Takisha Campbell, the wife of Joseph Haywood Campbell, said her husband was wrongfully convicted of a 2013 murder in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She spoke during a press conference at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis on November 18, 2024. Campbell was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder, committed for the benefit of a gang and given a life sentence without parole.

“I’m Takisha Campbell, I’m Joseph’s wife. I’m here because, on behalf of my husband, he is wrongfully convicted. He’s been in prison since 2012. We have him going through the CRU [Conviction Review Unit] at this moment. Also, the Great [North] Innocence Project. We got a lawyer on hand. We basically got our case on the desk of the CRU. It’s just been taking a longer time, a long time to get this resolved. Once before, I heard it’s 12 minutes is too long so 12 years is too long. So, it’s no reason why it’ll take any more longer than today to be released, if somebody’s wrongfully convicted. Someone that did not have any evidence stating that he is the person that committed the crime for Naressa Turner. We also have witnesses stating that he is not the person that did the crime. No evidence, no statement of his own as well, so it’s like the question is, what is he still sitting here for? There’s no evidence. Absolutely none. You have the family believing he’s also, he’s innocent of this crime. They know, they know he’s not the person that committed the crime. So the question to like everyone is like, why is he still there? Like, I don’t have any power, but the people that do have the power, what is taking so long to use your power to release the wrongful convicted? His case is one of the cases of 1,300, you know, that actually made it to the desk of the CRU. So I will say, yes, you’re doing your job, but can you put a little speed to it because he’s not the only one wrongfully convicted. Like I said, 12 years too long. 12 minutes is even longer. 12 seconds. Damn. Put the cuffs on. That’s enough. You learned your lesson, but you learned the lesson that you can’t learn from if you didn’t commit that crime. So once again, why is he still in, why is he still incarcerated?”