CLEVELAND — Selwyn Jones said he's been fighting for criminal justice reform since May 25, 2020, after seeing how his nephew George Floyd died at the hands of a Minneapolis officer during an arrest.

What You Need To Know

  • Ensuring Parole for Incarcerated Citizens hosted a rally at The Justice Center in Cleveland in support of people seeking exoneration.

  • Oct. 2 marks International Wrongful Conviction Day as an estimated two to 5% of Americans in prison are wrongfully incarcerated.

  • Selwyn Jones, George Floyd's uncle, said his grief propels his fight for social justice, four years after Floyd's death.

“Everybody in the world saw that nine minutes and 29 seconds, and that’s the reason why we were able to make an impact on people’s lives,” he said. “Change needs to happen in plenty of aspects, police brutality, wrongful convictions, they’re all something that should not be involved in society.”

On International Wrongful Conviction Day, he’s rallying for innocent people living behind bars at the Judice Center in Cleveland. Jones is also the cofounder of Hope 929, a charity that promotes civil rights and equity in honor of Floyd’s passing. Outside of the organization, Jones said he’s pushing for states to pass the Medical Civil Rights Act, which would give Americans the right to emergency care in any police interaction.

While the number of people killed by police officers in the United States exceeds 600 per year, they are outnumbered by cases of wrongful convictions, as experts estimate at least 22,000 Americans are serving time for crimes they did not commit.

“Wrongfully convicted is to be… taken away from your family, your life, this world, because of somebody’s negligence and the judicial system,” Jones said.

He’s working alongside Jeanna Kenney, the president of Ensuring Parole for Incarcerated Citizens. Kenney said she hopes her husband will be at the next rally as he continues fighting for exoneration.

“My husband, for instance, was taken at 17,” she said. “He spent all of his 20s in system, took all of his 20s, all of his 30s. He just turned 40. We will not allow them to take anymore of is 40s whatsoever.”

Kenney said she has one message for others facing a similar situation.

“You are not alone, especially if you have a loved one who was wrongfully incarcerated,” she said. “I always tell people to request those documents, request the police files, request the prosecutor files, request the court records.”

Jones said gauging mental health is critical when hiring police officers, especially how they respond to crime.

“If you are involved in any kind of aggressive crime or aggressive action, if you’re a police officer, you need to have mental health evaluations,” he said.

Looking to the future, Jones said delivering justice is a never-ending journey.

“My mantra is dream, breathe and deliver,” he said. “Well, we’ve been dreaming for years. We’ve been breathing for years. And with that, I call the George Floyd effect.”