seeking freedom for the innocent in prison
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seeking freedom for the innocent in prison
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Centurion was the first innocence organization in the world. Jim McCloskey founded it as a 501(c)(3) in 1983, after the exoneration of Jorge De Los Santos — a man he met while serving as a chaplain at Trenton State Prison and became convinced was innocent. Working with attorney Paul Casteleiro, McCloskey helped overturn the conviction, and De Los Santos was freed in 1983.
Centurion was the pioneering wrongful-conviction organization. Many innocence groups operate through law schools and focus on DNA cases; Centurion primarily takes on cases where DNA is not available to prove our clients’ innocence. We conduct comprehensive community reinvestigations and provide investigative and legal support at no cost — and we keep supporting our clients after release with employment, housing, medical and psychological services, mentorship from other exonerees, and financial assistance.
The adversarial justice system aims to convict the guilty and acquit the innocent, but it has few mechanisms to correct its own mistakes — reversing a wrongful conviction is far harder than winning one. Wrongful convictions happen through blind focus by police, misidentification, poor investigation, prosecutorial misconduct, and fraudulent forensic experts. Centurion seeks out the factually innocent and works to free them.
No. When our investigation causes us to lose confidence in a client’s factual innocence, we immediately drop the case.
No. Although Jim McCloskey founded Centurion out of spiritual motivation, the organization has no religious requirement or preference for staff or associates. The name comes from the Roman centurion who stood at the foot of the cross and said, “Surely this one is innocent” (Luke 23:47).
We consider claims of factual innocence in rape and murder cases where the person is serving at least 15 years before parole eligibility, or has been sentenced to death. We do not take accidental-death or self-defense cases, or any case where the defendant was involved in the crime.
All case inquiries must come by letter, so we can review and answer them carefully. Write legibly, include a full return address, and allow 8–10 weeks for a reply. We read and respond to every letter.
In the kindest way possible: no. Our office isn’t built to handle a high volume of calls, so all case inquiries must come by letter from the inmate. Centurion will only discuss a case by phone once we’ve taken it on as a client.
No. We’ll request specific documents as they become necessary during the review.
Other innocence projects across the country are listed on the Innocence Network website. For child-abuse or sexual-abuse convictions, the National Center Against Wrongful Conviction of the Disabled and Reasonable Efforts (NCADRC) may be able to help. We don’t refer specific attorneys or investigators.
Over 40 years we’ve built a rigorous process. Prospective clients write letters outlining the facts; our Case Development Team reviews every letter and decides which to develop further. Volunteers compile a full record — police reports, transcripts, medical-examiner reports, witness statements, crime-scene photos — and leadership reviews each developed case, deciding next steps based on the evidence and the legal options available.
On average we manage about 20–25 cases at a time and take on 1–2 new cases a year, while actively developing around 100 of the 1,000+ requests we receive annually.
To date, Centurion has freed 72 men and women who spent decades in prison for crimes they did not commit. You can read their stories on our Cases page.
No. Centurion is not affiliated with any college or university.
Nothing. Centurion does not charge for any of our services.
It costs an average of $350,000 to free an innocent person from prison. Your donation lets us pursue justice at no cost to the person or their family, and funds the post-release support that helps our clients rebuild their lives.
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The backbone of this organization is its volunteers — we couldn’t review the volume of requests we get without them. See our Volunteers page for current opportunities.
For general information, press inquiries, or speaking requests, email info@centurion.org. For donation questions, email laila.wilson@centurion.org or visit the Ways to Give page.
Centurion was the first organization in the world dedicated to the vindication of the wrongfully convicted.
Email
info@centurion.org
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Centurion
1000 Herrontown Rd.
Princeton, NJ 08540
Phone
(609) 921-0334