23 Years in Prison for a Crime He Didn’t Commit | Wayne Antusas Testimony

What would you do if you were sentenced to life in prison for a crime you didn’t commit?

In this powerful episode of the From Wrong to Strong Podcast, Omar Calvillo sits down with Wayne Antusas, who was wrongfully convicted at just 18 years old and sentenced to life without parole.

Wayne shares his journey from the streets of Chicago and gang culture to surviving 23 years behind bars while holding onto his faith in Jesus Christ. What began as tragedy became a powerful testimony of redemption, prison ministry, revival behind bars, and God’s faithfulness through suffering.

During his years in prison, Wayne led Bible studies, prayer circles, and helped baptize inmates while continuing to fight for justice and cling to hope.

This episode covers:

•  Wrongful conviction 
•  Gang life in Chicago 
•  Prison culture 
•  Faith behind bars 
•  Redemption through Jesus Christ 
•  Prison ministry 
•  Revival in prison 
•  Hope after suffering 
•  Life transformation through faith 

This is a raw, emotional, and inspiring testimony that reminds us no prison cell is too dark for the light of Christ.

“The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light…” — Matthew 4:16 NKJV

From Wrong to Strong Ministries
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 🌐builderofmen.life

Transcript

0:15

From the city of Chicago, a city most recently known for its crime and violence. On this podcast, we will be sharing stories of redemption. Listen to my guests as they share their experiences, struggles, trauma, but also the strength, hope, faith, and perseverance these have developed in them to keep pushing and moving forward in life. Tune in to hear how their lives have gone from darkness to light and from wrong to strong. Hello, everyone. This is Omar Calvillo with From Wrong to Strong Ministries, and right now we're out here at the CMCA Conference in Wheaton, Illinois. Uh, the CMCA stands for Correctional Ministries and Chaplains Association. Uh, so I, I got an opportunity right here. I was just walking around. I walked into the room where they had different, uh, uh, work, uh, I mean, different ministries. They had their tables set up. Uh, so I, I seen this one, uh, the Builders of Man, so I went over there. I signed, I signed the, on the- Yeah this, this brother wasn't there, but I put my name and my information. I walked away. I was talking to a, to another, a- a- a- a w- a woman who was running a, a different ministry, and she's like, "Man, you gotta go talk to that brother down there." And sure enough, you walked in. I go over. And, uh, we started talking, and go ahead. I'll let you share. Yeah, absolutely. So I go there by my table. I see him coming. I'm like, "Oh, man." At first, I was talking to someone, and he didn't want... He's like, "Oh, I don't want to interrupt." And then, uh, when we were done, I was like, "Man, I know you, man." I said, "Uh, I saw Mike Petrovic's interview with you, and he told me about you." And so I liked you online and, and subscribed, and then I started watching your videos. And I'm like, man, you're doing wonderful things talking to guys, man, that, you know, kinda used to be in the streets and not living, you know, the most godly life, and then God got ahold of them. And now you do the past, present, and what they're doing, uh, wanting to do moving forward. Yes. And so I respect that, man. Right. You know, because we need more guys like this telling our stories- Yes to show that the past ain't something to be glorified. It's something to be like, "Look, don't do that, man." Yeah. Let's, you know, be a good husband to your wife. Yes. Be a good father to your children, and ultimately, and most important, be a good servant of God, man. Amen. So I respect you for that, my brother. I'm gonna get on that on Facebook. And I thank you, man. No, no, no, for sure, man. Keep up the good work. And, and we're gonna get into what you're doing as well. I don't wanna share that yet, but we're gonna- Sure we're gonna show the, the progression, where you were at, wh- uh, what happened. Sure. You know, the path that your life took you. Yeah. And then what you're doing now. You know, we definitely wanna highlight that, 'cause that's what we're all about, you know? But, um- Amen so, uh, Mike Petrovic, who I interviewed, like you mentioned, on the podcast, had told me, "Man, you gotta connect with this brother, Wayne Antu. Yeah. "He says, he told me what you were doing." And I don't know, we just... I never connected with you, brother, but here we are. Sure. And like, I w- I was telling my brother, I don't believe in, uh, coincidences. Me neither. My, my, my prayer and even my wife, like, man, praying for divine connections. And here we are, you know- we're supposed to be in a workshop, but- Yeah. I... Go ahead, go ahead, brother and I wanna give him some credit because he's like, "Hey, man, what you think you wanna do it right now?" We're at the conference. I'm like, at my table. I'm like, "You know what? Let's go, man." Right? I, I believe in divine appointments- Yeah and you gotta take advantage of the opportunities. And so this is what he did. This is what I'm doing. Amen. And praise God. Let's get it. I, I, I heard a saying that says, "When, uh, uh, when opportunity knocks, it's too late to prepare." Oh, okay. I like that. So you gotta be prepared, man. So, uh, 'cause we were talking. I told you, brother, I wanna do an interview with you. So I asked him, "Hey, what's the best day for, for me to be there?" He's all, "Mondays." I'm like, "Oh, Mondays I do Cook County." Right. And then when we're talking about, oh man, we'll figure something out later at what day we could sit down and I'm like, "Well, what can we do right now?" Do it right now. So here we are. We're in the back corner- Let's go of, uh, we're, we're at Wheaton College, the- Yeah uh, the Billy Graham Hall. An evangelist, man. A, uh- Yeah, man Billy Graham, you know, sharing the gospel for- Absolutely decades. And here we are in a building dedicated to him, a servant of God, whose heart- Amen was evangelism. And our ministry here, evangelism. Yes. Uh, we, we, we, uh, uh, Revelation, I believe it's 12:11, uh, "They overcame, uh, him, the evil one, by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony." Testimony, yes. So that's what we're gonna share here. Our brother, uh, I talked to him briefly, got a powerful testimony. So let's get into it, brother. Amen. Uh, where, where, uh, where did you grow up? And how was life in your early years? Yeah, so I appreciate that. So yeah, so I grew up on the south side of Chicago, uh, right there by 63rd and near Ganson, uh, Garfield Ridge area. And, uh, growing up, it was a good neighborhood, man, you know. It was l- some firemen, some police officers. The alderman, like, lived right there by Harlem. Um, and so it wasn't really all that bad. It wasn't like shootings going on and, you know, drug de- you know, drug deals on corners. They kinda kept it under wraps, right? So they'd do their own, go to people's houses and meet 'em. And yeah, we had gang there, you know. They had Latin Kings over there in Summit. And then the Popes over here on our side, and the 12 Street Plairs and, and, uh, and then some 2-6 down the way by the airport, you know. So that was kinda like the, the rivalries, I guess you could call it, as a kid. But I didn't learn none of that until later in, in life. When I was a kid, man, I was an athlete. So I pray, I played baseball at MBA, Midway Baseball Association, right there on Cicero for, like, six years. And I was really good, man. Making the All-Star games. And, uh, then I played football for St. Berne, uh, Grammar School. And because I went to CCD, 'cause we were raised Catholic at the time, uh, I was, I was eligible to play for the grammar school. And so, man, I just excelled at that and- You know, star running back, you know, middle linebacker on defense. That was kind of like the five tool players- Mm-hmm so to speak, for our team. And, uh, man, I wanted to be like Walter Payton, right? That was my hero because he just ran through people, man. Yeah. He wasn't like these guys today that, you know, someone's coming, they fall or run out of bounds. He was like a monster- Yes and I loved it, you know? Yeah. Um, so yeah, I... That's what I wanted to be was a football player, you know? How, how were things at home growing up? I was, I was like- Yeah, for sure. Yeah. So, uh, my father, he w- worked about 35 years in the factory. He was a drill press operator, but he didn't make that much money, you know, like 14 bucks an hour, and so he had to get a second job. And so he, he got, like, 20 landscaping, uh, like cutting grass, you know- Yeah 20 houses. So he'd do like five, you know, four a day to make extra cash. So I didn't see him from 7:00 in the morning to dark. And, you know, as, as a kid, I mean, as a grown-up now, I, I appreciate how hard he worked, but as a kid, I didn't see that. No. Alls I saw was like he ain't there. He's not involved in my life. He's not throwing the ball with me, teaching me how to play and, and, uh, you know, that left a void in me, man. Yeah. You know, my mom pretty much ran everything. She was a stay-at-home mom. I had one older brother, two younger sisters. When my youngest sister, Nicole, went to, uh, kindergarten, then my mom worked at the school as a, um, a teacher's aide. And so she was on our schedule, so when we got out, she got out, so it was perfect for her. And then she'd, you know, cook and clean and take care of everything else, driving us to practice and things like that. So, so that was kind of like my childhood there, and it was good for, for the most part- Yeah in that sense, but wasn't really, like, involved, kind of like existed in the same house. Wasn't like a lot of communication. Mm. Not doing much as a family, really, to go on vacations and, um, so, you know, you know, you keep, keep playing the sports and you start meeting guys, and one thing leads to another and, you know, come seventh, eighth grade, I started kind of falling off a little bit. And, um, my grandfather, he was the one I loved, man. Mm. I really felt like he loved me. World War II veteran, you know. Wow. He was in the Navy. He's Italian guy, made it home and, and, uh, everybody loved Grandpa. He was like the pillar of our family. Yeah. And, um, so he w- he would come over, like, every Saturday and, um, man, I felt loved, and then he ended up passing on me, man, right before my birthday. W- w- what age around? How old were you? So I was... So my birthday was June 7th. I was gonna be, uh, 12, so I was 11 at the time, and, uh, man, that devastated me. Mm. Feel like, "Ah, now I got nobody," right? And then my Uncle Bob moved in and, you know, I loved my Uncle Bob, but he reminds me of, like, one of them old mafia dudes. the Italian big belly got the ch- chain, you know, the gold watch and the j- you know, the jewelry- Yeah, yeah, yeah he got a gun and all this stuff. Okay. And, and, uh, so he moved in and that was not good, man. Because what he would do is he'd bring like a 12-pack of Miller Lite ice and a fifth of peppermint schnapps and some f- playing cards and w- and, uh, wanna gamble with me and my brother at the kitchen table in my parents' house, which was not good, man. And I kinda shied away from the gambling and drinking right away 'cause my, you know, my brother is two and a half years older than me, so I was a little behind in age. Yeah. But after a while I started giving into that stuff- Yeah man, and I feel like that was a negative influence upon my life. And then, like I said, grandpa died and next thing you know, the last straw for me was I wanted to go to St. Laurence Catholic High School to play football. Now, the reason why that was is because we made the Super Bowl for St. Renee. That was like, we have not made that in many years, and we lost and I was so broken-hearted, man. I'm like, and we played at St. Laurence, uh, football field. So I'm like, "I'm going back and I'm winning this thing- Yeah, yeah, yeah for St- St. Laurence. So I went and took the test, a little bit low in English, but I passed. Took my mind to opening day. And, uh, in my heart I knew that my parents couldn't afford the 5,000 a year to send me. We're barely making it- Yeah as it is. And, uh, so I told myself, I said, "If I don't get this scholarship for football, I'm going to Kennedy Public High School," and I did not wanna go there. So we go, I talked to this lady who's a representative for 'em, I said, "Look, can, how do I get a scholarship," you know? She's like, "You gotta get a 4.0 grade point average and this and that," and I'm like, "Ah, man, I'm pulling Cs." Yeah. And so right then, heart broke. I told my ma, "Don't worry about it. I'm gonna go to Kennedy." And that's what I call the crossroads of my life, man. Mm. 'Cause instead of going to play football, probably dating a cheerleader- being a jock, you know- Yeah, yeah living like, leading the football team, uh, I started hanging with the, with the guys, man. Did they have a football team at Kennedy or no? They did. Okay. But in my heart my dream was gone. Yeah. I, I gave up. Yeah. I was like, "Forget it." And I, and I, and that's where I, I think I gave up on life, man, to be honest with you. Mm. At a young age, man, already. Yeah, man, already. So I started hanging out with my buddies like Tony and Aaron- Yeah and Jason, and basically we would go to meet on the front steps of the high school, smoke a joint, talk about where we're going to get a run, and sometimes we'd go to Division, you know, just to sign in, other times we wouldn't. I think I missed, like, 88 days my freshman year. Horrible. Yeah, yeah. And we'd just go to my buddy Joe's house, Joe and Chris' house in the basement, get a run and just party. Girls would come over. Um, and that escalated to Jason came one summer and like, "Hey, man, you know, come join the Popes," you know? It was the Insane Posse at the time, and, uh, I was like, "Psh, I don't wanna do this," you know? My buddy Tony, he was, like, the leader of our friends, not in a gang, just a friend, you know? Yeah, yeah, yeah. And, um, he ended up doing it, and that was, like, the guy I looked up to, man. Yeah. And, uh, he's like, "Come on, Wayne. Let's do this." I'm like, "Nah, bro. I'm good, man." I still love sports. Although I'm messing up- Good I'm like, "Don't wanna go that far yet." And, uh, one thing led to another, and I gave in, man. And then me and him went to the railroad tracks over by Archer Park. I'll never forget it. There was, like, 100 guys, man, and, uh, they violated us by the tracks, and the next thing you know, I'm in this, this gang. Mm. Like, what... You know? How, how did your life change once you got initiated? Uh- Yeah. So in my mind, you know, we're young kids. We're not thinking, like, like hurting people or shooting people nothing like that. We're thinking, like, hang with the older guys, you know, d- maybe drink some more, party, and be with the older girls, and so that was kinda, like, what was on my, my heart. And, and so it was like that in the beginning, you know? Started hanging by the tracks, and like a little graffiti here and there and, uh... But then, you know, things escalate, and getting in fights and throw rocks and bricks, and people coming through. You're going up over other people, and it's just... Yeah, it was, wasn't, uh, wasn't what it was all cracked out to be, so to speak. Right. And, um, and then as things went on, you know, I was like, "I, I don't really want this all for my life," you know? So I wanna go back to school, man. So my buddy Joe and Tony, I even think Jason might have, they went to this high school called Cosmopolitan Preparatory School. It was an alternative high school. Good. Pay 1,000 bucks, go for a year. Long as you pass all your classes, then you get your diploma. I was like, "Oh, that sounds pretty good." Yeah. So I talked to my mom. She's like, "Cool. I want you to graduate." She p- you know, paid so much a month, and, uh, I took the bus to Midway Airport, took the Orange Line L train three times a week, passed every single class. What, was that in downtown, the school? Yeah, that was on, um, 220 State Street on the 11th floor in a high-rise building. It was just a school but, you know, one, one floor. You know what? I ended up getting- Yeah kicked, kicked out of high school, and I remember having to go to downtown. But I was only there for, like, a few months, because I went there, and, uh, when they kick you out you can't go... You can't return to your high school unless you go to this school. And they told me if I go there, behave, get some good grades, they'll let me back in, like, the following year. Sure. Man, we were there, like, a couple weeks. One of my buddies, 'cause there you got all type of different gangs that go there- Sure ended up fighting right in the middle of downtown. Yeah. I'll never forget, like, 30 cops. We w- we were fighting right outside of a bank with a bunch of cops in there. Oh, man. You just see, like, a swarm of bees of cops coming. Yeah. But, uh, go ahead, brother. Go ahead. Yeah. So- So you go into, to that school yeah, and the good part was is nobody knew me, right? So I'm just going to go to school, man, right? And, uh, it was cool, man. So that was a whole year- That I had to, you know, I was focused and wasn't really hanging out with the guys or nothing like that. And I was what we call fading away. Yes. You know? So it wasn't in my heart no more, just didn't necessarily tell a lot of people yet. So we slowly... I slowly faded away. And, um, and so long story short, not too long after this, um, you know, these two guys in our community, they used to be in a little gang. You know, youn- the younger generation is what I would call them. Yeah. So we call them the shorties. Yes. You know what I'm talking about. And, uh, they would, like, rob garages and stuff. Well, they robbed this one garage that led into a house. They found two guns on the microwave. I guess it was a retired lady and her daughter. Uh, and I don't know why they leave guns on the microwave, but they did, and they took them. Went, uh, by this guy Joe's house, showed him, I guess he... The, the transcripts say he took them to Nick's house, and they called people to come check out these guns or whatever. And I don't know the whole story. Alls I know is th- they didn't wanna buy them, and they... He kept his or whatever, but he, the other one at Nick's apparently. Later in the day, they're, like, hanging in the neighborhood, and I guess Eric had it on him and, uh, they tried to get, like, a run for alcohol. And then I guess they went up to the school where these guys hang out, supposedly, like, in their van. And, uh, the story goes in the transcripts that they were walking through the park, and the van's about, like, I don't know, 100 yards away, 'cause there was, like, basketball courts, grass, and, like, the street. It's pretty far from what it, what, what they said. And the van went to go drive away. And I guess one guy here, one guy here. If Eric stepped in front, I guess apparently he started shooting at this van, man. Now, in my heart, I don't think he's trying to kill people from that far away. He's trying to scare them. But I c- I don't know his thoughts, you know what I mean? But that's what I think. And what he ended up doing, this 15-year-old little kid, about 85 pounds, shooting a .357. You know, it's not like he's a sniper or nothing. But man, he ended up killing two, two out of five people in that van, though. Horrible. Horrible. And they ran, you know, hid the gun, whatever. And one of the guys, Billy, later on, I guess the police saw him. They let him go. They took his name and number. Later on, like 1:00 in the morning, they go arrest him, and he tells on them, them two other guys that were with him, and they pick them up, take them to Cook, you know, Cook County or police station, and then charge them, take them to Cook County. Uh, and another guy, Nick, which I think there was four in the beginning, they said he was the driver or whatever. And, um, yeah, so no ball meant me or my co-defendant, Matt, until nine months later. So this guy made five statements, told everything, the whole truth, no plan, no nothing. This is what happened. According to him, I guess it was the truth. I don't know. You know what I'm saying? But nine months later, I'm waking up- To my dog barking in my house. We lived upstairs in the attic. My parents, you know, re, redid the attic for me and my brother when we got older. And, um, I walked down the stairs, like 2:00. Went to like a wedding the day before, and, uh, I turned the corner, eight police officers in plainclothes, I didn't even know who they were, pointing guns at me. I'm like, "Are you Wayne Antus?" I'm like, "Whoa, what's going on?" I'm like, "Yeah." And they scooped me up, handcuffed me, threw me on the couch, started searching my whole house. I'm like, "Whoa, what are you doing, man? You can't be searching my house. You got a search warrant?" They're like, "We don't need no dang search warrant." I said, "I got rights." They're like, "You ain't got no rights." What, what year is this? So that was September 16th of 1996. Mm-hmm. The crime happened in December 14th of '95. Right. So see all that time- Yeah that went by? Well, this is what ended up happening from what I've learned through Billy. He said that, uh, Scott Cassidy, he was the state's attorney at the time, he was the head of like gang crimes and he was like the head of the mafia unit. He would go after the mafia to try, you know, get them arrested and stuff. And there was like some famous case that, um, he got this guy Ailment, Henry or Harry Ailment, one of the mafia guys, and he's like super proud of that. Long story short, they put him, uh, on our case with this guy Mike Smith, and they ain't never lost a murder case in their life, right? Well, he goes to Billy nine months later after he does his investigation and stuff and, uh, he's like, "Man, I got these two statements. One is Matt made a plan and one is Wayne changed it later in the day. And if you give me this, I'll take you from two murders down to one, from natural life or the death penalty," because they- Yeah. Okay he, he could have faced the death penalty, uh, 'cause he was 18 years old. From natural life down to 25 years. You get to go home if you do this. If you don't, you die in prison. What do you want to do? And so this kid was scared. How, how, how old is he, this kid at the time? He's 18 at the time. He never been to jail. Right. Probably never arrested a day in his life, you know. Um, and his attorney from what I understand encouraged him to do it. Yeah. You know, he, he won't admit that. Right. But that's what he said. So he basically in a sense makes a whole new statement nine, around nine months- The sixth statement. He made five originals, no mention of us whatsoever. And then- Sixth statement, got a deal for it- Yeah saying that he, Matt made a plan and I changed it. So, so in a sense the, the prosecutor wanted not just the crime but almost like to bring down a gang in a, in a sense, right? That's what I believe in my heart he was thinking like- Try to cut the head off the snake type of thing Yeah 'cause he lived fairly close in the neighborhood, and I guess, you know, it's horrible crime, don't get me wrong. Oh, yeah. So, you know, they wanted to clean up the neighborhood, rightfully so, but he did it in such a way to where he broke the law against us, which is bogus, you know? And it worked- Mm because when I got arrested, they took me, uh, yeah, when they took me, they passed 8th District Police Station, that's where I used to go as a juvenile, locked to the wall and your parents come get you, you know? Yeah. And they took me to 51st and Wentworth. Well, I never, I didn't know what that was until later on. They said that's a homicide division. But when they had me in investigation room for 10 straight hours, nobody come to see me, use the bathroom, eat no food, um, then threw me in the basement with the roaches and the cold cell with no mattress. They were trying to sweat me, I guess. Man, my mind was thinking like everything I did in my entire life, and not one time did I think of this crime- Yeah because it's not in my brain. Right. Right? So I'm like, "Oh, I fought this guy," or whatever, you know, blah, blah, blah. Yeah, yeah. And they bring me back up the next day in the same investigation room for so many hours, and then boom. The state's attorney and some other people come in, and, "Hey, you know these guys?" "Yeah, I know them." "What do you know about this?" I said, "All I know is what happened after the fact." Right. Right? On the news or newspaper, whatever, my parents, people in the community. I said, "I didn't know nothing before the fact." Right. And they're like, "Well, this, this," and I'm like, "Look, how can I tell you something that I didn't know nothing about?" Right. Right? I can't give you- Yeah something that I don't know nothing about. And so finally I said, "You know what?" They keep asking me all these same questions. I'm like, "You know what? I want to talk to my attorneys, man. I see where this is going." Yeah. Right? And so, boom. They stopped questioning me, took me, shortly thereafter they took me into the investigator's room, just me and him. He opens up the file, said, "This guy Billy said this. Is this true?" I said, "Absolutely not." He says, "Well, we're charging you with two murders and three attempted murders under the accountability law- Hmm saying that you aided and abetted." And I cried my eyes out. Oh. No, I ain't even gonna lie. I'm some young, I'm an 18-year-old kid. I never been to jail a day in my life, never even been convicted of a crime. Right. You know, the most I had as a kid was I fought this kid one-on-one by the railroad tracks. He said he could beat me up. I said, "Well, let's see." Hit him like one or two times. He fell, didn't want fight anymore after that. Went and told his dad, and they pressed charges against me. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I had, like, 50 hours community service and, like, a year of probation. Yeah. So that's, like, the most. Right, right. Right? Um, so man, this was new to me, and had let me call my ma, you know, cried that whole time, and she said, "Don't worry, it's gonna be okay." And they got me an attorney. They came to see me. And then, uh, yeah, the next day, Cook County Jail, here we come, man, Division 11. Yeah, no good, man. How, how, how did that process look? Uh, I'm sure it was, uh, uh, it took probably a while, I would imagine, though, to fight the case. Yeah. So when I'm in Cook County Jail, so like I told you, I was Catholic, and, uh, I met some, some Black bro- Protestants, man. Okay. And they challenged my faith. You know, they're pretty... Some, some guys are pretty in your face- Yeah and they're like, "Check this out, Wayne. Uh, you Catholic?" I'm like, "Yeah." He's like, "You pray to Virgin Mary?" I said, I said, "Yeah." He goes, "You know she's dead, right?" "She can't answer your prayers, bro." I'm like, "Huh?" "And same thing with them saints. They're not God. They got no magical powers. They're dead, too. And that purgatory, you ain't going there to pay no sins. Jesus paid those sins. Either he did for you, or you gonna pay for them yourself and be thrown into hell." So I'm like, "Whoa, what is these dudes talking about?" Right? And, um, 'cause I didn't know the Bible that good. Yeah. I just knew CCD class. Yeah. You know, I had knowledge, but I really didn't have a relationship with Jesus. Um, 'cause n- you know, no one really, like, walked with me and mentored me- Yeah and discipled me, you know? Uh, so anyway, long story short, I start thinking on these things, start going to Bible study, and plus I was like, "Phew, I don't want this," right? I want a wife and kids and- Yeah, yeah a white picket fence. And, uh, one day my roommate left. I was in division 11, be- deck, BA, I'll never forget it. Took my wool blanket, put it on the floor, got on my hands and knees, and I say that's when the dam broke. All the tears and snot as I confessed the sins I did commit, you know, um, and, you know, asking the Lord to come into my heart to be my Lord and Savior, and from this day forward, never gang bang, never drink, never do drugs, never sleep with girls. It's over. I said, "It's you and me, Lord, from this day forward," and I meant every word of it. About a hour later, I get up off my knees, and it felt like a thousand pounds lifted off me, man. I felt like a new man. Amen. So I really understand what it is to be born again. Yes. 'Cause in that moment, that's what happened, man. Amen. Born of the Spirit of God, and one month after that, I got out on bond. My parents put a second mortgage on the house. How, how much was your bond? 500,000. So 50,000 cash they had to come up with. Yeah. And they got it, man. The housing market was good at the time- Yeah 'cause we didn't have no money like that. Right, right. So thank God for that, and thank God for my parents being willing to do it. So boom, I get out. I'm like, "Yeah, man, I ain't never gonna see the inside of this place again." How, how long, how long did that freedom last? 13 months. So, so when I got out, I went to New Life Community Church in Downers. Oh, which one? Uh, Midweek? Right there. That, that's, that's one of the church I'm part of. Right. So before that, they used to have it at IIT. Okay. Yes. 32nd and Federal. Okay. Institute of Technology, they used to rent out Herman Hall. 'Cause we didn't even have a building. It was an auditorium. Wow. So I got baptized with my mom, my buddy Aaron, in June of that year, of '97. I was faithful, man. Church Sunday, Bible study Thursday, singles group. Got a... You know, I always worked, like landscaping with my dad, my uncle, my neighbor, the Hillmans. Yeah. So I was always a worker, so I just went right back into that. And my dad's like, "Here." Uh, he bought the stuff from the Hillmans. He's like, "You, you leave now." So I would drive, cut the grass, like 60, yeah, like 60 mobile homes and like 40 houses. So that's what I was doing. Got a girlfriend eventually. Life was good, man. Good. Quit hanging with the guys. It was over. It was over. I said, "Stay away from me," you know? Long story short, uh, never did I ever think I would get convicted of something I didn't do, and my attorneys, I had two attorneys, they weren't the best. Let me just put it that way. They were $20,000, $20,000. I wish I got one $40,000 one- Mm that, that knew- Yeah, yeah really good what they were doing. And, uh, long story short, they, they convinced me to go with a bench trial, 'cause they said Judge Kazmierski, Joseph Kazmierski, is a law judge, and he's gonna see that this guy made these five statements, no plan, no mention of you, and that when he got the deal, you know, that he's gonna see through that- Yeah in other words, and he's not gonna convict you. Well, I was a kid. I didn't know the law. I mean, I'm trusting my attorneys. Yeah, yeah. That's what we're paying them for. And, uh, so I, "Okay, cool." Went through six days, well, five days of trial, Monday through Friday. Believed we won every day, right? Billy gets up there. I think we, you know, ripped him apart- Yeah showed all his lies and inconsistencies. So I would go home every day like, "Yeah, man, that was a good day," you know? Good. And I even told people at my church who were praying for me, like all the updates, and they were happy. I think I even shared a testimony during that week. And, uh, long story short, we go back on Monday, 'cause it was the weekend, and, uh, standing before the judge. You know, I'm believing he's gonna not guilty. These officers in their uniform come walking, like 20 of them, detectives, uh, officers, investigators, and we were in like 207 or 208, the, the courtroom, and it's got the glass. I don't know if you know, if you saw the glass. No, no, no. So the people sit on this side, then you got the glass, and you listen on a microphone, and then there's the courtroom. They marched through them doors. Judge sitting here. We're, we're sitting, you know, the prosecutor, defense. They marched in, went straight to the jury box. Like 20 of them stood there like this right before the judge on verdict day, intimidating him, right? Like, "Look at the manpower on this case. You better convict these guys." That's what they're basically saying. And he caved, man. He should not have found us guilty, and he even messed up our names when he said, you know, "I find..." I think he said like- Matt Soperon and Wayne Soperon guilty or whatever, and I was just like, everything stopped. I didn't hear nothing. Heart beating. I turn around to look at my family and they're blurry. Alls I see is my brother sitting in the back row, and I could see his face. And I read his lips. He says, "I love you, bro." Hmm. Right then and there, handcuffed me, took me straight to the back, and I did not see freedom for 23 years and two days after that. Horrible. Wow. And I... Man, I went in the back, put my back on the wall, slid down, put my head in my hands. Cried my eyes out, man. I could not believe what just happened to me. Whole world just flipped upside down, man. Man, at that moment, here you are serving God. Yeah. You know, you say you're faithful. Yeah. You, you got faith. You're praying. Yeah. What, what, what did that moment do to your faith? It's a good question, man, 'cause it could have broke a lot of people. Yeah. But it didn't break me, because my faith was strong in God. Amen. What it did was, like, "Lord, why, why did you allow this to happen? Like, you know I'm innocent." Yeah. This is not right. And so he spoke to me a couple times, and this is what he told me. He said, "Son, I'm gonna give you the help you need to get justice. Number two, I'm gonna free you in one day as I freed the Israelites from Egyptian bondage, right? And number three, you're gonna go city to city, state to state to proclaim the name of the Lord. But I'm gonna mold and shape you through this process first, son." And I was like, "Whoa." How, how did that- Whoa how did that message come to you, man? Like- Oh, man, let me tell you. At first you don't want to hear that. You know, you're like, you know, "What's going on? This is-" You could, you could shape and mold me out there. Yeah, yeah. Right? Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Like, I like my soft bed- Yeah and nice hot showers- Yeah and good food and freedom. But, um, I accepted it, man. Mm. I says, "Okay, Lord, I trust you, and I, I, I... You're gonna see me through this, and let's go. I'm, I'm with you, man. I'm all in." How, how did life behi- behind bars look for you? Did you continue to serve him? Were you drawn into gangs or violence there? It's a good question. Like- Good question. So boom, let's go back to Cook County. And Cook County, back in... From... Uh, the first time was '96, shanks everywhere. '98, same thing. I go back to Division 11, man, and you're on that deck, 48 guys, you know, two floors with the stairs- Yeah and one CO who ain't gonna do nothing, right? And you see these guys- Hiding these shanks. And you hear the guy sharpening, like you hear the sound. What they do is they take the metal out of the ceiling, and they try to cut it on the bunk and break it in two so they can sharpen it on the floor and make shanks, man. And I hear this stuff, and I know the CO's gotta hear it. He ain't doing nothing. I'm like, "Oh, my goodness." So I was a little scared still, I'm not gonna lie to you. No, no, yeah. And so, um, the guys, you know, uh, they see me not hanging with them. I'm doing Bible study. Now, you mean the guys, like your guys? Or, like, guys you- Yeah, so you know when you go in- Yeah like, "Hey, what, what are you?" Yeah. Stuff like that, and I was so scared, I ain't gonna lie to you. I said what I was before- Yeah but I wasn't. Right. And, um, and, uh, they're like, "Okay." Well, I didn't hang with them. I did Bible study. I did the same thing I was doing before, you know, uh- Yeah af- after I got saved. And, uh, some new guy come on the deck. They call me in the room like, "Lu, look, we, you ain't hanging with us. Like, we gotta know where, where you stand." Now back up a little bit. God told me, "Son, you gotta get that label off you." And I was... He knew I was scared, and I'm like, I was still young. I was like, "Man, I didn't know if I had the courage to tell them yet." Because- Yeah in there it helps to have some sort of a backup. Yes. Or like a, a crew. You, you don't wanna be by yourself then. Yeah. Like, man, I don't wanna be part of the gang, but in a sense, like, I need them. 'Cause you mentioned- Yeah like, man, I don't wanna- You don't wanna get hurt if something, if, if, if something goes down- Yeah I'd rather have a couple guys that are gonna- Yeah have my back, right? In a sense. Yeah. Yeah, that's exactly what it is, but it was nowhere in me no more. Right. I was just scared. And, uh, so they called me in the room. This is the moment of truth because I didn't get the label off myself. I didn't tell them yet. So I feel like God gave me that moment, said, "Moment of truth, son." So they called me in the room. This new guy, he's leading the deck, whatever, and, uh, they're like, "You with us or you ain't?" And I prayed, bro. Two-second prayer in my head, and I said, "Lord, give me the strength to tell them." And then I did. The words just came out. I said, I said, "It ain't in me no more, man." I said, "I'm facing my appeal. I'm innocent, wanna go home to my family, live a good life." I said, I says, "It's not in me no more, bro." And they're like, "All right. We ain't got your back no more." I'm like, "All right, man." I leave, no joke. I walked out 'cause I was on the second floor. I go back into my room, sit down at the little table here, window overlooking downtown, and I just cried, man. Scared. I said, "Lord- I said, "I did it for you, man." I said, "It's just you and me from this day forward. I don't know what's gonna happen, but it's just you and me. I gave it all up for you." And it almost makes me emotional thinking about it. Said, "Son, your faith has set you free." Mm. No joke. It wasn't an audible voice- Yeah but it was there, bro. Yes. So the next day, back in on the deck, on the phone with my mom. I don't know what's gonna happen. I'm scared. And earlier, when I first came back after, uh, uh, to be, uh, after I was convicted, you know, you wait sentencing. So they continued it for, like, a month. Well, during that time, I put in to go to the life learning community. We call that the Christian deck. Yeah. Uh, Chaplain Dan Sweats was running it, and, um, and you're not really supposed to get involved in that unless you got six months. So I'm, I didn't know. I just tried. Sure enough, I'm on the phone with my mom. I hear the officer like, "Wayne Antusis." I'm like, "Hold on, Ma." I'm like, "Yeah?" He's like, "You wanna go to the Christian deck?" I was like, "Yeah." He's like, "Pack your stuff." Man, you... I said, "Ma, I gotta go. Clint." Man, I ran up them stairs, bro. I got my big old plastic bag. I put everything in it. I didn't even care. Yeah. I said, "Sally, I'm gone." He's like, "Oh, where you going?" I said, "Christian deck." He said, "Good, man. Praise God." Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm out of there. I see this guy, Mike Colon, I was ministering to in the Bible studies. Um, he was in a gang, too, and he's like, "Man, Wayne, where you going?" I'm like, "Man, I'm going to the Christian deck." He's like, "Get me over there." I'm like, "All right, give me your stuff." Got his name, and I looked at him. I said, "Look." I said, "Don't do this for me. You know what we've been talking about, about living for God and family and, and things like that." I said, "You want to accept Jesus into your heart as your Lord and Savior, man? Like, for real?" He's like, "I do, Wayne." Hm. I said, "You sure?" I said, "Don't do it for me." He's like, "I do." I was like, "All right, let's pray." Boom. Prayed the sinner's prayer right there. He got saved. I was up, went straight to the Christian deck. God protected me, bro. Amen. Yeah, man. He took me away from the wolves, man. Yeah, yeah, yeah. For sure, man. And these guys, you know, you got... not supposed to be in a gang, and they leave the doors open. Yeah. We have group. People come in left and right teaching us. Chaplain Steve Thompson, uh, Father Ron at the time, and Chaplain Dan Sweats, and some volunteers, and I loved every minute of it, bro. Amen. Yeah. Amen. So, so that's Cook County. Where did you end up going? Where, where did they send you? Yeah. Okay. So right there, boom. I got, I get... My attorney's basically like, "Wayne, you're getting natural life without parole. Two, two murders or more, natural life, bro." So I'm like, "Oh, my goodness. I ain't even got an out date." Right. So boom. So you're basically gonna die in prison. Die in prison- That's what it's looking like, yeah according to the law, man. Yeah. And so I go in that courtroom. I want to tell you this real quick. So I prepare my, my statement, and I got like three pages. Like, I want to tell this judge off. Like, bogus, you know, how can you do this to me? You know, you know I'm innocent. This guy lied on me. I gave it to my attorneys, like, "Uh-uh, you ain't saying that." I'm like, "What do you mean? Like, this is my opportunity to talk." They're like, "Yeah, well, you're going on appeal, buddy, and you don't want to give them no fodder." Mm. Yeah. "So say as little as possible." And so I was like, "Lord, help me." Yeah. So I scrapped that. I went in that courtroom, didn't even have no paper. I just spoke from heart. Yeah. Excuse me. And, uh, my codefendant spoke first. "I'm innocent," whatever. I get up there, and I'll never forget it. I looked at him dead in his eyes, man. I said, "The Bible says that the righteous will face many trials, but the Lord shall deliver him from them all." I said, "I am the righteous, and I shall be delivered." Just like that, natural life without parole. Ah, man. They take me to Joliet, man. Yeah. Joliet Prison for like five days, me and my codefendant. Go through all the orientation. Yeah. You know, they still had the, the test, you know. Uh, they poke you, you know, in the, in the thing. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And, uh- Yeah, they had the, the county. Yeah. Horrible, man. Horrible. So anyway. Yeah. Anyways, yeah, go. Long story short, sent me off to Menard, a max security penitentiary down south, Manchester, Illinois. Home of Pop Isaacs. How, how, how was that for, for you? Horrible. Could you give us maybe a couple stories for the viewer- Real quick. Yeah, so- could, could know what it's like, 'cause there's a lot of people that are not from Illinois. Yeah. They don't know what goes on in these prisons, so maybe like paint a picture for them. Absolutely. So I'm on the bus. My codefendant's there, Matt. We're, we're going to Menard, and I prayed three prayers. I said, "Lord, send me s- may, may this be somewhere safe that I could do my time, and I get a good cellie and meet some Christian brothers." So I'm on the bus, boom. We pull up around by the tracks, and you look at this place, and it looks like a, like an old limestone castle dungeon type looking place. And that gate opens. I'm like, "Oh, my Lord, what I'm about to get into?" The... One of the brothers told me that I believe that's one of the oldest prison built right after the Civil War, if I'm not mistaken. Yeah. So they call it The Pit, because they did rock quarries d- during the war. They took, they took all the stuff out, and you're like, you're like in a bowl. So they call Menard The Pit, 'cause you're in a pit basically, right? And it's the, on the building it says 1887. Oh, man, this, they quarried that limestone and built it. So long story short, I go through, get my wool blanket, toilet paper, you know, toothpaste. You're walking down this gallery in the East House. So that's why I went to one gallery in the East House. That's where they had their orientation in the beginning in general population. Oh, forgive me, they first sent us to North House. Forgive me. Me and Matt did five days in there, and, uh, it was moment of truth time. And I remember talking, I don't remember the whole story. He had to remind me. Yeah. And he's like, "Wayne, this is the big boys camp here now. You gotta, you know, decide what you wanna do." And, uh, he said, I was, like, on my knees for, like, four hours before God. And, uh, he said when I got up, he says, "It's me and the Lord, man. I'm not going back." So then I went to East House, one gallery, and, uh, had a good cellie, met a Christian on the, on the... A gallery actually gave me a comb, and they told me it was shut down, the prison now, 'cause in '97, before that, the gangs used to run it. They shut it down for a year, took control back, put up fences, cut the cell houses in half, and took back control so I, I could do my time, right? 'Cause, uh, uh, back then, for people that don't know, like, the, basically the inmates- Oh, they ran everything. Yeah. So the gangs, you're supposed to be locked in your cell. Cell door's open, can't have curtains, curtains up. They're smoking drugs, sniffing lines- Yeah gang banging. They're telling the COs, like, what to do, like, "Get out the way." They got shanks, everything. So that was... I did not see that world. Yeah. I just heard about it, but I surely wouldn't have wanted to be in it. Yeah. Especially as just a Christian guy, you know, like- One, one of the brothers was sharing, I think it was, uh, called Operation Cut the Head of the Snake, when they came and they started- Okay pulling all the gang leaders. That's what they did. Like, in the, they came in the middle of the night, 30 deep- Yeah for one guy. They took him in a helicopter- Yeah and started sending people, like, out, out, out of state. I think that was one of the leaders of Latin Kings, if I'm not mistaken. I could be wrong, but I think so. Yeah, yeah, it was one of them. Yep. Yeah. And, um, so long story short, God answered all three of those prayers right away. Mm-hmm. And, um, just hooked... So, you know, the guys hang with their gangs- Yeah on the yard. It's like back then, it wasn't one gallery. It was all five galleries. So 25 cells wide, 6 by 10 concrete box with steel bars, five galleries high. That's 250 people, 'cause there's two men to a cell, all going to yard, on this humongous yard. So when you go out there, it's like, "Holy cow." And then you see everybody, you know. And so I'm like, "Man, where's the Christians?" Like, they're like, "Over there." I'm like, "All right, bet." So I go over there. They have prayer circle, you know, get in a little circle, have, like, a, like, a comp- like, a little devotional. Yeah. You know, so we'll pray, go over it, and then pray out, and then go about our day, kind of hang with each other, work out, play basketball. And because I was good at sports, I think that helped me. Mm. Uh, and a lot of people won't tell you this, but in prison there's, like, the good court- And then not so good court. So not so good court is like a lot of Latino guys, white guys, and they're basically playing football although they're playing basketball, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah. But then you got the good court, and it's a mixture. Most are Black, some white, some Latinos. Yeah. And I was so good, I'm like, "I'm going over there." And sure enough, once they saw that I was good, they would pick me. Yeah. And so I just played with them and banging, you know. It was, it's tough. Oh, yeah. Yeah. And so I think what happened was, though they s- knew I was a Christian, they respected me. Like, wow, this dude's, you know, pretty tough. Yeah. And he's not, you know, he doesn't necessarily back down when he plays, although he's respectful. Yeah. He's humble. Right, right. And so I feel like that kinda helped me in prison. Yeah, like a bridge. You know? Like a, yeah, yeah, got you, yeah. Yeah, that was a bridge. And so eventually, I start leading the prayer circles, man. One guy left, and be like, "Yeah, man." I'm like, "All right." So I would pray, like, "Lord, help me. I don't-" Yeah. You know, He trained me a little bit on that, um, I didn't tell you, but on the Christian deck, they picked four facilitators of 12, there's groups of 12, and they chose me. Mm. And I'm like, oh my goodness. Yeah, yeah. There's like 40-year-old, 50-year-old men. I was 19 years old, like, oh man. Yeah, yeah, yeah. This is not gonna go good. Yeah. But I just trusted God. Amen. You know, and He would use me, and it would go good, you know? I mean, little mess-ups here and there. Yeah, yeah. But for the most part, it was good. So He was training me, and then He's like, "Okay, now you're going to the next level. You're going to this prayer circle." So boom, I would prepare in the morning, pray, go over it, and give it to the guys. So that led to Bible study in the back of the chapel, to leading the, the church service of 60 to 100 men, uh, every s- every week. We would go once a week in, in the chapel, Menard, and, uh, God's like, "I'm bringing revival." Mm. I'm like, "All right." He's like, "You're gonna lead..." Let me back up. He's like, "You're gonna start leading this," 'cause Brother Lawrence was leading it. I'm like... Or Brother London, forgive me, Brother London, and we were on lockdown for like two months. I'm like, I'm like, "Okay." He's like, "Prepare lessons." I didn't prepare no lessons before on my own. So he's like, "Prepare topical lessons, like on faith and forgiveness, and on the grace and mercy of God." I'm like, "Oh, I bet." So I got my Life Application Study Bible, my Strong's Concordance, my Halley's Bible, uh, Bible Dictionary, my Strong's Bible words, you know, from Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, and I just start studying. I read every verse in this concordance, and as I would read them, God would convict my heart and say, "Okay, that verse, write this question down and use that verse to answer it." And so as I read, He gave me the question, and the verse answered it. And He, and that's all I kept doing. I would take all that information, narrow it down to an outline for like 30, 45 minutes. Yeah. And I'm thinking, "Holy cow, I don't know how this is gonna go." But we get off lockdown, I'm thinking Brother London's still there, and he was gone. They shipped him. Mm. So God was- Yes putting me in the spot. Yes, preparing you, man. So I got my Bible, I got my sermon. First time I'm ever gonna deliver it. Man, it felt like five minutes it was over. And they're like, "Oh, good job, Wayne. That was pretty good." I'm like, "Huh? I don't even remember it." But God brought that revival, man. Amen. Two guys wanted to get baptized How were you guys baptizing people in there? So they had like a, a baptismal pool. Oh, they did? Okay. Yeah, so it's like an auditorium, and off to the left there's like a little nozzle- Yeah and maybe about this high, and you walk up the stairs, and you go in it, and then you walk out the same way. Got it. Yeah. Okay. Well, it was clogged, man, for like two weeks. And here comes Chaplain Steve Kime, that was the head chaplain of Menard. He's like a biker guy, tattoos, kinda like the one in Stateville. Okay. He had tattoos as well. Long story short, he's like, "Okay, Wayne said people want to get baptized. Raise your hand." Now, I... It was two, two weeks ago. Yeah, yeah. I turn around, 30 hands. I'm like, whoa, God did say he's bringing revival. Yes, amen. Next week I baptized 17 of them with the chaplain. Me and the water, baptizing people, name the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Next week, 13. That's the 30 people we baptized. So God was doing work in that prison- Amen through, you know, the ministry. Yeah. You know? You know? I mean, people don't like to say it, but I was in prison ministry. Yeah. You know, that's what it was. Yes. Right? When I got out, they're like, "Oh, you're new." I'm like, "No, I just did tw- 20, 21 years of prison ministry." Yes. "I don't know what you're talking about." Amen. Amen. So, but then there was little times, you know, certain sallies, you know, yelling all day and, you know, it frustrates you. Like- Yeah "Dude, slow down, you know, we gotta live together." So it wasn't always like that. It wasn't easy- Okay. Yeah, yeah man. Yeah. Like, you wanted to... Just, let's be honest, you wanted to strangle this guy. Yeah, yeah. Like, what's wrong with you? Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know? Like, and I may not kill, but like- Yeah, yeah argh, you know, what the heck. They had different personalities, attitudes, mindsets- Yeah and now you gotta unfortunately deal with it. But you know what, I want to ask you a question. Yeah. You mentioned, I believe, 23 years, right? So what happens? You're, you're supposed to die in prison, and here we are at Wheaton- Yeah, yeah at the Gloria... at the Billy Graham Hall- Yeah talking. What happens then? So good question. So I'm thinking I'm gonna win my first appeal. Supposed to take two years, it took three years. I'm like, "Oh, that's a good thing. Maybe they're really looking at it." Yeah. Get the mail, lay it before God on my blanket, "Lord, this, give this to you." Open it up, denied. Cried, bro. I ain't even gonna lie to you. Like, "Man, I've been waiting for three years, Lord." Yeah. And he would t- he told me, he's like, "Look, I told you I'm gonna use you, son. I'm gonna mold and shape you into the man I want you to be." Hmm. "Keep doing what you're doing." And I, I trusted him. I says, "All right, Lord, if this is what you want, let's go." Next one, we filed a PLA, petition to leave to the appellate court, right? To, to file your appeal. Illinois Supreme Court. Forgive me, that was the Illinois Supreme Court. Didn't even choose to hear it. Denied after two months, right? 'Cause they don't even have to accept it. They didn't even choose to accept it, man. I'm like, "Ah." Had to go back to the lawyer like, "What's going on?" My attorney tells me, he's like, "Look, you got this post-conviction, and you better make sure that you get the evidence that you need, because if you lose this one, you ain't probably winning a habeas corpus and you for sure ain't winning to United States Supreme Court on a writ, a certiorari or whatever they call it." So I'm like, "Ugh." So I don't even file. But this is the beautiful part. For two years, I got nothing going on. I'm in limbo, still serving God, not giving up my faith, just keep going strong. And remember that prayer he told me? I'll give you the help you need to get justice. My wife, God bless her, Lena Maria is her name. She, um... I knew her son when I was out on bond. I used to go to their house, play little cards in the basement. She didn't really know me too well. She just knew of me. I go to Cook County, got wrongfully convicted. Sh- they would... The whole family would come. Yeah. Come to visit me and stuff 'cause they, they felt bad, man. Yeah, yeah. They're like, "Holy cow, you're not supposed to be here." After so long, they start writing me and, um, so she goes to Northwestern. It's called the Blum Legal Clinic Center on Wrongful Convictions, right? Now, who does she go with? Families of the wrongfully convicted. You ever hear of them? Yeah, yeah. Like We Demand Justice. Yep. Well, Families of Wrongfully Convicted. It's basically a group of ladies who are moms or wives of innocent men, and she goes there. She's not used to this stuff. She's like, "What is going on here?" And they're all talking like, "What we're gonna do, we're gonna protest." And she's like, "Oh, man, I don't know if I'm gonna get involved in this." But she's like, she loved me so much that they got... when they got a meeting with Lawrence Marshall, the professor from Northwestern, she went. They had this meeting, they're all sitting there, and he's, he's basically like, basically this ain't working and he's wrapping stuff up and n- nobody got the help they needed yet. And she saw the ladies like about to move on and just like, okay, it is what it is. She's like, "No." She's like, "Yo, Mr. Marshall, like you said that you wanna help us. Well, Wayne's innocent. Like we need to do something here." And he's like, "Well, I tell you what. The cases that got merit, I'll take them. So send me what you got." So she put together like this little thing. She bless her heart, man. She, she got certain things wrong or what, but a lot of it was right, but she just did the best she could. Mike, her son, took her to this building. The FedEx guy like led her up to the floor 'cause she was late And the person was leaving and she gave the, the document, right, that showed my innocence Mm-hmm and, uh, out of all, like, 20, 20, 21 people, they chose mine. Jane Raleigh. God bless you, Jane. God bless your soul. She's in heaven now. Mm-hmm. I truly believe that. And, uh, she, she took my case, and here's the, here's the kicker. They were only taking DNA cases at that time, right? This was, like, 2004. Okay. So for her to take an accountability case, it's unheard of. But because of my now wife crying to her on the phone, explaining my case to her, went down there with my parents, she says, "Wayne better be thankful he has a friend like you." "I'll take his case." And so she fought, man. From that day, when I called my, you know, Lena at the time, um, and she told me that, not only did I cry my eyes out, but I knew I was gonna get justice one day. But that was from 2004, right? Four. So- Uh, when, when did you finally... When did, uh- February 11th of 2021. So they fought for- How many years is that? 17 years, man. Wow. But h- here's the kicker- They're gonna- is they're gathering the evidence. They send out the law students, right? They do all the legwork, and they're interviewing people. They interview Billy, who lied on me. He sits down with them, meets with them. Said, "I lied on Wayne for that deal. I just want you to know that. You know, they pressured me. I didn't wanna die in prison, but, um, until you can tell me that I won't lose this deal, I'm not saying nothing. So you're gonna have to do something to get it right and I won't lose this deal if I tell the truth," because a lot of people don't know- So, so, so he- they could pull that deal so he, he wants to maintain... 'Cause i- in a sense, if you were to say, "Hey, I lied on this guy," they might turn around and charge him- He would, he- or, or give him more time he would get the natural life without parole back- Got it. Got it instead of the 25 years- Yeah 'cause their, the state has said, "Okay, he's lying." Yeah, yeah. "We're pulling the deal." And, uh, he didn't want that, of course. Yeah, right. Yeah. You know? Um, so- And, and he's free at this time? No, he's still in prison. He's... Oh, got it. Yeah, yeah. He's still in prison. So he's saying this behind bars. Got it, got it. Okay. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They, they, they met him in the visiting room- Yeah, yeah, yeah or wherever it was and, uh, he was in protected custody. That's what it was. I think it was at, um, was it Big Muddy? Wherever they had that- Yeah they had, like, a little section for people in protected custody- Mm-hmm when the prosecutors would put them in. Long story short, I was sick. Like, I was happy. Like, hey, he's you know, willing to tell the truth, but I'm sick because he's not willing to tell the truth- Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah in a court of law where I need him to. Yeah, right. So now imagine that. You're sitting there, an innocent man. This guy just told the whole truth to your attorneys, and you can't even use the affidavit. Oh my goodness. Oh, yeah. So this was their plan, like, "Well, we're gonna keep this in a safe in case he dies one day, and then we could use it." I'm like, "Oh, are you kidding me? Like, you can't use this stuff now?" They're like- Yeah "No." Right. Well, fast-forward. Right? My co-defendant, Matt, you know, thank God for his attorneys, they didn't even know we had it, 'cause they didn't tell nobody. I thought I told them, but I don't know. I c- maybe I didn't. I think I did. But anyway, his attorney's like, "You know what? Let me get that affidavit. I'm going to Kim Foxx, man, and I'm gonna let her know, 'Look. Look at what I got. Man, get this guy a... Don't take his deal. Let him tell the truth.'" And to their credit, and to her credit, she's like, "I'll let him tell the truth without taking the deal." Yeah. Without, without taking his deal away. Without taking the deal away. So before it was Anita Alvarez, she ain't never gonna do that. But Kim Foxx, she, you know, she was trying to help some people. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. What- whatever people want to say about her- Right I know she did this. She helped you. Yeah. That's... Thank God for Kim Foxx, that's all I can tell you. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Boom. He, he gets them, he files, um, newly discovered evidence under a second post-conviction, 'cause he, he already filed one and lost, and, uh, boom, they grant him an evidentiary hearing. He goes. Not only does he got Billy telling the truth, but the, the shooter, Eric, he confessed. Ain't no deal. This guy never told me to do nothing. That was humongous. Yeah. And then their attorneys, the, I think it was Nick and Eric's attorneys, um, their client said, "Well, I'm gonna waive at t- uh, attorney-client privilege, tell Matt's attorney the truth- Yeah what I told you." And they're like, "Okay. Hey, yeah, he told me there was no plan. Yeah, this, this is all a lie. Uh, there was no plan." And so they were about to get up there after these guys already took the stand, and the State was like, "You ain't gotta get up there. Hey, Your Honor..." And we had, uh, Timothy Joyce at the time. "Hey, Your Honor, we want to drop charges," in the middle of the evidentiary hearing. It wasn't even over yet. And he says, "Okay." Signed off, Matt went home that day. Praise God. And you were still in there? Yeah, so when I found out, I'm like, "Woo, I'm going home, like, this week. It's over." Yeah. No. The State doesn't want to drop charges on me. They want me to file my post-conviction on the newly discovered evidence and go to the waterway for two years. I'm like, "Oh my goodness." So they didn't do the right thing on me. Mm-hmm. 'Cause if he didn't make the plan, how did I change his plan? Yeah. It doesn't make sense. You gotta let both of us go. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. They don't do it. I file. I'm sick. Sat there two years, got my evidentiary hearing granted, same judge, Timothy Joyce. We go in. My attorney is like, "Okay, Wayne, we worked it out with the state. They're gonna ask to drop charges on you. You're going home on Monday." Mm. Judy, God bless her. I love Judy. I wanna put that on record. Judy Royal, I love her with all my heart. Yeah. Yeah. So come Monday, it was during COVID, I'm on camera at the court. I gave all my stuff away. TV, radio, clothes, everything. I got, like, my mail, my, my Bible- Okay and, like, some legal material. "I'm not, I'm not allowing the state to drop charges," Judge Joy said. She says, "I got jurisdiction. They don't. And though you wanna do it and you agree, I'm not doing it. File your motion." What? This is the only third time in Illinois history that a judge did not allow the state to drop charges on somebody. What? And the other judge was a lady who did it twice the other two times. Yeah. And she got overturned Appellate Court two weeks later. Well, they did it to me. I gotta... I'm, like, sick. I go back to the unit, gotta get everything back. I feel stupid. Yeah. I'm thinking it's two years on appeal. Yeah. That's how long it takes. Two months later, I get a attorney call. You know, you go 30 minutes- Yeah in the counselor's room by yourself, and I got my attorney, Rebecca Levy. Forgot to tell you, I got re-sentenced from natural life to 54 under Juvenile Act Miller vs. Alabama. Okay. Yeah, yeah. I did a year in the county. They cut me. I thought I was gonna go home. That's another story. I didn't. I'm like, "Oh, I'm sick over that," 'cause I'm like, for sure they're gonna see- Yeah I was innocent and 19 years in at least let me go. Nope. I had eight more to go. So anyway, so she's on the phone with Judy Royal, Greg Swiger. That's my guy. I love Greg. Wanna note that. And, and they're like, "Look, we think we worked it out with the state. You know, they're, they're gonna agree not to, uh, challenge your re-sentencing. And once the Appellate Court says, 'Okay, grant you the re-sentencing,' the state's gonna turn around and drop charges on you, and you're gonna go free. And we think it's gonna happen today." I'm like, "What?" Two minutes later, Appellate Court calls Rebecca Levy. She's like, "Hold on, they're calling right now." Doo, doo, doo, heart beating a million miles an hour. You know, I already got wrongly charged and convicted, lost every appeal that I filed, and now we're here. Supposed to go home on Monday, didn't. I'm like, "Lord, is this the time?" They come back two minutes later. "Wayne, Appellate Court just signed the order. You're going home today." Ah. I was like, "Hold on, hold on. Say that again." They're like, "Yeah, Wayne, for real, 100%, you're going home." Tears- Yes of joy. It's like all came flooding in all at the same time, man. And it, it just, it makes me well up just thinking about- Yeah, yeah, yeah how beautiful that moment was. Three hours later, after doing your rounds with healthcare and getting all your stuff, gave them everything again, this time for sure. And, uh, I got my little box and my two bags, laundry bags, my books, and Christian books I like. Walking out, I see a minivan, my sister Nicole and brother-in-law Dan. Side door opens, and I see my sister Nicole, who fought for me, I want to note that, Lena and my sister Nicole, my warriors, that get me justice, come running. Jumps on me, I drop my stuff, hugs me. My mom's, like, jogging. You know, my dad, my brother-in-law, my nephew Jacob, man. One of the best days of my life, brother. Took me home. I didn't care what I was eating. I just wanna hug people, man. Amen. You know how always, "What are you gonna eat?" I care less. I just want to be home with the ones I love, man, and that's what it is. They had, like, a camera crew. They came, did a story on me for Chicago Tribune. I, whatever. Yeah. I did it, but I was home, man. How old were you when you got out? 42 years old, bro. Yeah, so I went in at 19, on February 9th of 1998, and I got out February 11th of 2021, man. 23 years and two days later. But I want to say- Yeah but God. Amen. You hear me? Yes, sir. I would not be sitting here today if I did not give my heart to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ- Amen and allow Him to mold and shape me into the godly man I am today- Amen and to use me through those 23 years of prison. He's the one that touched the heart of Jane Reddy to take my case. He's the one that touched the heart of Kim Foxx to allow my attorneys to question Bailey or whatever, my codefendant's attorneys. And He's the one that eventually allowed the appellate court to grant that motion that the state filed to set me free. So if you don't hear anything, hear this: I would still be in prison, probably with natural life without parole, if it wasn't for my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, blessing me, and then now He sends me- Amen back into... I now live in Portage, Indiana. I started out with Kairos International Men's Ministry- Amen led to Bill Glass Behind the Wall, and then I became a missionary for two years under A Cup of Cold Water Ministries out of Newark, Illinois. And then God says, "You're ready. You're starting Builder of Men Ministry, son, a 501[3] nonprofit charitable organization, and you're going... You're gonna stay in Westville, and I'm gonna spread you throughout all the jails and prisons in Indiana." And eventually the country through the curriculum of which I sh- taught you, and now you're gonna teach the same thing to these guys- Mm that changed your life forever. Yeah. And I'm like, "Let's go." If you don't... Can I ask you something? Like, somebody, man, innocent, wrongfully convicted. Yeah. You're behind bars. You don't wanna be behind bars. Freedom comes. Yeah. Going back to prison- Yeah how easy or hard for you? Well, this is... It's funny you say that- because a lot of people are like, "Man, Wayne, I would never go back to prison again a day in my life." Right. He's like... And I forgot to tell you that after they set me free, that stuff was still on my record, so I told my attorneys, "I wanna file my certificate of innocence, man." Yeah. Like, "I wanna get this cleared off me." They're like, "All right, Wayne." And to their credit, they did it for free for me. Judy Royal and Greg Swigert. So from Fe- uh, February 11th was November, um, I think it was November 29th, Judge Reddick, Black lady, she granted my certificate of innocence, man, one of the best days of my life because it's one thing to be set free- Yeah but it's one thing to clear your name- Yeah and to show that I was innocent 100% by a court of law. Mm-hmm. And I'm here to tell you that that means everything to me. Yes, it does. No amount of money that they coulda ever gave me coulda equaled that day and that moment to get that certificate of innocence. And so when they gave that to me, they gave me $256,000, 'cause Cook County give... That's the maximum you could get- Yeah through the court of claims. I got that, like, in April, and so I bought my house, my truck. I live in Portage, Indiana, married Lena Marie one month and two days later after I got out. I went for my baby. That is my queen. Mm-hmm. Um, I know, uh, uh, the value of a good woman. Amen. And she helped me with Jesus Christ. Them combined helped me to become the man I am today. Mm-hmm. And I wanna give her full credit for that. And so, yeah, she stood by me, and I married her, and we now do full-time prison ministry, my brother. She, she, she's involved as well in what, what role? Yeah. She's my vice president on my board of directors. Okay. Got it. And so she does this side of the ministry, and I go out and do events like this. Yes. I teach. I was teaching five days a week, 14 classes a week for, like, two straight years, and I handed out, like, 800 certificates, baptized about 120 men, and saw about 120-plus salvations in that two y- two-plus years. And then last year in May we started this, so we've been at it for about a year. And to, to the Westville, uh, Deputy Ward, Miss Duncan's credit, she just gave us my own unit in the prison. It's called the Builder of Men Reentry Program. I got 60 men living in community together for an entire year. Now, now is this inside the prison? Inside the prison. So they gave you, like, a whole deck- Yes for, just for you to do your ministry? Yeah. So the fourth floor- Right? Uh, in the administration building, I got half the floor. That's, that's 30 bunk beds, 60 people, and I do an application, an interview, and I choose the ones, 'cause there's a lot of people that wanna get in. And so I pick the ones that really want it, and we s- we're starting June 1st, by the way, so please pray for us, and they're giving me access. We can paint the unit, put our logo up, our Builder of Men brotherhood creed. Mm-hmm. Right? We're gonna have, uh, five classes per quarter, pouring into 'em, better husbands, fathers, servants of God. Yes. Family, recovery, overcoming addiction, re-entry, getting 'em ready for society, finance. I mean, art, music, theater, health and wellness. We're doing it all. We got a band. They're gonna be playing concerts every quarter and performing in s- uh, plays, like little mini skits. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it's all, like, inclusive. I call it whole life ministry. Amen. Mind, body, and- Amen uh, spirit. And so, yeah, man, I'm like super excited, bro. Wow, that's big, man. Yeah. That- And we're seeking to take this, God, pray, pray G- Pray to God God that it works. Is this a county facility or a state facility? No, that's a prison, a medium prison. Oh, so it is a state prison? Yep. Got it. Got it. Okay. So we're seeking to get this first one in the books, that it goes so well that we can take this model and go to every jail and prison, and hopefully eventually youth facility, to help build up godly men, tear down- Amen w- worldly men, what that means, 'cause it don't mean nothing good, as we know. It only got us running to the walls and hurting ourselves- Yeah and hurting our families and others. Amen. And, uh, this is gonna help to lower that recidivism rate from 70% in Illinois. Yeah. Indiana, they say 38, it's probably 50, to I pray under 10%, bro. Amen. Amen. And when we turn these guys back to love their wives, and raise their kids, and be good citizens- Yeah and contribute to society- Yeah rather than destroy it. Amen. That's the goal. You, you, you know, it's amazing you say that, that they're gonna allow you to paint your own logo- Yeah, man inside a state facility. You know, I wanna shout out to my brother JC Almanza, who started Wrong to Strong. He's out in Arizona. So I visited him a couple months ago now. We went into a juvenile facility, man. They have his logo. So in Arizona, you know, you got the juvenile facility. Okay. Out like in the, I don't know, they're, they're not mountains, but I don't know what they call them. They're the hills, big hills. Yeah, yeah. They got the prisons in there. We go, one of the units got a big old Wrong to Strong painted on it. I love it. Let's go. I was like, what the... And one of the decks, one of the units, is the Wrong to Strong unit. So, like, they let them paint the wall. They got different words like, uh, hope, uh, uh, discipline. Right. There's certain things to, to get their minds, like, active. Integrity. Yeah. Yeah. Like, you know, to, to, to ch- to change the, the atmosphere or the environment there. So man, I, I, I know, I know God's using that. So to me, that's amazing. That a state-run, a state-paid facility- Yeah, man would allow a ministry to come in and... 'Cause they know that's beneficial for everybody, man. Yeah. It's beneficial for the men, it's beneficial for the staff. Yeah. You got men that are trying to change their ways. Yeah, man. I'm sure they're gonna, that's gonna drop the violence- For sure the fighting and- So I put, I put like a whole proposal together- Okay to show them how it's gonna help them, you know, keep the environment safe. Yeah. Less drugs, le- less disciplinary reports. Like, everything- Yes is gonna go good. Save them money so they don't have to work overtime and all this other stuff. People getting beat up and having to be on paid leave. Yeah. Like, it... The, the money they're gonna save I think was between, uh, three and $8 million a year- Wow with these 60 men, and that was... It's amazing. And the cool part about it is, is I, I only been there three years. Okay. The only ones that got units in the prison is Notre Dame University, because they're super prominent, right? Good. Oh, yeah. And, uh, PLUS Program, because it's a part of the Indiana Department of Corrections. They got like nine of them. It's like half character-based, half faith-based, and I just, I teach classes there. Okay. Pretty good. Yeah, yeah. And I thank Life Learning Community because he did like 30 years in Cook County and he came here like, "Oh yeah, we'll give you, you know, um, 25 guys," whatever he had. Good. I'm the only other one, bro. Out of 2,600 inmates- Man nobody. And that, I'm telling you, is a God thing. Yeah. Right? Oh, yeah. Only God could make stuff- Oh, yeah like that happen. So trust me, anything I'm saying, I don't boast in Wayne. Yeah. I boast in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Hallelujah. The only thing I do is stay focused on Him and not look to the right or the left, and He helps me to walk on that water, man- Amen. Amen and help me change lives in His name. Amen. And you know what, brother, uh, uh, could you share a website, social media- Sure where, where can people learn more about Builders Of Men Ministry and the work you guys are doing? Well, thank you. Well, first of all, God bless you, my brother- Oh for everything you are doing, man. Wow. I watch your, you know, your interviews and, uh, you're really helping people to understand about this way of life versus the Godly way of life. Yeah. So I commend you for that- Thank you, brother that's number one. I appreciate it. I appreciate that. And for this, wanting to do this today. Amen. So yeah, so, uh, you can go to our website at builderofmen.life. That's L-I-F-E, builderofmen.life 'cause we bring life to people in the name of Jesus. My website is my name, Wayne, W-A-Y-N-E, @builderofmen.life, and I even give you my phone number, area code 630-532-0689. You can reach me there. We can talk. Um, if you, if you allow me, I need volunteers, man. Mm-hmm. Yeah. So not only does Westville Prison, do I serve there- But we just got approved for the Kimbrough Work Release Center right there at Crown Point. That's a work release center where guys got, like, five years left, they can go there and work while I'm gonna be teaching classes there. We're gonna get into Porter County Jail in the next couple weeks, in the God pod. I was just at the Miami prison, and they wanna talk about possibly bringing our program to Miami Prison in Bunker Hill, Indiana. And then she talked to her boss, Ms., uh, Ms. Mata, she talked to Ms. Maves, and Ms. Maves and Pendleton wanna have a conversation with us. So this is two, three hours from my house, and I will do that. Mm. But I need volunteers in these communities. Yes. So any churches in the communities that are listening, any godly men are in that vicinity, please contact me. I'll show you the whole curriculum, I'll train you on it, and then I'll send you in, 'cause we wanna take over every jail, prison, youth facility in Indiana- Amen and eventually beyond. Amen. In Jesus' name. In Jesus' name. Amen, brother. You know what? Th- thank you for your time. Th- thank you for... I know you had your, uh, table set up. I'm sure maybe people are over there wanting to learn more- about Builders of Men. But you know, usually I ask our guests if they could close us out in a prayer. Absolutely. However you got blessings in your heart. Amen, brother. Absolutely. Thank you. Heavenly Father, we be- we come before you in the name that is above all names, Jesus Christ, our Lord, the one that forgave us, saved us, and now sends us. I pray with every ounce of my being that everyone who is listening to my voice, if they are not saved, if they don't know the Lord, that I pray you start reading that Bible and you ask God to show Himself to you. For the Bible says that, "If you seek me, you will find me. If you seek me with all your heart." And I pray that you do that, because this life is very short. We already wasted so many years living wayward lives, just like the prodigal son in the Bible. It's time that we get right, that we fulfill our purpose by using the gifts in which you have given us so that we can bring you honor, Lord, as well as our families, as well as serv- serving our communities to be assets to our communities instead of detriments. So I pray that for everyone listening and for my brothers and sisters in Christ, keep doing what you're doing. Yes. Keep honoring God. Keep going back for the lost. Keep serving, because all them seeds that you plant, eventually, I pray, will grow in the good soil of other people's hearts, to grow into a beautiful blossom. So keep at it, especially in these times, I pray. And I pray for my brother- I pray that this Wrong to Strong podcast continues to grow. I pray that my brother continues to have good people on to share beautiful stories that will minister to the hearts of thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, if not millions, and that many people are coming to the fold through this ministry of which you have given my brother, Lord. And lives will be changed, get rid of the stinking thinking, and become who you always create us to be. We thank you, Lord. We praise you, and it's in the name of every name we pray, Jesus to Christ. Amen. Amen. Amen, brother. God bless you, brother. You know what? Thank, thank, thank you for this time, man. Yes. And, uh, for those of you that watch this interview, like I mentioned when we started, we're at the CMCA conference. So amen, if God's placed on your heart to learn more about jail and prison ministry- Yes, please definitely check them out. That's, uh, Correctional Ministries Chaplains Association. Like I said, Builders of Men, go to their website. Uh, you know, follow us from Wrong to Strong. Yes. And man, we're here to, to, to serve the Lord, you know? And with that, we're gonna get everything to wrap up. Uh, um, Matthew 4:16 reads, "The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death, light has dawned." Alongside my brother Wayne Antusus, I'm O- Omar Calvillo, and through Jesus Christ, we've gone from darkness to light and from wrong to strong. Amen. Amen. Peace.