During my years of incarceration, dozens of inmates have told me about their trials, saying things like: "I was railroaded"; " The DA was a crook"; "The trial was a sham." Yet, most of these claims couldn't be substantiated.  However, I had a sense that a few of these men for one reason or another, had truly been innocent of the crimes for which they charged, hence, wrongly convicted. 

It's been estimated that about 4-6% of the prison population in the U.S. should not have been convicted and imprisoned. The following is just one of these stories. I will present the facts about my arrest and trial, and allow you to formulate your opinion on the case. If the constitutional violations presented happened to me, they've also happened to countless others in hundreds of courts across the country.

In the 1600's french philosopher, Rene Descartes wrote, "In order to know anything with certainty, we must first question that which we deem to know." Unfortunately, people are generally apathetic towards issues that don't personally affect them. But in recent years because of extensive media exposure, there's been a trend in our society to instigate thinking that won't accept the status quo, reaching a level of consciousness that's strong enough to instigate change. Even so, it took years of seeing countess acts of police brutality to enact legislation and policy changes to prevent such acts without consequences.

My purpose is to attack the criminal justice system from another angle by calling attention to systemic flaws in the judicial system, beginning with the state courts where the violation of defendants' constitutional rights have been prevalent for so long that it has become the accepted paradigm. District attorneys and police agencies are more focused on obtaining convictions than seeking the truth in the interest of justice, the onus placed upon them when appointed to their positions.

My name is Joseph Cua, and I was convicted in 2008 for the murder of my friends, Fernand and Suzanne Wagner, with special circumstances for using a knife. From day one I have maintained my innocence, but have now spent 17 years without my freedom for a crime I did not commit. I was arrested in spite of a warrant claiming injuries I didn't have; bloody fingerprint and shoe prints pointed to a 3rd party; a plethora of DNA evidence belonged to an unknown 3rd party, including on the Suzanne's breast and under her nails; and no evidence proving means and opportunity. I now possess the perspicacity of how it happened, and feel compelled to tell my story. I will offer facts and documentation and allow the reader to make his own conclusions. I will also offer insight into who I am both before and after my incarceration and discuss people in my life who profoundly influenced me and how this story played out.