Update! December 20, 2014

Thanks to all who have helped raise over $2000!  Now, let's keep the ball rolling and shoot for $3000! Only 64 hours left to make a tax-deductible contribution to a deserving cause, before the campaign ends! Thanks also to Eric Pfeiffer for his thoughtful article on NotImpossibleNow.com for his thoughtful article on Lacino Hamilton.  The article is an in-depth summary of our campaign and the values we represent.  Thanks to all who have helped Lacino take one step forward to freedom!

Lacino Hamilton is an Innocent Man!

Lacino Hamilton is an African-American man from Detroit who has been in prison for twenty years for a crime he did not commit.  He was a young kid from the streets, twenty years old, when he was picked up, charged, and convicted.

The crime Lacino Hamilton is accused of is the murder of his foster mother, whom he adored.  At first, the police picked up someone named Darius (alias) and tried to charge him with the crime. When the police weren't able to charge Darius with the murder they chose to target Lacino, They put Darius in a cell with a known jailhouse informant who had AIDS. The informant tried to elicit a statement from Darius to the effect that Lacino committed the murder. The informant threatened to bite Darius and infect him if he did not sign a statement against Lacino, and of course Darius signed it.  

The jailhouse informant died, but his statement that Darius had confessed to him that Lacino was the murderer was introduced as evidence in court. Darius himself refused to testify, and there was no opportunity to cross examine the informant, meaning that there was truly no evidence that Lacino was guilty.

Since then, he has lost on all his appeals due to the testimony of the jailhouse informant.  There is absolutely no evidence, aside from the tainted statement made by the jailhouse informant, that Lacino Hamilton did anything wrong.

                                  

Here is Lacino Hamilton’s story in his own words:
The first sixteen years of incarceration, I mailed close to 5,000 letters to lawyers, colleges, journalists, just about anyone with an address. I thought that if they knew I had been in prison for so many years for a crime I am 100 percent factually innocent of, they would assist. Well, very few letters were responded to until I wrote to Claudia.  The phone calls, the googles, the e-mails, the request for files, documents, and an audience with the principles in this case, have produced what I, what even my trial and appeals attorneys were not able to produce.  The simple truth is this case has progressed more in the past three years due to Claudia’s assistance, than all other efforts on the case combined.

If you are skeptical about this story, please check out these links:
Prison for profit - how innocent people end up in jail
10,000 Innocent People Convicted Each Year, Study Estimates
26 year secret kept innocent man in prison
If you find this disturbing, you can make a tax-deductible contribution to our cause, and help at least one innocent man.

At present, NDRAN is trying to raise $10,000 to help with Lacino Hamilton’s legal fees.

If everyone donates just $5, our goal will soon be reached!

There is, in fact, a lawyer who is willing to work with NDRAN’s investigative services to free Lacino Hamilton, if only the money can be raised.  There are multiple statements from witnesses available to work with that will help prove his innocence and bring the case back into court.

Honorary Mention:
Hooray!  You are a great person to care about Lacino Hamilton, and every donation counts!  Thank you very much for your contribution.

Carl Pfeiffer: Thank you very much for your contribution on December 13, 2014!

You may ask “aren’t people who are in prison guilty?”

In fact, many people in prison, and even on death row are innocent.  Some statistics say there might be as many as 10% of the incarcerated who are actually innocent.  The use of eyewitness testimony, interrogations that are not videotaped or taped, false confessions, and jailhouse informants all lead to wrongful convictions.

                      

If you donate to this cause, all of your money will go to offset the high cost of litigation, and help at least one innocent man. (except that which is deducted by Indiegogo.)

NDRAN - Stands for National Death Row Assistance Network of CURE.  CURE is an international prisoner advocacy organization with chapters in most states and several issue chapters.  NDRAN is the death penalty chapter but it also includes cases of people with Life Without Parole sentences. 

NDRAN’s track record includes one person exonerated, seven paroled, and several pending with various innocence projects.

Partial List of people NDRAN has helped: Jeffrey Deskovic (exonerated).  Willie Tucker, Stephen Fraley, Sammy Lee Carter, Charles Wakefield Jr.,  Richard Auldridge, Karl Vinson,  Desmond Ricks, Larry Smith, Artez Hammonds, Rodney Carr,  Michelle Bankston

                                 

Claudia Whitman, the woman behind the scenes:
Claudia has been working hard for over twenty years to help innocent people in prison.  During this time she has not taken a salary for herself, but has donated all her time for this cause that she is passionate about.

Testimonials:
Desmond Ricks:  I am from Detroit, Michigan. I have been incarcerated for the last 21 years for Second Degree Murder, a crime that both I and the Detroit Police Department know I did not commit! The story that I share with so many other African American men that live in the city of Detroit is a simple one. The majority of us have been victims of the corruption and injustice in the system that has ran rampant in the City of Detroit for decades.

Before meeting Claudia I had no way to fight, no help, no resources, and no way of moving forward. To be completely frank, there was no light at the end of the tunnel. After meeting Claudia, my life was completely transformed. She has literally been responsible for me being able to obtain all of the vital documents that will ultimately allow me to prove my innocence, and regain my freedom.  Among other things she tracked down was the only witness in my case who actually saw the real perpetrator who committed this crime.  This person is now willing to help.  Claudia connected me with the University of Michigan Innocence Clinic and jointly, they are investigating my case.  Without Claudia's help I would be lost!

Jesse Agnew:  If it had not been for the blessing of Mrs. Win Wahrer from AIDWYC (Association in Defense of the Wrongfully Convicted) sending Ms. Claudia Whitman, I do not know where I would be in seeking to prove that I am innocent! This kind soul has brought hope and justice to the people who needed help when others would not stand up for them.  Claudia Whitman views others as being as important as she is when it comes to justice. And she is a very humble soul here on Earth. Thank you once again Claudia, for your time and kindness in helping us fight for justice here in Michigan as well in the city Of Detroit.

                     

   

Karl Vinson:  My story starts on the third of January, 1986. I was charged with 1st Degree Criminal Sexual Misconduct in the rape of a 9 year old former acquaintance. I did not commit this offense, but I was tried, convicted, and sentenced to 10 to 50 years' imprisonment, despite my clean criminal record.  After 20 years of my incarceration, Claudia Whitman came into my life to help prove my innocence! She sent Sandra Girard, a Michigan attorney and then a Ph.D. chemist from Lake Superior State University, to my prison. They took blood and saliva and tested it to see if the prosecutor was telling the truth, in saying that I was a "non-secretor.”  This means my blood type cannot be seen in my "other" bodily fluids. I called Claudia one day and she gave me the good news that I'm a secretor, which contradicts the prosecutor's lies! When I was declared a secretor, Claudia contacted the Michigan Innocence Clinic, and Bridget McCormack, Dave Moran, and a host of student attorneys filed litigation in my case as they relentlessly pursued justice. We are now in the Michigan Supreme Court awaiting a ruling.

Larry Darnell Smith:  Here is how your hard work has helped me in my plight for freedom.  Everything you have done has been big, has been important.  Your investigation brought me together with other prisoners who were convicted with faulty crime lab evidence and jail house snitches and police misconduct.  Information you shared with my lawyer showed that there was conspiracy by the police. Without your help I don’t know where I could be, but with it, I know I’ll be free soon!  Your work is and has been instrumental to the search for answers, the search for liberation.  Thanks, Claudia.  Your work has meant the world to me and my family.

Please add NDRAN and Claudia Whitman to your Facebook friends in order to follow the progress of this campaign!

Please follow @WhitmanClaudia on Twitter!

Where to go for more information:ndran.org

You may also add a comment to this site asking for more information, and it will be answered.

With your help, Lacino Hamilton may stand a chance of finally being free.

Please Donate $5 or More Today!

                                            

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