It Takes Everyone: What Intake Volunteer Stephanie Henson Can Teach Us About Fighting Wrongful Conviction

_____________________________________________________________________

A few years ago, Stephanie Henson had next to “zero” knowledge about the criminal legal system. But when she picked up a copy of The Sun Does Shine — which details Anthony Ray Hinton’s 30 years on death row in Alabama for a crime he didn’t commit — that all changed.

Through Hinton’s story, the issue of wrongful conviction jumped into Stephanie’s brainspace. It’s stayed there ever since.

“I really didn’t know anything about it before then, but I was so moved by the book, I wanted to find out if there was anything locally I could do to help,” she said.

That desire led her to MIP. A friend invited her to the 2018 Faces of Innocence gala, and after hearing stories from MIP clients and staff, Stephanie knew she wanted to be involved.

Seven years later, she remains one of our most instrumental, longstanding volunteers and helps keep our intake department running smoothly. She’s also a testament to how justice requires everyone stepping up and doing what they can with what they have. For some, that might be a monetary donation. For others like Stephanie, it might simply be time, dedication, and a voice.

“Whatever your entry point is, it’s about taking that next step to actually be involved, whatever that looks like,” she said.

“We haven’t forgotten about them”

Litigation is the most visible part of the exoneration process. But no wrongful conviction case can make it to a courtroom without the hard work of our intake team, who screens and processes applications from those who are incarcerated.

Nicole Forys is our full-time Intake Analyst staff member. But the workload is massive for one person. In the past year, we’ve received about 350 requests for assistance.

That’s where Stephanie’s help has been so valuable: Stephanie shows up three days a week, working for four or five hours a day to scan documents, process mail and other paperwork, help with filing, and more. Even during peak COVID restrictions in 2020, she was one of two people in the office, scanning documents and organizing file boxes.

“I wanted to keep my brain active (in retirement),” said Stephanie, who retired a couple years before attending her first FOI event. “But I also wanted to do something that meant something.”

Helping MIP fight back against wrongful convictions gave her that sense of purpose. Even if she was just scanning documents — which she did for three years before taking on additional responsibilities — Stephanie knew she was playing an important role in the pursuit of justice.

She also used her volunteer work as a springboard to spread the word about wrongful convictions. She frequently wears MIP T-shirts out in the community, prompting questions or discussion. Those conversations can be a powerful way to spread awareness of just how insidious and common wrongful conviction is, especially in the Midwest.

“People sometimes just don’t want to believe something like this could happen,” Stephanie said. “That’s the hard part — trying to take these blinders off of people so they realize the system does fail a lot of people. We are so quick to put people into the prison system, and it is so near impossible to get them out.”

In her seven years volunteering, Stephanie has had a front-row seat to how difficult that process is, both logistically and emotionally.

Her work processing applications is not the kind of mindless tedium most people might associate with filing or scanning documents. It involves reading details of people’s wrongful conviction stories, or listening to pleas from family members of an incarcerated person. Often, even after months or years, a person’s case still hasn’t moved to the next step. Trying to explain that to a loved one can be incredibly difficult.

All of this work can be taxing mentally. But Stephanie and the rest of the intake team play a vital role in communicating with our applicants who are still waiting on their case to make it to litigation. Intake sends regular letters with case updates. They also answer questions when an applicant calls from prison on MIP’s dedicated applicant phone line.

Those pieces of communication can feel like lifelines. Stephanie has been touched by the holiday cards she’s processed. These applicants have spent what little money they have inside prison to buy a stamp “just to send us a good wish for Thanksgiving or Christmas,” she said.

“They’re just happy to hear somebody that’s working for them, whether there’s been movement (on their case) or not,” Stephanie said. “They’re happy to know we haven’t forgotten about them and we’re still on their side.”

In the fight for the long haul

As someone who’s been with MIP for several years, Stephanie has seen incredible victories — and agonizing losses.

When an MIP client finally gets to come home, it’s one of her favorite parts of the work. But in other cases, the losses are jarring and painful. Stephanie remembers Marcellus “Khaliifah” Williams’ case as being particularly excruciating. Missouri wrongfully executed Mr. Williams in September of 2024, despite physical evidence that supported his innocence.

“That was devastating,” Stephanie said. “These people (at MIP) work so hard and eat, sleep, and breathe it. For something like that to happen, it’s devastating, and it shouldn’t be that way.”

Still, despite those losses, Stephanie has been heartened by the wins, like when Christopher Dunn was released in 2024, or when Floyd Bledsoe celebrated his 10-year freedomversary this year.

“What we’re doing is working, even if it’s a slow process,” she said. “It gives you the desire to keep going because it’s making a difference.”

Stephanie may be a volunteer who doesn’t do this work for any compensation or recognition. But her commitment to MIP’s purpose has been just as unwavering as the rest of our team’s.

For every person like Stephanie — who sees injustice, and feels compelled to do something about it — we get one step closer to a more just world.

“We’re not going to win them all, but we have to keep going,” Stephanie said. “There’s too many people that need our help, and we have to just get up and keep going and hope tomorrow’s a better day. The mission is so important. Watching how much conviction the MIP team has for it is inspiring to want to be a part of that in any small way I possibly can.”

If you’re interested in volunteering with MIP, you can fill out our interest form here.

Watch Stephanie’s award video from 2025 Faces of Innocence here.