Legal Expenses to Help Free Shawn Rodriguez

In 2003, Shawn Rodriguez was severely punished with a 25 to life sentence, meaning he could potentially never get out of prison, for a crime where nobody got physically hurt, let alone killed.

To make matters worse, the lone victim in the crime, Nick, has admitted in writing repeatedly, as well as in a recent legal interview, that he did indeed lie on the stand regarding important facts of the case. The fact that Nick committed perjury means Shawn did not receive a fair trial, and had jurors known that Nick was lying under oath, some definitely would have changed their votes to “not guilty.”

Changes in the law that have occurred in recent years also give tremendous hope that Shawn can get out of prison legally. Specifically, the laws for “aiding and abetting,” which is what Shawn was ultimately convicted because of, have significantly changed. Because of these changes in the law, Shawn is legally entitled to be resentenced.

Placer County, California—where Shawn was convicted—needs to be spurred to conduct such a resentencing. We expect he should be awarded immediate release from prison once the case gets properly reviewed.

For this reason, Shawn has taken out a loan to pay for legal services to obtain his release from prison, after 20 difficult years.

Shawn is amazingly talented, intelligent, hardworking. He is a good friend. He has used his time in prison to make himself better, despite the obstacles. He has remained drug free in prison, a feat few inmates do. He has earned many certificates and gotten many laudatory chronos documenting his contributions over the years. He has read over 1,000 books and even drafted a book of his own which we hope to publish this year. The purpose of his book, which is also partially a journal, is to help other prison inmates with life sentences properly reflect on their choices and make improvements to their self-awareness and healing.

Shawn has plans to get involved in logistics and real estate work upon his release from prison, which we hope will occur in the first half of 2023.

Please consider making a donation to help cover the legal expenses to help free Shawn.