>> WELCOME BACK.
>> WELCOME BACK. WE’VE SEEN A NUMBER OF LONG
WE’VE SEEN A NUMBER OF LONG
SERVING INMATES RELEASED FROM
PRISON OF LATE.
MOST RESENT RAY GRAY WHO SERVED ALMOST 50 YEARS FOR A CRIME HE
ALMOST 50 YEARS FOR A CRIME HE
STILL INSISTS HE DIDN’T COMMIT.
I’D DONE A STORY ON RAY AND IT
WAS BROUGHT TO ME BY BILL PROCTOR.
TWO LONG TIME TV REPORTERS I
LONG ADMIRED AND RESPECTED, LEFT
THEIR MICROPHONES AND WITH THE INNOCENCE PROJECTS.
INNOCENCE PROJECTS.
BILL PROCTOR OF CHANNEL 7, AND
GUYS, I’VE BEEN WANTING TO HAVE
THIS CONVERSATION FOR A LONG
TIME. BEFORE WE GET INTO THE NUTS AND
BEFORE WE GET INTO THE NUTS AND
BOLTS OF THE WORK YOU’RE DOING,
I’M CURIOUS HOW EACH OF YOU
FOUND YOUR WAY TO THIS PATH? WHILE YOU WERE WORKING AS
WHILE YOU WERE WORKING AS
REPORTERS YOU REALIZED THERE WAS
INJUSTICE?
BILL, LET ME START WITH YOU.
>> AS A REPORTER YOU GET PEOPLE WHO BRING YOU INFORMATION,
WHO BRING YOU INFORMATION,
STORIES AND BACKGROUND THAT WAS
MY LUCKY BREAK AND THAT I HEARD
FROM A PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR, HIS NAME WAS AL WOODSIDE, TOLD ME
NAME WAS AL WOODSIDE, TOLD ME
ABOUT THE WRONGFUL CONVICTION OF
FREDERICK THOMAS FREEMAN, IN
PORT HURON ON A MURDER ON THE CAMPUS.
SHOT AT 9:00 IN THE MORNING.
MR. FREEMAN ACCORDING TO MY
INVESTIGATION WAS IN FACT 400
MILES AWAY OUTSIDE OF ESCANABA IN MICHIGAN.
IN MICHIGAN.
SO ALL OF THESE THINGS KIND OF
BROUGHT ME TO THE TABLE.
>> Devin: SCOTT, HOW ABOUT YOU?
>> WELL, I GOT A LETTER FROM A GUY NAME JUSTLY JOHNSON AND HE
GUY NAME JUSTLY JOHNSON AND HE
SAID HE WAS WRONGLY CONVICTED
AND THE WISCONSIN INNOCENCE
PROJECT WAS WORKING WITH HIM.
THAT PIQUED MY INTEREST BECAUSE
I GREW UP IN WISCONSIN.
I TOOK HOME THE FILE AND AFTER I
FINISHED, HOW COULD THESE GUYS
BE IN PRISON?
IT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE.
AND I DID A STORY ON JUSTLY
JOHNSON AND KENDRICK SCOTT
ACCUSED OF MURDERING A WOMAN AND
I UNCOVERED NEW EVIDENCE.
THERE WAS AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD BOY
IN THE CAR THAT THE POLICE HAD
NEVER INTERVIEWED.
AFTER I PUT THAT ON TV, THE
MICHIGAN INNOCENCE CLINIC JUMPED
INTO THE CASE AND ULTIMATELY
THEY TOOK IT TO THE MICHIGAN
SUPREME COURT AND JUSTLY AND
KENDRICK WERE RELEASED PRIMARILY
BASED ON THAT NEWLY DISCOVERED
EVIDENCE I FOUND OF THE
EIGHT-YEAR-OLD BOY.
>> Devin: WOW.
I THINK THAT YOU, NOW, ONE OF
THE FUN THINGS I’VE ALWAYS
ENJOYED ABOUT TELEVISION NEWS AT
THE END OF EVERY DAY I CAN SEE
EXACTLY WHAT I OR WE AS A
BUILDING HAVE DONE.
YOU GUYS NOW HAVE TO WORK ON
MUCH LONGER, CRAZY LONG TIME
FRAMES, UNDERSTANDING THAT THE
WORK YOU’RE DOING TODAY MAY
NEVER BEAR FRUIT.
BILL, FOR INSTANCE, THE RAY GRAY
CASE, YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS
THAT YOU WORKED ON THAT?
>> ACTUALLY IT WAS BROUGHT TO ME
BY THE FOLKS UP IN CANADA BACK
THEN CALLED PIEDWICK AND NOW
CALLED INNOCENCE CANADA.
YES, 2006 I WAS INTRODUCED TO
THE CASE OF RAY GRAY AND OVER
THE YEARS AS A REPORTER AND
LATER AS AN INVESTIGATOR, I
KNOCKED ON A NUMBER OF DOORS AND
ACTUALLY TALKED TO THE KILLER
BEFORE HE DIED AFTER DRUG
OVERDOSE.
TALKED TO THE WOMAN STILL
BELIEVED TO BE A CO-CONSPIRATOR,
SHE’S ALIVE AND I MANAGED TO GET
AN AFFIDAVIT FROM HER ONLY IN
THE LAST 12, 14 MONTHS SO THAT
LAWYERS HAD SOMEONE WHO WAS
ALIVE WHO WASIBLE TO IDENTIFY
THE TWO PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY DID
THE ROBBERY AND MURDER, SO WITH
THAT TIME, IT DOES TAKE A LONG
TIME.
>> Devin: BUT YOU’RE POINTING
OUT SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO THIS,
THE SKILL SET YOU DEVELOPED AS A
REPORTER IS NOW THE SKILL SET
YOU USE IN YOUR NEW ROLE,
CORRECT, SCOTT?
>> IT’S PRETTY MUCH THE SAME
THING.
YOU’RE JUST FOLLOWING LEADS, YOU
KNOW, AND SEE WHERE THEY TAKE
YOU.
IN MY CASE WITH JUSTLY JOHNSON
AND KENDRICK SCOTT, IT TOOK FROM
2012 TO 2018 AND IT IS REWARDING
ON TV TO SEE YOUR WORK AND GET
AWARDS FROM YOUR PEERS AND THAT
SORT OF THING, BUT NOTHING LIKE
THE FEELING YOU GET WHEN YOU DO
WORK THAT HELPS SOMEONE GET OUT
OF PRISON.
IT’S REALLY AMAZING, WHEN JUSTLY
AND KENDRICK ORDERED RELEASED
FROM THE JUDGE AND THE DETROIT
NEWS WAS KIND TO ME, LEWIS WAS
EMOTIONAL IN THE COURTROOM, I
BAWLING LIKE A BABY, AND BILL
CAN ATTEST TO THAT.
>> Devin: AND I CAN’T IMAGINE
THAT YOU HAD ANYTHING IN THE
CHANNEL 2 DAYS.
>> NO, I HAD HIGHLIGHTS AND
LOVED TELEVISION, BUT THIS IS
REALLY, REALLY SOMETHING
DIFFERENT AND THE OTHER THING
ALONG THE WAY, THERE ARE SO MANY
OBSTACLES, SO MANY ROAD BLOCKS
AND FRUSTRATIONS WHEN YOU GET TO
THE END ZONE AND THE BALL
CROSSES THE END ZONE, IT’S A
WONDERFUL FEELING AND I WISH
THAT WE COULD SPEED THIS PROCESS
UP, GET MORE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN
WHAT BILL AND I ARE DOING, BET
MORE LAWYERS INVOLVED, GET SOME
HELP FOR THE MORE LAWYERS FOR
THE INTEGRITY UNIT AT THE WAYNE
COUNTY PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE.
THEY’RE DOING GOOD WORK, BUT
THERE’S SO MUCH OF IT, DEVIN,
I’VE GOT CONTACTS FROM ALMOST A
THOUSAND INMATES NOW.
>> Devin: THIS IS THE CRUX THAT
I REALLY WANTED TO GET TO.
I THINK WE ALL WANT TO BELIEVE
THAT IT’S A VERY SAD, BUT VERY
RARE THING THAT HAPPENS WHEN AN
INNOCENT PERSON IS PUT IN
PRISON.
YOU’RE BOTH GOING TO SHAKE YOUR
HEADS, IT’S JUST NOT RARE AT
ALL, IS IT, BILL?
>> UNFORTUNATELY, DEVIN, NO.
THE ESTIMATES RUN FROM 2% OF THE
NATION’S PRISON POPULATION TO 5,
EVEN 6%.
SOME GO SO FAR AS TO THINK THAT
10% OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE
IMPRISONED IN THIS COUNTRY ARE
IN FACT INNOCENT OF THE CRIMES
THAT SENT THEM THERE.
THAT’S ALWAYS THE ISSUE.
YOU HAVE AGGRESSIVE POLICE
INVESTIGATORS WHO FEEL THAT
WHATEVER ELSE SOMEONE DID, AND
JUSTIFIES THEIR MISCONDUCT TO
GET THEIR CONVICTION, IT’S
UNFORTUNATE THAT IT IS THE HUMAN
FRAILTY, THE HUMAN DECISIONS TO
DO THE WRONG THING TO GET A
CONVICTION THAT MAKES OUR SYSTEM
OF LAWS AND PROCESS AND
PROCEDURE SHAKY.
I MEAN, IT JUST PUTS THE WHOLE
THING STANDING ON QUICK SAND AND
ON ANY GIVEN DAY, SOMEONE COULD
BE SWALLOWED UP FOR SOMETHING
THEY DIDN’T DO.
>> Devin: SCOTT, LASTLY, WHY
DON’T YOU REFLECT ON THAT.
>> I’D KICK BILL’S NUMBER UP TO
15% IN MICHIGAN AND ONE OF THE
PROBLEMS IN THE ’80S, ’90S,
EARLY 2000’S, WE HAD A LOT OF
CORRUPT POLICE OFFICERS IN
HOMICIDE AND THE OTHER END OF
THE EQUATION IS, THEY DIDN’T GET
GOOD REPRESENTATION IN THE WAYNE
COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT.
A LOT OF THEM HAD APPOINTED
LAWYERS WHO WERE BEING PAID
PEANUTS, DIDN’T DO MUCH WORK ON
THE CASE, DIDN’T GET ANY
INVESTIGATORS AND IN AN EFFORT
TO MOVE CASES ON, A LOT OF TIMES
THESE LAWYERS WOULD TALK PEOPLE
INTO PLEADING GUILTY TO CRIMES
THEY DIDN’T EVEN DO AND THESE
PEOPLE ARE NOT ALL ANGELS.
SOMETIMES THEY WERE DOPE MEN AND
THE COPS SAID THEY’RE A THORN IN
OUR SIDE AND DONE ENOUGH TO BE
IN PRISON AND THEY DROP A MURDER
ON THEM.
IT’S CRAZY, AN EYE OPENER.
>> Devin: THE INMATES IN WHOSE
BEHALF YOU BOTH WORK, HAVE
TERRIFIC PEOPLE IN THEIR CORNER.
TERRIFIC REPORTERS AND PERHAPS
EVEN NOW MORE IMPORTANT.
THANKS FOR THE TIME AND KEEP US
POSTED ON THE CASES WE NEED TO
KNOW ABOUT AND GET BEHIND.
>> THANKS, DEVIN.
>> THANKS FOR HAVING US, DEVIN.
>> Devin: YOU BET, GUYS. WRAP THINGS UP AFTER THIS.