By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The American justice system does not always get it right. Various studies indicate that as few as two percent and as many as 10 percent of all incarcerated people in U.S. prisons were wrongly convicted. That's where groups like the Midwest Innocence Project (MIP) come in. Emma Bieker, a 2019 Great Bend High School graduate, has worked with MIP for a year. One of the cases she worked on was recently featured on the CBS Evening News.
"I don't think there are even words to explain the experience," Bieker said. "You grow up thinking the criminal justice system is just. You see criminals, and you see people. That's what we're taught to learn. It's just obviously not the case."
The MIP is part of the Innocence Network, an affiliation of 71 organizations worldwide focused on freeing those who have been wrongfully convicted. MIP was founded at the University of Missouri - Kansas City in 2001, and serves clients in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Arkansas.
Bieker, 22, will graduate from Fort Hays State University in May, and was recently named the social work department's Outstanding Graduate.
"I knew when I was graduating, I either wanted to go into psychology or social work," she said. "I went up to the university and talked to some people and was, like, let's try out social work and see what happens. I ended up really liking it."
FHSU Professor Kendal Carswell introduced Bieker to the idea of working with the MIP in 2021. When a paid-internship position opened in 2022, Bieker jumped at the opportunity. As non-attorneys, she and a supervisor with MIP work to provide social support for clients.
"Both of us, we assist freed and incarcerated clients to transition to life outside of prison after wrongful incarceration," Bieker said. "We'll connect them with resources, whether that be employment, housing, or all those things like getting your birth certificate, or your ID, or driver's license."
Incarcerated people can reach out to groups like MIP, which is working through some 600 applications. Applications must go through a four-tier system to determine if MIP can assist with the case. Most of the cases involve murder convictions. If the organization takes on a case, staff will make frequent contact with the incarcerated person by phone or in-person contacts in prison.
"I would say I was a little bit anxious, but now every time I go I'm just fine," Bieker said of the visits. "You know how people build up something in their head when they haven't experienced it? It wasn't as anxiety-provoking as I thought it'd be."
Not all the stories that go through the MIP have happy endings, but the Lamar Johnson case did. Johnson spent 28 years in prison, even after another man confessed to the murder in question. Johnson was released from prison in February, and his case was featured on "CBS Evening News" when he was able to meet a long-time pen pal.
Bieker's time with the MIP ends in May. Upon graduating from FHSU, she said she plans to gain more clinical experience as a hospital social worker. The future remains open after that.
"Before Midwest Innocence Project, I did community organizing, so I was advocating for people on a community level. That's something I could also be interested in. There are lots of innocence projects around the U.S. I could also be part of."