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Grantee Website Highlights Exonerated Inmates
In recent years, more than 100 innocent people serving prison terms have been released after DNA testing proved they were wrongfully convicted. Many of these people, some of whom have been imprisoned for much of their lives, must rejoin a world that is very different than the one they left behind. What happens when they find that reentry into society is far more difficult than they expected?
"Burden of Innocence," a documentary that aired on PBS' FRONTLINE on May 1, 2003, highlights the cases of several recently exonerated inmates, examining the many social, psychological, and economic challenges they faced reentering society with no financial or transitional assistance whatsoever.
OSI's After Prison Initiative helped support a Web-only supplement to the broadcast, available on FRONTLINE's website. The extended coverage includes:
- views of experts on what it will take to help the falsely convicted
- interviews with criminal justice authorities and psychologists
- the status of compensation laws in the United States
- information on organizations that help the exonerated make the transition to civilian life
- excerpts from photographer Tary Simon's book, The Innocents
- the opportunity to view "Burden of Innocence" online
