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posted by Justice on Aug 27

On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals granted a new trial for a Wisconsin man who was convicted in 1996 of an armed robbery and attempted murder that another man has confessed to committing.

New Evidence, Testimony Points to Wisconsin Man’s Innocence
On Tuesday, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals granted a new trial for a Wisconsin man who was convicted in 1996 of an armed robbery and attempted murder that another man has confessed to committing. Cody Vandenberg will get a new trial in order to present new evidence about the other man’s confession and the unreliability of the eyewitness who identified him.

Vandenberg was convicted of repeatedly stabbing an acquaintance, Blake Renard, in his home and stealing his credit cards. He was sentenced to 80 years in prison.

Defense lawyers say another man, Larry Pearson, who testified for the state at Vandenberg’s trial after receiving immunity, has confessed to committing the crime. Pearson’s bloody shoeprint was also found at the crime scene.

Additional evidence casts doubt on the reliability of the victim’s eyewitness identification of Vandenberg. It was known at trial that Renard was drinking the night of the crime, but the level of intoxication was never disclosed. Tuesday’s ruling revealed that based on hospital records from that evening, Renard had a blood-alcohol level of 0.22 percent, nearly three times the legal driving limit.

John Pray, Vandenberg’s lawyer and co-founder of the Wisconsin Innocence Project, who accepted Vanderberg’s case in 1999, told the Greenbay Press-Gazette that his client was misidentified by the victim, who said he knew his attacker.

“When you’re drunk and you’re being stabbed by someone at 4 a.m. within an inch of your life, it’s pretty understandable he can’t remember the details,” he said. “No one is blaming the victim in this case. He was trying to make an identification under difficult circumstances.”

In light of the new evidence and confession, Pray hopes the state’s attorney will agree to drop the charges against Vandenberg, allowing him to be freed after 14 years in prison.

Eyewitness misidentification is the single greatest cause of wrongful convictions nationwide, playing a role in more than 75% of convictions overturned through DNA testing.

Read the full story here.

Read about eyewitness misidentification here.

Tags: law, legal aid, Barrister

posted by Justice on Aug 23

The Ohio Parole Board announced yesterday that it has voted 8-0 against recommending clemency for death row prisoner Kevin Keith, who is scheduled to be executed September 15 for a triple murder he says he didn’t commit. The parole board’s recommendation is non-binding – Gov

Governor Is Last Hope for Ohio Death Row Prisoner
The Ohio Parole Board announced yesterday that it has voted 8-0 against recommending clemency for death row prisoner Kevin Keith, who is scheduled to be executed September 15 for a triple murder he says he didn’t commit.

The parole board’s recommendation is non-binding – Gov. Ted Strickland has the final decision on whether Keith will be executed. Strickland has said he finds the facts of Keith’s case “troubling.”

The Innocence Network has joined with several key experts and officials along with other legal groups and thousands of Americans in calling on Gov. Strickland to commute Keith’s execution based on strong evidence of Keith’s innocence. Keith was convicted based in large part on questionable eyewitness identifications — the leading factor of wrongful convictions overturned through DNA testing.

In a letter to Strickland and the parole board earlier this month, Innocence Network President Keith Findley wrote: “We believe the newly discovered evidence, which was withheld by the state at the time of (Keith’s) trial, provides compelling evidence of his innocence.”

Join Keith’s supporters in urging Strickland to grant clemency based on the substantial doubts about his guilt.

For a roundup of press coverage of the parole board decision, visit Stand Down Texas.

Tags: Barrister, , Layla D’monte

posted by Justice on Aug 23

Recent blood tests have confirmed that a Louisiana man serving life behind bars for a 1988 rape and armed robbery is actually innocent. Innocence Project client Booker Diggins, who was convicted of the crimes, has been behind bars for 22 years for a crime he didn’t commit. Diggins was convicted based on the eyewitness testimony of the victim, who picked him out of a photo line-up as the man who raped her.

Louisiana Man Proves His Innocence But Remains Behind Bars
Recent blood tests have confirmed that a Louisiana man serving life behind bars for a 1988 rape and armed robbery is actually innocent. Innocence Project client Booker Diggins, who was convicted of the crimes, has been behind bars for 22 years for a crime he didn’t commit.

Diggins was convicted based on the eyewitness testimony of the victim, who picked him out of a photo line-up as the man who raped her. Prosecutors knew that semen was recovered from the rape kit, but never shared this information with defense attorneys, so Diggins’ blood typed was never tested, and therefore compared to the semen from the perpetrator.

More than two decades after the conviction, Diggins managed to purchase a copy of his case file for $209, where he discovered that the biological evidence had been withheld. DNA testing can’t be conducted because the evidence has been missing since Hurricane Katrina, but the Innocence Project filed an appeal earlier this month seeking a hearing on the blood-type evidence.

“This is bulletproof scientific evidence that he is not the guy,” said attorney Barry Scheck. “He wasn’t the rapist and they could have known that in 1988.”

Read more in today’s Times-Picayune article.

Download the Innocence Project’s motion on Diggins’ behalf.

Tags: legal aid, law, Innocence Project

posted by Justice on Feb 22

In 1995, Kennedy Brewer was sentenced to death in Mississippi for allegedly raping and murdering his girlfriend’s three-year old daughter. Although his conviction was overturned in 2001 after seven years on death row, he would spend another five years in jail, and two years free on bond, before he was finally exonerated two years ago this week

Faulty Science and the Wrong Man on Death Row
In 1995, Kennedy Brewer was sentenced to death in Mississippi for allegedly raping and murdering his girlfriend’s three-year old daughter. Although his conviction was overturned in 2001 after seven years on death row, he would spend another five years in jail, and two years free on bond, before he was finally exonerated two years ago this week.

Pictured, from left to right, are Innocence Project Staff Attorney Vanessa Potkin, Brewer, Mississippi exoneree Levon Brooks and Innocence Project Co-Director Peter Neufeld.

Dr. Michael West, a bite-mark analyst who has since been discredited, provided critical testimony for the prosecution. West was brought into the case by Dr. Steven Hayne, a medical examiner who lacks proper board certification and whose work has also been discredited. At trial, West told the jury that Brewer had bitten the girl 19 times using only his upper two teeth, and that marks on the victim’s body conclusively matched Brewer’s dental records. In fact, experts say that the marks weren’t even caused by human teeth.

West’s procedures and findings have come under fire in numerous cases. He claims to have invented the “West Phenomenon,” in which he donned yellow goggles, and, using a blue laser, identified bite marks, scratches and other marks that only he could see. West also claimed to have conclusively identified a perpetrator from bite marks on a bologna sandwich. That conviction was later overturned. In 2001, a defense lawyer sent his own dental mold and photographs of bite marks on a victim’s breast to West, along with his $750 retainer. West produced a video for the lawyer in which he concluded that the mold and photos were a definite match.

In its 2009 report on forensic science, The National Academy of Sciences criticized the relatively new field of forensic odontology, because there is no widely accepted way to measure the reliability of bite marks, no national database to compare samples and a lack of extensive peer review and research. To remedy these problems, the NAS recommended the formation of a national entity to supervise and support forensic science, including bite mark analysis. Learn more about improper and unvalidated forensic science and read the full NAS report here.

Citing West’s original testimony, the Mississippi State Supreme Court affirmed Brewer’s conviction and death sentence in 1997. DNA testing performed in 2001 showed that he could not have committed the crime and led to his conviction being overturned. Prosecutors, however, said they intended to retry him.

Brewer remained in jail awaiting the promised trial until 2007, when he was freed on bond — with a trial still pending. The next year, an Innocence Project investigation led to further DNA testing, which implicated another man as the perpetrator. The real perpetrator then confessed to committing the crime, and a similar crime for which another man – Levon Brooks – had been wrongfully convicted as well.

Brewer says he’s not angry about the injustice he suffered and instead wants to focus on moving on with his life. He met his future wife in a program after his exoneration, and plans to get married this April. Brewer also has two children and a grandson. He currently works at a food processing plant in Brooksville, Mississippi.

Tags: law, legal aid, pro bono

posted by Justice on Nov 15

On Tuesday, Texas Senators questioned John Bradley, the new chairman of the state Forensic Science Commission.

Friday Roundup: An Arson Case Keeps the Spotlight

On Tuesday, Texas Senators questioned John Bradley, the new chairman of the state Forensic Science Commission. We reported on the hearing here. Bradley said the commission would eventually continue its investigation into the arson science used to convict Willingham, who was executed in 2004, but warned that the investigation could stretch into 2011. One state Senator said the commission could emerge stronger from the attention it has received through this process.

A column by Rick Casey in the Chronicle questioned whether Bradley, a prosecutor, is the right person to lead an inquiry into scientific practices.

In an editorial yesterday, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram criticized Gov. Rick Perry for refusing to hand over the clemency report in Willingham’s case in response to a Houston Chronicle request. The Chronicle is suing the state for access to the document.

In other news, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled this week that Greg Wilhoit, who spent four years on Oklahoma’s death row before he was acquitted on retrial, has a viable legal claim against the state for his wrongful conviction.

An op-ed in the San Jose Mercury News by Kathleen Ridolfi and Maurice Possley of the Northern California Innocence Project points to prosecutorial misconduct’s high cost to taxpayers.

Brian Dugan was sentenced to death in Illinois this week for the murder of a 10-year-old girl in 1983 – a crime for which two innocent men — Rolando Cruz and Alejandro Hernandez – spent 12 years each on death row. Read more and watch a video interview with Cruz.

Lawyers in Wisconsin are seeking a new trial for Reynold Moore, who was convicted in 1995 with five other men for allegedly committing a 1992 murder. A new book about the case – “The Monfils Conspiracy” is available here.

Death row exoneree Kirk Bloodsworth spoke this week at the University of Sioux Falls in South Dakota.

North Carolina exoneree Ronald Cotton and crime victim Jennifer Thompson-Cannino will speak November 18 at Vanderbilt University.

A new searchable Supreme Court database offers information and analysis on the court’s rulings since 1953.

Tags: , Layla D’monte, legal aid

posted by Justice on Nov 15

Anthony Robinson spent ten years in prison for a rape he didn't commit and 13 years fighting for the DNA testing that would finally exonerate him. Today, he is a successful attorney practicing in China and Texas and Saturday marks the ninth anniversary of his exoneration.

Nine Years After Exoneration, Practicing Law Across Borders

Anthony Robinson spent ten years in prison for a rape he didn't commit and 13 years fighting for the DNA testing that would finally exonerate him. Today, he is a successful attorney practicing in China and Texas and Saturday marks the ninth anniversary of his exoneration.

An eyewitness misidentification played a key role in Robinson’s wrongful conviction. On the day of the crime, he was picking up a car for a friend at the University of Houston. University police blocked his car and accused him of raping a woman. According to the victim, her attacker was a black man wearing a jacket. Although the victim said the perpetrator had a mustache and Robinson didn’t, he was brought in for questioning. No physical evidence linked him to the crime. Based almost entirely on the victim’s testimony, Robinson was convicted in 1987 and sentenced to 27 years in prison.

He would later reflect on the feeling of being wrongfully accused: “It was not so much the fear of imprisonment. It wasn’t so much the fear of what was going to happen. Everything that I had lived for, everything that I had done had been boiled down to – we think you’re a rapist with no evidence whatsoever other than your skin and someone saying you did this.”

After serving ten years of his sentence, he was paroled and began raising funds to obtain DNA testing on the evidence used in his trial. He worked a variety of temporary jobs to raise the funds for DNA testing. Although he was a college graduate and a former Army officer, his status as a registered sex offender excluded him from higher paying jobs. Robinson hired an attorney, Randy Schaffer, and obtained access to DNA testing on evidence in his case. The results proved what he had known all along – another man had committed the crime.

On November 14, 2000, Governor George W. Bush pardoned Robinson. Since his exoneration, Robinson has spoken actively about the issue of wrongful conviction to lawmakers and the media and played a key role in the passage of a law in Texas compensating the wrongfully convicted after their release.

After Robinson was cleared, Texas State Senator Rodney Ellis and other Houston attorneys helped raise funds for him to attend law school. He graduated from the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University in 2004, and currently works in international law. He is also a member of the Innocence Project of Texas Board of Directors and the Texas Exoneree Council.

Other exoneration anniversaries this week:

Bruce Dallas Goodman, Utah (Served 19 Years, Exonerated 11/9/04)

Joseph White, Nebraska (Served 19 Years, Exonerated 11/10/08)

David Brian Sutherlin, Minnesota (Exonerated 11/13/02)

Paula Gray, Illinois (Served 9 years, Exonerated 2002)

Tags: Miscarriage of Justice, , law

posted by Justice on Oct 6

Thanks to hundreds of generous donors from all over the world, including many regular Innocence Blog readers, we reached our September goal of $25,000 to help us pay for DNA testing for Innocence Project clients! We are deeply grateful for your support. Our DNA testing campaign was a great success, but it’s never too late to help us free the innocent

Thank You, Blog Readers
Thanks to hundreds of generous donors from all over the world, including many regular Innocence Blog readers, we reached our September goal of $25,000 to help us pay for DNA testing for Innocence Project clients! We are deeply grateful for your support.

Our DNA testing campaign was a great success, but it’s never too late to help us free the innocent. You can make a tax-deductible donation online or by mail. Every dollar supports the Innocence Project's work to overturn wrongful convictions and reform the criminal justice system.

And if you’re not able to donate but want to get involved in other ways, check out our “10 Things You Can Do” page here.

Tags: pro bono, law,

posted by Justice on Oct 6

This week marks the seventh anniversary of Jimmy Ray Bromgard’s exoneration in Montana, after serving more than 14 years for a crime he did not commit. Bromgard was convicted at 18 and released at 32, losing the prime years of his life behind bars. Participating in a prison program for sex offenders could have led to his early release, but he refused to take the classes

Montana Man Marks Seven Years Free

This week marks the seventh anniversary of Jimmy Ray Bromgard’s exoneration in Montana, after serving more than 14 years for a crime he did not commit. Bromgard was convicted at 18 and released at 32, losing the prime years of his life behind bars. Participating in a prison program for sex offenders could have led to his early release, but he refused to take the classes. “I would have had to admit my guilt,” he said after his release. “I'd rather sit there in prison for all my life than admit my guilt.”

Bromgard was convicted based in part on forensic science misconduct. The prosecution tied Bromgard to the crime by using the testimony of a state forensic hair examiner, Arnold Melnikoff, who claimed hairs found on the victim's bed were similar to Bromgard's, and further argued there was less than a one-in-10,000 chance that the hairs did not come from Bromgard. Melnikoff’s testimony was fraudulent; there has never been a standard by which to statistically match hairs through microscopic inspection.

Unvalidated or improper forensic science has played a role in more than 50% of the 244 wrongful convictions overturned by DNA testing to date. Forensic problems include the kind of fraudulent testimony that led to Bromgard’s conviction, but they also include testimony in fields — such as bite mark comparisons or firearm analysis — that simply have not been subjected to rigorous scientific research.

To learn more about recommended federal forensic reforms and to sign a petition supporting improved support and oversight for forensics, visit the Just Science Coalition website.

Read more about Bromgard’s case here.

Other Exoneration Anniversaries This Week:

George Rodriguez, Texas (Served 17 years, Exonerated 9/29/05)

Steven Phillips, Texas (Served 24 Years, Exonerated 10/1/08)

Arthur Johnson, Mississippi (Served 15.5 Years , Exonerated 10/1/08)

Earl Washington, Virginia (Served 17 years, Exonerated 10/2/00)

Albert Johnson, California (Served 10 years, Exonerated 10/3/02)

Tags: Layla D’monte, , Miscarriage of Justice

posted by Justice on Oct 6

An editorial in today’s Connecticut Law Tribune calls on the Connecticut Advisory Commission on Wrongful Convictions to end a lull in activity and make recommendations to the state legislature on reforms that can prevent wrongful convictions. The panel is one of eight such commissions around the country, but the Connecticut group — expected to meet quarterly — has met only once since November 2006

Editorial Calls for More Action from Connecticut Innocence Panel
An editorial in today’s Connecticut Law Tribune calls on the Connecticut Advisory Commission on Wrongful Convictions to end a lull in activity and make recommendations to the state legislature on reforms that can prevent wrongful convictions. The panel is one of eight such commissions around the country, but the Connecticut group — expected to meet quarterly — has met only once since November 2006.

Three men have been cleared through DNA testing in Connecticut since 2006: Miguel Roman, James Tillman and Kenneth Ireland. From today’s editorial:

To date, the Advisory Commission on Wrongful Convictions has yet to conduct an in-depth review of any of these cases. Nor has it examined any of the major causes of wrongful conviction or made any recommendations for the reform of practices and procedures necessary to insure that similar miscarriages of justice do not occur. In fact, since its inception in 2003, the commission has not issued a single report.

Read the full editorial here. (Connecticut Law Tribune, 10/05/09)

Learn about the other innocence commissions in the U.S. on our interactive map.

Tags: legal, legal aid, Miscarriage of Justice

posted by Justice on Oct 6

Innocence Project client Thomas McGowan (above left) is set to speak about the role of eyewitness misidentification in his wrongful conviction this afternoon at the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) conference in Denver. McGowan will be joined on a panel by the victim in the case for which he was wrongfully convicted, and Mike Corley (above right), the Texas police officer who originally investigated the crime

Police Chiefs and Wrongful Convictions

Innocence Project client Thomas McGowan (above left) is set to speak about the role of eyewitness misidentification in his wrongful conviction this afternoon at the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) conference in Denver. McGowan will be joined on a panel by the victim in the case for which he was wrongfully convicted, and Mike Corley (above right), the Texas police officer who originally investigated the crime.

We wrote about this unique partnership of crime victim, officer and exoneree recently, and the three will tell their stories today at a conference with more than 15,000 law enforcement leaders.

Wrongful convictions are a prominent issue at this year’s IACP conference – Rob Warden, the executive director of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University School of Law – presented Sunday at a panel on the causes of wrongful conviction. He was joined by Center on Wrongful Convictions Legal Director Steven Drizin and former U.S. Attorney Thomas P. Sullivan. Innocence Project Policy Director Stephen Saloom is also attending the conference.

Dallas Morning News reporter Tanya Eiserer is blogging from the conference this week on the DMN Crime Blog.

Tags: Barrister, pro bono, Innocence Project