WEBVTT - #122 Wrongful Conviction: False Confessions - Bonus Interview with Daniel Villegas 0:00:03.760 --> 0:00:06.400 Hey guys, it's Laura and I writer. Welcome to a 0:00:06.440 --> 0:00:11.080 special bonus episode of Wrongful Conviction, False Confessions. We've gotten 0:00:11.160 --> 0:00:14.720 an overwhelming response to this week's story about Daniel Viegas 0:00:15.040 --> 0:00:17.880 and to the video we posted on Instagram and Twitter 0:00:18.120 --> 0:00:21.440 showing the moment he learned the jury's verdict, so we're 0:00:21.480 --> 0:00:25.360 releasing a bonus episode a conversation I had with Daniel 0:00:25.680 --> 0:00:28.120 when I sat down with him in Austin, Texas two 0:00:28.120 --> 0:00:31.880 months ago. You know, after everything we've been through together, 0:00:32.320 --> 0:00:36.600 Daniel's not just a former client, he's a friend. We 0:00:36.680 --> 0:00:38.880 talked about what it was like waiting for the jury 0:00:38.920 --> 0:00:42.320 to announce its verdict, how he'd prepared his children for 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:45.639 the possibility he might not be coming home, and how 0:00:45.680 --> 0:00:49.960 it feels to finally focus on the future. If you 0:00:50.000 --> 0:00:51.960 haven't heard his full story, it's right here in the 0:00:52.000 --> 0:00:55.520 podcast feed, just under this bonus episode. And if you've 0:00:55.600 --> 0:00:58.800 yet to watch Daniel's exoneration video, check it out on 0:00:58.880 --> 0:01:03.040 Instagram at ung Full Conviction. It's an incredible opportunity for 0:01:03.120 --> 0:01:14.280 all of us to bear witness to freedom. Daniel. I'm 0:01:14.280 --> 0:01:15.480 so glad you're here with us today. 0:01:15.560 --> 0:01:17.120 Yes, I'm glad to be here too, thank you. 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:19.040 Yeah, So tell me what's going on for you right 0:01:19.040 --> 0:01:21.280 now in your life. You've been out how many years? 0:01:21.680 --> 0:01:23.400 Six years? Now? Six years? 0:01:23.480 --> 0:01:24.959 And tell me what you're doing with your life. 0:01:25.120 --> 0:01:26.840 At this point in the stage in my life, it's 0:01:26.880 --> 0:01:29.280 you know, we're not dealing with the hecticness of trial 0:01:29.319 --> 0:01:32.160 and all that stuff. So now I'm focusing on what 0:01:32.200 --> 0:01:33.320 I'm going to do for the future. 0:01:33.560 --> 0:01:37.959 So you were acquitted about fourteen months ago, and so 0:01:38.040 --> 0:01:40.880 you've had that time to finally move on from this case. 0:01:41.200 --> 0:01:44.480 That's dog you your whole life exactly right. So what 0:01:44.560 --> 0:01:45.920 have you been doing? Are you working? 0:01:46.120 --> 0:01:49.440 Yes, I'm working with Manbela Contractors. I do their deliveries 0:01:49.480 --> 0:01:50.600 with Mimbella Contractors. 0:01:50.600 --> 0:01:51.520 So this is John Vnbella. 0:01:51.640 --> 0:01:53.480 Yeah, John Minbella. That helped me out too. Yeah. 0:01:53.560 --> 0:01:56.440 Yeah, so you're working with John Vmbella huh all these years. 0:01:56.600 --> 0:01:58.840 You know, John Mimbella is like a family member. You know, 0:01:59.160 --> 0:02:01.600 he didn't just you know, help get me free. You know, 0:02:01.800 --> 0:02:03.800 he's always been there for me, you know, like a 0:02:03.800 --> 0:02:06.680 backbone and a counselor. You know, he's always been someone 0:02:06.720 --> 0:02:09.080 that I can go to, you know for anything. You know, 0:02:09.120 --> 0:02:10.239 even if it's just a hang out. 0:02:10.280 --> 0:02:12.320 Well, you've been a counselor yourself too. You were telling 0:02:12.320 --> 0:02:14.920 me before we sat down that you know, you're working 0:02:14.919 --> 0:02:17.160 at Membela construction and doing deliveries and things for them, 0:02:17.160 --> 0:02:19.000 but you're also working with a lot of the other guys. 0:02:19.200 --> 0:02:20.200 Yes, work there. 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:22.359 Yeah, we do construction, so it's a lot of you know, 0:02:22.400 --> 0:02:24.000 you're gonna have a lot of conmics and stuff there. 0:02:24.040 --> 0:02:26.959 So a lot of these guys, you know, they got 0:02:26.960 --> 0:02:29.720 problems and issues, and you know they look up to me. 0:02:30.000 --> 0:02:32.600 So Membela hires people who used to be incarcerated. Yes, 0:02:32.639 --> 0:02:35.120 a lot of folks there. And these guys, you know, 0:02:35.320 --> 0:02:38.239 just like anybody getting out of prison, have their struggles, 0:02:38.280 --> 0:02:40.160 you know, their situation when they get out. Stuff they 0:02:40.160 --> 0:02:41.440 have to figure out, and they come. 0:02:41.360 --> 0:02:43.800 To you exactly, you know, and they come to me 0:02:43.840 --> 0:02:45.080 and ask me, you know, for my advice. 0:02:45.200 --> 0:02:47.920 You know, because one of the hardest things to transition into. 0:02:47.800 --> 0:02:51.480 You know, what we call the free world is you know, 0:02:51.520 --> 0:02:56.639 we have to leave everything in prison behind us. 0:02:57.280 --> 0:02:59.040 And a lot of times a lot of people can't 0:02:59.080 --> 0:02:59.359 do that. 0:02:59.320 --> 0:03:02.520 Because you're so used to you know, thinking and moving 0:03:02.560 --> 0:03:06.240 in that way. So it's hard to put that behind 0:03:06.280 --> 0:03:08.880 you and then live basically a whole different life. 0:03:09.080 --> 0:03:10.200 How do you put that behind you? 0:03:10.760 --> 0:03:11.200 It's hard. 0:03:11.240 --> 0:03:12.880 I mean I don't ever like I always tell her, 0:03:12.919 --> 0:03:14.600 but I don't think it'll ever get away from us. 0:03:14.800 --> 0:03:16.680 It won't ever escape us, and we'll always have it. 0:03:16.840 --> 0:03:19.760 But the good thing is that as time progresses, you know, 0:03:19.880 --> 0:03:22.080 as we grow, it's a lot easier to deal with. 0:03:22.280 --> 0:03:24.560 Like before you would get mad and it was so 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:26.560 hard for you to calm down. After a while, when 0:03:26.680 --> 0:03:29.200 you start getting mad, you'll start catching yourself going through 0:03:29.200 --> 0:03:31.920 the stages of going from zero to one hundred, and 0:03:31.960 --> 0:03:35.280 you can stop it before it goes to one hundred? 0:03:35.280 --> 0:03:36.520 What do you tell yourself to stop it? 0:03:36.600 --> 0:03:39.600 Personally? Like I always check myself. You know, it's not 0:03:39.720 --> 0:03:42.040 that bad, you know, look at the bigger picture. 0:03:42.280 --> 0:03:44.320 Well, and you're not dealing with it alone either, Right, 0:03:44.320 --> 0:03:46.560 you've got John Manilla, but you've also got a wonderful family. 0:03:46.600 --> 0:03:48.400 Oh yes, you know, like my wife too, I mean 0:03:48.480 --> 0:03:49.920 everyone for her. I mean I don't know what I 0:03:49.920 --> 0:03:53.520 would have done. Yeah, she was when I first came out, 0:03:53.560 --> 0:03:56.160 you know, I was basically a forty year old with 0:03:56.200 --> 0:03:59.400 a sixteen year old mentality. You know, got locked up 0:03:59.400 --> 0:04:01.480 when I was a kid, so I never really grew up. 0:04:01.520 --> 0:04:04.680 I wasn't never had a structure. I never I never 0:04:04.720 --> 0:04:06.480 really came out and was, you know, have my own 0:04:06.480 --> 0:04:10.560 family or anything, you know. So coming down and dinning 0:04:10.600 --> 0:04:14.400 was society as an adult was very very very very hard, 0:04:14.440 --> 0:04:16.880 you know, because there was so much I didn't know, 0:04:17.320 --> 0:04:20.880 and it was so frustrating because everybody knows it like 0:04:21.040 --> 0:04:23.240 second nature, and you feel like you're out of the loop. 0:04:23.279 --> 0:04:24.359 You feel like an alien, like you. 0:04:24.320 --> 0:04:25.560 Got dropped into another planet. 0:04:25.680 --> 0:04:28.400 Yeah right, you know. So Amanda's always been there too, 0:04:28.480 --> 0:04:30.400 like she's always all right. You got your wallet, you 0:04:30.440 --> 0:04:31.320 got your keys, you got this. 0:04:31.839 --> 0:04:34.680 Yeah, those basic things of life, but the stuff you 0:04:34.720 --> 0:04:36.480 forget right when you've been locked away for so long, 0:04:36.600 --> 0:04:39.880 exactly exactly Amanda's watching. Make sure. Hey, man, we all 0:04:39.920 --> 0:04:41.120 need somebody like Amanda. 0:04:40.760 --> 0:04:44.520 In our life, exactly, trust me. 0:04:46.480 --> 0:04:49.400 And you have a beautiful You've got a beautiful family. 0:04:49.400 --> 0:04:51.640 You've got kids. Yes, we have four kids. 0:04:52.360 --> 0:04:55.240 I have my oldest daughter who's twenty five, Priscilla, and 0:04:55.279 --> 0:04:59.320 then my daughter who's tan Kayla that's Amanda's daughter, and 0:04:59.360 --> 0:05:01.680 my stepdaughter, and then we have two kids together. 0:05:02.400 --> 0:05:05.320 One four. That's basically I know, Jude, and. 0:05:05.160 --> 0:05:06.560 Then named after your dad. 0:05:06.760 --> 0:05:10.080 Yeah, you're named after my dad and Amanda's brother. Yeah. 0:05:10.120 --> 0:05:11.120 And then we have. 0:05:11.800 --> 0:05:14.719 The little little baby, the little rugrat. We have the 0:05:14.760 --> 0:05:17.320 newest addition to the family. That's Emory Hope. She's the 0:05:17.320 --> 0:05:18.160 hell Raiser. 0:05:18.120 --> 0:05:18.560 There you go. 0:05:18.600 --> 0:05:19.120 How old is she? 0:05:19.520 --> 0:05:22.760 She's going on two years old in a couple of months, 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:25.880 so she's almost too But that's the little hell Raiser. 0:05:25.920 --> 0:05:30.440 Man a full house. Yeah, that's great, that's great. So, 0:05:30.880 --> 0:05:33.479 you know, what would you tell your kids? You know, 0:05:33.520 --> 0:05:35.120 some of them are obviously too young to talk about 0:05:35.120 --> 0:05:37.200 what happened to you, But what do you tell your 0:05:37.240 --> 0:05:39.600 kids who are old enough to start to think about 0:05:39.600 --> 0:05:41.040 what happened to you? What do you tell them about 0:05:41.360 --> 0:05:42.359 what happened to you? 0:05:42.360 --> 0:05:45.960 You know, I really don't try to focus so much 0:05:45.960 --> 0:05:48.720 of what happened to me, but what they can do 0:05:48.800 --> 0:05:52.599 now to avoid that, you know, like I always try 0:05:52.640 --> 0:05:54.479 to tell them, you know, like you know, when they 0:05:54.480 --> 0:05:55.560 get frusted, I'm always. 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:56.880 Trying to tell me, you know, it's not that bad. 0:05:56.960 --> 0:05:59.120 You know, you're you're you're you're getting too caught up 0:05:59.800 --> 0:06:01.919 in this little drama going on at school. 0:06:02.040 --> 0:06:04.200 Or whatever, and it's not that tough. You know, it's 0:06:04.200 --> 0:06:05.680 not gonna be the end of the world. And you know, 0:06:05.720 --> 0:06:06.480 I just try to. 0:06:06.400 --> 0:06:10.680 Give them my perspective as far as you know, thinking 0:06:10.880 --> 0:06:12.719 of how to deal with problems. 0:06:12.279 --> 0:06:14.800 And stuff and issues that come into life. 0:06:14.880 --> 0:06:17.800 And that's mostly what I focus on, because I feel like, 0:06:18.360 --> 0:06:20.800 you know, life is ten percent of what happens in 0:06:20.880 --> 0:06:22.160 ninety percent how you react to that. 0:06:22.720 --> 0:06:23.400 I don't want to so. 0:06:23.440 --> 0:06:26.600 Much teach him about my experience as much as teach 0:06:26.640 --> 0:06:29.039 him about how to deal with your problems now from 0:06:29.040 --> 0:06:29.760 that experience. 0:06:39.120 --> 0:06:40.599 So let me talk to you a little bit about 0:06:40.640 --> 0:06:42.600 what it was like to walk out of prison six 0:06:42.680 --> 0:06:46.159 years ago. Right, you were released on bond. It's twenty fourteen, 0:06:46.200 --> 0:06:48.800 January twenty fourteen when you were released on bond. Yes, 0:06:48.920 --> 0:06:51.279 And you know, when I talk to my other clients 0:06:51.279 --> 0:06:54.200 who have come out of prison, you know, people always 0:06:54.240 --> 0:06:56.880 have stories about the little things, the things they didn't 0:06:56.920 --> 0:07:00.440 realize they missed until they were back out and remembered 0:07:00.480 --> 0:07:02.840 things right that they'd missed for so long. What were 0:07:02.839 --> 0:07:04.560 those things for you? Those things you didn't realize that 0:07:04.600 --> 0:07:05.280 you've been missing. 0:07:05.680 --> 0:07:09.120 Does smell? Yeah, you know the way the pavement of 0:07:09.200 --> 0:07:11.320 the street smell. You know, we take that again after 0:07:11.320 --> 0:07:13.440 a while you're walking and you know, especially people living 0:07:13.480 --> 0:07:15.640 downtown or whatever, you know, they don't even smell the 0:07:15.720 --> 0:07:18.080 roses no more. And that's one of the main things 0:07:18.120 --> 0:07:19.720 that a lot of us when we come out, we 0:07:19.840 --> 0:07:23.520 notice these smells because we've been smelling nothing but disinfected 0:07:23.680 --> 0:07:24.320 our whole life. 0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:24.760 Yeah. 0:07:24.800 --> 0:07:26.960 So you know, you have actual nature and you have 0:07:27.000 --> 0:07:30.160 like pavement, you have like you know, the birds chirpping, 0:07:30.200 --> 0:07:32.440 and then you have cars and you have like horns, 0:07:32.440 --> 0:07:37.360 and you know, it's a whole different orchestra of music, 0:07:37.480 --> 0:07:40.200 and so to speak, compared to prison, where it's nothing 0:07:40.280 --> 0:07:43.720 but just a lot of yelling and screaming, it's. 0:07:43.640 --> 0:07:45.760 A beautiful orchestra of music. Yeah, but hard to get 0:07:45.840 --> 0:07:46.680 used to it first too. 0:07:47.520 --> 0:07:49.480 It's not so much as hard to get used to it, 0:07:49.560 --> 0:07:51.520 just it's hard to concentrate on something now, is because 0:07:51.560 --> 0:07:54.160 you're so focused on hearing every sound and everything. 0:07:54.360 --> 0:07:58.160 That's amazing, amazing, every sound from the orchestra of life. 0:07:58.200 --> 0:07:59.120 I think that's gorgeous. 0:07:59.240 --> 0:08:00.520 Yeah. 0:08:00.840 --> 0:08:03.280 I want to take you back from moment too, if 0:08:03.320 --> 0:08:07.880 I can, that moment fourteen months ago when you were acquitted. 0:08:08.360 --> 0:08:11.760 It was your third trial right over the course of 0:08:12.400 --> 0:08:18.240 twenty plus years, and this was the moment of your vindication. Yes, 0:08:19.000 --> 0:08:23.040 it's an incredible moment for us all to listen to. 0:08:23.560 --> 0:08:26.240 When you were sitting there in that courtroom. You know, 0:08:26.240 --> 0:08:28.280 Amanda and your family members are right behind you, all 0:08:28.280 --> 0:08:30.200 your supporters are right behind you. You were sitting there through 0:08:30.280 --> 0:08:32.760 lawyers and the judge read out the verdict. Can you 0:08:32.800 --> 0:08:35.240 tell me what it was like waiting for that verdict? 0:08:35.679 --> 0:08:40.440 That was excruciating pain that I would not wish on anybody. 0:08:40.920 --> 0:08:41.800 That was terrible. 0:08:42.200 --> 0:08:45.120 But you know when I was going through that, you know, 0:08:45.160 --> 0:08:46.840 when they I was in the back of the side 0:08:46.880 --> 0:08:49.760 of the courthouse and I was like having an intimate 0:08:49.800 --> 0:08:52.000 moment with my daughter, my youngest daughter. How old was 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:54.520 she she was at that time, she was about six 0:08:54.559 --> 0:08:59.400 months And you know, I really didn't think, you know, 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:01.600 I know she can't understand what I'm saying. So I 0:09:01.640 --> 0:09:05.280 was just praying that you know, that parmorama experience happens 0:09:05.360 --> 0:09:05.760 during death. 0:09:05.840 --> 0:09:08.840 It's true, where you live, your whole life flashes before you. 0:09:09.120 --> 0:09:10.440 You sort of get out of your body and see 0:09:10.480 --> 0:09:11.720 yourself exactly. 0:09:11.760 --> 0:09:14.360 So I figured, you know, if if anything. 0:09:14.400 --> 0:09:16.439 You know, I'll talk to her and she will remember 0:09:16.480 --> 0:09:19.720 that on that day when she you know, because I couldn't, 0:09:19.760 --> 0:09:20.600 you know, there's no other way. 0:09:20.760 --> 0:09:21.520 She was too young. 0:09:22.280 --> 0:09:23.719 So I was just explaining to her, you know, I 0:09:23.800 --> 0:09:25.280 was just telling her, you know, baby, you know, I'm 0:09:25.320 --> 0:09:26.160 not guilty. 0:09:26.400 --> 0:09:27.560 I'm just saying who I am. 0:09:27.960 --> 0:09:29.840 People are going to tell you stuff about me, and 0:09:29.840 --> 0:09:32.280 I'm just like explaining things for that, you know that 0:09:32.320 --> 0:09:36.360 I'm hoping one day she'll kind of remember that, she'll 0:09:36.400 --> 0:09:37.199 come back to that. 0:09:37.960 --> 0:09:40.280 And uh. I did this to each of my kids. 0:09:41.160 --> 0:09:43.000 I set each of them down by themselves and I 0:09:43.000 --> 0:09:45.560 would explain things to them, and that was my last one. 0:09:45.679 --> 0:09:47.200 And right when I was doing that, they tell us 0:09:47.240 --> 0:09:49.360 that the verdict is on. We got the verdict, and 0:09:49.360 --> 0:09:53.920 I'm like, holy crap. So we were running to the courthouse. 0:09:54.240 --> 0:09:56.000 And then the thoughts, like I said, since I was 0:09:56.040 --> 0:09:59.040 having that intimate moment with her, you know, was one 0:09:59.080 --> 0:10:01.760 of the thoughts that came into my mind that were 0:10:01.800 --> 0:10:03.800 more prevailing than anyone. I was thinking to myself that 0:10:03.960 --> 0:10:06.320 did we make the right decision, you know, not accepting 0:10:06.360 --> 0:10:08.480 the offer please? And I was like, I know in 0:10:08.520 --> 0:10:10.640 my heart, you know that we made the right decision. 0:10:11.440 --> 0:10:13.720 And I know Amanda stands by me on that, but 0:10:13.920 --> 0:10:15.640 I was saying, did we actually do. 0:10:15.559 --> 0:10:17.320 It the right decision for our kids? 0:10:17.559 --> 0:10:17.880 Yeah? 0:10:17.920 --> 0:10:19.960 You know, even if you know you're right, you know, 0:10:20.160 --> 0:10:22.440 are we making the right decisions because this is my 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:23.080 case right. 0:10:23.160 --> 0:10:23.520 Not to see you? 0:10:23.640 --> 0:10:25.479 Yes, exactly. 0:10:26.000 --> 0:10:27.800 And if you look at the video, you'll see me 0:10:27.840 --> 0:10:29.600 and my Lord's talking and you see me shaking my hand. 0:10:29.679 --> 0:10:30.559 That's what I was telling them. 0:10:30.559 --> 0:10:31.839 You know, I'm pleased, man, tell me that we made 0:10:31.840 --> 0:10:33.880 the right decision here, that we do made the right decision, 0:10:33.920 --> 0:10:36.480 not only on me, but did we make the right 0:10:36.440 --> 0:10:37.480 decision for my children? 0:10:38.280 --> 0:10:40.480 You know? Did we fight this on pride or did 0:10:40.520 --> 0:10:41.760 we fight this for justice? 0:10:41.800 --> 0:10:44.559 You know, you you second guess everything at that moment, 0:10:44.600 --> 0:10:46.160 you know, and then you second guess your you know 0:10:46.640 --> 0:10:48.679 everything that charal's coming through your head and you're like, man, 0:10:48.679 --> 0:10:50.160 we should have done this, We should have done that. 0:10:50.200 --> 0:10:52.079 You know that was coming to your thoughts, and that's 0:10:52.200 --> 0:10:52.800 killing you too. 0:10:52.880 --> 0:10:57.040 So you got all these there's like a million thoughts 0:10:57.080 --> 0:11:00.360 just blading down on you. And then you just want 0:11:00.440 --> 0:11:02.160 to judge your hear up and tell you not guilty 0:11:02.200 --> 0:11:03.920 and guilty and you wait for the jury to come 0:11:03.960 --> 0:11:06.360 in here in. 0:11:06.400 --> 0:11:09.959 Order, and you're just sitting there dying, I mean excruciated. 0:11:10.559 --> 0:11:12.599 So you're sitting there in that moment, waiting for the 0:11:12.679 --> 0:11:14.760 verdicts to come back, and you're thinking back on the offer, 0:11:14.840 --> 0:11:18.480 play on that decision which which Amanda guided you through 0:11:18.480 --> 0:11:21.040 which Jason Baldwin from the West movest Iie guided you 0:11:21.080 --> 0:11:25.000 throw yes, and then the verdict comes. 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:27.680 Back yes, not guilty exactly. 0:11:27.760 --> 0:11:30.439 And it was not before he said not guilty. I 0:11:30.440 --> 0:11:33.520 already knew when he said he said it was a 0:11:33.600 --> 0:11:35.960 form B, right, and I already had had the piece 0:11:35.960 --> 0:11:37.960 of paper, and it was like Form A was guilty, 0:11:38.040 --> 0:11:41.600 Form B was not guilty, you know. So when I 0:11:41.679 --> 0:11:43.200 had the paper in front of me and then I 0:11:43.240 --> 0:11:45.280 heard form B, I right away looked at that piece 0:11:45.280 --> 0:11:45.560 of paper. 0:11:45.600 --> 0:11:46.920 I said, oh shit, it's not guilty. 0:11:47.360 --> 0:11:49.240 But it was just a couple of seconds like you're saying, 0:11:49.240 --> 0:11:51.120 you know, and that's what I just it was like 0:11:51.160 --> 0:11:52.960 I was, like I said, I was so tense. I 0:11:52.960 --> 0:11:55.600 mean that time period, that whole year was probably the 0:11:55.640 --> 0:11:58.160 worst year of my life. And uh, I was so 0:11:58.360 --> 0:12:01.640 tense that when that verdict not guilty happened. It was 0:12:01.720 --> 0:12:05.160 just like, you know, like a ball full of rubber bands. 0:12:05.360 --> 0:12:06.800 It was like you just take one and it all 0:12:06.880 --> 0:12:09.440 just falls apart. Yeah, and that's exactly what happened, you know, 0:12:09.480 --> 0:12:12.199 that not guilty just pulled that one string and everything 0:12:12.200 --> 0:12:14.480 fell apart and I just hit the ground. I hit 0:12:14.520 --> 0:12:17.880 the table with my head. It didn't even hurt here 0:12:17.960 --> 0:12:19.520 on the next day and I was just so, you know, 0:12:19.600 --> 0:12:20.120 out of there. 0:12:20.400 --> 0:12:20.760 Yeah. 0:12:20.880 --> 0:12:22.840 Yeah, And you got out of there, didn't you right 0:12:22.840 --> 0:12:27.079 away as soon as you could never to return. 0:12:28.800 --> 0:12:30.560 We left too fast out of there, Like that's what 0:12:30.600 --> 0:12:32.920 I was telling, me and a man that we had 0:12:32.960 --> 0:12:35.160 all this little speech that we're going to do afterwards, 0:12:35.160 --> 0:12:37.640 you know, to the news or whatever. And when that 0:12:37.760 --> 0:12:40.280 man said the judge said, you know what, not guilty, 0:12:40.320 --> 0:12:42.439 you are free to go there. You are no longer 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:45.280 under any conditions of this court anymore. Yeah, that whole 0:12:45.280 --> 0:12:46.960 speech that we had, it was up my head. I 0:12:47.080 --> 0:12:49.920 totally forgot. I ran out that courtroom. I was like, 0:12:50.000 --> 0:12:52.280 I grabbed the man. I was like, let's go and the. 0:12:52.200 --> 0:12:55.040 Cameras, get the news, get me out of here. But 0:12:55.160 --> 0:12:56.760 you are actually going to be in a courtroom again. 0:12:56.880 --> 0:12:58.280 I think in a couple of days. Right, what's your 0:12:58.280 --> 0:12:59.520 plan for when you're here in Austin. 0:13:00.360 --> 0:13:01.240 I'm here in Austin. 0:13:01.320 --> 0:13:03.360 I want to go to the Capitol and I want 0:13:03.400 --> 0:13:05.520 to go see the Court's of Criminal Appeals and I 0:13:05.520 --> 0:13:07.280 would love to see if I can talk to one 0:13:07.320 --> 0:13:07.920 of the judges. 0:13:08.000 --> 0:13:09.360 So you want to go to the Texas Court of 0:13:09.400 --> 0:13:12.880 Criminal Appeals. This is the court that affirmed your grant 0:13:12.880 --> 0:13:16.080 of a new trial, that affirmed your conviction being thrown out. Yeah, 0:13:16.480 --> 0:13:17.880 and you want to just go in that building. Tell 0:13:17.920 --> 0:13:18.240 me why. 0:13:18.559 --> 0:13:20.080 One of the main things I want to go because 0:13:20.120 --> 0:13:22.319 when we're going to courts criminal appial, they're telling us 0:13:22.320 --> 0:13:24.000 about the judges and they were saying that we have 0:13:24.040 --> 0:13:26.840 to get a majority rule, and they were saying three 0:13:26.840 --> 0:13:28.839 of the judges were not going to go for they 0:13:28.880 --> 0:13:31.280 never go for the inmate. And they were like, so 0:13:31.360 --> 0:13:33.360 don't even worry about those three. We know we're not 0:13:33.400 --> 0:13:34.960 going to get them. But at the end of the day, 0:13:35.040 --> 0:13:37.440 you know, we had an anonymous vote. Even the judges 0:13:37.480 --> 0:13:40.280 that they said we're not going to vote voted, and 0:13:40.320 --> 0:13:42.880 that was like the first time it happened in Texas history. 0:13:43.160 --> 0:13:45.679 So that's what I was like, you know, maybe I 0:13:45.720 --> 0:13:47.280 won't be able to talk to judge, but I would 0:13:47.280 --> 0:13:49.400 love to, you know, ask you know what made this 0:13:49.640 --> 0:13:52.120 case so different that all you are in agreement with it? 0:13:52.160 --> 0:13:54.800 What was so special that shot to your faith? You know? 0:13:54.880 --> 0:13:55.360 What was it? 0:13:55.440 --> 0:13:56.920 Do you think it will still be worthwhile to go 0:13:57.000 --> 0:13:58.520 there even if you can't talk to the judges, just 0:13:58.559 --> 0:14:00.280 to be in the building. What would it be just 0:14:00.320 --> 0:14:01.199 to be in the building, just. 0:14:01.160 --> 0:14:02.680 To be in the building, if they would let me 0:14:02.679 --> 0:14:04.520 walk into the room where they actually make the decisions. I 0:14:04.559 --> 0:14:06.560 would you like to just sit there, you know, and 0:14:06.679 --> 0:14:09.120 just think this is where they made the decisions on 0:14:09.240 --> 0:14:09.880 letting you go. 0:14:10.360 --> 0:14:11.680 Yeah, you know, that would be awesome. 0:14:12.559 --> 0:14:14.320 This is where it all turned around. 0:14:14.520 --> 0:14:16.680 Yeah, this is the place I used to curse that 0:14:16.800 --> 0:14:34.800 every every Wednesday, waiting for the answer, Daniel. 0:14:34.800 --> 0:14:36.120 I just want to ask you, you know, what is 0:14:36.440 --> 0:14:38.480 what's your what are your hopes for the future. 0:14:38.680 --> 0:14:41.960 That I'm not totally certain about that right now, I 0:14:42.000 --> 0:14:45.080 haven't figured out where my direction is actually going to go. 0:14:45.640 --> 0:14:48.880 Because one thing I've realized about life is that I 0:14:48.960 --> 0:14:51.920 have my plans, but the universe has its own plans, 0:14:52.400 --> 0:14:55.560 and somehow or another, I always end up doing what the 0:14:55.640 --> 0:14:57.480 universe wants me to do rather than what I want 0:14:57.520 --> 0:14:59.720 to do. So I'm trying to figure out my nick 0:14:59.760 --> 0:15:02.360 and right now, you know, meanwhile, I'm just trying to 0:15:02.400 --> 0:15:04.800 do as much I can to help, you know, other people, 0:15:05.640 --> 0:15:08.600 to figure out what my true calling is going to be. 0:15:09.080 --> 0:15:11.600 Well, one day at a time. It's pretty good right now. 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:13.360 Thank you so much for sitting down with me. It's 0:15:13.400 --> 0:15:17.880 been an absolute pleasure. Daniel Viegas than man, exonerated man, 0:15:18.000 --> 0:15:19.200 congrat Thank you. 0:15:19.280 --> 0:15:21.600 Oh and also like thank you for helping me on 0:15:21.680 --> 0:15:24.880 my appeal. I mean, Laura, she's on my case. It's 0:15:24.920 --> 0:15:27.720 just so it's so bad ass. It's so awesome to 0:15:27.760 --> 0:15:28.920 have all you guys with us. 0:15:28.960 --> 0:15:29.600 It's our pleasure. 0:15:29.760 --> 0:15:32.040 But you know, you guys never get the thanks, you know, 0:15:32.120 --> 0:15:33.840 and that's one thing that you know, I want to 0:15:33.880 --> 0:15:36.280 really focus, you know, I want to really you know, 0:15:36.360 --> 0:15:38.200 put out there two about our lawyers or you know 0:15:38.320 --> 0:15:41.040 that that help us, because you got to understand that normally, 0:15:41.080 --> 0:15:44.920 with a client and the lawyer, situation goes once the 0:15:45.000 --> 0:15:47.600 court is over, you're not going to see that lawyer 0:15:47.600 --> 0:15:50.360 hardly ever again, you know, and in this situation where 0:15:50.360 --> 0:15:52.440 around for conviction, we are so close to our lawyer, 0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:53.400 We're so close to you guys. 0:15:53.480 --> 0:15:54.560 You guys become our family. 0:15:54.960 --> 0:15:56.520 You know that even when we come out, you don't 0:15:56.520 --> 0:15:58.280 give up on It's not like, Okay, well we got 0:15:58.280 --> 0:15:59.400 your free buy, I have a good life. 0:15:59.440 --> 0:16:01.720 You guys are they're helping us out. You guys are still. 0:16:01.560 --> 0:16:06.120 There making sure that you know we're we're being entered 0:16:06.160 --> 0:16:09.880 back into society but successfully. Yeah, you know, and that 0:16:10.320 --> 0:16:12.360 you guys need to get them things for that, because 0:16:12.400 --> 0:16:14.240 I don't feel like you guys get the things for that. 0:16:14.240 --> 0:16:15.840 I don't feel like the networks get the things for 0:16:15.960 --> 0:16:19.120 the innocent networks that are all these different organizations that 0:16:19.160 --> 0:16:20.760 work so hard to get us free. Because when we 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:24.240 get free, the game's not over yet. Well it's still 0:16:24.280 --> 0:16:26.240 a whole new game now. Now the game is how 0:16:26.240 --> 0:16:28.640 do we get this man who's been locked up for 0:16:28.680 --> 0:16:31.280 twenty years in prison that doesn't know nothing else but 0:16:31.400 --> 0:16:33.240 how to be an amn? How do we get him 0:16:33.400 --> 0:16:36.680 to become a productive member in society. 0:16:36.960 --> 0:16:38.440