Francisco “Franky” Carrillo, who spent two decades behind bars and was featured in the Netflix series “The Innocence Files,” is launching a campaign on Wednesday for California congressional seat targeted by Democrats trying to win back the US House.
As a 16-year-old, Carrillo was arrested for a drive-by shooting after police mistakenly identified him in a different case, according to The Northern California Innocence Project. After two trials, he was convicted of murder and six counts of attempted murder in 1992. He was sentenced to life in prison.
During his time in prison, his story got the attention of new attorneys and The Northern California Innocence Project. In 2011, Carrillo was exonerated when the eyewitnesses who had identified him as the shooter recanted their testimony and other men confessed to the shooting.
“I know what it feels like to be ignored, marginalized, forgotten about,” Carrillo says in his announcement video.
“There are people who abuse their power and benefit from the system. Then there’s the rest of us. We play by the rules and get screwed by the same exact system,” he says. “This is why I’m running for Congress against Mike Garcia.”
This northern Los Angeles County seat, which Biden carried by about 12 points in 2020, is an offensive target for House Democrats’ campaign arm. Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the race a Toss-up. GOP Rep. Mike Garcia won the district, which became more Democratic after redistricting, by 6 points last fall. It was the third time he’d defeated Democrat Christy Smith, who lost to the Republican twice in 2020 – first in a special election.
In order for Carrillo to take on Garcia next year, he’d first need to make it through what’s expected to be a competitive Democratic primary. George Whitesides, a former NASA chief of staff and aerospace…
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