First published 2020
Jim McCloskey stands at a crossroads at 37, abandoning his management consulting career to enroll at Princeton Theological Seminary. His first chaplain assignment takes him to Trenton State Prison, where he meets Jorge de los Santos, a heroin addict convicted of murder who insists on his innocence. Despite having no legal training, McCloskey investigates the case for two years until de los Santos walks free, completely exonerated. This victory launches McCloskey's true calling. He founds Centurion Ministries, America's first organization dedicated to overturning wrongful convictions. Working with forensic experts, lawyers, and volunteers, McCloskey fights tirelessly for the unjustly imprisoned. Over decades, Centurion frees 65 innocent prisoners facing life sentences or execution. McCloskey's memoir chronicles both his personal journey of faith and doubt, and the stories of those he has saved. The book reveals his struggles and triumphs, his certainty about his life's purpose, and the movement he sparked through unwavering belief in truth.
Genres: crime, non-fiction, biography-memoir, activism
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: redemption, true-story
Setting: Trenton State Prison, Princeton Theological Seminary
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
320 pages · Paperback · Anchor
Content warnings: murder