Notre Dame Stories

Andy Royer confessed in 2003 to strangling a 94-year-old woman who lived in his apartment building in Elkhart, Indiana. But Royer, who has mental challenges that make him seem childlike despite his huge size, then asked if he could just go home. Confessions are convincing to juries. Most people are surprised to learn that they are sometimes given by the innocent. Royer was convicted and given a sentence of 55 years.

After three earlier attempts failed, the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic won his release after 16 years – the first of what law students and faculty leaders hope are a string of successful petitions. In episode three of this six-part series, we hear about Royer’s legal troubles from his mother, himself and his attorney. But our main guide is former Notre Dame law student Paula Ortiz Cardona, who worked on his case during her three years on campus.

In episode two of this six-part series, we hear the story of Keith Cooper’s 20-year odyssey to clear his name of a crime he didn’t commit in a town he hardly knew. Cooper tells the story in his words, starting with his arrest in 1997 based on a description of a crime by someone tall, thin and black. Mistaken witness identifications led to a speedy bench-trial conviction and a 40-year sentence. New scientific evidence weakened the case against Cooper, and in 2006 he chose to give up his claim to innocence so he could help his struggling family. It took another 11 years of struggle to win the first pardon based on actual innocence in Indiana history.

Episode one of this six-part series traces the origins of the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic’s rapid growth over the last four years. It began as a student volunteer club in 2016 with some awareness and advocacy events. The students launched into action after a visit from Keith Cooper, the only person in Indiana history to receive a governor’s pardon based on actual innocence, and his attorney, Elliot Slosar. They focused their legal assistance on Slosar’s cases in Elkhart, Indiana, a city about a half hour from Notre Dame’s campus. After recruiting faculty member Jimmy Gurulé, their efforts turned into a class and this year into the University’s sixth legal clinic. Club founder and first president Tia Paulette guides listeners through this evolution.

Thousands of people across the country are penned in prisons for crimes they didn’t commit. Want proof? More than 2,700 prisoners have been legally exonerated over the last 30 years, largely through the work of crusading lawyers and legal students.

Notre Dame law students, inspired by meeting a nearby example of this tragedy, pushed to get involved in overturning wrongful convictions. With guidance from Chicago attorney Elliot Slosar and faculty member Jimmy Gurulé, the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic is now on the case. Our series, Proving Innocence, takes you inside this legal effort through a handful of individual stories.

In one of our most popular episodes, Notre Dame astrophysicist Grant Mathews unpacks his research into what the Christmas Star may have been.

As the real estate market rebounds, more people are thinking about what makes a perfect home. School of Architecture professor Marianne Cusato, industry leader in the home building industry and one of the top women in real estate according to Fortune Magazine, has earned international acclaim for the Katrina cottage, an attractive, well-built home that could be deployed in case of emergency.

In her book, "The Just Right Home," Cusato suggests criteria for home buying and community that is, at times, contrarian to some of today’s popular home buying trends.

As the national conversation about race and policing took shape over the summer, questions began surfacing about how police departments would respond. At Notre Dame, they were already working on an answer.

Guests: Keri Kei Shibata, Chief, Notre Dame Police Department; Mike Seamon, Vice President for Campus Safety and University Operations; Matty Aubourg '21, Black Student Association of Notre Dame

As the University prepares to confer degrees on the Class of 2020, we speak with the class valedictorian, Brady Stiller, about this unique moment in Notre Dame history.

In this episode, we examine two connections shown in dramatic ways during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, the connection between humankind and the planet: We speak with a climate scientist on how the economic shutdown is impacting the planet, and how coronavirus could be a template for the fight against climate change. Then, we explore the connection between doctor and patient, and how the science of compassion is on full display.

Guests: Jason McLachlan, associate professor of biological sciences Dominic Vachon; John G. Sheedy, M.D., Director of the Ruth M. Hillebrand Center for Compassionate Care. "When Irish Eyes are Smiling" arranged by David Tran

As campus shuts down amid the COVID-19 pandemic, we speak with Paolo Mazzara ’23, an undergrad who is spending quarantine aiding Italian healthcare workers.