Commonwealth Drops Case Against Gary Cifizzari
Who Was Wrongfully Convicted of Murder and
Served 35 Years in Prison for a Crime He Did Not Commit
Worcester, MA [December 10, 2019] - The Worcester County District Attorney dropped its case against Gary Cifizzari of Taunton, Mass., who was wrongfully convicted of a 1979 murder and spent 35 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.
"Exonerations are always bittersweet,” said Radha Natarajan, co-counsel for Cifizzari and Executive Director of the New England Innocence Project. “During 35 years of wrongful imprisonment, Gary Cifizzari endured so much and lost so much. But today, he finally receives the justice he deserves and can celebrate the freedom he has again. Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case -- and lessons from it -- can prevent future injustices."
“We are thrilled that Mr Cifizzari was rightly exonerated today. No one should spend decades behind bars for a crime they did not commit,” said Ropes & Gray litigation and enforcement partner Kirsten Mayer. “We commend the Worcester District Attorney for assenting to our motion for a new trial and concluding that the charges against Mr. Cifizzari should be dropped in the interest of justice.”
On May 31, 2019, the New England Innocence Project and a pro bono Ropes & Gray litigation team filed a motion for a new trial in Worcester Superior Court on behalf of Mr. Cifizzari. Along with his brother, Mr. Cifizzari was wrongfully convicted of the 1979 murder of his great aunt, 75-year-old Concetta Schiappa. The May 31 motion exposed newly discovered and tested DNA evidence developed from the semen and saliva on the victim’s nightgown that exonerated Mr. Cifizzari and identified Michael Giroux as the true perpetrator of the crime through a CODIS DNA match. Mr. Giroux, now deceased, was originally a suspect in the case and questioned by police, but was never charged and later went on to commit other crimes.
In addition, the motion detailed how the Commonwealth’s case against Mr. Cifizzari was built entirely on flawed bitemark comparison testimony, which the scientific community has since condemned as lacking any scientific basis. The motion also explained how one of the Commonwealth’s original experts, Dr. Richard Souviron, has since recanted the testimony he offered at Mr. Cifizzari’s trial, which was used to convict Mr. Cifizzari.
On July 12, 2019, the court allowed Mr. Cifizzari to be released from prison after 35 years while the court considered his motion for a new trial.
Today, the District Attorney filed an assent to the motion for a new trial, and the court allowed the motion for a new trial, officially overturning Mr. Cifizzari’s conviction. In addition, today the District Attorney filed a motion for nolle prosequi, stating that it is not in the interests of justice to prosecute Mr. Cifizzari further.
Read Gary’s full story via the National Registry of Exonerations
Select Media Coverage:
“Worcester District Attorney Drops Charges Against Gary Cifizzari in 1979 Milford Slaying”
— MetroWest Daily News
“D.A. Dismisses Murder Charge in 1979 Milford Killing” — Associated Press
”Murder Charge Dropped Against Gary Cifizzari in Killing of his 75-year-old Aunt in Milford 40 years Ago” — MassLive.com
The Unreliability of Bitemark Comparisons
Forensic science errors, which include bitemark comparisons, are a leading cause of wrongful convictions nationwide. Yet, prosecutors are still bringing the practice into the courtroom, where it is often used as key evidence leading to a conviction.
Since the availability and use of DNA testing, which was born in the scientific community and can provide precise identifications, the wrongful convictions of innocent men and women due to faulty bitemark comparison evidence have been exposed years or even decades later. View our Bitemark Backgrounder
Additional information and research:
National Academy of Sciences: “Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States,” 2009
”Forensic Science in Criminal Courts: Ensuring Scientific Validity of Feature-Comparison Methods,” President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, September 2016
”A bite mark matching advocacy group just conducted a study that discredits bite mark evidence,” Radley Balko, The Washington Post, April 8, 2005
ARC OF JUSTICE AWARD: Ropes & Gray
The New England innocence Project honored the Ropes & Gray litigation team with the “Arc of Justice” award for their pro bono partnership on Gary’s case at our inaugural storytelling event on Dec. 3, 2019 at City Winery Boston. Learn More