Good Guy Characteristic #11: He fights against injustice

How would you feel after 34 years in prison for a crime you did not commit? Would you be able to let go of your past and move forward with your life after finally being released?

Kash Delano Register broke down and cried after a Los Angeles judge threw out his conviction for shooting and killing elderly Jack Sasson in April 1979. The conviction was overturned after Sharon Anderson, sister of one of the main witnesses, Brenda Anderson, told a court that the testimony used to send Register to jail was a lie. Brenda Anderson’s testimony was the lynchpin of the prosecution’s case. In 2011, another one of Brenda Anderson’s sisters, Sheila Vanderkam, saw that Register was still incarcerated. She then got in contact with Register’s attorney to tell him her sister Brenda had been lying all those years.

In total, Register spent 34 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. He was freed from jail on November 8, 2013, after a team of lawyers and law students from the Loyola Law School, Los Angeles Project for the Innocent successfully argued that the now 53-year-old Register was wrongfully convicted of murder in 1979.

Register had persistently maintained his innocence all these years despite being denied parole on 11 different occasions dating back to 1993. Register believed that his failure to admit guilt is one of the main reasons he was repeatedly denied parole. He said, “I didn’t want to let someone else off the hook by admitting to something I didn’t do.” His mother, Wilma Register, said she always taught her son: “The truth shall set you free.” Register’s mother said, “I told him to keep the faith and pray.”

The Project for the Innocent fields claims from petitioners who allege that they have been wrongfully convicted. Students screen cases, research legal issues, interview witnesses and meet with inmates. The project provides invaluable exposure to real cases and clients for students with a passion for public interest law. Students in the clinic have a motto, “Who can I help today?” With all of the calls and letters they receive each day, the demand on them is high, but Loyola students never lose sight of their ultimate goal: to be advocates for others.

“I just want to thank everyone that believed in me,” Register said as he walked out of the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles. He was greeted by the Loyola attorneys and law students who assisted him. “We are grateful and delighted that Mr. Register has finally obtained justice and will get his life back after this 34-year nightmare,” said Professor Laurie Levenson, who oversees Loyola’s Project for the Innocent. Professor Lara Bazelon, the project’s director, said, “We could not be happier for our client, a person of amazing strength and moral conviction who has steadfastly maintained his innocence for almost three and a half decades.”

Register is not angry. He says, “That would only stagnate me from moving forward if I came out angry…It’s a beautiful day.”

There is a lot of Good Guy (and girl) Swag to go around in this story. Sharon Anderson and Sheila Vanderkam showed a great deal of courage in stepping forward and stating that their sister’s testimony was not true. Certainly, a lot of recognition goes to the students and professors who give their time and effort to help the people society has tried to forget. Perhaps, even more credit goes to Register for having the fortitude to stand for justice and maintain his innocence when it surely seemed hopeless. He must have been tempted to simply give in and take the blame for a crime he did not commit in hopes that he could get parole for showing remorse. Perhaps even more admirable is Register’s attitude after being released – choosing not to be angry about the past, but focused on moving forward.

Register’s story raises questions for our own lives. What can we learn from Register’s view on life and his desire to move beyond this 34 year injustice? We all have disappointment or perceived injustice in our life – even Good Guys. A tough upbringing? Disappointed by a family member or a friend? You didn’t get the job you thought you deserved? Regardless of our past, what do we want for our future? If Register can move forward with his life after 34 years of injustice, what obstacles or past injustices can we overlook in our own lives? A Good Guy leaves the past behind and remains focused on a rewarding future.