John —

My mom, Tammy, is a warrior.

In 2008, she had to watch as my brother Nathan and I were wrongly convicted for the 2002 murder of a young woman in Cabell County, West Virginia.

The whole process was a nightmare and incredibly taxing on our entire family, but especially on our mom, Tammy. To have one kid in prison for something they didn’t do is hard enough, let alone both of her sons.

But she never gave up on us and was a relentless advocate for us from the very beginning. She was constantly in contact with my Innocence Project lawyers, keeping as up-to-date as possible on all of our case details. With her support and the tireless efforts of the Innocence Project team, I was released in 2018 and finally exonerated in 2021 along with my brother Nathan.

John, no mother should have to endure what my mother did, and I truly believe that without the work of the Innocence Project, I wouldn’t be free today. That’s why today, in honor of Mother’s Day, I’m asking you to make a monthly recurring donation to support their efforts in not only freeing innocent people, but passing policies to help stop wrongful convictions in the first place.

The truth is, wrongful convictions have a huge impact on everyone connected with the person or people who are incarcerated.

I hate that my mom had to endure all of this pain, and it hurts me that I missed so much time with her and the rest of the family when I was wrongfully incarcerated — but it’s because of the Innocence Project’s strong advocacy that I’m now free and able to spend as much time with them as I want.

I was forced to miss way too many Mother’s Day celebrations with my mom when I was locked up, so this year, we’ll be soaking up as much time together as possible.

So please, in honor of my mom, Tammy and all of the moms of wrongly convicted people out there, make a monthly recurring donation to help sustain the life-saving work of the Innocence Project.

I also want to ask you to hug your moms a little bit tighter this weekend and cherish every single moment you get to spend with them because you don’t realize how much you take for granted until it’s ripped away from you.

Thank you so much, and happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there!

Philip Barnett
Exonerated in 2021