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James Tillman remembers the smell of steak and onions cooking at his mother’s house on the day police came for him. He thought he’d be back soon.

Instead, he spent a total of 18½ years incarcerated for a crime he did not commit.

In 2006, with the help of the Connecticut Innocence Project, DNA evidence proved his innocence, making him the first person in Connecticut exonerated through post-conviction DNA testing. Later, DNA pointed to another man, who eventually confessed in court.

James talks about refusing to plead guilty, surviving prison, holding onto faith, and learning how to live freely again. 

And we meet Katie Farrell, the social worker who helped him prepare for freedom before freedom was guaranteed.

 

Suggested episodes:
Nothing goes as planned: A first-time offender’s prison story from arrest to release
Love without the possibility of parole
How to find purpose in life after accidentally killing someone 

 

GUESTS: 
James Tillman: Was wrongfully convicted of rape and kidnapping in Hartford in 1989 and sentenced to 45 years in prison. After 18½ years incarcerated, DNA evidence proved his innocence, making him Connecticut’s first post-conviction DNA exoneree.
Katie Farrell: Chief Social Worker for Connecticut’s Division of Public Defender Services. She worked with James Tillman during the final stage of his innocence case and helped him prepare for possible freedom

James Tillman remembers the smell of steak and onions cooking at his mother&rsquo;s house on the day police came for him. He thought he&rsquo;d be back soon.
Instead, he spent a total of 18&frac12; years incarcerated for a crime he did not commit.
In 2006, with the help of the <a href="https://portal.ct.gov/ocpd/innocence-project/connecticut-innocence-project">Connecticut Innocence Project</a>, DNA evidence proved his innocence, making him the first person in Connecticut exonerated through post-conviction DNA testing. Later, DNA pointed to another man, who eventually confessed in court.
James talks about refusing to plead guilty, surviving prison, holding onto faith, and learning how to live freely again.&nbsp;
And we meet Katie Farrell, the social worker who helped him prepare for freedom before freedom was guaranteed.
&nbsp;
Suggested episodes:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2025-01-24/nothing-goes-as-planned-a-first-time-offenders-prison-story-from-arrest-to-release">Nothing goes as planned: A first-time offender&rsquo;s prison story from arrest to release</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2023-03-29/love-without-the-possibility-of-parole">Love without the possibility of parole</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2021-12-09/finding-purpose-in-life-after-accidentally-killing-someone">How to find purpose in life after accidentally killing someone&nbsp;</a></li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">James Tillman: Was wrongfully convicted of rape and kidnapping in Hartford in 1989 and sentenced to 45 years in prison. After 18&frac12; years incarcerated, DNA evidence proved his innocence, making him Connecticut&rsquo;s first post-conviction DNA exoneree.</li>
<li aria-level="1">Katie Farrell: Chief Social Worker for Connecticut&rsquo;s Division of Public Defender Services. She worked with James Tillman during the final stage of his innocence case and helped him prepare for possible freedom</li>
</ul>

Audacious with Chion Wolf spotlights the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood. Guided by deep curiosity and genuine compassion, the team behind Audacious creates space for the kinds of stories that rarely get told - and the kinds of questions we're often afraid to ask. From those speaking publicly for the very first time to voices already known around the world, every guest is met with care, and every story is honored as both deeply personal and profoundly human.

For more: ctpublic.org/audacious

Audacious with Chion Wolf spotlights the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood. Guided by deep curiosity and genuine compassion, the team behind Audacious creates space for the kinds of stories that rarely get told - and the kinds of questions we're often afraid to ask. From those speaking publicly for the very first time to voices already known around the world, every guest is met with care, and every story is honored as both deeply personal and profoundly human.
For more: <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf">ctpublic.org/audacious</a>

Audacious with Chion Wolf spotlights the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood. 

Audacious with Chion Wolf

Audacious with Chion Wolf spotlights the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood.

Guided by deep curiosity and genuine compassion, the team behind Audacious creates space for the kinds of stories that rarely get told - and the kinds of questions we’re often afraid to ask. From those speaking publicly for the very first time to voices already known around the world, every guest is met with care, and every story is honored as both deeply personal and profoundly human.

Listen at ctpublic.org/audacious

Support is provided by a generous contribution from Suzanne Hopgood, in Memory of Frank Lord.

Audacious with Chion Wolf spotlights the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood.
Guided by deep curiosity and genuine compassion, the team behind Audacious creates space for the kinds of stories that rarely get told - and the kinds of questions we&rsquo;re often afraid to ask. From those speaking publicly for the very first time to voices already known around the world, every guest is met with care, and every story is honored as both deeply personal and profoundly human.
Listen at <a href="http://ctpublic.org/audacious">ctpublic.org/audacious</a>
Support is provided by a generous contribution from Suzanne Hopgood, in Memory of Frank Lord.