Politics Delay Reform in Ohio

Posted: February 8, 2010 4:35 pm

A bill that would address the causes of wrongful conviction and help innocent parolees seek exoneration is stalled in the Ohio House of Representatives, seven months after passing the Senate.

The measure would require that law enforcement agencies preserve crime scene evidence and conduct “blind” identification procedures — in which the administering officer doesn’t know the identity of the suspect. It would also open a path for people on parole to seek DNA tests that can prove innocence.

Although the bill has bipartisan support and the Governor has said he will sign it if passed, the Columbus Dispatch reports that progress seems to be delayed by a legislative logjam.

The delay has frustrated supporters, including Mark Godsey, director of the Ohio Innocence Project.

"All parties, including prosecutors, police, Democrats and Republicans, worked for years to create a consensus bill. It's a shame it's being delayed at this point," Godsey said, noting that the bill would help prevent convictions of innocent people.

Read the full story here. (Columbus Dispatch, 2/5/10)

If you live in Ohio, sign up for Innocence Project email updates today to receive breaking news and actions relating to this issue in the weeks ahead.

Tags: Eyewitness Identification

 

Friday Roundup: 250 And Counting

Posted: February 5, 2010 5:50 pm

It was a momentous week at the Innocence Project, but aside from Freddie Peacock becoming the 250th DNA exoneree in the nation, stories of injustice, exoneration and reform continued to pop up around the world.

The Griffith University Innocence Project in Australia is moving forward with DNA testing in the case of Shane David, who has been in prison for 20 years for a murder he says he didn't commit.

Innocence Project client Dean Cage appeared on the Dr. Phil show this week to discuss life after exoneration and the issue of eyewitness misidentification.

The widow of a murder victim in Albuquerque is suing the city police department, alleging that her husband was killed in part because the department had arrested the wrong people for a crime committed by the alleged perpetrator of the murder. If police hadn't been sidetracked by a false confession, she says, they could have prevented her husband's murder.

Innocence Project client Marvin Anderson was included in the NAACP's Unsung Heroes of Black History Month website.

Three exonerees spoke at a Midwest Innocence Project fundraising on Wednesday. Ken Kezer talked about the difficulties of building a life after exoneration.

The award-winning play  "The Exonerated" premieres tomorrow in Long Beach, California.

For more forensic news, check out the Just Science Coalition's weekly forensic roundup, updated each Friday.

Tags: Dean Cage

 

Media Coverage in Freddie Peacock Case

Posted: February 5, 2010 4:20 pm

Yesterday, Freddie Peacock became the 250th person exonerated by DNA evidence in the United States. We posted background on his case and a new report on the first 250 exonerations.  This afternoon, Innocence Project Senior Case Coordinator Maggie Taylor wrote here about her experience with Peacock’s family at the exoneration hearing in Rochester.

Innocence Project supporters around the world are marking the 250th exoneration by sending letters to newspaper editors in their communities, calling for reforms to prevent future injustice. Send yours here.

Here's a selection of media coverage of yesterday’s exoneration:


New York Times: Vindication Now Arrives After a Battle of 28 Years

Los Angeles Times: DNA Evidence Clears NY Man

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Article and Video

Dozens more news outlets, TV stations and blogs around the country carried Peacock’s story. Notable blog posts included Simple Justice, The Root, The Agitator, Overbrook Foundation and Black Voices.

Tags: Freddie Peacock

 

Freddie Peacock’s Long Journey to Exoneration

Posted: February 5, 2010 3:15 pm

By Maggie Taylor, Senior Case Coordinator

Yesterday, I had the honor of sharing an incredible day with a person who had previously lived in my mind as handwriting, case documents and a very memorable name — Freddie Peacock. I first heard Freddie’s name in 2005 when I evaluated his case for potential acceptance at the Innocence Project, and I was thinking of his letters yesterday as he finally achieved the exoneration he sought for so long.

In two weeks I'll celebrate my sixth anniversary with the Innocence Project, where I work in the intake and evaluation department.  My job, and the job of eight wonderful colleagues in my department, is to help determine which cases the Innocence Project can accept. To do so, we reconstruct a case as best we can through documents: from the often-heartbreaking letters of prisoners and from lab reports, police reports, trial transcripts and other legal documents. We examine a case from every angle, looking for two things: a viable innocence claim and biological evidence that, if tested, should tell us if the person asking for our help is innocent.  Our jobs, though fascinating and challenging, focus almost exclusively on lives on paper.

When Freddie first wrote to us, his request was different from many of the pleas we read. He needed our help to restore his good name. When I worked up Freddie's case in 2005, it was compelling not only for the biological evidence that could prove his innocence, but because he had been out of prison since 1982, and still fought for exoneration. In fact, Freddie had been off parole since 1992, and before that had voluntarily remained on parole because he thought he would have a better chance of proving his innocence.

He existed in my mind for years as a compelling story but he came to life when I met him on Wednesday. We arrived at his apartment on Wednesday afternoon and were greeted by Freddie, his sister Edith and his longtime friend and advocate Bill Marshall.  Freddie, now 60, is a very tall man, with a genuine smile and brown tortoise shell glasses. Edith had just taken Freddie to the barber and they were planning his court outfit.  Freddie picked up the tie he planned to wear the next day and handed it to Bill, who put it around his own neck, tied it, and put it on Freddie to check the length. 

Freddie sat quietly as staff attorney Olga Akselrod and Cardozo student Jess Smith walked him through what would happen on exoneration day.  As Edith, who was to be the family's official spokesperson at the press conference, prepared for difficult questions, we heard about how Freddie's wrongful conviction had affected the family.  She talked about how worried she had been when Freddie went into prison.  She feared Freddie's mental illness would make him a target of violence, and I thought about the scores of other inmates with mental illnesses who write to us for help.

The courthouse the next day was flooded with reporters and camera operators. The hearing was brief. Edith cried with relief as soon as the judge began signing the paper vacating Freddie's conviction. Olga asked for just three or four minutes to talk about Freddie's ordeal on the record; the judge granted two. No apologies were offered to Freddie. At the end of the hearing the judge wished Freddie luck, and we filed out of the courtroom just ten minutes after we had entered. Edith turned to her friend Jeanette, who had accompanied her, and said how glad she was it was all over, Jeanette silently tucked Edith's hair behind her ear.

At the press conference Olga praised Freddie for his spirit and tenacity in proving his innocence. She noted how terrifying it is to keep reaching out for relief to the same system that wronged you. Innocence Project Co-director Peter Neufeld pressed for laws mandating the recording of interrogations to help prevent false confessions, like the one Freddie allegedly gave police over three decades ago. Freddie sat with his head down, staring at his hands in his lap, as his sister described the burden of his wrongful conviction.
 
After the press conference we called the Innocence Project office so the staff and students could congratulate Freddie, an Innocence Project ritual. When Freddie said hello he was greeted with applause and cheers. He beamed, and laughed, and his sister told everyone on the line, "Y'all are family now."  I've been one of those voices cheering from the other end of the line on many occasions, and it was great to see that call from the other end, how happy it seemed to make Freddie and his sister.

Freddie’s family held a party after the hearing in the rec room of Freddie’s apartment complex. Freddie's family and friends gathered for lasagna, chicken, fruit and sandwiches.  Freddie joked with everyone and talked about basketball with Peter, who noted that he and Freddie were the same age and had the same basketball heroes. Freddie's pastor, who was out of town and couldn't make it to the exoneration, called in with congratulations. Freddie cut a white sheet cake with blue roses that said, "Congratulations, Freddie, it's been a long journey."

Tags: Freddie Peacock

 

250 Exonerated, and the Need for Reform

Posted: February 4, 2010 4:40 pm

More than three decades after he was convicted of a crime he didn’t commit, Innocence Project client Freddie Peacock was exonerated at  a hearing this afternoon in Rochester, New York. He became the 250th person exonerated through DNA testing in the United States. His case and those of the 249 before him show how the criminal justice system is flawed and how it can be fixed.

To mark the 250th exoneration, the Innocence Project released a new report today: “250 Exonerated, Too Many Wrongfully Convicted.” Supporters around the country are amplifying the call for reform by sending letters to editors of local newspapers — send yours here.

Peacock, 60, served more than five years in New York prisons for a rape he didn’t commit before he was released on parole in 1982. For the next 28 years, he fought to clear his name — even trying to refuse the end of his parole because he thought that remaining in the criminal justice system might make it easier for him to prove his innocence.  

"Freddie Peacock was released many years ago, but he hasn't been truly free because the cloud of this conviction hung over him," Olga Akselrod, the Innocence Project Staff Attorney handling the case, said today.

Peacock’s wrongful conviction sheds light on two of the most common causes of wrongful convictions: eyewitness misidentification and false confessions. Peacock, who has serious mental illness, was arrested and charged with raping a neighbor in 1976 based in part on a questionable eyewitness misidentification. Although he told police that he had been hospitalized for mental illness, they proceeded to interrogate him, eventually alleging that he confessed to the crime, though he could not tell officers where, when or how the victim was raped. He was tried and convicted of the crime and sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

Learn more about Peacock's case and take action today by sending a letter to your local newspaper.

Tags: Freddie Peacock

 

Surviving Injustice, Achieving Heaven on Earth

Posted: February 3, 2010 6:10 pm

The new book “How to Achieve a Heaven on Earth” includes 101 inspirational essays from “the world’s greatest thinkers, leaders and writers.” Included in this impressive group is James Waller, an Innocence Project client who was exonerated in 2007 in Texas after serving a decade in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.

Waller writes about the injustice he survived and the importance of seeking truth and justice. He says he has been guided in his life by the mantra of his “wonderful, wise grandmother,” who said: “always tell the truth, and the truth will set you free.” He goes on to say that the signs of heaven are evident when we fight for justice, tell the truth and remain faithful to the promises of God.

Today, Waller lives in Dallas, where he speaks frequently about his case and the causes of wrongful conviction, works with the homeless and supports others who have recently been exonerated.

Learn more about the new book, which also includes essays by Barack Obama, George Bush, Ted Turner, Leonard Pitts, Jr., and many others.

Tags: James Waller

 

Nebraskans Mark a Year of Freedom

Posted: February 2, 2010 3:20 pm

One year ago, five Nebraskans were exonerated after serving years in prison for crimes they didn’t commit. A sixth co-defendant had been cleared months earlier, and the group were the first people exonerated through DNA evidence in Nebraska history.

Dubbed the “Beatrice Six,” Joseph White, Thomas Winslow, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Debra Shelden, James Dean and Kathy Gonzalez were convicted of the 1985 murder of a Beatrice, Nebraska, woman, based on faulty forensics and false confessions.

Police uncovered biological evidence at the crime scene and sent it to an Oklahoma state crime lab, where it was tested by forensic analyst Joyce Gilchrist, who has since been discredited and whose misconduct played a role in at least three wrongful convictions overturned through DNA testing.

The serology results led police away from a suspect named Bruce Allen Smith, who DNA testing would later implicate as the real perpetrator of the crime. Smith died in 1992.

The investigation stalled until 1989, when Nebraska authorities approached Winslow, who agreed to cooperate but was unaware that other members of the Beatrice Six had falsely implicated him. While there were serious inconsistencies between the suspects’ stories and the details of the crime, no further investigation appeared necessary, especially once Dean, Shelden and Gonzalez falsely confessed after intense police interrogation. Dean and Shelden’s confessions relied heavily on details they allegedly recalled from their dreams about the crime.

Gonzalez, Dean and Shelden agreed to plead guilty and testify against White in exchange shorter sentences. They each served more than four  years in prison before being released in 1994. Winslow and Taylor also pled guilty but did not testify and would each serve 18 years before their exonerations. White was convicted at trial and sentenced to life without parole — he would also serve 18 years before his exoneration.

In late 2007, Winslow finally obtained access to DNA testing on semen from the crime scene. The results implicated Smith as the perpetrator, a man who had no connection to any of the Beatrice Six. More than two decades after their wrongful convictions, the group was cleared one year ago. Five of the six defendants are currently seeking damages against county officials and others in a civil lawsuit set for trial in 2011.

This case highlights how the fear of the death penalty or life imprisonment can induce people to confess to crimes they did not commit in exchange for a lesser sentence, especially where the person is under duress. Significantly, false confessions or admissions have played a role in almost 25% of DNA exoneration cases. Learn more about false confessions and admissions as a cause of wrongful conviction here.

 

Texas Forensics Panel to Discuss Willingham Case at Next Meeting

Posted: February 1, 2010 3:32 pm

The Texas Forensic Science Commission met Friday for the first time in six months, but the meeting focused on committee procedure and the controversial case of Cameron Todd Willingham, who was executed in 2004, was not discussed.

Commission Chairman John Bradley committed, however, to discussing the case at the committee’s next meeting, set for April 23 in El Paso.

"Yes, they will be on the agenda. Yes, they will be discussed," Bradley said, referring to open cases under review.

Innocence Project Policy Director Stephen Saloom, who attended the meeting, noted that Bradley attempted to develop new procedures that would have given him more power, but members of the commission insisted that the new rules clearly call for consent and approval from the group:

"The rules Mr. Bradley proposed create needless bureaucracy, steer the commission away from the Legislature's intent, limit the commissioners' authority and vest more power in him as the chair," Saloom told the Associated Press.

And Houston Chronicle columnist Rick Casey wrote today about Bradley’s decision to bar a documentary film crew from the meeting room, which was reversed 90 minutes after the meeting began:

Bradley evicted an Austin-based documentary crew before the meeting started. One of its members called the attorney general's office in Austin, which sent a message to Barbara Dean, the assistant district attorney who has attended all of the commission's meetings, providing legal guidance since its inception.

An hour and a half into the meeting, Dean, seated behind Bradley, tapped him on the shoulder and quietly spoke into his ear. He announced a 10-minute break, and when the meeting resumed the film crew was in the room.

Read more about Friday’s meeting:


Associated Press: Texas Panel Meets, Skips Talk of Willingham Case

The Monitor:  Forensics Panel Dodges Discussion of Controversial ExecutionRick Casey in the Houston Chronicle: The Revolt of the Scientists  Grits for Breakfast: Live Blog of the Meeting
 

Tags: Forensic Oversight

 

Friday Roundup: Forensics Under Review in Texas

Posted: January 29, 2010 6:40 pm

The first meeting of the Texas Forensic Science Commission in more than six months focused on procedural issues and Cameron Todd Willingham’s case wasn’t discussed directly. The Innocence Project streamed the meeting live online today, and blogger Scott Henson at Grits for Breakfast blogged it live here.

The web stream was made possible by our pro bono partners at Unicorn Media and the producers at Rio Bravo Films.

In other Texas news, Hank Skinner is set to be executed in Texas Feburary 24 despite his pending requests for DNA tests that could prove his innocence. Students at the Medill Innocence Project have been investigating the case and the Texas Tribune ran a two-part story this week.

Still more news from Texas: new evidence suggests that prosecutors coached a witness to identify an innocent man in 1995. Richard Miles was freed last year after 14 years in prison based on new evidence of his innocence. The main witness against him at trial now says he was coached by prosecutors. The prosecutors denied the allegations.

A Michigan man who has been in prison for 25 years for a murder he says he didn’t commit could get a parole hearing soon, state officials said.

Evidence was sent to be testing in the case of Indiana prisoner Willie T. Donald, who has served nearly two decades for a crime he has always said he didn’t commit.

The U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to its decision last year in Melendez-Diaz that defendants have the right to cross-examine forensic analysts who conducted tests in their case. A new rule in New York allows police to conduct investigations based on partial DNA matches. The rule was enacted despite arguments from the New York Civil Liberties Union that it should have gone before the legislature.

Reversing an earlier decision, a Los Angeles hiring committee this week approved 27 new forensic analyst positions in an effort to reduce the city’s backlog of untested rape kits.

 

Watch Live: Texas Forensic Science Commission Meeting

Posted: January 29, 2010 10:10 am

The Texas Forensic Science Commission is meeting today in Harlingen, Texas, to discuss the committee's procedures on handling allegations of forensic negligence and misconduct in the state. This is the group's first meeting in several months, and although it had planned to address the controversial Cameron Todd Willingham case in October, that case is not on today's agenda.

The Innocence Project is streaming today's meeting live online. Watch here from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. CST.

Learn more about the Willingham case and the commission's work.

Tags: Forensic Oversight, Cameron Todd Willingham