Attorney Michael Coard joined Evening WURDs after the National Park Service removed the President’s House slavery memorial in Philadelphia. Coard outlined a lawsuit against the federal government and emphasized the site’s historic significance as the first federal slavery memorial—warning that further dismantling could follow without public and legal pressure.

University of Texas law professor Mechele Dickerson joined Solutions with Amadee Braxton to discuss her book The Middle-Class New Deal: Restoring Upward Mobility and the American Dream. She detailed how rising education and housing costs, “domestic outsourcing,” and gig work erode economic stability, and outlined proposals to rebuild upward mobility through schools-as-hubs, job benefits reform, and zoning changes.

Civil rights attorney and past Minneapolis NAACP President Nekima Levy Armstrong joined Evening WURDs with Dr. James Peterson to share details of ICE abuses of Minnesotans, including Black U.S. citizens. She also discussed her participation in a church protest, for which she was arrested by federal agents the day after her interview on WURD. 

Week on WURD
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“Exonerated: The Cost of Wrongful Conviction” is brought to you by Marrone Law Firm and presented by WURD in partnership with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.

After hearing the powerful firsthand accounts of men who lost decades to wrongful convictions, this culminating conversation turns to what comes next — the fight to change the system itself. In this special two-part panel from Evening WURDs, legal and community leaders connect policy to lived experience, examining how laws, funding, and public will shape justice after freedom.

Part One features LaTrista Webb — Founder of The Elevation Project, Attorney Jarrett Adams — Civil Rights Attorney, author of “Redeeming Justice,” and exonerated individual who co-founded Life After Justice, and Zane Memeger — Executive Director of our “Exonerated” series partner, the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, whose mission is to exonerate those convicted of crimes they did not commit, to prevent innocent people from being prosecuted and convicted, and to help those wrongfully convicted transition to freedom. They unpack case intake, reentry realities, funding gaps, parole practices, and why community presence—in courtrooms and at the polls—matters.

Part Two brings Attorney Keir Bradford-Grey — Head of Civil Rights Litigation at Marrone Law and Attorney Michael Coard — Host of “Radio Courtroom,” Activist, and Criminal Defense Attorney for a clear-eyed look at rights, remedies, and reforms—from recording interrogations to compensation for the exonerated—and the practical steps listeners can take now.

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In 1987, decorated Army veteran William “Bill” Bailey was arrested for the shooting death of his friend and later sentenced to life without parole. The case rested on a single eyewitness who has since recanted and a detective’s claim that Bill confessed—an alleged confession that never appeared in any police file. Decades later, a full records review revealed no documentation of a confession, exculpatory statements from Bill, and information pointing to another perpetrator that was never disclosed. After more than 35 years incarcerated, Bill walked out of SCI Phoenix in April 2024 and reunited with his family. In this conversation, he recounts the “bull’s-eye” photo ID, a courtroom culture of deference to a harsh judge, the military mindset that helped him endure, years of letter-writing from an out-of-state prison, and the gratitude that shapes his life now—alongside the Pennsylvania Innocence Project team he calls family.

“Exonerated: The Cost of Wrongful Conviction” is brought to you by Marrone Law Firm and presented by WURD in partnership with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.

Listen on-demand: Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube | RSS⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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John Miller spent 21 years in prison after a wrongful conviction for second-degree murder, armed robbery, and possession of an instrument of crime—sentenced to life without parole on the strength of faulty witness testimony. Arrested at home and stunned by the charge, John says he immediately “had to get to work,” learning the law, staying on lawyers, and holding his mental ground. In 2010, the Pennsylvania Innocence Project—where John became one of the organization’s first clients—took his case; later, a Brady violation came to light, undermining key testimony. He was exonerated in July 2019. In this conversation, John reflects on resilience over two decades inside and the life he’s built since: entrepreneurship in construction, a disability support agency, trucking—and a mindset focused on moving forward rather than dwelling on what was taken.

“Exonerated: The Cost of Wrongful Conviction” is brought to you by Marrone Law Firm and presented by WURD in partnership with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.

Listen on-demand: Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube | RSS⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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At sixteen, Lance Felder was convicted of a 1995 murder and sentenced to life without parole—despite no physical evidence and a witness who initially failed to identify him. He was placed in solitary confinement, shipped seven hours from home to SCI Albion, and spent fourteen years incarcerated while appeals were denied. Lance describes how faith taught him patience, how a later confession by the real perpetrator changed his case, and what reentry looked like after release—rebuilding basics like a birth certificate and Social Security number. Now an advocate with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project community, he works for policy change and compensation for the wrongfully convicted. This conversation traces his journey from a teenager with a life sentence to a determined voice for reform.

“Exonerated: The Cost of Wrongful Conviction” is brought to you by Marrone Law Firm and presented by WURD in partnership with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.

Listen on-demand: Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube | RSS⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Support independent Black media: ⁠⁠⁠⁠wurdradio.com/support 

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William Johnson spent nearly two decades in prison for a crime he did not commit. In this first episode of Exonerated: The Cost of Wrongful Convictions, he sits down with Dr. James Peterson to tell his story—how misconduct and false testimony led to his conviction, how he kept his mind strong in prison, and what it means to come home after 18 years.

In 2009, William was wrongfully convicted of a 2005 murder, two years after a first trial ended without a conviction. At his retrial, written statements from a co-defendant who had already admitted lying—and refused to testify—were used against him. The Pennsylvania Innocence Project later uncovered major flaws in the case, including problems with key witness testimony, an undisclosed recantation, and DNA evidence that supported William’s innocence. In 2023, the Commonwealth asked the court to dismiss the charges, citing egregious constitutional violations. In this conversation, William shares the toll of losing 18 years, the routines that helped him survive, and the challenges of coming home. He also reflects on the Pennsylvania Innocence Project’s life-changing advocacy and what it means to rebuild after freedom finally arrives.

“Exonerated: The Cost of Wrongful Conviction” is brought to you by Marrone Law Firm and presented in partnership with the Pennsylvania Innocence Project.