After reading Just Mercy awhile back that talked about the innocence project and how there were people in prison who never belonged there, The Sing Sing Files caught my attention. Dan the writer of the story is a long term employee of Date line NBC and thought he saw it all. He loved all the Pieces he got to do regarding law enforcement and how their job was done He never thought about the fact that there might be people in prison that didn't belong there until 1 night he got to talking with Bobby 1 of the police officers he was following in the Bronx Who dealt with the gangs And learned that there were 2 men in prison for a crime that many people knew they didn't commit. Dan was shocked and couldn't let it go so he started investigating in his free time alongside Bobby.
This one event will lead him down a road of several innocent men put away by the Manhattan day's office.
These true events and stories were shocking And I hope and pray that this is isolated incidents and that it doesn't happen as much as it's starting to feel like it does.

Another fabulous book bringing forth the injustices in the justice system. The stories based on incorrect identification, unnecessary pressure and political agendas these men were imprisoned for DECADES. They ARE/WERE innocent.

It is unfortunate that these stories are always found after a conviction and years of being in prison. And then it takes another decade or more for justice to be reversed.

Necessary reading, particularly in today's climate. If one quote could sum up this book about our broken justice system, it’s: “Lots of innocent people are suspects, that’s just how the system works.” If you’re passionate about social justice, reading about these six innocent men and Slepian’s 20-year fight for justice will further fuel your anger and passion. I went down many Internet paths to research or add to my education while reading this and it's such an inspiring journey to follow Slepian's work toward never giving up or believing in these men. It's proof that platforms have weight and if more celebrities or people with platforms utilized that power, we might greater change (i.e. Kim Kardashian's prison reform work).

This is such a good book about the injustices in the U.S. It reminded me very much of Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson, but from a journalist's perspective, so more of an investigative piece. I'm appalled at the way our justice system works. I listened to this one on audio from Libby (but was gifted the e-version from Celadon and NetGalley - thank you!), and it felt like I was listening to a podcast. It was easy to stay engaged, even though I felt very rage-y throughout most of the book. It's amazing to me what people in power will do to save face.

I'm not sure what else I can add a different kind of praise for this book, but I highly recommend picking this one up if you're looking to learn more about this side of wrongful convictions.

I see many reviews (negative and positive) that this reads like a Dateline episode and it does. Which makes sense as the author works on Dateline. The author does sprinkle in some of his work on Dateline outside of his pursuit of justice for the men and women in this release.

The sing sing files was an excellent read. It was eye-opening and raw and I learned so much. I would read more from the author.

Went through the emotions on this one. Such an important and eye-opening read.

I received an advanced copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.

If I could only use one word to describe this book, it would be WOW! Incredibly powerful and heartbreaking, this inside look at how wrong our justice system can go was truly sobering. As an American, we all like to think justice will always prevail, but this book showed just how far from the truth that is. I was so invested in the stories the author told, and every time I remembered that these are real people whose lives and families were ruined over a wrongful conviction, it was a gut punch all over again. At the risk of sounding crass, I kept thinking of umpires/referees in sports who refuse to overturn calls they got wrong, because they needed to be right. The prosecutors had clear and convincing evidence exonerating these men, yet refused to do so, mainly for the sake of optics. It's truly appalling, and I hope this brilliant book gets into the hands of more people.

Are you deeply moved by stories of wrongful convictions? THE SING SING FILES: One Journalist, Six Innocent Men, and a Twenty-Year Fight for Justice is a profoundly heartbreaking piece of investigative journalism that introduces readers to Sing Sing, a maximum security prison that houses many of Manhattan's most violent criminals, and also home to a handful of innocent men.

Dan Slepian, host of Dateline NBC began working with wrongfully convicted individuals decades ago as a side project outside of his Dateline projects. This book primarily follows JJ, who really began Dan’s interest in this type of work, but also shares the story of other men within Sing Sing. Through these men’s stories Dan captures the helplessness and gross injustice of wrongful congvisions. Readers are left to wonder–how could this possibly happen? How does our criminal legal system allow this to continue to happen over and over again?

We hear directly from wrongfully imprisoned men as they explore the systemic injustices that stripped them of their freedoms, dignity, and the life they once knew.

This book is one that will stay with me long after I close the final page.

Many thanks to Celadon and NetGalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

📖ARC REVIEW📖

The Sing Sing Files by Dan Slepian
(AVAILAVLE NOW)

Thank you to the author and @celadonbooks for an advanced copy of this book.

💭BLURB💭
Dan Seplian is a journalist at NBC News. In this book, he chronicles his effort to bring justice to those who have been wrongfully incarcerated for crimes they didn't commit. This books speaks on corruption in law enforcement and within the legal system of the United States

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If you think that "Just Mercy" by Brian Stevenson is important, you should also pick up this one. An honest, inside look into the lives of people who have been wronged by the system that is meant to protect us, this book will help open your eyes to the flaws in our justice system and give you hope that there are people out there trying to right these wrongs. Many movements of thought and introspection. This should be essential reading.

Dan Slepian, long time Dateline producer, has written an enraging and engaging book for true crime and social justice readers. Some portions are so unbelievable you would think this is a work of fiction.

This debut about the wrongly convicted managed to be both heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time. It evoked so many emotions. Slepian's decades long investigations of six incarcerated men claiming to be innocent led to eye-opening, award nominated Dateline episodes prior to this book. Slepian felt he had a moral obligation to finding the truth and was relentless in that regard.

The journey Slepian took was reminiscent of Bryan Stevenson's (Just Mercy) but Slepian did not have the legal background. He learned along the way making both lifelong friends and enemies.

This was a page turner in the most maddening way. It should be required reading in all US high schools.

I want to thank Celadon Books and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was not my vibe. I appreciate the ability to be autoapproved, it just wasn't my style of book

Riveting! A true crime story for true crime fanatics, I have loved Dateline for years and was excited to read that Dan Slepian wrote this novel. Well written, informative and one I won't forget.

Couldnt get into the writing. It was a good story, but the writing just didnt get me to truly see the story.

This was excellent. I listed to the audiobook and the author does a wonderful job narrating. The content is fascinating- I learned so much about the court system and the appeal process, much of it heartbreaking. The author helps bring justice to six innocent men through decades of research, advocacy, and determination. The author is a Dateline producer which added an interesting component to the story.

Thanks to the publisher for sharing an audiobook with me. All opinions are my own.

Full review to come on Goodreads and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy

It's very thought-provoking and moving! Slepain writes how he initially started doing research for a different project, and some wrongfully landed in his lap. Then, he put the cases on the back burner while working on other projects. But, he was receiving letters from these men and then he had a cop find out the evidence that proved some of these guys were innocent and still charged.
This is really eye-opening for issues that happen in our justice system and how many roadblocks can be put in front of someone trying to free innocent men. Slepian worked and documented many things and he worked hard to be able to free these men without his help it is very possible these six men would still be wrongfully imprisoned.
I realize that there are probably several that have been wrongfully convicted but I did not realize how in-depth it would go with detectives and DAs going to just "solve" the case to help their numbers even when they have evidence that the one they are charging did not commit the crime. This is a must-read for those who love true crime and also want to know about the other side of true crime when someone is wrongfully convicted. I extend my gratitude to Celadon Books and Netgalley for the extraordinary opportunity to read and review this one!

This was very engaging and well-written, but still not easy to get through. The egregious mistakes and calculated misrepresentations that occurred in the criminal cases outlined by the author are gross and bewildering.
How does one go into a public service position, like law enforcement, and not do their damndest to make sure innocent people don't spend DECADES in prison for crimes they didn't commit? Or worse, manipulate facts and ignore blatant truths to serve personal agendas? I don't get it.
This book also demonstrates why prison reform needs to be a much bigger priority.
Thanks to #netgalley and #celadonbooks for this #arc of #thesingsingfiles by #danslepian in exchange for an honest review.

Going into this read, I knew the justice system was flawed, but I never knew it could be as bad and corrupt as this book highlights. The author does a phenomenal job of going through various cases to exemplify the deeply rooted issues of the justice system. This book was easy to understand, powerful, and a critical read for americans in my opinion.

This book is a really great mix of true crime and investigative journalism - I really think true crime girlies who are interested in the aftermath of when someone gets convicted (particularly when they are actually innocent) will like this one!

Nonfiction is sometimes hard for me to get into but I absolutely did not have that problem with this book! I was engaged the whole time and actually listened to it all in one day because I needed to hear what happened. There were moments that gave me goosebumps and even more moments that made me want to scream at our (in)justice system.

This is a really important book that takes a bite sized look at how wrongful convictions affect individuals and their families. Though only 6 stories were told here, it horrifies me to think about how many exist beyond what are in the pages of this book.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.