A Glimpse into my work at the Oregon Innocence Project

This blog post was written by Sebastian A., a participant in Tivnu 11. He is from the Bay Area, and interns at Tivnu construction and the Oregon Innocence Project. In his free time, Sebastian enjoys reading, studying, and hanging with other Tivnuniks.

The story below is based on actual events but is fiction. It reflects the kinds of personal stories I encounter every day I intern at the Oregon Innocence Project.

At 18 years old, just months away from graduating high school, a teenage boy bikes down NE Prescott Street in Portland, Oregon. He has his whole future ahead of him, dreaming of becoming a teacher. But that dream will be stolen from him—not for a decade, not for two, but for over 20 years.

On his way home from a friend’s house, he is suddenly stopped and wrongfully identified as the perpetrator of a fatal shooting. Taken to the police station, he endures more than 10 hours of relentless interrogation. His Miranda rights are ignored. He is deceived, manipulated, and psychologically broken until he unknowingly incriminates himself. Despite the lack of real evidence, he is convicted and sentenced to 30 years without the possibility of parole.

Prison swallows him whole. Hopeless and consumed by despair, he falls into depression, then addiction. Before his conviction, he had no ties to gangs—but inside, survival seems impossible without them. Years pass in a blur of violence and regret.

Yet, something within him refuses to die. Through sheer willpower, he pulls himself away from the gangs and the drugs, reclaiming his sense of self. Deprived of his freedom, stripped of his humanity, he fights to be more than just another inmate. In the prison library, he rediscovers his passion for teaching. He becomes a model prisoner, a mentor, a leader.

After 21 years, his persistence—and the dedication of volunteers, attorneys, paralegals, and investigators—finally pays off. His innocence is proven. He is released, his name cleared, but the time lost is immeasurable.

Somehow, against all odds, he rebuilds. Today, he is sober. Today, he is a teacher at a local high school, fulfilling the dream that was nearly taken from him forever.

Real stories like this happen. Innocent individuals spend years—sometimes lifetimes—behind bars for crimes they never committed. The Oregon Innocence Project (OIP) is one organization working to right these wrongs. With a dedicated team of attorneys, staff, and volunteers, they fight for justice, helping innocent Oregonians reclaim their lives. I am honored to intern at OIP this year.

OIP is just one of many organizations offering opportunities for Tivnu participants to volunteer and make a real, lasting difference. Justice doesn’t happen on its own—it takes people willing to fight for it.

The Hidden “O” Logo: The columns and bars represent the DNA testing form grid and the “O” letter form is constructed with the negative space between the “I” and “P”: the “I” and “P” also represent prison bars and the hidden “O” represents those Oregonians wrongfully incarcerated in our prisons and whose voices have been unheard until now.