Dan Slepian & Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez
Dan Slepian & Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez
Dan Slepian & Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez can be booked together or separately for speaking engagements. The Sing Sing Files: One Journalist, Six Innocent Men, and a Twenty-Year Fight for Justice follows Dan Slepian on years of prison visits, court hearings, and street reporting that led to a series of powerful Dateline episodes and eventually to freedom for four other men and to an especially deep and lasting friendship with one of them, Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez. From his cell in Sing Sing, JJ aided Slepian in his investigations until his own release in 2021 after decades in prison.
About Dan Slepian
Dan Slepian is a distinguished, award-winning investigative journalist at NBC News, a leading authority on the criminal justice system, and a seasoned public speaker. For nearly three decades at NBC’s Dateline, Dan has spearheaded dozens of documentaries and hidden camera investigations, earning a reputation for his pivotal work regarding wrongful convictions and mass incarceration. His podcast, Letters from Sing Sing, was a 2024 Pulitzer Prize finalist and debuted at #1 on Apple’s top charts.
Dan’s deep knowledge about the criminal legal system is seen in nearly all of his work, from conducting a TEDx talk at Sing Sing to conceiving and producing groundbreaking televised events, including the first ever town hall from inside a maximum-security prison, where he and anchor Lester Holt brought the voices of the incarcerated to a national audience. Known for his tenacious, relentless pursuit of truth and his empathetic storytelling, Dan is a respected figure in both journalism and the fight against injustice.
In addition to being a Pulitzer Prize finalist, Dan Slepian has received more than a dozen Emmy nominations, four Edward R. Murrow awards, a Sigma Delta Chi, and has been honored by multiple justice organizations across the country.
His new book, The Sing Sing Files, chronicles his 20-year journey to exonerate six wrongfully convicted men.
About Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez
Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez‘s career as an activist for legal reform began in 1998, when he was wrongfully convicted as the shooter in the murder of a retired police officer. He spent almost 24 years in NYS maximum security prisons assisting, educating, and mentoring incarcerated people and their families.
While incarcerated, he earned two degrees in behavioral science and became a certified paralegal. He was considered a “one-man innocent project,“ helping other wrongfully convicted individuals obtain freedom. JJ was an elected liaison between the prison population and administration, while working to help others obtain their college degrees in his capacity as a program assistant at Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison. As a leading light at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, he organized a delegation of leaders, and implemented several positive programs including CHOICES, which has served hundreds of children impacted by crime and incarceration.
JJ specializes in storytelling, which stems from his passion to turn trauma into triumph and inspire others to convert obstacles into opportunities. He moderates panels, facilitates workshops, and gives talks designed to educate, motivate, and incite meaningful change. JJ’s messages are heartfelt and filled with empathy.
He provides media platforms with valuable context and rare insight. These insights are fueled by personal experiences that helped him accumulate a deep and diverse knowledge base of criminogenic behavior, mass incarceration, and wrongful convictions. Decades of unjust imprisonment have led to valuable lessons about life, humanity, and survival.
JJ now serves his community locally as the Co-founder and Executive Director of Voices from Within based in New York, and nationally as the Program Director at the Frederick Douglass Project for Justice.
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An NBC Dateline producer's cinematic account of his two-decade journey navigating the broken criminal justice system to help free six innocent men...Read More
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Building Bridges in Unlikely Places: A Friendship Forged Through Adversity
This talk centers on Dan’s relationship with JJ Velazquez, a man wrongfully convicted, how their bond evolved over two decades, and he led Dan to several other innocent men that Dan did stories about. It’s a story about building trust, understanding, and a lasting friendship in the most unlikely of places—inside the walls of Sing Sing.
The Sing Sing Files: Exposing the Injustice of Wrongful Convictions
Dive deep into the harrowing stories of six innocent men who were wrongfully convicted and spent decades behind bars. This talk explores the systemic failures of the criminal legal system, the relentless pursuit of truth, and the difficulty in achieving justice.
Investigative Journalism: The Power of Persistence and Truth
A behind-the-scenes look at how investigative journalism can bring justice to light. Using real-life examples from Dan’s 20-year journey, he shares the challenges, triumphs, and ethical dilemmas faced while uncovering wrongful convictions.
Through the Prism of Wrongful Convictions: Perversity and Pathology of Mass Incarceration
By examining the epidemic of wrongful convictions, Dan delves into the broader issues of mass incarceration. This talk reveals the systemic perversities and deep-rooted pathologies that have led to the United States’ current crisis of incarceration.
The Human Cost of Injustice: A Journalist’s Journey Through the American
Prison System
This presentation highlights the profound human impact of wrongful convictions on the incarcerated, their families, and society. Dan discusses the emotional and psychological toll of my investigations and the stories of resilience and hope that emerged.
Justice for All: How We Can Reform the Criminal Justice System
Focused on actionable insights and reforms, this talk addresses the critical need for changes within the criminal justice system. Drawing from decades of experience and specific anecdotes, Dan provides a roadmap for how society can better ensure justice for all.
NBC News Studios: Letters from Sing Sing Podcast (2024 Pulitzer Prize Finalists)
An amazing conversation about THE SING SING FILES on the New York Times Opinions Podcast
“JJ Velazquez on Finding Freedom, From Sing Sing to Sing Sing“
“Book Reviews: Two new books raise big concerns about innocent men in US prisons”
“New York’s ‘One-Man Innocence Project’ May Finally Be Cleared Himself”
“‘Sing Sing Files’ author talks toll on life for the falsely imprisoned”
“’This Chose Me’: Why Dateline’s Dan Slepian Can’t Leave Sing Sing Behind”
“NBC’s Dan Slepian Speaks for the Voiceless With His New Book”
“Behind the Scenes of Dateline’s ‘Life Inside'”
“Dateline NBC podcast ‘13 Alibis’ dives into 1996 murder case”
Dateline NBC: Conviction series
“How 5 Convicted Murderers Banded Together to Get Out of Prison”
“Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard: Dan Slepian (on The Sing Sing Files)“
“‘Sing Sing’ actor exonerated of murder after serving more than 20 years in prison”
“After 25 years, judge tosses murder conviction of Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez”
Wrongful Conviction Podcast with Jason Flom: #014 Jason Flom with Jon-Adrian Velazquez
Unjust & Unsolved with Maggie Freleng Podcast: Episode #5: JJ Velazquez
Stand Together Podcast: Perspectives: Dignity Behind Bars with JJ Velazquez
We Are For Good Podcast: Episode #365: JJ Velazquez
Rethink Community: The Podcast: Jon-Adrian Velazquez: Bridge the Distance Across Walls
SXSW EDU: Letters from Sing Sing: Redemption Through Education
Discover more about JJ on his website.
Praise for The Sing Sing Files
“Dateline producer Slepian debuts with a riveting account of his crusade to free six wrongfully convicted men from New York State’s Sing Sing prison… Slepian tells his subjects’ stories with rigor and compassion, and persuasively argues that America’s justice system is “designed to easily imprison the innocent” in the name of closing cases quickly. This is difficult to shake.”
— Publishers Weekly
“A gripping, highly effective true-crime synthesis… an excellent addition to the body of work documenting a pervasive societal injustice.”
– Kirkus, Starred Review
“I’ve said many times that every wrongful conviction deserves its own book. I’ve read a hundred of them and, as fascinating as they are, I thought I had reached the point of being shock-proof. But The Sing Sing Files stopped me cold. It’s an unforgettable account of one man’s uphill journey to free the innocent and expose many of the serious problems in our criminal justice system. It should be read by every rookie cop, brand new prosecutor, and first year law student. And it should be read by you. Hold on!”
— John Grisham, #1 New York Times bestselling author, lawyer, and former member of the Mississippi House of Representatives
“A remarkable, moving account about the lives of people who have been too easily discarded, forgotten, and condemned. These compelling narratives help us understand why we should do better when it comes to punishment and justice in America.”
— Bryan Stevenson, New York Times bestselling author of Just Mercy
“Slepian’s a master storyteller with a passion for his subject. This is a page turner with stories that will open your mind and heart, and might even change your life the way they changed his.”
— John F. Hollway, Executive Director of the Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice at Penn Law
“Dan Slepian has written a book that is as informative as it is enraging. In these gripping case studies of innocent men wrongfully convicted, you learn how and why the truth often does not prevail in the American justice system. You also get a glimpse of the strength of the human spirit and of heroic efforts to right these wrongs. The stories are inspiring and so is the author. He has spent a career ‘given the buried voice sound,’ as one incarcerated man put it. This volume is on full blast with this tour-de-force. This is a must-read for anyone who cares about criminal justice, mass incarceration, or humanity.”
— Rachel Barkow, author of Prisoners of Politics: Breaking the Cycle of Mass Incarceration and Professor at NYU, School of Law
“This passionate, gripping, and moving chronicle of a skeptical journalist’s twenty year journey investigating injustice leads him, remarkably, to six innocent men, close friends, and a nuanced understanding of the humanity, resilience, and limitless potential of those we imprison, guilty or innocent. Dan Slepian’s engrossing insider’s narrative lays bare the infuriating incapacity and willful blindness of New York prosecutors, police, defense lawyers, and judges to recognize and correct wrongful convictions. The Sing Sing Files is a vitally important book that inspires hope that we can and will do better.”
— Barry Scheck, Co-Founder and Special Counsel, the Innocence Project
“While recounting his heroic efforts to free six wrongfully convicted men, Dan Slepian uncovers the tremendous obstacles to truth and justice that plague our criminal legal system. He shows that the problems are both systemic and personal, as institutions and actors protect their own reputations rather than fix the egregious mistakes and wrongdoings that have ruined the lives of countless people and their families. The Sing Sing Files should inspire readers to create a new generation of leaders who will genuinely pursue justice.”
— Marc Howard, Director of the Prisons and Justice Initiative at Georgetown University
“…I am grateful to Slepian for bearing witness, but I am also shocked and enraged by the story he tells. I would—as I know he would—trade this Olympian effort for one in which thousands of others activate to fight not just for the innocent, but for all the souls who are unnecessarily ground down by what we call the criminal justice system. For those who yearn to be part of this army, this is required reading.”
— Nicholas Turner, President and Director of the Vera Institute of JusticeBook This Speaker
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