innocent — and still fighting to be heard
One life.One story.A fight for justice.
Thomas is innocent.The DNA evidence deserves to be heard.
Thomas Aranda has maintained his innocence of the most serious charge since he was a teenager. DNA expert Dr. Michael J. Spence concluded that the forensic results “substantially exonerated” him: Thomas's DNA was not found on the primary evidence-collection samples. After more than 18 years in prison, he is still fighting for the court to fully confront that evidence.
Not a number. A son. A friend. A human being. Still here. Still hoping.
the central forensic fact
The primary DNA evidence does not tie Thomas to the alleged assault.
Forensic SANE nurse Rachel Fischer — an expert who works prosecution cases, not defense — along with independent DNA expert Dr. Michael J. Spence concluded that the forensic results “Substantially Exonerated” Thomas.
This is the core of Thomas’s case: the forensic evidence was central to the prosecution, and it does not connect him to the assault. The full reports — the independent expert’s affidavit and the crime lab analyst’s own recap — are on the Evidence page.
before he was a case, he was a kid
Before Thomas became a case number, he was a kid.
Thomas grew up moving — no steady home, no steady guiding hand. His grandmother told the court he took on the values of the older kids around him because they felt like family. He started drinking and using marijuana at 12; he began sampling other substances later on.
None of that excuses harm. It does explain the kid who walked into a courtroom in Chelan County in 2008, and why Washington law now asks courts to look at youth, trauma, and the capacity to change before deciding a young person's future. April 2008. He entered his plea and was convicted in November 2009 at the age of 18, just two months after his birthday and has been incarcerated since 2008.
examine it — don't ignore it
His story isn't asking you to ignore the evidence. It's asking you to examine it.
As a juvenile, Thomas spent well over a year in solitary confinement in county jail — no TV, no radio, no one to talk to for months at a time, in his words: “It was torture.” Under that pressure, he entered a guilty plea.
His counsel argue the plea itself raises questions that were never fully heard: the written plea said the agreement depended on the standard range and effective sentence being accurately completed, the bargain contemplated a determinate sentence, and the sentence later became indeterminate without his knowledge. Those are contract and fairness questions for the Court of Appeals — not conclusions this site asks you to take on faith.
At his June 29, 2026 resentencing in Chelan County (Cause No. 08-1234-0), the court imposed a standard-range sentence: a 180-month minimum on Count 1 with a life maximum, plus consecutive firearm enhancements and lifetime supervision — 304 months to life in total. The defense had asked for time served — 18 years, 2 months, and 5 days already served (6,639 days).
The judge commended Thomas's improvement and still found rehabilitation “incomplete” because Thomas has not specifically admitted to Count 1, a count he disputes. Thomas and his counsel argue that conditioning the minimum term on that admission — against a low-risk assessment and the defense record on rehabilitation science — is the central issue for appeal. You do not have to decide the case here. Read the story, see the timeline, and decide whether a second look is warranted.
plain language, on the record
What the record shows — and what it doesn't.
The Evidence page walks through the case in plain language: a timeline from 2008 to the June 29, 2026 resentencing, what was agreed and what was contested at that hearing, and the three questions Thomas and his counsel have preserved for appeal. It is a summary, not the record. Where any summary and the certified transcript differ, the transcript controls.
Plea agreement
Whether the State's resentencing recommendation honored the agreement.
Remorse & rehabilitation
Whether rehabilitation can be conditioned on admitting to a disputed count.
Determinate to indeterminate
Whether the plea can stand after the sentence changed without the defendant present.
people change — and change matters
18 years. Still here. Still hoping.
Thomas has served more than 18 years. The last 10+ have been without an infraction. He has completed programming voluntarily, trained as a peer-support counselor, completed a substance-abuse evaluation in 2023, and given back where he can — a Christmas drive, taco handouts for people experiencing homelessness in Spokane, music-therapy work with youth, and a youth-refugee community event.
“I've never been an adult in the free world ever. I'm not standing here today because I feel like I deserve anything. I'm standing here asking for mercy.”
— Thomas, June 29, 2026
justice is still possible
Help write the next chapter.
Thomas was 16 when everything changed. He is a man now — one who has spent 18 years becoming someone different from the kid who entered prison. Justice is still possible, but it will take people willing to look, to show up, and to help carry the cost of a fair fight. Pick one action today:
Share
Send this site to one person who believes young people can change.
Help spread awareness
This fight moves in stages — hearings get scheduled, appeals get filed. Check the News page for updates as they happen, and talk about the DNA findings and youth sentencing with your circle.
Make a difference
Give to the legal fund, write a support letter, or attend a hearing. Every action is listed on Get Involved.
