This episode of The Checkpoint podcast is sponsored by The North Face®️.

In episode 5 we speak with Huwe Burton. Huwe is a cousin of Black Trail Runners co-founder Sonny Peart. He is a two-time New York Marathon finisher, who took up running while serving a life sentence for murder. In 1989, aged 16, he was convicted of killing his mother. He served 20 years in prison before being released on parole in 2009. In 2019, with the help of the Innocence Project, his conviction, based on a forced confession, was overturned, and he was exonerated.

The police officers and District Attorney who conspired in his wrongful conviction, have yet to account for their actions.

Huwe talks with remarkable clarity about the circumstances of his case, about its historical context, how he continues to campaign for law officers who knowingly sent him to jail to be brought to justice, and how running helped him come to terms with incarceration, release and subsequent exoneration.

With so much ground to cover – 20 lost years of life – this is the first of a two-part conversation. The second part will be released as episode 6 in a few days. You can follow Huwe on Facebook @ Huwe M Burton. You can follow Black Trail Runners on Instagram @blacktrailrunners.

You can support the Innocence Project at innocenceproject.org, and follow them on Instagram @innocenceproject.