Innocent man gets help from a cop!

August,2026, marks the 25th anniversary of Humanity for Prisoners. This is the fifth in a series of reflections by founder Doug Tjapkes.

Oh, the irony of it! 

My friend Andre’ Nelson, now 70 years of age, has been fighting well over 30 years trying to prove that he did not murder anyone. 

Andre’ was one of our very early clients after I formed the organization in 2001. At that time our agency’s name was INNOCENT, and so we obviously caught the attention of men and women behind bars who claimed wrongful conviction. Andre had been convicted of a 1993 murder that he claims he knew nothing about, after only 1 hour of deliberation by a jury! 

This was a unique case in that the alleged justice system in Detroit shamefully took advantage of a young man with a low IQ. Following a personal visit with Andre’ in the early 2000s he and I became special friends. The more II learned about his case the more upset I became. 

I know that he could not read well in those days, and I’ve always felt that the police coerced Andre into signing something that he couldn’t read…and it turned out to be a confession! 

His sister Yolanda confirms my thoughts: She said that Detroit police “exploited my brother's learning disability and fabricated a false confession. My brother had an alibi, which was disregarded by officers, deeming it unimportant. As I have been emphasizing from the beginning, the Detroit Police Department, the prosecutor, and the judge all preyed on my brother's learning disability. My brother has been serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.” 

The Nelson family’s complaints about the Detroit Police Department came as no surprise to those of us working as prisoner advocates. 

The DPD has faced severe reputational damage from multiple major scandals over the decades, ranging from the criminal conviction of a police chief for embezzlement to systemic narcotics unit corruption, controversial decoy units [1.5], and federal towing-bribery rings. 

Now the amazing twist to this story. A retired Detroit police detective is coming to the rescue! 

I had the most interesting telephone conversation with retired detective Tom Berry a few days ago. For the record, Thomas Berry is a retired Detroit Police Department Lieutenant and investigator who has exemplary credentials. He frequently serves as a media security analyst, commenting on local crime trends, use-of-force cases, and police corruption. In retirement, he also funds an annual academic scholarship program for the children of police. 

Well, the Andre’ Nelson case has come to his attention. His immediate response, and his comment to me: “This guy got railroaded.” And, he’s determined to do something about it! He’s already compiling documents…he’ll be knocking on the door of the Wayne County Conviction Integrity Unit. 

Finally, some encouraging news for Andre’! 

And, an exciting new chapter in an old HFP case! 

God puts unexpected people in our lives at the moment we need it the most!

Calvin Duncan, The Jailhouse Lawyer