Innocence Matters

Innocence Matters is a nonprofit organization formed in 2010 and dedicated to preventing wrongful convictions and honoring the truth. We provide direct representation for innocent people, though our work is primarily focused on the broader goals of education, prevention and reform. We are particularly interested in improving the quality of indigent defense services and implementing systemic changes that will better protect the innocent and encourage the legal community to more quickly acknowledge and correct errors. Our preventative programs are designed to bring about lasting change and provide a broad toolkit for the innocent and their attorneys. Troy Davis is the inspiration for Innocence Matters. On July 3, 2007, word of Troy Davis' impending execution spread through the legal community. We joined the cause to save an innocent man and watched in utter dismay as Troy's compelling claim of innocence was brushed aside by the courts as irrelevant. So we brought more people to the cause. Lawyers, students, professors, and the general public throughout our nation rallied and, for a little while, we stopped the execution of an innocent man. We shouted to all who would listen, "Innocence Matters!" On September 21, 2011, despite the valiant efforts of so many good people, Georgia's determination to kill Troy ultimately prevailed over reason and truth. Our four-year struggle to help make Troy's innocence matter will forever guide our work on behalf of other innocent people.