1. Jon-Adrian Velazquez was born on November 11,1975 and known as "JJ" Velazquez, is an American legal reform activist and actor who was wrongfully convicted of a 1998 murder of a retired police officer.
14 Facts About Jon-Adrian Velazquez
1. 2.
Jon-Adrian Velazquez was serving a 25 years to life sentence at maximum security Sing-Sing prison in New York.
3.
Jon-Adrian Velazquez's case garnered considerable attention from the media ten years after his conviction, due to a long-term investigation by Dateline NBC producer Dan Slepian and celebrity support from actor Martin Sheen, actress Alfre Woodard, music executive Jason Flom, and entertainment company Roc Nation.
4.
On May 8,2022 The New York Times published an extensive feature on how Velazquez was Slepian's "one man innocent project" inside Sing Sing prison to help free several innocent men.
5.
Jon-Adrian Velazquez contends that he was speaking on the phone with his mother at the time of the murder, a claim that is supported by phone records showing a call between Jon-Adrian Velazquez's residence and his mother.
6.
One witness who testified in court incorrectly identified a juror instead of Jon-Adrian Velazquez when asked to point out the perpetrator.
7.
Jon-Adrian Velazquez was misidentified in the case by presenting one of the witnesses with hundreds of images of people previously convicted of unrelated crimes.
8.
The broadcast about Jon-Adrian Velazquez's case aired nationally on NBC on February 12,2012 and was nominated for three Emmy Awards.
9.
On June 27,2017, Jon-Adrian Velazquez entered a 440 motion due to newly discovered documents that were never provided by the District Attorney's office to his original defense.
10.
In 2013, Jon-Adrian Velazquez led the formation of "Voices From Within" a comprehensive multimedia education initiative that addresses the epidemic of crime and incarceration directly through voices of incarcerated individuals living with the consequences of their choices, and the victims left in their wake while inside Sing Sing.
11.
The success of the program led Jon-Adrian Velazquez to create a series of workshops called CHOICES about creating healthy communities through healthy decision making.
12.
In 2014, Jon-Adrian Velazquez curated the first TEDx Event held inside a New York State prison.
13.
On September 9,2021, after 23 years, 7 months and 8 days of imprisonment, Jon-Adrian Velazquez was freed from Sing Sing Correctional facility.
14.
On October 18,2022, President Joe Biden sat down with Jon-Adrian Velazquez to discuss criminal legal reform in part of NowThis's presidential forum.