Episodes
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Brian Banks was a high school football star on track to make the NFL - until he was falsely accused of rape.
He spent over five years in prison and served five years on parole - until his accuser was secretly recorded admitting the truth.
Brian’s comeback story - including finally playing in the NFL - was turned into a Hollywood movie.
He is interviewed by Brady Haran in this episode.
Brian Banks website - https://brianbanksfree.com/
Brian Banks (movie) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Banks_(film)
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Barry Scheck might be best known for being part of OJ Simpson's winning defence team.
But his work as the godfather of The Innocence Project has had worldwide impact for thousands of people who have been wrongly convicted.
He changed the way that DNA was used to prosecute and prove innocence.
Now he’s devoting much of this time to looking at the ways AI can be a force for good, and bad, in the courtroom.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Episodes manquant?
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Would you ever have thought that the music you listen to could be used to convict you of a crime?
The organisation Art Not Evidence wants to stop the use of creative and artistic expression as evidence in criminal trials.
In this podcast we hear from two people involved in that campaign - Kier Monteith KC and Elli Brazill.
Both Keir and Elli believe there has been an alarming increase in rap music being used to convict people. They say police and prosecutors even use listening to rap music, posting videos, or writing lyrics to suggest a motive for carrying out crime.
Art Not Evidence: https://artnotevidence.org
This episode of The Innocence Podcast was supported by Fieldfisher - a European law firm with market-leading practices in technology, financial services, energy & natural resources, and life sciences - https://www.fieldfisher.com/
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Dean Gillispie served 20 years in prison for rape and kidnap - crimes he didn't commit.
It was Mark Godsey at the Ohio Innocence Project who helped free him.
Dean and Mark talk to Kylie about the case, the hurdles they encountered, and the impact 20 years behind bars.
Dean was recently awarded $45m in compensation - but has he seen that money?
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Dr Felicity Gerry is a star of the legal profession. She saved a woman in the Philippines moments before she was due to be executed and helped free a man wrongly convicted of murder in Australia.
Dr Gerry’s main passion is challenging the law around joint enterprise - where someone can be jointly convicted of the crime of another.
She persuaded the UK Supreme Court this can only be if someone intends to join in - not if they merely foresaw that the other person might commit a crime.
Dr Gerry says thousands are still in prison for murders they were not involved in.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Nurse Kimberley Long was 27 when she found the body of her boyfriend Ozzy in their living room - he’d been brutally murdered.
She was sent to prison in California for a crime she didn't commit.
When The Innocence Project's Justin Brooks heard about her case, he knew she was innocent. There was no blood splatter on her clothing and the victim's time of death didn't match up to where Kim was.
Although she’s innocent, Kim says she continues to pay the price for her wrongful conviction and is still trying to get back into nursing.
But she is eternally grateful to Justin - the man who proved her innocence.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Tom Hayes says he'll never give up fighting to clear his name.
The former banker was sentenced to 11 years for fixing key interest rates. Tom claims he was a “scapegoat” - a target for the anger at bankers in the financial crisis.
He has now been granted permission to appeal against his criminal conviction at the UK’s top court.
Tom talks to Kylie about how he went from living a lavish lifestyle… to losing his marriage and now living in his parents’ flat.
Fighting the case has become his full-time job.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Anna Vasquez was one of the so called 'San Antonio Four' - four women who were wrongly convicted in 1994 of the sexual assault of two young girls.
It came in the wake of more than a decade of hysteria over claims of satanic abuse of children.
After the Innocence Project became involved, and uncovered new information, Anna was finally released in 2012.
In an emotional interview, Anna talks to Kylie about how she has now dedicated her life to helping to free others.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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If you’ve seen any of the Post Office Inquiry that’s currently taking place in the UK, you will have heard Edward Henry KC and Flora Page. They are two of the legal team fighting for those wrongly convicted in what’s been described as the biggest miscarriage of justice in the UK.
Hundreds of sub-postmasters were wrongly accused of stealing money, when in fact a faulty computer system was to blame.
On a day when the inquiry was taking a break, Kylie spoke to them, along with journalist Nick Wallis who has doggedly pursued this story for those whose lives have been destroyed.
Learn more at: https://www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk and https://www.postofficescandal.uk/about/
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Seema Misra was two months pregnant when she was sent to prison for a crime she didn't commit.
She was one of hundreds of sub postmasters wrongly accused of stealing money from the Post Office - when, in fact, a faulty computer system was to blame.
She tells Kylie about how things started to go wrong from Day 1 of owning her Post Office.
She also emotionally speaks about the toll it took on her health, her husband and, most importantly, her son.
Learn more at: https://www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk and https://www.postofficescandal.uk/about/
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Lee Castleton was made bankrupt after a two-year legal battle with the Post Office to clear his name.
Twenty years later he’s still looking for answers.
Lee, who bought his Post Office in 2003, was wrongly accused of stealing money. In reality a faulty computer system was to blame.
The ordeal severely affected his family's health. In an emotional interview, Lee explains the toll it has taken - and how his life will never be the same again.
Learn more at: https://www.postofficehorizoninquiry.org.uk and https://www.postofficescandal.uk/about/
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Brian Buckle was sentenced to 15 years for historic child sex abuse - a crime he didn’t commit. It took him five years in prison and hundreds of thousands of pounds to prove his innocence.
Brian may now be out of jail, but his fight for compensation continues. We hear from Brian and his wife about how a wrongful conviction ruined their lives.The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Former detective superintendent Julie MacKay has dedicated her career to putting the right people behind bars.
She solved the murder of Melanie Road, more than three decades after it happened.
Julie knows first-hand how groundbreaking technological developments in policing can help track down criminals - but does that always mean the right people get caught?
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Every week Mark Newby gets letters from people desperate for his help. Those people are behind bars, they say they are innocent and have no way of proving it.
They need a criminal appeal lawyer to take on their case - and that's where Mark comes in. But he must choose who he is going to fight for.
In this episode Mark talks about how he decides what case to pursue. He says he has to be tough - the resources aren't there to help everyone. And then when he starts working on a case, it can take years, even decades, to be freed.
Then when they are lucky enough to be released, the wrongfully convicted get less help than those who are guilty and who have served their time.
Then their chance of getting ANY compensation is minimal. Mark is fighting to change that.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Why does it take so long for someone to prove their innocence?
Criminal defence solicitor and former head of the legal charity, APPEAL, Suzanne Gower explains why there are so many people in prison now who are not guilty.
Suzanne talks about her own experience of trying to free people who are wrongly behind bars.
She talks about why the justice system fails them and how urgent changes need to be made.
She has helped free numerous high profile people including Andrew Malkinson who was freed from prison after he served 17 years for a wrongful rape conviction.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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The issue of wrongful convictions has taken centre stage in the UK.
The high profile Post Office Horizon scandal has dominated headlines. And the case of Andrew Malkinson - who was finally cleared of rape in 2023 after spending seventeen years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit - shone a renewed spotlight on what can happen when our criminal justice system doesn’t work as it should.
Claire McGourlay runs the Manchester Innocence Project. In this podcast Claire looks back at all the things that went wrong to lead to the wrongful conviction of Andrew Malkinson.
She explains why his case is so important in the pursuit of innocence for those wrongly jailed.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub
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Luis Vargas was in prison for 16 years for charges including rape and kidnap - crimes he didn’t commit.
His life fell apart, his wife divorced him, and he thought he had no hope of freedom.
Somehow he managed to hide the fact that he was in prison for rape - because he knew he’d be beaten, even killed by other inmates.
But, with the help of the California Innocence Project, he proved his innocence.
Also featuring Justin Brooks from the California Innocence Project.
Warning: This episode includes graphic descriptions of prison violence.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub -
Kristine Bunch was wrongly sent to prison for arson and the murder of her 3-year-old son. She spent 17 years behind bars for a crime she didn’t commit.
Pregnant when she was convicted, she describes how horrendous it was saying goodbye to her baby just hours after he was born, making the most of life in prison - and her relentless fight for innocence.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub -
It's described as the most widespread miscarriage of justice in UK history - more than 700 post office branch managers were given criminal convictions when faulty accounting software made it look as though money was missing from their sites.
Tom Hedges was one of those who faced a prison sentence.
Kylie speaks to Tom about how his once quiet life turned into a nightmare - and how hundreds of post office workers fought to clear their names.
The Innocence Podcast is brought to you by The Manchester Innocence Project - https://bit.ly/34YbLTi
Presenter/Researcher: Kylie Pentelow
Producer: Lucy McDaid
Editor: Kris McConnachie
Executive Producer: Claire McGourlay
Donate to the Manchester Innocence Project - https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/manchester-innocence-project-justice-hub -
An interview with the UK's famous - and anonymous - "Secret Barrister".
More links and details at https://www.innocence.fm/ - Montre plus
