On the morning of August 4, 1992, a man and his wife discovered the body of 31-year-old Vernon Huggins while walking their dog in Toledo, OH. He had been savagely beaten to death. Toledo police investigated the crime but after three months, the case was labeled inactive. In December of that same year, the case was reopened after a call was made to Crime Stoppers. The police interviewed members of a gang called the Bishops and one of those gang members implicated Eric Misch in the killing of Huggins. Misch, while being recorded by police, said that Louis Costilla Jr. took part in the killing along with three other young men. He immediately recanted but it was too late. Louis was charged and convicted of murder and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.
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The Wrongful Conviction podcast, hosted by Jason Flom and Khaliah Ali (daughter of Muhammad Ali), has featured over 500 cases of men and women who spent years — sometimes decades — in prison for crimes they did not commit. The podcast has been downloaded over 70 million times and has directly influenced exonerations, clemencies, and criminal justice reform legislation across the country.