Commonwealth Drops Case Against Keyon Sprinkle
Who Was Wrongfully Convicted in 2002
BOSTON, Mass. [May 12, 2020] – Yesterday, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office dropped its case against Keyon Sprinkle, of Boston, MA, who was wrongfully convicted of a 1999 murder and spent 20 years incarcerated for a crime he did not commit. The case against Mr. Sprinkle’s co-defendant, Clarence Williams, was also dropped.
On January 29, 2020, the Suffolk Superior Court allowed Mr. Sprinkle’s motion for new trial, officially overturning his murder conviction. After a lengthy hearing, the Court found credible evidence that two other people – discovered through extensive investigation – were responsible for committing the murder for which Mr. Sprinkle was wrongfully convicted.
The Court specifically noted that Mr. Sprinkle “has been steadfast in his claim that he is innocent,” and his testimony was so compelling that it made the Court more certain that “justice was not done” in his case.
After his conviction was overturned, Mr. Sprinkle was released from prison on February 6, 2020, with the consent of the District Attorney’s office. Yesterday, the District Attorney filed a nolle prosequi, declining to pursue the case further.
"We are thrilled that this nightmare is finally over for Mr. Sprinkle,” said Radha Natarajan, Executive Director of the New England Innocence Project, an organization supporting Mr. Sprinkle’s innocence case. “Over the last 20 years, Mr. Sprinkle has never stopped fighting to prove his innocence. Now he can enjoy his freedom with his family.”
Along with Mr. Williams, Mr. Sprinkle was convicted of the murder of Charles Taylor on November 16, 1999. Mr. Sprinkle refused a plea offer by the government in the middle of trial, consistently maintaining that he had no role in Mr. Taylor’s killing. Mr. Sprinkle was represented by a pro bono team of attorneys, including Peter Parker; Joseph Savage and Ashley Drake of Goodwin Law; and Chad Higgins of Bernstein Shur.
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Keyon’s Dream Team
A tremendous thank you to Keyon Sprinkle’s legal team and investigator! On Thursday, November 19, 2020 at our virtual event, Voices of the Innocent: Power in Community, we honored the efforts of these outstanding pro bono partners to "bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice."
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