Overview of Wrongful Conviction #574: Jason Flom with Alexis Ke'Erica Martin
This episode tells the story of Alexis Ke'Erica Martin (“Kierika” or “Key”), an Ohio woman who was trafficked as a child, became entangled in a robbery that ended in her trafficker’s death, and was then prosecuted as an adult despite Ohio’s newly enacted safe harbor protections for trafficked minors. The conversation focuses on the devastating legal failures in her case, her eventual clemency and release, and the work she’s doing to help other survivors.
What Happened in Key’s Case
Childhood, trafficking, and attempted escape
- Key grew up in Akron, Ohio, mostly raised by her grandmother.
- As a young teen, she was groomed and trafficked by an older man, Angelo Kearney.
- She described trying to get help and attempting to involve the juvenile system before the crime in question, but those efforts failed.
The night of the robbery and killing
- On the night of the offense, Deshaun Spear and another armed accomplice broke into Kearney’s home during a gathering.
- Kearney was shot and killed; another man in the house was wounded.
- Key maintained that she did not participate in any murder plot.
- Prosecutors nonetheless treated her as legally responsible under felony-murder principles tied to the robbery.
Adult prosecution despite juvenile trafficking protections
- Ohio had recently passed a safe harbor law meant to protect child trafficking victims and route them into juvenile services.
- Key’s defense team did not properly invoke the law.
- She was bound over into adult court, convicted, and sentenced to 21 years to life.
Major Legal Failures
Missed safe harbor protections
- The episode emphasizes that Ohio’s safe harbor law was designed for exactly this kind of case: a trafficked minor caught in criminal conduct connected to exploitation.
- Key herself had to raise the law with her attorney.
- The court later acknowledged her trafficking, but the protection still was not applied in time.
Ineffective assistance of counsel
- Later pro bono counsel argued that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to understand and use the safe harbor law.
- Her murder conviction was vacated.
- However, the state did not simply dismiss the case, leaving Key trapped in further legal uncertainty.
Forced plea to get out of prison
- To avoid remaining incarcerated during appeals and retrial threats, Key accepted a plea to involuntary manslaughter.
- The plea maxed out at 11 years, allowing her release with time served.
- The episode underscores how “release” often comes through pressured compromise rather than full vindication.
Clemency, Release, and Life After Prison
Clemency from Governor DeWine
- Key’s case reached Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, who granted clemency.
- She was released in April 2020 after serving about seven years.
Return to prison and renewed legal help
- After release, she was sent back to prison over a parole violation tied to a friend staying at her apartment and possessing prohibited items.
- A major law firm, Dykema, took her case pro bono and helped challenge the earlier conviction.
- The episode highlights how fragile freedom can be for people leaving prison on supervision.
Rebuilding her life
- Key now wants to:
- Return to college
- Launch a business serving at-risk teens
- Eventually build a nonprofit for survivors of trafficking
- She also shared that she is working on a poetry book written during her incarceration.
Key Themes and Takeaways
The criminal legal system often punishes survivors
- The episode argues that Key was treated as a defendant first and a victim second, despite clear signs of trafficking.
- It shows how trafficking survivors can be criminalized for acts connected to their abuse.
Children need real protection, not symbolic laws
- The safe harbor law existed, but nobody effectively used it.
- The story shows that legal protections only matter if lawyers, judges, and prosecutors know and apply them.
Healing, identity, and self-ownership
- Key explained why she prefers to be called “Kierika”:
- It connects to her grandmother
- It symbolizes a new life and taking ownership of herself
- Her final message was that anyone can become a victim, but community, love, and support can help turn a victim into a survivor.
Ways to Help
Support her directly
- A GoFundMe exists under Alexis Kierica Martin Support Fund to help with education and rebuilding her life.
Learn more and get involved
- The Ohio Justice and Policy Center continues to work on cases like hers and broader criminal justice reform.
- Their work and case information can be found through OhioJPC.org.
Closing Message
Key’s story is both heartbreaking and hopeful: a child trafficking survivor was failed by every stage of the legal system, yet she emerged determined to help others. The episode’s core message is that justice must center humanity, especially for children caught in exploitation.