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US man wrongfully jailed shares cautionary tale - Yahoo! News
It's because of stories like this that I oppose the death penalty. As more and more stories come out where hundreds if not thousands of people are freed after decades of jail, it's only a matter of time before one of those stories ends up with the murder of an innocent person payed for by our taxes.
Green was just 18 years old when he was convicted. Police were searching for four men suspected of raping a woman in a stolen car, and found Green walking nearby.
When police asked the victim if Green was one of the men who raped her, she told officers no. About a week later, Green was arrested for stealing a car. The next thing he knew he was in a police lineup, and identified by the victim as one of the rapists.
"I preached to those dudes in prison, just like I preach to these youngsters to stay out of the way (of trouble)," he said. "Because the system is not going to play with you."
Sharing the stories of their wrongful conviction can help exonerees to heal, and can offer some structure, said Karen Wolff, a social worker with the Innocence Project.
"All cases are unique, and that's not always the solution for everybody," Wolff said.
Green also has a lot to teach, said Michea Carter, director of theater arts at Westbury High School, who invited Green to speak after her students performed a play about exonerated inmates earlier this month.
"You need someone like Michael to come in and show them this is real," Carter said.
During a question and answer period that evening, students asked Green everything from what prison life was like to how he felt being convicted of a crime he did not commit.
It's because of stories like this that I oppose the death penalty. As more and more stories come out where hundreds if not thousands of people are freed after decades of jail, it's only a matter of time before one of those stories ends up with the murder of an innocent person payed for by our taxes.