Salas Jr., wrongfully convicted for 27 years, set to win Sunnyside School Board seat

Evaristo Salas Jr. was convicted of killing 24-year-old Jose Arreola in 1995. He was 16 years old when he began what would become a 27-year sentence.

It turned out to be a wrongful conviction, and he was released from prison in 2023. Since his release, he has dedicated his time to helping the young population of Sunnyside. He mentored at-risk students at Grandview School District while studying social work and criminal justice at Columbia Basin College.

Now, following the November general election, Salas Jr. holds a commanding lead for a seat on the Sunnyside School Board.

Salas Jr. received 245 votes (61.7%) compared to Laura Galvan earning 150 votes (37.8%).

“I’m surprised and happy about it,” Salas told The Washington State Standard. “I put in a lot of work.”

In the August primary, Salas Jr. led Galvan by just one vote — 104 to 103, respectively. Washington uses a top-two primary system in local elections, meaning the two candidates who received the most votes in the primary advance to the general election in November.

Salas told The Sunnyside Sun that every student – regardless of background – should have access to a high-quality education that prepares them for adulthood.

“I’d track progress through graduation rates, equitable access to advanced coursework, culturally responsive curriculum, and student, family, and teacher feedback,” Salas told The Sunnyside Sun. Success isn’t just numbers – it’s whether our students feel seen, supported, and empowered.”

He defined the role of a school board member as a steward of public trust and a champion for students, holding the system accountable while being a bridge between families, educators, and administrators.

Both candidates stated that they were in favor of using bond measures and levies to address the school’s financial needs.

Salas’ wrongful conviction

Arreola was sitting in the passenger seat of a parked truck when he was shot twice in the head through a window.

Salas was 14 years old when Arreola was killed in 1995, and 15 when he was criminally charged. His conviction came after Ofelia Cortez, an eyewitness, identified Salas in a photo lineup after 14 identification procedures. A police informant additionally claimed to have overheard Salas bragging about murdering Arreola in his neighborhood to other kids.

He was convicted and sentenced two days after his sixteenth birthday to 33 years in prison, serving 27 of them, at the Walla Walla State Penitentiary.

Bill Bruhn, the police informant, later revealed, while filming the documentary series “Wrong Man” in 2018, that the lead detective on the case, Jim Rivard, gave him drugs and cash in exchange for going along with whatever narrative Rivard presented to him regarding Salas, according to the Washington Innocence Project.

Rivard denied providing any incentives to Bruhn for his work on Salas’ case.

Additionally, Cortez’s mother testified that she was subjected to hypnosis when identifying Salas.

“The victim’s mother, Reina Arreola, provided a declaration indicating that law enforcement had taken Ofelia into the other room and put her ‘to sleep’ on the day she identified [Salas],” the Washington Innocence Project wrote. “The detective’s handwritten notes also indicated that Ofelia was willing to undergo hypnosis if it would help.”

Salas was fully exonerated and released from custody on August 17, 2023.

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