Episode 5: Deven wasn’t the only woman John was dating. He had another girlfriend, too: Alexis. Alexis’ version of events became critically important to Deven’s criminal case – and it was the one the police were more interested in believing. 

Resources:
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, use a safe computer and contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at www.thehotline.org or call 1-800-799-7233. You can also search for a local domestic violence shelter at www.domesticshelters.org/.
If you have experienced sexual assault and need support, visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) at www.rainn.org or call 1-800-656-HOPE
Have questions about consent? Take a look at this guide from RAINN at www.rainn.org/articles/what-is-consent
Learn more about criminalized survival https://survivedandpunished.org/

This series is created with Evoke Media, a woman-founded company devoted to harnessing the power of storytelling to drive social change.

This series is presented by Marguerite Casey Foundation. MCF supports leaders who work to shift the balance of power in their communities toward working people and families, and who have the vision and capacity for building a truly representative economy. Learn more at caseygrants.org or visit on social media @caseygrants.

Follow host Liz Flock on Twitter @lizflock. For more stories of women and self-defense, check out her book “The Furies” from Harper Books, available for pre-order now. https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-furies-elizabeth-flock

Interested in bonus content and behind the scenes material? Subscribe to Lemonada Premium right now in the Apple Podcasts app by clicking on our podcast logo and the "subscribe” button.

Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Episode 5: Deven wasn’t the only woman John was dating. He had another girlfriend, too: Alexis. Alexis’ version of events became critically important to Deven’s criminal case – and it was the one the police were more interested in believing. 
Resources:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, use a safe computer and contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at <a href="http://www.thehotline.org/">www.thehotline.org</a> or call 1-800-799-7233. You can also search for a local domestic violence shelter at <a href="https://www.domesticshelters.org/">www.domesticshelters.org/</a>.</li>
<li aria-level="1">If you have experienced sexual assault and need support, visit the Rape, Abuse &amp; Incest National Network (RAINN) at <a href="https://www.rainn.org/">www.rainn.org</a> or call 1-800-656-HOPE</li>
<li aria-level="1">Have questions about consent? Take a look at this guide from RAINN at <a href="https://www.rainn.org/articles/what-is-consent">www.rainn.org/articles/what-is-consent</a> </li>
<li aria-level="1">Learn more about criminalized survival <a href="https://survivedandpunished.org/">https://survivedandpunished.org/</a> </li>
</ul>
This series is created with Evoke Media, a woman-founded company devoted to harnessing the power of storytelling to drive social change.
This series is presented by Marguerite Casey Foundation. MCF supports leaders who work to shift the balance of power in their communities toward working people and families, and who have the vision and capacity for building a truly representative economy. Learn more at caseygrants.org or visit on social media @caseygrants.
Follow host Liz Flock on Twitter @lizflock. For more stories of women and self-defense, check out her book “The Furies” from Harper Books, available for pre-order now. <a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-furies-elizabeth-flock?variant=41038092337186">https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-furies-elizabeth-flock</a>
Interested in bonus content and behind the scenes material? Subscribe to Lemonada Premium right now in the Apple Podcasts app by clicking on our podcast logo and the "subscribe” button.
Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: <a href="http://lemonadamedia.com/sponsors">lemonadamedia.com/sponsors</a>.

In 2017, Deven Grey, a young mother, shot and killed her abusive partner in a remote trailer in rural Shelby County, Alabama. She claimed self-defense and filed a Stand Your Ground claim.

Instead of freedom, she was handed a “blind plea” – an option to take an unknown sentence in exchange for pleading guilty. As a Black woman who shot and killed a white man in Alabama, she did the only thing she could: She took the plea. Deven’s sentence became the final link in a chain of deceit, haunted land, generational trauma, false identity, coercive control, and a broken justice system.

Hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist Liz Flock, Blind Plea asks: Who do we believe, and why? And in America, who has the right to self defense and a fair trial?

In 2017, Deven Grey, a young mother, shot and killed her abusive partner in a remote trailer in rural Shelby County, Alabama. She claimed self-defense and filed a Stand Your Ground claim.
Instead of freedom, she was handed a “blind plea” – an option to take an unknown sentence in exchange for pleading guilty. As a Black woman who shot and killed a white man in Alabama, she did the only thing she could: She took the plea. Deven’s sentence became the final link in a chain of deceit, haunted land, generational trauma, false identity, coercive control, and a broken justice system.
Hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist Liz Flock, Blind Plea asks: Who do we believe, and why? And in America, who has the right to self defense and a fair trial?

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