The New York Times investigated the post-exoneration lives of the 206 former inmates who were wrongfully convicted and released through DNA evidence. Fifty-three of the cases involved murder convictions, and more than 25% of those wrongfully convicted had given a false confession or incriminating statement. Working from a list provided by the Innocence Project, the Times gathered information on 137 of the 206 exonerees and were able to interview 115 of those. They found that most DNA-exonerees have “struggled to keep jobs, pay for health care, rebuild family ties and shed the psychological effects of years of questionable or wrongful imprisonment.” Lack of adequate financial compensation only exacerbates the hardships after release.

Compensation for wrongful incarceration varies by state. Of the cases the Times investigated, nearly 40% received no compensation for their time in prison, almost half received at least $50,000 for each year in prison, and the remainder were convicted in states that offer no compensation for wrongful imprisonment. The average time spent in prison for a wrongful conviction was 12 years. Many had to wait almost 2 years before receiving compensation, and even then, they received less government services than paroled prisoners. One exoneree stated, “It’s ridiculous. They have programs for drug dealers who get out of prison. They have programs for people who really do commit crimes. People get out and go in halfway houses and have all kinds of support. There are housing programs for them, job placement for them. But for the innocent, they have nothing.”

After spending 16 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, Jeffrey Mark Deskovic was exonerated by DNA evidence and released from prison in New York. Deskovic was convicted of the 1989 rape and murder of fellow high school student. He was 17 at the time. Now 34, he is trying to get back on his feet – a difficult process with little governmental support, according to the Times.

For the six months following his release, Deskovic received less than $300 a month from the government for both disability and food stamps. He subsidizes his income through speeches and editorials about wrongful convictions. The federal civil rights lawsuit against the police that coerced his confession and other officials involved in the case, as well as a claim against New York seeking financial compensation for wrongful imprisonment, are still pending. Deskovic, soon to graduate from Mercy College with a B.A. in Behavioral Sciences, still has difficulties adjusting to his freedom. “Sometimes, I feel that the only difference from here to prison is that I don’t have bars on my windows. I’m free, but I’m trapped, and no matter how much I run, I’ll never make up for the lost time.”
(“Free and Uneasy: Vindicated by DNA, but a Lost Man on the Outside” by Fernanda Santos, and “A Long Road Back After Exoneration, and Justice Is Slow to Make Amends” by Jane Roberts and Elizabeth Stanton, The New York Times, Nov. 25, 2007). See also Innocence.