Ernesto's Story
An innocent man, more than 26 years imprisoned.
Ernesto Behrens has spent over 26 years in the Florida Department of Corrections for a crime we believe he did not commit. This site, begun by his friend Franziska Kaltenbach, documents his case and the long fight to prove his innocence.
Ernesto's conviction rested on DNA evidence that the defense maintains was mishandled and tampered with. The broader physical evidence did not point to him, and his account places him elsewhere at the time of the crime.
His journey through the courts — motions for DNA testing, appeals, petitions to innocence organizations and the state's conviction review unit — is chronicled in detail in the full archive of court documents and correspondence.
Go Deeper
The complete archive of court documents, motions, and correspondence is published in full at helpdna.org.