A Brooklyn man who spent 17 years behind bars and was then cleared of a crime he didn't commit says he is using his story of adversity to give back.

John Bunn says he was framed and convicted of second-degree murder in the killing of an off-duty correction officer in 1991. He was 14 at the time. His case was overturned last year.

Bunn created a program to help young people like himself called Voice for the Unheard, sharing his story to give hope to at-risk youth.

He has also started a book drive for those who are incarcerated and might not have anyone to send them literature.

Bunn has so far collected about 1,300 books with the goal of some of them ending up at Rikers Island and state prisons.

For Bunn, the subject of reading is personal. He couldn't read at age 14 and taught himself how while behind bars using a dictionary.