Calvin C. Johnson Jr. (Author)
CALVIN C. JOHNSON JR. lives and works in the Atlanta area. He is on
the board of the Georgia Innocence Project.
Greg Hampikian (Author)
GREG HAMPIKIAN, an associate professor of biology, works in the
forensic science program at Boise State University.
Calvin's saga lifts the rock exposing the dark side of America's
system of criminal justice. Plucked from his family and friends by
racism and indifference to truth, Calvin spent almost seventeen
years in prison for crimes he did not commit. In the end, Calvin's
personal transformation enabled him to triumph over his own
bitterness and succeed in winning his freedom.
*Cofounder of the Innocence Project*
Calvin Johnson's story shows that the criminal courts are failing
in their most basic function—separating the innocent from the
guilty—and that race continues to influence who is not convicted
and who is convicted. Only the miracle of DNA technology proved
Johnson's innocence and allows him to tell his compelling story
after sixteen years in prison for a crime he did not commit. We are
left to wonder how many other innocent people languish in prisons
because there is no biological evidence in their cases.
*director of the Southern Center for Human Rights*
Exit to Freedom is a powerful and moving story of how one man deals
with his loss of freedom and turns bitterness and defeat into
personal success. Calvin Johnson's riveting story of life behind
bars for a crime he did not commit would be just another prisoner's
tale but for the tenacity of the human spirit and the truth and
justice of modern technology.
*Chair Professor in the University of New Haven’s Forensic Science
Program*
Johnson, in a remarkably even voice, details his trial and sixteen
years in prison for a rape he did not commit, ending with the
long-suffering process that established his innocence. . . .
Miracles come in the form of DNA testing, lawyers Peter Neufeld and
Barry Scheck, the Innocence Project, and sweet release. A rare
individual, victim of not-too-rare legal circumstances, with a
story that will have readers grinding their teeth until the
end.
*Kirkus Reviews*
A story that should appeal to readers interested in judicial
reform, in our prisons, or in the conversion of hearts. Most of
all, it should appeal to anyone who enjoys a strong and dramatic
tale of struggle and triumph.
*Smoky Mountain News*
This is both a documentary of a man's life and an insider's take on
the workings of the prison industrial complex. . . . Johnson brings
humanity and controversial opining to life in a structure that once
held him in its clutches. And in that hard-won honesty are the keys
to freedom.
*Atlanta Tribune*
[Johnson] tells his story with dignity and convincing emotion. . .
. [A]lmost always gripping and inspirational . . . DNA is lighting
the path to reform of the criminal justice system. As a journalist
who has studied the criminal justice system intensively, with an
emphasis on prosecutors, I have read more than 100 books about
alleged or proven wrongful convictions. This is the first I have
read by someone who was wrongfully convicted. Maybe others will
follow, but this one will be hard to top.
*Atlanta Journal-Constitution*
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