Maurice Carter: dead. Maurice Carter’s legacy: alive and well!

"When I get out, I’m going to get me a Cadillac just like that one! Maurice Carter and I were standing on a beautiful site along Michigan’s longest river: the Grand River. He was living in a nearby senior care facility, and he was in bad health.  Pointing to the car in a nearby parking lot, he said, “Not a new one. Just a nice used car!” 

Melancholy hits me every year on October 24 and 25. That’s when Maurice died. It marked the end of an emotional decade in my life. It marked the beginning of an amazing final chapter of my life! 

I first met the man in the mid-1990s when a Michigan prisoner said to me: “I’m not the only person who was wrongly convicted in Berrien County! I’d like you to meet Maurice Carter.” 

Here was a dear Black man, financially indigent, no support group, only a few family members…unable to attract anyone’s attention, claiming innocence. 

As an experienced journalist, I looked into this case, it was true! 

So, I joined up with him. Maurice Carter’s team had just doubled! Casual friendship at first. Then, over the years, it blossomed into something very special. He became a member of the Tjapkes family! 

He and I rolled up our sleeves and over the next decade we enlisted the help of 4 Innocence Projects and garnered international attention! Never exonerated, but suffering from Hepatitis C, Maurice was granted a compassionate release in 2004. He needed a new liver…something we just couldn’t make happen in time. He died at the age of 60. 

Now about the legacy. The Carter story is now being told in a published book, an exceptional stage play, and a brand-new documentary film! And, due to Maurice’s prodding, I founded a prisoner advocacy program in 2001 that now has a client list consisting of one-third of the entire Michigan prison population! 

Today I’m reminded of a poignant column written by then Grand Rapids Press Religion Writer Charley Honey, who had recently visited Maurice: 

This week, I had the privilege of meeting a man convicted of trying to kill someone. 

His name is Maurice Carter. He has gentle eyes, a warm hug and a soft smile that glows with gratitude. 

In this thin, ailing man, I saw a presence of grace that I have not witnessed in a very long time. 

"I know this God is for real," Carter said quietly, sitting in the lobby of an area nursing home. "He's just answered my prayers. That's what keeps me going." 

RIP my brother Maurice. Your name, reputation and legacy are still going! I’ll see you again.

 

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