“Over time, hidden truths morph in the dark soil of deceit into something much worse.” ― Patti Callahan Henry, Between the Tides David Thorne is an innocent man who is serving a life sentence without parole for allegedly hiring an acquaintance, Joe Wilkes, to kill the mother of his son, Yvonne Layne. In January 2000, after five […]
[Havard] argues… “newly discovered evidence debunking shaken baby syndrome proves he is actually innocent of capital murder.” [The state] disagrees. “But first, [the state] would note that actual innocence does not entitle [Jeff Havard] to relief. ‘Actual innocence is a gateway claim made by petitioners in order to receive review of an otherwise procedurally barred […]
Poet, songwriter and community activist Nyki Kish is currently serving a life sentence for a murder she did not commit. Nyki was charged and convicted in 2011 for the stabbing death of Ross Hammond, an internet porn marketing executive with no physical evidence and despite multiple eye witnesses accounts that all verified her story. Justice […]
“When pigs fly, wrongful convictions will be dust in the wind.” Too cynical? Perhaps. The story I’m about to tell you will shock some, but not those who follow wrongful convictions. Hopefully, it will shed some light on the precarious dance between a media who wants “its dirt” and law enforcement who wants “its perp.” […]
Crime myths are falsehoods that grow into public ‘truisms’, told and retold over time, or sensationalised to create “moral” mythologies surrounding a crime. This type of mythmaking is usually aimed at specific groups (i.e. femme fatale, black youth, the homeless, etc.) or behaviours (i.e. panhandling or fatal attractions) that are flagged as potential threats to […]
Dear jailer Hello. I just wanted to say hello. You see me everyday But you never say hello. You’ve yelled at me before You’ve touched my body before You’ve written reports on me before, But you’ve never said hello. Excerpt from A Poem written by Nyki Kish from her cell at the Grand Valley Institution for […]
SPOTTED COUCH 
November 5, 2014
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