The Spirit of Exoneration Captured in Artist Vik Muniz’s Powerful Portraits

Termaine Hicks was struck by the portrait composed of hundreds of dates, with “December 16, 2020” standing out to him as the day he was released after 19 years of wrongful imprisonment in New York.

He is one of 251 people freed or exonerated with the help of the Innocence Project, and one of the first to have his likeness captured by artist Vik Muniz as part of a collaboration series.

His portrait was displayed at the Sikkema Jenkins & Co. gallery in West Chelsea, along with three others, on October 2.

Muniz used document clippings to create the exonerees’ portraits, highlighting significant dates from their cases.

At the exhibition, Hicks, along with other exonerees, shared their stories of faith and hope as they moved into a new chapter of their lives.

Overturning, Preventing Wrongful Convictions

In 2001, Hicks was wrongfully imprisoned after being shot by the police and falsely accused of rape. It was only after new evidence emerged that his conviction was vacated.

According to Peter Neufeld, co-founder of the Innocence Project, Hicks’s case exposed police corruption and led to reforms in the criminal justice system.

The Innocence Project has inspired numerous similar organizations and advocates, leading to the passage of over 250 criminal justice reform laws.

Neufeld praised Hicks’s patience and spirit throughout his ordeal, calling him an inspiration.

‘God Kept Me Alive for a Reason’

After surviving a botched surgery and teaching himself to walk again while handcuffed to a hospital bed, Hicks reflected on his resilience and survival.

I survived being shot three times in my back, miraculously avoiding paralysis and death. Believing that God had a purpose for me, I was determined to thrive despite being wrongfully imprisoned. Through faith, creative writing, and workouts, I stayed balanced and resolute in proving my innocence.

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Overturning, Preventing Wrongful Convictions ‘God Kept Me Alive for a Reason’

Initially prepared to appeal my own case and serve my full sentence if necessary, I was pleasantly surprised when the Innocence Project took on my case after eight years. Despite it taking another 12 years to secure my release, I remained patient, positive, and grateful throughout.

“This could have easily been the 23rd anniversary of my death,” I remarked, grateful for the opportunity to be a motivational speaker and founder of a mentorship program for at-risk youth called Step Up.

Similarly, Rodriguez and Murphy never lost faith during their wrongful convictions. With hope sometimes running thin, Murphy was exonerated by DNA after 20 years of incarceration. Reuniting with her daughter and becoming a grandmother, she now works as an advocate for the Innocence Project.

Rodriguez, serving nearly three decades before his conviction was vacated, believes in destiny and let go of resentment to avoid sinking his own ship. Understanding the importance of faith, he held the judicial system to the standard it claims to uphold, emphasizing that faith is the last thing to lose in life. He felt that fate had brought him to this moment, believing it was his destiny to forge a path that would demonstrate true justice to others. On the day he was released, Rodriguez described it as dreary and somber, with an unsettling sense of mourning.

He interpreted this weather as a message from God, telling him that he had endured great challenges and was now being reborn. Rodriguez felt compelled to move forward and share his message with the world: not to harbor hatred or blame others for life’s hardships. Instead, he urged everyone to live with dignity, respect, and optimism, knowing that all things will eventually come to pass, and goodness can prevail.