Maya Moore married Jonathan Irons, the man she helped free from prison
WNBA superstar Maya Moore announced her wedding to Jonathan Irons on Good Morning America on Wednesday (September 16th), but this is anything but a typical athlete wedding. Moore led the process to free Irons from prison after two decades of unjust imprisonment, and during that process the two fell in love.
Now 40, Irons was sentenced to 50 years in prison in 1998 after being convicted of breaking into a Missouri home and shooting an owner twice. In March, a judge ruled that prosecutors had removed fingerprints that would have strengthened Irons’ defense. He was released from prison on July 1.
The only other evidence presented was a police statement from a police officer who alleged that Irons confessed to the crime during an interrogation, but there was no recording of the interrogation or any other police officer present. Irons insisted that the confession never occurred.
How did Moore meet Irons?
Maya Moore’s activism in the Irons case started late in their relationship. She was first informed of the case when she was 18, visiting a family in Missouri who was involved with Prison Ministry . They informed Moore about the Irons case, and she reached out to him. The two quickly became friends and had a strong relationship for more than a decade.
In 2019, Moore surprised the basketball world by announcing that he would skip the WNBA season to focus on ministry and evangelism. This continued into 2020, when Moore announced that he would once again skip the season, instead of focusing on criminal justice reform.
The Irons case was the catalyst for this impulse. Knowing that the system had convicted the wrong man, she used her fame in court to raise awareness of her friend’s situation, working tirelessly in the public forum and through the judicial system to have Irons’s case examined by a judge again.
This year, the duo finally fulfilled their wish. On July 2, Judge Daniel Green canceled Irons’ conviction, saying there were several problems with the prosecution’s case, citing the suspect’s fingerprint report. In his decision, Green wrote that the case was “very weak and circumstantial, at best”.
Jeremy Irons was released after 23 years in prison.
“I feel like I can live life now,” said Irons. “I am free, I am blessed, I just want to live my life worthy of God’s help and influence.” He added: “I thank everyone who supported me – Maya and her family”.
The wedding of Maya Moore and Jeremy Irons.
The case, the defense of freedom: these were the elements that the public knew. What they haven’t done to date is the relationship that has been growing between Moore and Irons since they met.
Their friendship evolved into love.
“I wanted to marry her, but at the same time protecting her because having a relationship with a man in prison is extremely difficult and painful. And I didn’t want her to feel trapped and I wanted her to feel open and able at any time, if this is too much for you, go and find someone. Live your life. Because this is difficult. “
Moore was sure she loved Irons and, in one way or another, the two would be together. Shortly after Irons was released, they got together, announcing that they were married two months ago, just when Irons was released.
The Prison Ministry works to bring hope and restoration to prisoners, families and communities affected by crime and incarceration.
