QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Not only is Joann innocent, but she is a wonderful person with so much to give back to her community,” said Raquel Cohen, Attorney at the California Innocence Project at California Western School of Law who was the primary lawyer on the case. “I cannot be more excited to pick her up and watch her blossom in her new life. We are all forever grateful to Governor Newsom and the parole board for seeing her potential and making this day possible. I will continue to fight to get her conviction overturned, but now I will get to do it while she is enjoying her freedom.”
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PASSAGE ONE OF THE DAY: "At the time, the government alleged Parks started the fire. We now know the fire likely started from an appliance in the poorly wired garage the family lived in. The California Innocence Project (CIP) has advocated for Parks’ release for well over a decade. In 2013, three lawyers from CIP walked 712 miles to deliver a clemency petition to then-Governor Jerry Brown. Governor Brown failed to act on the petition. Last year, Governor Gavin Newsom granted Parks’ clemency petition and commuted her Life Without Parole sentence to make her instantly eligible for parole.“
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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY:
Parks was the subject of a 2019 book written by Pulitzer Prize winner Ed Humes, entitled, “Burned: A Story of Murder and the Crime That Wasn’t.”
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RELEASE: "JoAnn Parks released after 30 years of wrongful imprisonment," the California Innocence reports, in a release issued today, July 12, 2021.
GIST: JoAnn Parks was released from prison after 29 years of wrongful incarceration. Parks was arrested and convicted in the tragic accidental fire that resulted in the death of her children. At the time, the government alleged Parks started the fire. We now know the fire likely started from an appliance in the poorly wired garage the family lived in. The California Innocence Project (CIP) has advocated for Parks’ release for well over a decade. In 2013, three lawyers from CIP walked 712 miles to deliver a clemency petition to then-Governor Jerry Brown. Governor Brown failed to act on the petition. Last year, Governor Gavin Newsom granted Parks’ clemency petition and commuted her Life Without Parole sentence to make her instantly eligible for parole.“
I am thrilled JoAnn Parks is finally free,” said Justin Brooks, Director of the California Innocence Project and a Professor of Law at California Western School of Law. “Nothing could be worse than losing your children and then being wrongfully convicted of their murder. As we learn more about the science of fires, hopefully these kinds of wrongful convictions will no longer occur.”
“Not only is Joann innocent, but she is a wonderful person with so much to give back to her community,” said Raquel Cohen, Attorney at the California Innocence Project at California Western School of Law who was the primary lawyer on the case. “I cannot be more excited to pick her up and watch her blossom in her new life. We are all forever grateful to Governor Newsom and the parole board for seeing her potential and making this day possible. I will continue to fight to get her conviction overturned, but now I will get to do it while she is enjoying her freedom.”
Parks was the subject of a 2019 book written by Pulitzer Prize winner Ed Humes, entitled, “Burned: A Story of Murder and the Crime That Wasn’t.”
The California Innocence Project has now freed 35 innocent men and women from prison. We continue to fight for those who have been wronged by our criminal justice system and we could not do it without you. CIP appreciates your support and cannot thank you enough. Help us keep hope alive for those who are wrongfully convicted by donating today."
TheCalifornia Innocence Project release can be read at:
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgxwKkRLkmnSjpbLmRQBXxZlhfKld
