Voices of Innocence Duke Law Innocence Project

On the final episode of this season of Voices of Innocence, we talk to Donate Sharpe and Professor Theresa Newman about Dontae’s pardon. Dontae was pardoned by the North Carolina governor on November 12, 2021. Professor Newman explains the pardon process and we catch up with Dontae. This episode was hosted by our new host, Jasmine Rivera.

On this week’s episode, Voices of Innocence sits down with Caitlin Swain. Caitlin is a Duke Law graduate who worked on Dontae’s case in the Wrongful Convictions Clinic under Theresa Newman and James Coleman. She discusses how she met Dontae, how he changed the trajectory of her life, and how he inspired the creation of Forward Justice. Currently, Caitlin works alongside Dontae at Forward Justice, a non-profit in Durham that seeks to advance racial justice. Caitlin qualifies Dontae’s desire to make a positive change within the criminal justice system through his work at Forward Justice and provides ways for the listeners to support the non-profits mission.

This week Megan talks with Duke Law professors Jamie Lau and Jim Coleman about their work in the Duke Law Wrongful Convictions Clinic. They explain how bias plays a role in the criminal justice system and the role of pleas, both in Donate’s case and beyond. Duke Law professor Brandon Garrett also joins to talk about witness recantations and potential policy solutions. This project was made over a period of years with contributions from students throughout the law school. Professor Garrett’s interview was performed by Allyson Veile in Spring 2020 while the podcast was in pre-production.

Dontae Sharpe was sentenced to life in prison at the age of 19. What came after was 26 years of appeals, post-conviction efforts, and prayers. With the help of Duke Law’s Wrongful Convictions Clinic, who believed in Dontae’s innocence, Dontae and his new team returned to court. We spoke with Dontae and Professor Theresa Newman about the path to overturning Dontae’s conviction. After 26 years, Dontae was able to walk out of that courtroom, free of his shackles, and ready to re-learn about the world around him.

As a young adult, Dontae must now navigate a trial and eventual conviction for a crime he did not commit. We follow what exactly was going through the mind of Dontae Sharpe as he turned down multiple plea deals and maintained his faith as he learned that he would be spending part of his life wrongfully imprisoned. We also speak with Dontae’s mother who shares how she stood by Dontae’s side as she watched him stand trial while remaining firm in her belief of innocence.

Voices of Innocence, the official podcast of the Duke Law Innocence Project, tells the stories of the wrongfully convicted. On our first episode, we sit down with Dontae Sharpe, who was convicted of a murder he did not commit and spent 26 years in prison before being exonerated, as well as Theresa Newman, a co-director of the Wrongful Convictions Clinic at Duke. We discuss Dontae’s early life in Greenville, North Carolina and his experience with the criminal justice system, as well as what drew Professor Newman to Dontae’s case.
Podcast transcript: https://duke.box.com/s/mb9n7axviqelvrp90sf9iutf50c1apjl