<div>On December 12, 2023, Brian Beals walked free into the arms of his family for the first time in 35 years after a Cook County judge overturned his wrongful murder conviction based on new evidence of his innocence. He served the second-longest term of wrongful incarceration in the state's history. Brian was a senior at Southern Illinois University and a college football player when he was ripped away from his future and his family, and sent to prison for 35 years as an INNOCENT MAN.
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<div>Please consider donating to help Brian Beals begin rebuilding his life. Any amount is greatly appreciated, not only because it supports him in the financial struggles of life after prison, but because it sends a message – YOU ARE NOT ALONE, BRIAN.
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<div>The dismissal of all charges against Brian marks the end of a legal battle that began in 1988 when he was wrongly accused of murder in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood.
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<div>During the trial, Brian was convicted primarily on eyewitness misidentification. However, newly surfaced evidence includes statements from five additional witnesses affirming that Brian was the intended target and not the perpetrator.
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<div>The case involves some of Cook County's “notorious” justice system figures, including Brian's defense attorney, Earl Washington, previously labeled by the Chicago Tribune as one of Illinois' most "inept" attorneys; and Detective Thomas Ptak, the lead investigator, who has been linked to eight other proven wrongful convictions, with Brian becoming the ninth.
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<div>The Cook County State's Attorney's Office agreed to vacate Brian's convictions based on his actual innocence, calling this case "a grave miscarriage of justice".
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<div>For more on Brian's case, see the below news publication links:
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<div><a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/13/us/brian-beals-illinois-wrongful-conviction/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong><em>CNN</em></strong></a><strong><em> </em></strong>
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<div><a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/12/13/1218997130/judge-vacates-murder-conviction-of-chicago-man-wrongfully-imprisoned-for-35-year" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong><em>Associated Press</em></strong></a><strong><em> </em></strong>
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<div><a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/12/13/1218997130/judge-vacates-murder-conviction-of-chicago-man-wrongfully-imprisoned-for-35-year" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong><em>NPR</em></strong></a><strong><em> </em></strong>
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<div><a href="https://www.uis.edu/news/cook-county-judge-exonerates-brian-beals-after-35-years-wrongful-incarceration" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong><em>UISNews</em></strong></a><strong><em> </em></strong>
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