Dierks Bentley and Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready Bring Justice Jam to Nashville to Help Free the Wrongfully Convicted

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Nashville’s music community is coming together Tuesday for a concert supporting people imprisoned for crimes they did not commit.

The inaugural Justice Jam takes place Oct. 27 at Cannery Hall, with Dierks Bentley and Pearl Jam lead guitarist Mike McCready headlining. The benefit supports the Tennessee Innocence Project and Washington Innocence Project, organizations working to overturn wrongful convictions and help people rebuild their lives after release.

Tickets and current availability are available through their website.

Terri Clark, The McCrary Sisters, Angie K, Jaid Joice, Bobby Messano and Wyatt Flores also appear on the current ticket listing, bringing country, rock, gospel and blues talent to the same stage.

Dierks Bentley, Terri Clark, Mike McCready and more among the lineup.

The event grew out of a partnership between the two innocence organizations, with McCready helping organize a concert that connects artists with the fight for justice.

Organizers hope the first Justice Jam will become a recurring Nashville tradition, raising money for legal advocacy, policy work and support after prison.

Behind the performances are cases that can take years to investigate and resolve, and people whose lives remain on hold while that work continues.

Tennessee Innocence Project Executive Director Jason Gichner described the organization’s mission simply.

“We’re a nonprofit law firm and the main thing that we do is we fight to bring innocent people home from prison,” Gichner said.

The statewide organization opened in 2019. With offices in Nashville and Memphis, its team investigates claims of actual innocence and represents clients without charging them for legal services.

“We represent every single person free of charge,” Gichner said.

That makes community support essential to sustaining investigations, paying staff and pursuing cases that may require years of litigation.

Gichner said the organization receives close to 200 applications annually. Before accepting a client, the team typically spends six to nine months investigating two questions: whether it believes the person is innocent and whether there is a legal pathway to help.

That initial review is only the beginning. Gathering evidence, consulting experts and navigating court proceedings can stretch the process across years. “It’s much easier to put an innocent person in prison than it is to get one out,” Gichner expressed.

He said wrongful convictions reach far beyond the person sent to prison. Children grow up without parents, spouses lose years together, and victims’ families may discover that the resolution they were promised was wrong.

The organization’s work also continues after someone comes home.

“Those people are our clients for life and part of our family and community for life,” Gichner said.

Through re-entry support and a full-time social worker, the Tennessee Innocence Project helps clients navigate challenges that can include mental health care, family reunification, employment and adjusting to technology that did not exist when they entered prison.

Its broader work includes public education, training attorneys and advocating for policy changes intended to prevent future wrongful convictions. Gichner also emphasized the importance of working with prosecutors willing to reexamine cases.

Jason Gichner (right) with Claude Garrett who was exonerated on May 10, 2022, after flawed fire science led to his conviction in the fire that killed his fiancée, Lori Lance.

“When an innocent person is in prison, we don’t need to fight each other,” he said. “We should work together and get to the courthouse as fast as we can to do something about it.”

For those attending Justice Jam, the evening offers a way to support that work through live music. For those unable to attend, Gichner encouraged visiting the organization’s website to explore donations and volunteer opportunities, from legal assistance to helping clients prepare résumés.

“I want our wait list to be shorter,” he said. “I want us to be able to test more evidence and that requires us to grow.”

Justice Jam takes place at Cannery Hall’s Mainstage, 1 Cannery Row. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

The event is open to all ages.