Funeral Expenses for Donald Lucas

On December 26, our loving father, brother, uncle, and friend Donald Lucas passed away at a hospital in Chicago after a battle with cancer.  Donald is an important part of our family and his loss is devastating to us.  We feel this loss even more because up until March of this year, Donald had been wrongfully incarcerated in the Illinois prison system for over 20 years for a crime he did not commit.  He was innocent but was forced to spend decades away from us in prison.  Our family supported him through a long fight for DNA testing.  We were so happy when his attorneys at the Exoneration Project at the University of Chicago Law School were able to get that testing, and Donald was granted a new trial.  The court let Donald come home on bond while he continued to fight his case.  We are so grateful for the time that we had with him after his release.  Sadly, although we know that Donald is an innocent man, he died still fighting his case, and so he had not yet received any resources from the state or the courts to help him rebuild his life.

As Donald's family, we welcome any donations to help us honor him with a small family funeral.  Any money donated will be used to help cover the costs of his funeral.  I am Donald's sister and will manage any funds raised.  We know this is a hard time for many people, and we truly appreciate any help anyone can provide to help make sure that we can properly honor Donald.