For the Innocent: A Podcast About Wrongful Convictions, Legal Failures, Prison, True Crime, Forensic Science, and Criminal Justice
Hosted by Michael Semanchik, For the Innocent exposes the shocking reality of wrongful convictions through raw, first-person stories from the exonerated. Season 3 returns September 9th featuring powerful accounts from Amanda Knox, JJ Velasquez, Bruce Lisker— three exonerees whose names have become synonymous with injustice— and more. Through their voices, uncover how the justice system failed them, what it took to win back their freedom, and the lifelong impact of being branded guilty while innocent. Plus, hear legal and criminal experts break down the systemic flaws from false confessions and eyewitness misidentifications to flawed forensic science and corrupt police officers. This season...
Episodes
A Murdered Cop and a Mishandled Mugshot – JJ Velazquez’s Wrongful Conviction
In 1998, a retired NYPD officer was shot and killed inside an illegal gambling parlor. Angry cops wanted speedy justice for one of their own, and an overzealous, incautious investigation ensued. A witness to the shooting with a criminal pas…
The Collapse of a Conviction: How an LAPD Cop and Two Journalists Unraveled the Case Against Bruce Lisker
At just 17 years old, Bruce Lisker was branded a murderer after being accused and convicted of the violent killing of his mother. He would go on to spend the next 26 years of his life in prison, until a federal judge finally overturned his …
A Deceitful Detective & Manipulated Evidence – The Wrongful Conviction of Bruce Lisker
In 1983, Bruce Lisker’s mother was violently attacked in their family home. After responding to his frantic 911 call, police quickly drew assumptions from the chaotic crime scene. Dorka Lisker was bludgeoned, stabbed several times, and near…
Breaking Down the Amanda Knox Case: Facts vs. Frenzy
To this day, some still believe Amanda Knox is guilty of the horrific murder of Meredith Kercher in 2007. However, this belief appears to stem entirely from the wildly sensational media coverage surrounding her supposed involvement. Thoroug…
The Amanda Knox Story: Her Fight for Justice on the Global Stage
Suffering is part of the human experience, but most of us are granted the dignity of processing our pain and healing in private. For Amanda Knox, that has never been an option. As she herself puts it, “The worst experience of my life is the…
Amanda Knox, JJ Velasquez, and More | For The Innocent Season 3 Trailer
Hosted by Michael Semanchik, For the Innocent exposes the shocking reality of wrongful convictions through raw, first-person stories from the exonerated. Season 3 returns September 9th featuring powerful accounts from Amanda Knox, JJ Velasq…
Evidence Preservation: Who’s Responsible and What Happens When It’s Lost or Destroyed
At the moment of conviction, the incentive to safeguard evidence diminishes in the eyes of the Criminal Justice System. That’s why it is critically important to act quickly to ensure evidence remains available for future appeals. Without it…
The Luis Vargas Story: Misidentified as the “Teardrop Rapist”
Luis Vargas was wrongfully convicted after three separate witnesses misidentified him as the “Teardrop Rapist.” Sixteen years later, DNA linked to the uncaught serial sex offender was found in one of the victim’s clothing from the crime. Bu…
Eyewitness Misidentifications
In the first 325 DNA exonerations, false identification accounted for 72% of the wrongful convictions. But how is that possible? The simplest explanation is that we are not as good at identifying each other as we think. Add to that a fright…
The Guy Miles Story: How Flawed Eyewitness Identification Led to 18 Years in Prison
Guy Miles was wrongfully convicted after being misidentified by an eyewitness during a robbery investigation in Orange County, California. Although he had once been involved in gangs during his youth, he left that life behind and moved to N…
Dark Pleas: Trading Innocence for Freedom in Post Conviction Deals
Imagine being in prison for decades. You’ve been fighting your appeal for many years. Your lawyer believes you’ll get a new trial but there is no guarantee that you’ll win your freedom. Suddenly, the prosecution offers a plea deal. You can …
Angela’s Story: A Dark Plea in Exchange for Freedom
On November 20th 1999, Angela Garcia’s home caught on fire. Surprised and crawling in the dark, she was not able to find her children before the blaze forced her to jump out of a 2nd floor window. She ran to get help but tragically her chil…
Plea Deals: Why Innocent People Give Up and Go to Prison
Believe it or not, there are many reasons to plead guilty when you’re not.-----Plea deals are necessary to fight crime. Without them, our criminal justice system would grind to a halt, and the bad guys would run free. The downside is that p…
Marilyn’s Story: A Plea Deal Turned Deadly
Marilyn Mulero was wrongfully suspected of a Chicago gang murder in 1992. Naive to the criminal justice system, she was frightened into signing a statement by threats of the death penalty from law enforcement. Failing to adequately investig…
Junk Science - Undoing the Damage
When forensic evidence gets it wrong, how do we free the innocent?-----In our history of criminal prosecutions, some types of evidence ended up being unreliable. Forensic sciences like bite-mark identification, arson investigations, and sha…
Junk Science - Shaken Baby Syndrome
In the 1980s and 1990s, Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) was a popular medical theory used to arrest and convict innocent parents of fatally abusing their children. Unknown at the time, this theory was severely scientifically flawed. Unfortunatel…
Junk Science - Bloodstains & Bite Marks
What happens when forensic science is later found to be false?-----Forensic science is a cornerstone of our criminal justice system. Unfortunately, not all sciences used to prosecute people are reliable. So what happens when forensic scienc…
Zavion’s Story
A Minor Accident Turns Fatal-----Zavion Johnson was bathing his four month old daughter when she slipped from his grasp and hit her head on the tub. He immediately checked her for injuries but found nothing. Tragically, she harbored unseen …
Season 2 Begins
The Lives and Stories of the Wrongfully Convicted-----Welcome back listeners. There is so much left to cover. In upcoming episodes, we will explore topics like Junk Science, Plea deals, Eyewitness Misidentifications, and Evidence Preservati…
False Confessions (Part 2)
Despite best intentions, parents can be their child’s worst enemy during an investigation. And innocent people can know the same facts that only guilty criminals do. But how are these things possible? In this part two of two, we talk all ab…
False Confessions (Part 1)
It’s the most intriguing question about our criminal justice system. Why do innocent people confess to crimes they didn’t commit? As strange as it seems, it happens regularly and for a variety of reasons like investigator deception, false e…
Marty’s Story (Part 2)
Marty Tankleff was wrongfully convicted of murdering his parents in 1990. Innocent and very young, he would learn the legal system well enough to win his freedom. In the process, Marty would uncover the criminals and deep corruption that ki…
Marty’s Story (Part 1)
Marty Tankleff was only 17 when his parents were murdered in their Belle Terre home in Long Island, New York. When he needed help from adults the most, he was subjected to a frightening interrogation as a person-of-interest. Traumatized, co…
More Episodes Dropping Soon!
So far, we’ve heard from Brian Banks and Uriah Courtney about false accusations and DNA evidence. Coming up in mid-May, we’re going to talk with Marty Tankleff about his false confession and why he admitted to a crime despite being complete…
False Accusations
People are falsely accused of crimes all the time. It’s bad enough when it happens by accident, but it’s even worse when the accuser has something to gain from it. Join us as we explore the role of jailhouse informants and confidential sour…
Brian Banks' Story - Part 3
Welcome to the final episode of our three-part series on the remarkable story of Brian Banks. In this episode, we will delve deeper into the challenges that Brian faced after his release from prison. We also hear about the pivotal moment wh…
Brian Banks' Story - Part 2
In this episode, we hear more of Brian’s story, a high school football player who had his life turned upside down when he was wrongfully convicted of rape and sentenced to 5 years in prison. This episode delves deep into the traumatic exper…
Brian Banks' Story - Part 1
In 2002, Brian Banks was a 17-year-old high school football star with a promising future ahead of him. He was getting the attention of Division 1 teams at major universities and was on the brink of making his dreams come true. Unfortunately…
New Episodes Coming Very Soon!
We still have much to cover in Season 1 with topics like False Accusations, False Confessions, Junk Science, and Plea Deals. In short order, we’ll hear from exonerees like Brian Banks, Marty Tankleff, Luis Vargas, and Marilyn Mulero. Stay t…
DNA Evidence (Part 2)
DNA testing is the most powerful tool for freeing the innocent. But without evidence to test, it’s useless... leaving many wrongfully convicted people without hope. That’s why it’s critical to preserve every piece of evidence in your case. …
DNA Evidence (Part 1)
Since its origins, DNA evidence has both convicted the guilty and exonerated the innocent. Despite its amazing abilities, this forensic science has not always been a slam dunk. In addition to reliability issues, its misapplication has led t…
Uriah’s Story
Uriah Courtney was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to life for kidnapping and rape. Despite having a solid alibi, a series of coincidences and past drug offenses convinced law enforcement that they had their man. Although his case looked…
Welcome to For the Innocent
Despite best intentions, our criminal justice system is not perfect. Innocent people are frequently accused, convicted, and sent to prison for crimes they didn’t commit. On this show, we explore how this happens by talking with real-life ex…