THIS IS INNOCENCE
A benefit for the Oregon Innocence Project
September 11, 2025
Doors open 6 p.m. Program begins 6:45 p.m.
Irving Street Studio (Ecotrust Building)
721 NW 9th Ave, Portland, OR 97209
Featuring our special guest: Calvin Duncan (exoneree, prison lawyer, and author)
This benefit supports our work to help innocent Oregonians clear their names, to train law students to be the public interest lawyers of tomorrow, and to promote legal reforms that will prevent and address wrongful convictions.
Injustice is not just an abstract or distant issue for our clients: it's a present and growing reality that has deepened the vulnerability of already at-risk communities. That’s why the Oregon Innocence Project is so critical right now. Your support for this benefit makes it possible for us to provide vital legal services to innocent Oregonians so they can pursue their claims of innocence and be freed from prison to be reunited with their families.
Calvin Duncan
Calvin Duncan is the founder and director of the Light of Justice program, which is focused on improving legal access for incarcerated individuals. Falsely accused of murder at the age of nineteen, he endured a life sentence without the possibility of parole in Louisiana prisons for more than twenty-eight years. While incarcerated, he became an inmate counsel substitute, or jailhouse lawyer, helping hundreds of fellow incarcerated people challenge wrongful convictions and unjust sentences. His efforts have contributed to landmark U.S. Supreme Court decisions, including Smith v. Cain (2012) and Ramos v. Louisiana (2020). Duncan holds a J.D. from Lewis & Clark Law School and resides in New Orleans, where he continues his advocacy on behalf of those still behind bars.
In 2025, with co-author Sophie Cull, he published The Jailhouse Lawyer. The book tells the story of his thirty-year path through Angola prison after a wrongful murder conviction, his coming-of-age as a legal mind while imprisoned, and his continued advocacy for those on the inside.
Signed copies of The Jailhouse Lawyer will be available for purchase at THIS IS INNOCENCE courtesy of our partners Broadway Books.
sponsorship
To learn more about about partnership opportunities for this event, download our sponsorship menu or contact our Director of Engagement, Ali King.
