District Attorney Rollins Leads Community Discussion with Wrongfully Convicted Man
BOSTON, February 11, 2020 — District Attorney Rachael Rollins will join Fred Clay, who was wrongfully convicted of murder in Suffolk County and later freed after serving 38 years in prison, for a public screening tomorrow of the film “Just Mercy” and a discussion on criminal justice.
During an event to be held Wednesday, February 12, 2020, at the AMC Boston Common 19, District Attorney Rollins, Mr. Clay, and the attorney who helped exonerate him, Jeffrey G. Harris, will take part in a discussion about Mr. Clay’s case. Further, they will discuss the important role District Attorneys hold in our criminal justice system and efforts to address wealth and race-based disparities.
The discussion will follow a screening of “Just Mercy,” starring Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, and Brie Larson. The film tells the story of Bryan Stevenson, a public interest attorney and founder of the nonprofit Equal Justice Initiative who has worked to free wrongfully convicted prisoners on death row. The screening is at 4:00 p.m. and the discussion with a Q&A runs from 6:15 to 7:15 p.m. The event is sponsored by the Represent Justice Campaign and the Justice Collaborative.
District Attorney Rollins also held a separate screening for members of her staff, the Committee for Public Counsel Services, and community partners. Members of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office who attended the screening will have the opportunity to take part in discussion groups during the days and weeks ahead.
“Since taking office, I have made it a priority to increase public dialogue about the criminal justice system,” District Attorney Rollins said. “It’s especially important to hear from everyone who touches the system, from victims of crime, District Attorneys, and police, to witnesses, the accused, and survivors. These are the very individuals most impacted by our criminal justice system, so we need to listen and work together on solutions. I’m so grateful to Fred Clay for agreeing to take part and for sharing his experiences. It’s vital that we not only correct past mistakes, as with Mr. Clay’s wrongful conviction, but that we learn from these mistakes in order to prevent them from happening again in the future.”
At the age of 17, Mr. Clay was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1979 robbery and shooting death of cab driver Jeffrey Boyajian at the Archdale housing development in Roslindale. The case relied heavily on two eye-witnesses, both of whom positively identified Mr. Clay only after undergoing hypnosis. The Conviction Integrity Program at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office reviewed the case and, in 2017, recommended a Suffolk Superior Court judge vacate the conviction, then filed a nolle prosequi, formally ending the prosecution of the case.
“This film captures the values that drove me to run for District Attorney and that our team at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office strives to put into practice each and every day: grace, compassion, and the belief that no one is defined by their worst act,’’ District Attorney Rollins said.
“I’m honored to lead this community discussion on our criminal justice system and its impact on public safety.”
District Attorney Rollins has invited a number of students from Boston Public Schools, including the entire eighth grade class at the Davis Leadership Academy in Dorchester.
SCDAO serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Mass. The office handles over 25,000 cases a year. More than 160 attorneys in the office practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Courts. The office employs more than 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs to serve anyone who comes in contact with the criminal justice system. This office is committed to educating the public about the services we provide, our commitment to crime prevention, and our dedication to keeping the residents of Suffolk County safe.