Staff Spotlight: Meet Ron

Staff Spotlight:

Ron Grosse, Senior Investigator

Figuring Out What Happened: Inside an Innocence Investigation

Innocence work begins with a question: What happened?

As a part-time investigator at Georgia Innocence Project, Ron spends most of his time reading case files and looking for details that might have been missed. Sometimes his work takes him into the field to locate witnesses or new evidence, and occasionally the most consequential discovery comes from a single piece of evidence.

Ron came to Georgia Innocence Project after a career in federal law enforcement, looking for a way to remain connected to the justice system while pursuing an interest that had grown from watching and reading about wrongful convictions.

“I just had an interest in innocence cases,” he said.

From law enforcement to innocence work

Ron grew up in a Washington, D.C. suburb where law enforcement careers were common; his father was a police officer.

“There must have been, I don't know, half a dozen FBI families in the neighborhood,” he recalled. One of his best friends was the child of an FBI agent who later became an assistant director.

Ron followed a career in law enforcement himself, retiring from the FBI before beginning work with both the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Georgia Innocence Project. For a period, he worked part-time for both organizations before eventually joining Georgia Innocence Project full-time. Today, he continues his work as a part-time investigator. But innocence work showed him something new.

“It has opened my eyes to the other side,” he said.

More specifically, Ron said his work has exposed him to problems in state and local systems that he had not previously seen as closely.

“I think it's the flaws in the system and law enforcement and prosecution are prevalent throughout the country,” he said. “I don't think they're unique to Georgia.”

Slow work, long timelines

Media portrayals of innocence cases can make investigations seem dramatic, but the reality is much slower.

Ron estimates that the majority of his time is spent in front of a computer, reading case files and taking notes.

Investigators like Ron examine whether the facts underlying a conviction match what actually happened. If they don't, the next questions become: Why don't they match? What evidence can establish what happened? And, critically, is there a legal path to use that evidence to obtain an exoneration?

That last question can make innocence work especially difficult.

“Just because somebody might appear innocent, and we've kind of in our hearts and in our minds we know they're innocent, you still have to figure out a way to get them out,” Ron explained. “And you have to have new evidence.”

Sometimes that evidence never comes.

“I'm pretty sure we've closed cases where people are innocent,” Ron said. “There just were no avenues to get them out.”

When the past has to be reconstructed

By the time Georgia Innocence Project becomes involved in a case, many years, often decades, have passed.

“Witnesses die. They forget. They don't want to talk,” Ron said.

Finding the people involved in a case takes patience and persistence, and Ron’s law enforcement background helps him navigate those conversations.

“I don't have any fear of talking to people,” he said. “I'm not hesitant to talk to anybody.”

Once an investigative avenue has been identified, Ron may spend several days locating and interviewing witnesses. The goal isn't simply to find information that supports a particular theory. It is to reconstruct the events as accurately as possible and determine whether the evidence supports the conviction.

The most memorable phone call

Ron had collected a DNA sample that was tested against evidence from the crime scene. Then came the call.

“It was night. The lawyer called me at home and told me that there had been a match,” Ron recalled. The DNA proved that Georgia Innocence Project’s client was innocent. “I knew then that [our client] was going to get out.”

For all the hours spent in case files, that phone call was a rare moment. “That was probably the most memorable phone call,” he said.

The human side of investigation

The investigations aren’t what Ron calls the most inspiring part of the job.

“The most inspirational part of this job is the exonerees themselves,” he said.

He acknowledged that the aftermath of wrongful conviction can be difficult. People may emerge from prison angry or bitter, or struggle to adjust to a world that has changed while they were gone.

“They're able to come out and still become a productive member of society,” Ron said. “It's pretty inspiring.”

A conviction is not necessarily proof of guilt

Ron entered innocence work with a general understanding that wrongful convictions occurred.

“I didn't know a lot about it other than what I'd seen on news and other TV shows,” he said. “You don't know until you start something how difficult it would be to free somebody from prison [after a] wrongful conviction.”

“The justice system is not flawless. It's not perfect,” Ron said. “There are a lot of issues that lead to wrongful convictions. Just because somebody's convicted does not always mean they're guilty.”

Despite the flaws he has seen, Ron said he still has faith in the justice system and believes the problems can be addressed.

What can you do?

Wrongful convictions can feel like problems reserved for lawyers, investigators, and courts. Ron sees a much broader role for the public. People can donate to or volunteer with innocence organizations, learn about the causes of wrongful convictions and the laws that can make exoneration difficult. And they can advocate for reforms with their elected representatives.

But there's another, simpler step: talk about it.

“Everybody who is in innocence work needs to spread the word, so to speak,” Ron said. That doesn't mean becoming an expert or knocking on doors.

“People in your realm, family, friends, people you come in contact with, talk about your wrongful convictions,” he said. “You can educate people that way.”

Ron is still surprised by how many people know little about innocence work, even after decades of exoneration cases and widespread media coverage. Until more people understand how wrongful convictions happen, and how difficult they are to correct and prevent, the problem stays invisible.

Why he stays

After years of reading case files, tracking down witnesses, and waiting on test results, Ron is clear about why he keeps doing this work.

“I like the work,” he said. “The mission is important.”