020 was the year I finally caught the bug — and no, it wasn’t COVID. 

In July 2020, I attended the wonderful live webinar “Criminal Defense Investigations: A Primer on Why and How,” by PI Education‘s Hal Humphreys. And like that, I was hooked. I knew this was something I wanted to do.

I’m not sure that anyone would have accused me of being a “bleeding heart” when I was younger. But as I’ve grown older, I’ve come to see the criminal justice system as imperfect at best. I don’t believe that most criminal defendants are innocent, but excellent media investigations over the years have certainly shown that the system makes mistakes — some due to honest human error, and others … sadly, not. I’m hoping that my work can expose injustice, right wrongs, and may even make a big difference in a few people’s lives.