"The Boston College Innocence Program has been remarkably successful at overturning the convictions of people who have been wrongfully incarcerated. Working together, the school’s faculty and students had freed four wrongfully convicted inmates in just two years.
This was a story we really wanted to tell, but we were determined to do so in a way that would entice readers who might normally flip past something so earnest. Rather than present a newsy account of the initiative's successes, we decided to tell the story via a narrative about the most recent exoneree, a young woman named Frances Choy. Her life and case form the backbone of the piece, while segments about inequalities in the American criminal justice system, the history of innocence programs in this country, and the background of BC’s program are strategically woven throughout.
The result was a piece that connected with readers and drove such reader response that we didn’t have space to run all the letters."
From the Judges
Excellent story. Focusing on one exoneree propels this story and balances well with the historical research that rounds out this feature.
