How you can help · Historical campaign
From a Freedom Campaign to Continuing Justice Work
The original campaign actions, preserved with a clear update now that JJ has been released and exonerated.
What the original campaign asked people to do
Before release and exoneration, supporters were asked to contact the Manhattan District Attorney, sign and share petitions, write letters, donate to investigation and public-awareness work, and keep JJ’s case from disappearing. A sample letter emphasized that wrongful incarceration harms the person convicted, their family, and public confidence in the justice system.
The campaign also directed potential information about the alternate suspect known as “Mustafa” to JJ’s legal team. It listed Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady LLP as the legal contact and stated that campaign contributions would support investigation and public awareness rather than legal fees.
That work had several layers. Maria Velazquez and other family members kept JJ connected to home. Lawyers preserved claims in court. Journalists tested the story against witnesses and documents. Online advocates kept the record searchable for people who might never encounter a legal filing. Public action mattered most when it connected those efforts without overstating what any single piece of evidence proved.
Why those instructions are now historical
JJ was released in 2021 and exonerated in 2024. The original requests to pressure a former district attorney, sign a freedom petition, or send checks to the legal campaign are no longer current. They remain important evidence of how supporters organized during the years when the conviction was still in force.
How to support the work now
Visitors can support the organizations and programs JJ continues to build: join a Frederick Douglass Project prison visit, follow or support Voices From Within, share accurate information about wrongful convictions, listen to the reporting that developed the public record, and invite JJ to speak about leadership, accountability, and criminal legal reform.
Read before sharing
Responsible advocacy begins with the strongest available record. The National Registry of Exonerations case profile provides a sourced chronology through exoneration; the official 2016 appellate opinion shows how the courts evaluated the earlier claims; and this site’s local case-file archive preserves material that would otherwise disappear with the former campaign site. Reading across those sources helps distinguish trial evidence, defense allegations, court findings, and the later DNA exclusion.
Support work led by lived experience
The most durable next step is to support the work JJ chose after release. The Frederick Douglass Project brings community members into prisons for structured dialogue. Voices From Within uses testimony and public education to confront violence and incarceration. JJ’s speaking, mentoring, and media work extends lessons developed inside Sing Sing rather than treating exoneration as the end of the story.
If you share the case, use the exact duration—23 years, 7 months, and 8 days—and make clear that the September 2024 dismissal followed a new DNA exclusion considered alongside the absence of physical evidence, inconsistent identifications, and the wider investigative record. Precision honors both JJ and Albert Ward.
Current action links are maintained on this site’s homepage.