Today, Congressman Andy Levin (D-Bloomfield Township), Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) and Senator Stephanie Chang (D-Detroit) released the following statement:
“We were deeply disappointed to learn that the Michigan Attorney General’s Conviction Integrity Unit, known as the CIU, has declined to pursue the release of Temujin Kensu, an innocent Michigander who has been in prison for more than three decades. Despite no physical evidence connecting him to the accused murder and several vetted eyewitnesses who place him more than 400 miles away from the scene of the crime, Kensu remains imprisoned.
“We have great respect for the Attorney General and the other attorneys involved in this case. Attorney General Nessel and her team do remarkable work day-in and day-out to protect the rights of Michigan’s citizens. However, the standard used by the CIU in its review of the Kensu case predetermined the outcome – to us, the wrong outcome. Our point of view is not based on technical or procedural flaws in the case or discovery of an alibi witness who was never presented at trial. It is based on the fact that Kensu could not have committed and did not in fact commit the crime for which the state is taking away the entire rest of his life, now 35 years on. And the continued resistance to this fact of actual innocence by current and former local law enforcement officials does nothing to change the fact itself.
“As longtime advocates for social justice, we believe that we must do more for Temujin Kensu and all wrongfully imprisoned individuals across the globe. In Kensu's case, all available options for relief must be pursued. The court allows for relief based on actual innocence and, Article V, Section 14 of the Michigan Constitution confers upon our Governor the power to ‘grant reprieves, commutations and pardons after convictions for all offenses, except cases of impeachment.’ We pray that those with the power to grant relief conduct a full review and grant relief to Mr. Kensu.”
Source:https://andylevin.house.gov/media/press-releases/levin-tlaib-chang-defend-temujin-kensus-innocence
