It's 921A. Albert Ian Schweitzer versus State of Hawaii.

It's 921 a.m. on Tuesday, January 24th, 20203.

And a man named Ian Schweitzer is standing in a courtroom in Hilo, Hawaii.

He's not a total stranger to this feeling, or to the criminal justice system in general.

He's been here before.

But this time, it's for very different reasons.

Over 23 years ago, Ian was convicted of a crime he firmly asserts he did not commit.

And for almost two decades, the Innocence Project has been trying to help him prove it. Ian's team, including the legendary

Barry Sheck, who co-founded the original Innocence Project in 1992, well, they would spend the next seven hours stating their case in front of Judge Kubota.

Your Honor, this is a critical day in Ian Schweitzer's journey towards justice.

It started on October 4, 1997, when he was arrested and jailed for the sexual assault and murder of Dana Ireland.

He has insisted on his innocence for all who would listen for 26 years, 9,243 days, marked by fear, confusion, isolation, sorrow, anger, despair, terror,

and now hope. Ian never stopped, hoping that this injustice would be corrected.

The family has been ridiculed, shunned, treated like pariahs in their community.

But none of the Schweitzer's ever gave up hope that there would be a day of justice that would arrive.

As Dr. King famously said,

after the five-day march from Selma to Montgomery,

truth crushed to earth will rise again.

No lie can live forever.

The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.

We want to thank the court in particular for the wisdom, guidance, and patience that you've had with all of us over this entire proceeding.

We rest.

...