Justice is supposed to protect the innocent-but what happens when it fails?
Every year, people are arrested, charged, and even imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. Their lives are turned upside down-not because of what they did, but because of how they were seen. Maybe they fit a vague description. Maybe they were judged by the color of their skin. Maybe they were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
This book tells the stories of 15 people who lived through one of the worst nightmares imaginable: being innocent, yet still convicted. These are not fictional accounts or courtroom dramas. These are true stories of real people-students, parents, workers-who were thrown into the criminal justice system and forced to fight for their freedom and their dignity.
Some were exonerated by new evidence. Others were freed through the work of innocence projects. But all of them faced years of fear, trauma, and lost time-time they will never get back.
If you think the justice system always gets it right, think again. These powerful, deeply human stories will change how you see the law, the courts, and the meaning of guilt and innocence.