KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Time is the only thing you lose that you can never get back, but Ricky Kidd is making the most of the time he has left.
“It’s personal,” he said. “It’s important to me because, not only was I wrongfully convicted for 23 years, but it became personal to me when I learned how much of a problem it is across the country.”
Kidd spent 23 years in prison for a double murder in Kansas City, Missouri, that he did not commit.
The Midwest Innocence Project played a key role in fighting for and ultimately securing Kidd's exoneration.
Now, he serves as the organization's philanthropy and outreach manager.
In that role, he's helping organize its Faces of Innocence fundraiser on Wednesday, June 14.
It's open to the public for the first time and aims to help spread awareness and raise money for what Kidd calls a silent crisis.
“I’m one of the example," Kidd said. "Twenty-three years wrongfully convicted, brought home by the Midwest Innocence Project. Without the support of the community, I don’t think I’d be having this conversation with you today, but it’s not just me. It’s the Kevin Stricklands, Lamar Johnsons — we have a whole list, a whole waiting list of about 600 individuals waiting for their day tTo be freed and have the opportunity to walk in a free society again.”
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