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Benny Lee Co-Founder
Benny Lee as he is known by many, a former gang leader, violence interrupter ,a recovering addict, and former death row inmate has become a father, husband, and one of the top trainers and administrators in the field of social service. As community liaison and reentry specialist for TASC, Benneth Lee prepares individuals to make successful transitions from incarceration into the community. He also works with communities to help them build their capacity to effectively receive individuals returning home following incarceration. Benneth Lee has received numerous awards for his outstanding work including Project Safe Neighborhoods award from the U.S. Department of Justice, and a national America Honors Recovery award from the Johnson Institute for his work in providing innovative services to gang affiliated individuals in the criminal justice system.
Mr. Lee's areas of expertise include street gang prevention and intervention strategies, rites of passage, how to provide culturally specific services, breaking the cycle of addictive relationships, best practice in addictions treatment, and how to work with clients in the criminal justice system.
He is a sought-after international trainer and consultant, having presented throughout the United States, Israel, and Africa. He has received numerous awards for his outstanding work, including the Professional of the Year award from the Illinois Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Professional Certification Association (IAODAPCA), a Project Safe Neighborhoods award from U.S. Department of Justice, and a national America Honors Recovery award from the Johnson Institute for his work in providing innovative services to gang affiliated individuals in the criminal justice system.
Mr. Lee received his associate's degree in Mental Health and Substance Abuse at Kennedy King College (Chicago). He received his bachelor's and master's degree at Northeastern. where hee is currently an adjunct professor in the justice studies department. He is the founder of "The National Alliance for the Empowerment of the Formerly Incarcerated (NAEFI) a community base organization suppoting formerly incarcerated men and women to stabilize themselves as productive citizens.
Antione Day Co-Founder
ANTIONE DAY, was a budding musician when his life forever changed. On September 1, 1990, Thomas Peters and James Coleman were shot while shooting craps outside a liquor store on Chicago’s west side at about 1:30 a.mt. The men were taken to a hospital, where Peters died and Coleman was treated and released for a gunshot wound in the back. Day and a codefendant were arrested eight days later after Darrell Gurley, a nephew of Peters and witness to the crime, told police they were the shooters. Both were found guilty and sentenced to concurrent prison terms of 60 years for murder and 25 years for attempted murder.
In 2001 the Illinois Appellate Court granted Day a new trial based on ineffective assistance of counsel. Day’s trial court lawyer, Gay-Lloyd Lott, had failed to present numerous eyewitnesses and alibi witnesses who could have exonerated Day. Also, Lott had failed to effectively cross examine the surviving victim, Coleman, who had told prosecutors before the trial that Day was not involved. On May 8, 2002, the prosecution dropped all charges against Day. In September 2010, Judge Paul Biebel, Jr., presiding judge of the Criminal Division of the Circuit Court, granted Day a certificate of innocence.
While some exonerees stand in the limelight upon release, Day quietly picked up the pieces of his life. He initially took employment in the construction field, and today he is the Outreach Coordinator of Prison Reentry at the Howard Area Community Center Employment Resource Center. In this position, Day mentors at-risk teens and parolees, implements job training and placement programs, and runs neighborhood stabilization and anti-violence programs.
Antione Day, along with Jarrett Adams (a fellow LAI exoneree), recently started the Life After Justice Center. The Center’s mission statement is: “To assist exonerees and parolees successfully reenter society. To provide clean, stable housing that acts as a transitional platform through a structured, mentored living environment. To facilitate job training, employment, counseling and other services through the use of outside providers. To connect with the local community and to be a positive contribution to improving the community’s image.” Currently the Center is raising funds and looking for a building in the near-West Chicago neighborhoods. Antoine Day, started Life After Justice, a non-profit organization. It aims to open a center to help exonerated men and women by offering among other things job training, therapy sessions and dental services.
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