The Arcadia University community is invited to hear from Joaquin Martinez, the first Spanish citizen to be exonerated from death row in the U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 2. The event is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Brubaker Hall Room 102, and it will be online through Zoom. 

Martinez was arrested in January 1996 for a double murder in Florida and was convicted and sentenced to death on April 15, 1997. However, with the assistance of the Witness to Innocence organization dedicated to working on death penalty wrongful convictions cases, Martinez was acquitted of all charges. 

According to Witness to Innocence, Martinez lives in Spain and campaigns for the abolition of capital punishment on a global scale. As he puts it, “We have come a long way. I think it’s incredible how much has been achieved in the 12 years since I was released.” Martinez remains committed to the fight for abolition until it is fully achieved.

Contact Kevin Revier (revierk@arcadia.edu) for more information.