Hi there, Letters from Sing Sing listeners. This is Dan Slepigan.

It's hard to believe that more than a year has passed since this podcast first launched,

and so much has happened since then. First, we are enormously humbled that the

podcast, along with the incredible team behind it at NBC News Studios, has been honored with several

prestigious journalism awards, including being named a Pulitzer Prize finalist. And just a few

weeks ago, my book, The Sing Sing Files,

one journalist, six innocent men,

and a 20-year fight for justice was published,

which details not only JJ's case,

but also the stories of several other men JJ introduced me to at Sing-Sing.

All people who, like JJ, were wrongfully convicted and ultimately

exonerated after years of tireless efforts. And on November 23rd and 24th, the Sing

Sync Chronicles, a documentary series produced by NBC News Studios about some of those men,

including JJ, will air on MSNBC.

Stay tuned to this feed for more on that to come.

This podcast and the recognition it received, publishing the book, the upcoming documentary series,

all of it has been deeply meaningful, but none of it compares to what happened earlier this week.

On Monday, September 30th, after nearly 27 years, J.J. Velasquez, was finally exonerated.

As many of you know, J.J. was wrongfully convicted in 1999 of killing retired police officer Albert Ward.

For more than two decades, JJ fought from inside Sing Sing, never wavering in his claims of innocence.

I've had the privilege and honor of walking alongside him for more than 20 years, documenting his journey every step of the way.

As you might remember from the last episode, I was there with him in 2021 when he was released after the governor granted him clemency. But despite his release, one thing alluded JJ,

...