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Due South

What cutting the NC Innocence Inquiry Commission would mean for wrongful convictions

By Leoneda Inge,

Published May 20, 2025 at 12:10 PM EDT

the barbed wire gates surrounds North Carolina's Central Prison — Central Prison, a state-run prison in Raleigh, North Carolina.

A budget proposal passed by the state senate would end the state-funded commission, which has helped exonerate 16 people since 2007.

The commission is the only state-backed innocence commission in the U.S., which gives them the power to subpoena. Lawmakers in Texas are considering creating a similar commission.

Guests

Michael Hewlett, reporter with The Assembly. He’s covered the justice system for years.

Laura Pierro, Executive Director of the NC Innocence Inquiry Commission

Catherine Matoian, Assistant Director of the NC Innocence Inquiry Commission

Due South

Leoneda Inge

Leoneda Inge is the co-host of WUNC's "Due South." Leoneda has been a radio journalist for more than 30 years, spending most of her career at WUNC as the Race and Southern Culture reporter. Leoneda’s work includes stories of race, slavery, memory and monuments. She has won "Gracie" awards, an Alfred I. duPont Award and several awards from the Radio, Television, Digital News Association (RTDNA). In 2017, Leoneda was named "Journalist of Distinction" by the National Association of Black Journalists.

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Cole del Charco

Cole del Charco is an audio producer and writer based in Durham. He's made stories for public radio's All Things Considered, Morning Edition and Marketplace. Before joining Due South, he spent time as a freelance journalist, an education and daily news reporter for WUNC, and a podcast producer for WFAE in Charlotte.

See stories by Cole del Charco