malcolm X.

This year we also helped pass 20 laws across the country to help make our criminal legal system more just and equitable for all. 

Overall, the Innocence Project had a lot of wins in 2021 — and that’s thanks to this community. We truly couldn’t do it without all of your support.

We put together a list of all the best moments and photos from the past year so we can celebrate together. Take a moment to look through them, and then share these special moments with your friends on social media.

We’re so grateful for every single one of the people who’ve donated, shared a story online, or contacted a lawmaker to pass legislation — and we can’t wait to take on even more together in 2022.

Cheers, and happy New Year!

— The Innocence Project Team

P.S. We’ve got a big fundraising deadline coming up tomorrow, and we need your help to reach our $55,000 goal. Will you chip in right now to help keep this work going next year?