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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Short answer: The five men once widely known as the Central Park Five are now more commonly called the Exonerated Five: Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise. Their convictions were vacated in 2002 after Matias Reyes confessed and DNA evidence corroborated his account.
Their public lives have taken different paths. Yusef Salaam is a New York City Council member representing District 9; Kevin Richardson runs a youth-focused criminal-justice foundation and continues public speaking; Raymond Santana works in advocacy, fashion, and writing; Korey Wise supports wrongful-conviction advocacy and the innocence project that bears his name; and Antron McCray has maintained a comparatively private life, with fewer current professional details reliably documented.
Why they are now called the Exonerated Five
The phrase Central Park Five remains the familiar historical name for the five Black and Latino teenagers arrested and later convicted in connection with the April 19, 1989 Central Park jogger case. In current discussions, however, Exonerated Five is generally preferred because it describes what happened to the convictions and avoids defining the men solely by the accusations against them.
The five were teenagers when they were arrested. They were convicted after trials; they did not plead guilty. Their police statements and confessions were central to the prosecution. The Innocence Project describes the case as involving false confessions or admissions and unvalidated or improper forensic science.
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On December 19, 2002, the convictions were vacated after Matias Reyes, a serial offender, confessed to the crime. DNA evidence corroborated his account. That date is the key dividing line in any answer to “where are they now?”: the men have spent the years since exoneration rebuilding their lives, advocating for criminal-justice reform, and deciding how publicly to tell their stories.
Important distinction: Public information is not equally detailed for all five men. The profiles below describe documented public work and recent reporting—not private addresses, unsupported employment claims, or speculation about their personal lives.
Where each member of the Exonerated Five is now
| Member | Current public work | What is documented |
|---|---|---|
| Yusef Salaam | New York City Council member, author, poet, speaker, and criminal-justice advocate | Represents District 9; his council term began in January 2024. |
| Kevin Richardson | Criminal-justice advocate, motivational speaker, and youth mentor | Founded the Kevin Richardson Foundation in 2023 and leads its CPR youth programming. |
| Raymond Santana | Advocate, speaker, clothing designer, and author | Works through Park Madison NYC and published a memoir in 2025; he also ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 2025. |
| Korey Wise | Wrongful-conviction advocate, philanthropist, and public speaker | Helped establish the Korey Wise Innocence Project at the University of Colorado Law School. |
| Antron McCray | Maintains a relatively private public profile | He has appeared publicly in connection with the group’s history, but current employment and other day-to-day details are not sufficiently documented. |
Yusef Salaam: New York City Council member and reform advocate
Yusef Salaam is the most prominent political figure among the five. He won election to the New York City Council representing District 9, which includes Central Harlem and neighboring Manhattan communities. His term began in January 2024, and the New York City Council identifies him as a sitting council member.
His legislative and public work remains closely connected to the experiences that shaped his life. The council describes his interests as including criminal-justice reform, prison reform, juvenile solitary confinement, and capital punishment. He also continues to work as an author, poet, motivational speaker, and public advocate.
Salaam’s books include the memoir Better, Not Bitter and the young-adult novel-in-verse Punching the Air, which he co-authored. His public identity has therefore expanded from exoneree and activist to elected official, while his advocacy still focuses heavily on wrongful convictions, mass incarceration, police misconduct, and the treatment of young people in the justice system.
Kevin Richardson: Youth mentor and founder of the Kevin Richardson Foundation
Kevin Richardson remains active as a criminal-justice advocate and motivational speaker. In 2023, he established the Kevin Richardson Foundation, which focuses on mentorship and programming for young people.
The foundation’s signature youth program is called CPR, standing for Courage, Perseverance, and Resilience. The program teaches students how to respond safely during encounters with police and helps them understand their rights. It reflects Richardson’s effort to turn his experience into practical guidance for young people rather than leaving the story as a historical case study.
His work was still active in the latest dated reporting reviewed for this article. Hampden-Sydney College reported that Richardson visited the campus in February 2026 for a workshop and fireside conversation about criminal-justice reform, wrongful conviction, resilience, and civil-rights advocacy. That appearance provides a recent, independently documented confirmation that he continues to conduct educational programs and speak publicly.
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Raymond Santana: Advocate, designer, author, and former political candidate
Raymond Santana has built a public career that combines activism, motivational speaking, fashion, and writing. The Innocence Project reports that he designs clothing through Raymond Santana’s Park Madison NYC, a brand named after the Harlem neighborhood where he grew up. The brand includes an Exonerated Five-themed “Brotherhood Hoodie,” linking Santana’s creative work to the group’s shared history and identity.
Santana also published Raymond Santana’s memoir Pushing Hope, written with illustrator Keith Henry Brown. It is an illustrated young-adult memoir about wrongful conviction, imprisonment, the men’s 2002 exoneration, creativity, and the continuing fight against injustice. The ebook was listed for publication on October 28, 2025, followed by print editions on November 25, 2025.
In February 2025, Santana announced a campaign for New York City Council, saying he wanted to organize, unify, and uplift his community. He did not win that race. The Innocence Project reported that he might consider running again, so the accurate current description is former 2025 candidate—not a sitting council member unless a newer official election result confirms otherwise.
Korey Wise: Supporting wrongful-conviction investigations
Korey Wise continues to be associated with wrongful-conviction advocacy through the Korey Wise Innocence Project at the University of Colorado Law School. Wise made a major donation that helped establish the project, which provides investigative and legal services to people in Colorado prisons who may have been wrongfully convicted.
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Recent public reporting also describes Wise as a philanthropist and public speaker. A 2025 Innocence Project profile reported that he had become a father to a daughter named Miracle. That is a publicly reported biographical detail, but reliable current sources do not establish his private residence, a day-to-day employer, or a personal schedule. Those details should not be inferred.
Antron McCray: A more private life after exoneration
Antron McCray remains one of the Exonerated Five and has participated in public appearances connected to the group’s history and legacy. Compared with Salaam, Richardson, Santana, and Wise, however, recent authoritative reporting provides substantially fewer verified details about McCray’s occupation, residence, or ongoing projects.
The most defensible answer is that McCray has maintained a relatively private profile after his exoneration. His limited public visibility should not be mistaken for evidence that he is inactive, nor should older entertainment-site claims or unsourced social-media posts be presented as current facts. There is simply not enough reliable recent documentation to describe his present professional life in greater detail.
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| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| April 19, 1989 | The Central Park jogger case took place, leading to the arrests and later convictions of the five teenagers. |
| December 19, 2002 | The convictions were vacated after Matias Reyes confessed and DNA evidence corroborated his account. |
| June 26, 2014 | New York City approved a settlement resolving the civil litigation brought by the five men over the wrongful convictions and the city’s role in the case. |
| 2018 | New York adopted a law requiring the videotaping of interrogations in serious felony cases, part of a broader reform response to practices exposed by cases such as this one. |
| December 19, 2022 | New York City and community partners dedicated the Gate of the Exonerated at Central Park’s 110th Street entrance. |
| 2023 | Kevin Richardson established the Kevin Richardson Foundation. |
| January 2024 | Yusef Salaam began his term as a New York City Council member representing District 9. |
| 2025–2026 | Raymond Santana published Pushing Hope and ran for City Council; Richardson continued public educational work, including a February 2026 college appearance. |
The settlement and the Gate of the Exonerated
The civil case brought by the five men became one of the most significant legal consequences of the wrongful convictions. New York City approved a settlement on June 26, 2014, resolving the litigation arising from the convictions and the city’s role in the case.
The official city material reviewed for this update confirms approval of the settlement but does not provide a complete, source-documented breakdown of what each individual received. Exact individual payment figures should therefore not be repeated without a source that specifically documents the allocation.
The case also has a permanent physical memorial. On December 19, 2022—the twentieth anniversary of the convictions being vacated—New York City and community partners dedicated the Gate of the Exonerated at Central Park’s 110th Street entrance. The site recognizes the five men while also pointing to the broader problem of wrongful convictions.
Did the case change interrogation practices?
It contributed to the national and local debate over police questioning, false confessions, and the treatment of minors, but it is too broad to say that the five men alone caused every subsequent reform.
The Innocence Project identifies New York’s 2018 law requiring videotaping of interrogations in serious felony cases as part of the wider reform response to practices exposed by cases such as this one. Recording interrogations creates a more reliable record of what was asked, what was said, and how a statement was obtained. It can help courts and investigators evaluate disputed confessions instead of relying only on conflicting recollections.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What to read and watch about the case
For a researched account of the original case, begin with Sarah Burns’s book The Central Park Five: The Untold Story Behind One of New York City’s Most Infamous Crimes. The Vintage edition was published on April 3, 2012, runs 272 pages, and carries ISBN 9780307387981. It is a useful choice for readers who want more background than a short profile can provide.
For a first-person perspective on life after wrongful conviction, see Raymond Santana’s memoir Pushing Hope, written with illustrator Keith Henry Brown. The book is especially relevant to the “where are they now?” question because it focuses on survival, creativity, imprisonment, exoneration, and the continuing struggle against injustice.
For a film-length overview, the PBS documentary The Central Park Five was made by Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon. PBS currently lists it as available to stream on PBS.org and the PBS app, but streaming availability can change by geography and date.
Do not confuse that documentary with When They See Us. Ava DuVernay’s Netflix production is a dramatized limited series based on the case, not the Ken Burns documentary. Both may introduce viewers to the story, but they serve different purposes: one is a dramatic retelling, while the other is a documentary treatment.
Disclosure: Some book links on this page may be affiliate links. If a reader buys through an approved link, DocumentaryTube may receive a commission at no additional cost to the reader.
Why the answer is different for each man
There is no single post-exoneration path shared equally by all five. Salaam has entered electoral politics; Richardson has built a youth-mentoring and public-speaking platform; Santana has combined advocacy with fashion and publishing; Wise has supported a law-school innocence project; and McCray has remained less publicly documented.
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That difference matters. “Where are they now?” should not become a demand for private information or an assumption that public visibility is the measure of recovery. The reliable answer is limited to what each man has chosen—or what reputable institutions have chosen—to make public.
Sources consulted for the current-status details include public information from the New York City Council, the Innocence Project, Hampden-Sydney College, the New York City Comptroller, the University of Colorado Law School, and PBS. Their public records do not document every member of the Exonerated Five with the same level of detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the Central Park Five called now?
They are now more commonly called the Exonerated Five: Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise. “Central Park Five” remains the familiar historical term.
Did the five men plead guilty?
No. They were convicted after trials. Their police statements and confessions were central to the prosecution, and their convictions were vacated in 2002 after Matias Reyes confessed and DNA evidence corroborated his account.
Is When They See Us a documentary?
No. When They See Us is a dramatized Netflix limited series. Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon’s The Central Park Five is the documentary.
The Bottom Line
The Exonerated Five have taken different paths, but all five have lived for decades beyond the convictions that once defined them publicly. Yusef Salaam is now an elected New York City official; Kevin Richardson, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise remain active in advocacy and public work; and Antron McCray has kept a more private profile. The most responsible update is therefore both specific and restrained: report the work each man has publicly documented, and do not invent details where reliable reporting is limited.
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