Darwin Crabtree was living in Paradise, CA with his wife Sandra along with many of their extended family when the unimaginable happened--their town went down in flames.

This devastation comes less than one year after Darwin’s exoneration from a 1991 wrongful conviction.  Darwin  spent 27 years wrongfully convicted of a crime he did not commit.  Darwin was exonerated in January of this year and the DA issued a public apology to him, but he is ineligible for compensation because of a technicality.   But even without any support from the State or society, Darwin had rebuilt his life, earned a job, bought a home, and was busy supporting himself and his family when their home and all their belongings burned to the ground. 

The deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history, known as the Camp Fire, swept through their Paradise over the last two weeks, reducing the town and everything Darwin owned to ashes and rubble.

Darwin's home after the Camp Fire swept through Paradise.


Details on fire:

- Location, Butte County
- 153,336 acres burned
- 70 percent contained
- 88 fatalities confirmed
- 203 people unaccounted for
- 17,148 structures destroyed (12,947 residences, 483 commercial and 3,718 other buildings)


Details on Darwin's exoneration:

In 1991, Darwin Crabtree, who had never been in trouble before, was wrongfully convicted of molesting his two sons.  The boys, who were 7 and 11 at the time, had been placed in the care of an unlicensed therapist during their parents’ tumultuous divorce.  Over months of sessions, the therapist-in-training convinced them that their father had touched them improperly.  The boys’ false statements were the only evidence against Darwin.

When the boys became adults, they told everyone who would listen to them that their father was innocent and had never touched them in a sexual way.  They eventually reunited with Darwin in a meeting filled with hugs and tears as Darwin assured them that it was not their fault and he had never blamed them.  The boys--now men--signed statements swearing to their father’s innocence, but by then, Darwin had been tried, convicted, served nearly 9 years in prison, and completed his 3 years of parole.   At the time, California law did not provide a mechanism for someone in Darwin’s position (no longer incarcerated or on parole) to challenge their conviction, so Darwin remained wrongfully convicted and continued to have to live as a "registered sex offender," subject to the stigma associated with that status.

In 2017, CA law finally changed to allow people like Darwin who obtained newly discovered evidence of innocence after their release to challenge their wrongful convictions.  With the help of the Northern California Innocence Project, Darwin filed a motion to vacate his conviction. 

The District Attorney investigated the case, agreed that Darwin is innocent and that his conviction should be reversed, and then dismissed the charges against him.  

On January 17, 2018, Darwin was officially exonerated and recognized to be the innocent man he has always been.  The DA apologized to Darwin, and to his sons, but that apology was all that Darwin got for his nearly 27 years of wrongful conviction.  


Darwin, his mother (who always believed in him), and his two sons, outside the courthouse on the day of Darwin's exoneration.


Despite suffering for 27 years under a wrongful conviction, Darwin has not received one cent of compensation.  Yet even with the stigma he has lived under and the way the system has failed him repeatedly, Darwin managed to become a productive member of society after his release from prison.  He earns his living as a contractor and supports himself, his wife Sandi, and their family through his work. 

Before his name was cleared, there were many setbacks, like when people would learn about his status and put flyers up with his picture labeling him a sex offender.   But in January of this year, it looked like things were finally starting to right themselves.   Following his exoneration, he would never again have to go to the police station on his birthday to "register."  His name and photograph would no longer show up online with some of the worst criminals in the state.  He could get jobs that were unavailable to him while the system still had a red letter by his name.

But then tragedy struck again.  Just ten months after his exoneration, the most destructive wildfire in CA history burned down everything Darwin had earned in his attempts to put his life back together.  Not only did everything burn but they have also learned their insurance will not cover much.  He and Sandi had moved into a mobile home after one of the times Darwin lost work because of his status, and placed their larger possessions in storage. They had homeowner’s insurance, but have learned that because they had moved into a mobile home, only the exterior was covered and not their belongings.  Worse still, they learned their storage unit is only covered for up to $1000, even though it was filled with furniture, a washer and dryer, a television, and all sorts of precious belongings.  Some of the things they lost are irreplaceable, like the photographs from when his children were young and family heirlooms he had inherited, but others, like couches, electronics, the motorcycle that he used for escape, can be replaced with money.  And that's where we come in.

Darwin suffered for 27 years of wrongful conviction and has received nothing from society.  Now we have a chance to step up and help him when he needs it most.  He and his family lost everything in the fire.  Your gift will help Darwin and his family begin to rebuild their lives amidst this devastation.

As you can see from his short video, throughout everything, Darwin always finds something to smile about, even when it's through well-deserved tears.  Please take this opportunity to help someone who has always helped himself and who could not be more deserving of your help.