Interview With Jarrett Adams Post Exoneration — Transcript

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1. 0:00my name is Jeremiah Reese Adams I am a
2. 0:02recent graduate from Loyola Law School
3. 0:05in Chicago right now I'm studying for
4. 0:07the New York New Jersey bar pretty much
5. 0:10you know I am NOT you a typical law
6. 0:13student I made it to law school when I
7. 0:17was turning 31 I had you know a
8. 0:22difficult road to get there you know
9. 0:24before I was a law student I was a
10. 0:26wrongfully convicted person who was
11. 0:29sentenced to serve 28 years in prison I
12. 0:32close I served close to 10 years in
13. 0:34prison before the West constant
14. 0:36innocence project came litigated my case
15. 0:39and my conviction was overturned on a
16. 0:41habeas petition in a seventh circuit no
17. 0:43I mean I had in my background like
18. 0:46construction so you know my father and
19. 0:48stuff like that so I more than likely
20. 0:50would have been in construction what you
21. 0:52know really started me on this path was
22. 0:55this I recognize and realize first and
23. 0:58foremost like I didn't do it I wasn't
24. 1:00guilty but I realized that my experience
25. 1:03with the law was just law and order and
26. 1:05that's not the way it plays out in a
27. 1:07courtroom so there are a lot of things
28. 1:09that you know were a factor in my
29. 1:11wrongful conviction and one of the
30. 1:13things was we didn't have the resources
31. 1:15at all to afford an adequate defense and
32. 1:18you know what i saw in prison pales in
33. 1:23comparison to the wrinkles and creases
34. 1:25in language that i saw my mother's
35. 1:26forehead every time that she would come
36. 1:28and see me so haven't looked at that for
37. 1:3110 years waiting on appeals it inspired
38. 1:34me to go and get a law degree to be able
39. 1:37to bring a different aspect to the
40. 1:40clients to the courtroom to the judges
41. 1:42and you know hopefully prevent those
42. 1:45same wrinkles and creases of anguish
43. 1:47from ever being on someone else's
44. 1:49forehead because they can't afford their
45. 1:52son or daughter an adequate defense what
46. 1:55maddening amazing chapter two my life
47. 1:58story if it's that i actually have a
48. 2:01dual fellowship it's the unfunded
49. 2:03position but it gives me the opportunity
50. 2:05to work with a judge in the seventh
51. 2:08circuit the same circuit that over time
52. 2:10I can
53. 2:11and I do six months in the seventh
54. 2:13circuit then I go on to do six months in
55. 2:15a Southern District of New York that
56. 2:18that's an opportunity to be under the
57. 2:20arms of a judge learning how to write
58. 2:23learning how to articulate to them the
59. 2:26points in a way in which they want to
60. 2:28see it what that does is this that
61. 2:30allows me to go and get that training to
62. 2:33be the best to represent the clients
63. 2:35that I represent and those clients will
64. 2:38be indigent clients clients who can't
65. 2:40afford a defense but it just so happens
66. 2:42that you know I am taking this next year
67. 2:46to go and get the training to divide
68. 2:49them or one of the best of the best well
69. 2:52the funny thing is is I learned about
70. 2:54acs on my way out of Loyola through
71. 2:58Megan Paulus who is a staff member and
72. 3:01runs the chicago chapter it you know
73. 3:04just think about it I came home on a
74. 3:06federal habeas corpus petition and
75. 3:09basically what that is is challenge of
76. 3:12the state by way of a federal vehicle to
77. 3:16say my constitutional rights were
78. 3:17violated by not being provided in
79. 3:20adequate defense my conviction was
80. 3:22overturned because my lawyer was
81. 3:24ineffective and I didn't get an adequate
82. 3:26defense that revolves around the
83. 3:28Constitution the Constitution and the
84. 3:31amendments in my opinion are living and
85. 3:34breathing document each and every
86. 3:36opinion changes it and it is it is it is
87. 3:40you know interpreted it differently with
88. 3:42every case that is decided when you have
89. 3:44something like that you have hope that
90. 3:47the injustice is in the world can always
91. 3:50be changed because the Constitution the
92. 3:54words meant and remain the same but the
93. 3:56decisions make it interpret it
94. 3:58differently a lot of students come into
95. 4:01law school and they have you know dreams
96. 4:05of working at the big firms and stuff
97. 4:07like that there are only so many big
98. 4:10firms and if you don't basically get a
99. 4:14four-point-oh or know someone or
100. 4:15something like that you don't have the
101. 4:16opportunity to summer with them and to
102. 4:19get into the door acs operas you are
103. 4:21offers you the
104. 4:22opportunity to network with the big law
105. 4:26firms at events like this and you never
106. 4:28know when you're going to be in a
107. 4:31networking event and meet someone that's
108. 4:33going to help you become someone so the
109. 4:35opportunities are there you don't have
110. 4:38many opportunities when you're just
111. 4:41sending in a resume on paper and stuff
112. 4:43and you know people are deciding that
113. 4:44way but when you come to acs and you
114. 4:47come to the event you have the
115. 4:48opportunity to shake hands and to speak
116. 4:51with the people who can can definitely
117. 4:53help you in your career absolutely you
118. 4:55know my law school experience was so
119. 4:57different i had to work full time and
120. 4:59you know just to get through school you
121. 5:02know so if i can help you know another
122. 5:05student who doesn't have to work and i
123. 5:08can help them get involved with you know
124. 5:10a organization I mean listen I'm not
125. 5:14making this up ACS is definitely a place
126. 5:17where students should get involved that
127. 5:19you have the opportunity to meet a lot
128. 5:21of people who can help the staff you
129. 5:23know wants to help they find joy in your
130. 5:26victories so I mean I would definitely
131. 5:28be involved because Chicago and Loyola
132. 5:31where I graduated from the students
133. 5:34don't know much about it so I go back
134. 5:37this fall and I'm an adjunct professor
135. 5:38and while i'm there i am going to spread
136. 5:41the word about how you know amazing this
137. 5:43organization is and just how
138. 5:45far-reaching they are in different
139. 5:46states I think we've pretty much covered
140. 5:48it again I'm this isn't made up or
141. 5:51anything like that my reading from a
142. 5:52script I'm being completely honest with
143. 5:54you becoming a lawyer it's more than
144. 5:58just you know suit coats and ties and
145. 6:02being able to bring in big you know
146. 6:04salaries you have the opportunity to
147. 6:07affect someone's life for the rest of
148. 6:09their life and once school and stuff is
149. 6:12over you really want to be a part of a
150. 6:16world that gives you the opportunity to
151. 6:18do you know I leave your mark on this
152. 6:20world as really happy I feel like you
153. 6:23know everyone has their time on this
154. 6:25earth so why not become a part of
155. 6:28something
156. 6:29that leaves their mark on his urn