here the context:
"A California man finally free after serving 16 years for a crime he didn’t commit. This is Reggie Cole. He actually walked out of a California prison over the weekend, thanking the California Innocence Project and law school students who worked diligently on this case. Attorneys were able to successfully argue that Cole’s 1994 murder conviction was based on evidence that was simply fabricated.
'It takes again a very special strong kind of person to make it through 16 years of incarceration and keep fighting for their freedom.'
'The only way I can think to repay them is to go out to society and prove that I’ve spent these last 16 years, preparing myself to be free.' "