Today is the final episode of my time in Louisiana, brought here by the story of Dwight Bergeron, a man who had his life taken from him for a crime he has always maintained he is innocent of — but of course, as you know by now, he isn't the only one who says he's innocent. Louisiana was the first official stop on my tour after a quick visit to Las Vegas. It was my first time visiting a family whose story I had featured, a family that has had a truly traumatic life.
A mother and father sent to prison for a crime they didn't commit, four children who were used and manipulated by adults to put them there, and who have spent the past three decades trying to right that wrong. And although their mother is now home, and has been for some time after having been scared into taking a deal, Dwight, the main focus of our series, is still incarcerated, and at this point will be for potentially the remainder of his life unless the system that placed him there sees sense to take another look at this case.
So when this story was first brought to me, I was extremely sceptical. If you just take the headline of this case and what these parents were accused of, it makes your skin crawl. When I first started this series four years ago, I was often asked if there was anyone I wouldn't talk to, and my answer was always the same. Yes, anyone accused of a crime against a child, especially if that crime was sexual in nature, and this one was quite possibly as bad as it gets. However, there was one thing that changed my mind: a letter, a letter written by a young girl, now a woman, a woman pleading for help, pleading to be heard, pleading for her father's life.
When I first took on the story, I was told that although Becky was absolutely on board with the telling of the story and me exposing everything that had been done in order to get her parents convicted, she personally did not want to take part and be interviewed for the series. Becky has spent the better part of over 30 years telling and retelling this story, mainly to multiple sets of lawyers. She has lived with the guilt of her parents' conviction basically her entire life. The subject matter and story are not only traumatic to relive but also embarrassing, people, as we all know, can be cruel and highly judgmental. And now, a woman with children of her own, as much as she wants to get her father home and clear her parents' names, she also has her own mental health and her children's lives to consider, and she understandably didn't want to be placed into the spotlight of the story.
During the telling of Dwight's case, Becky and I spoke a couple of times via Facebook messaging. I had a few questions and points I wanted to clarify, and she was always more than happy to help, but that's as far as it went. However, when she found out that I was thinking about making one of my stops on my trip Louisiana, she told Janet, Dwight's partner, that she would like the opportunity to meet with me, and of course I was very happy for the opportunity. So after our visit to Angola that evening, we headed off for a Chinese meal and a chat with Becky.
The following day it was time to leave, but before I did, Janet, Dwight's partner and biggest advocate for the past 14 years, wanted to clear the air and release the names publicly of those still alive who she says know what happened in this case and know that Dwight is an innocent man.
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