Innocence Project offers MJHS students real-world perspective

Nov. 30—Students in a criminal justice class at Mt. Juliet High School are getting a crash course through the judicial system.

Their teacher hopes to inspire them to right societal wrongs.

Tyrone White's criminal-justice students have been learning about the Innocence Project, a non-profit legal organization that is committed to exonerating individuals who have been wrongly convicted, through the use of DNA testing. It also aims to reform the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice.

By examining these cases, students are able to see where the cases went wrong, how evidence can be improperly stored, and how the justice system doesn't always get the right person.

The students had a chance to participate in a couple of forums that were recently held in Middle Tennessee and hosted by the Innocence Project. In Nashville, one of the students, freshman Micah White was able to volunteer at a plated dinner in Nashville, where famed American attorney Barry Scheck was the keynote speaker.

Scheck is known for his role as a defense attorney in the O.J. Simpson trial, but he is also one of the founders of the Innocence Project.

Through the experience, White said that what caught her attention the most was learning "how many people around the country have been locked up and later found to be innocent."

White also mentioned that seeing the turnout at the event gave her optimism.

"We're slowly making progress in lowering those rates and numbers," White said.

The other event was held in Mt. Juliet at Grace United Methodist Church. It featured Jessica Van Dyke, executive director and lead counsel of the Tennessee Innocence Project, as well as the sister of one inmate the project is attempting to exonerate.

By engaging in the Innocence Project's work, these students are getting up close and personal with a couple of cases, including Pervis Payne, a Memphis man convicted of double homicide, and Adam Braseel, a first-degree murder convict who was freed last year.

Physical evidence against Braseel was absent from the case that sent a 24-year old to prison for a Grundy County killing based almost entirely on eyewitness identification. The elements of evidence examination take on a tangible relevance when paired with coursework in White's classroom.

Students in White's class elaborated on how the Innocence Project links conceptual aspects to real-world scenarios. As an example, freshman Lucas Taylor explained how that back splatter, or in this case, the lack of, could be useful in exonerating Payne.

"A lot of times, evidence was overlooked, like in the case of Pervis Payne," Taylor said. "There was DNA evidence that was not taken into account.

"By the number of times she was stabbed, back splatter, or the blood projecting backwards towards force that's been applied, should have been on his shirt, but it wasn't."

For the students, the gravity of the sentences is conveyed through emotional cues. Taylor, who attended the forum event at Grace United Methodist Church, said that Payne's sister's testimony was compelling.

"Payne's sister believed that (he was coming home) until she realized what a struggle it would be," Taylor said. "It really hit me hard, because I couldn't imagine one of my siblings being wrongly convicted and me having to spend every Christmas without them."

One week before Thanksgiving, the Shelby County District Attorney officially removed the call for Payne's execution, citing a state expert's testimony that Payne's "intellectual functioning is outside the range for intellectual disability."

Payne's legal team continues to fight for his exoneration.

The course is having an impact on the future ambitions of White's students as well. Sophomore Amy Bali said that she wants to attend law school after getting an undergraduate degree, to equip herself for the legal fights that play out over cases like these.

While a law degree might take a few more years, the students aren't wasting any time.

"As high-schoolers, we may not have as much impact as adults, but I think collectively, we spread word over social media, and do everything we can to insert ourselves into the Innocence Project's mission," sophomore student Katelyn Oyston said.

The students compiled a public service announcement that they uploaded to various platforms and sent to multiple influential criminal-justice icons, like John Grisham. In the 30-second video, students can be seen urging Grisham to take a closer look at Payne's case.

Outcomes in cases may be decided ultimately by a jury, but these students are determined to keep an eye on the process and fight the battles they can to help restore justice in the Volunteer State.