Innocence Network Releases Annual Report- NEIP has 1 of the 21 Exonerations this Year

December 21st, 2011

The Innocence Network released its annual report today revealing that 21 people across the country were exonerated by Innocence Network member organizations for crimes they didn’t commit in the past year. Two men served more than 3 decades behind bars before being exonerated. There are 64 member organizations, including NEIP. While each organization in the Network operates independently they coordinate to share information and expertise.

The New England Innocence Project had a major victory this year with the exoneration of James “Jimmy” Hebshie. His conviction was based on fire science that has since been widely discredited. Read his whole story here.

The report, “Innocence Network Exonerations 2011,” provides information about each of this year’s 21 exonerations in 13 states. Misidentification was by far the leading cause of the wrongful convictions that were overturned, but this year also saw false confessions, faulty forensics and police and prosecutorial misconduct as contributing factors.

“These 21 exonerations expose the cracks in our deeply flawed criminal justice system,” said Keith Findley, President of the Innocence Network. “We urge legislators and other political leaders to take notice of these numbers and implement reforms to reduce the risks that such grave injustices will happen in the first place.”

This is the third year that the Innocence Network compiled a report of the year’s exonerations. The 21 people profiled in this year’s report served more than 365 combined years in prison before they were finally freed. Each case represents countless hours and sometimes years of ardent advocacy by attorneys, paralegals, investigators and students that comprise the Innocence Network.

In addition to helping overturn wrongful convictions, Innocence Network organizations increasingly work to bring substantive reform to the criminal justice system. Last year, Network member organizations lobbied statehouse across the country for reforms to improve identification procedures, reduce false confessions, put limits on the use of jailhouse informants, improve access to post-conviction DNA testing and ensure compensation for the years lost in prison unjustly.

Innocence Network members range from successful clinics that have operated for many years at some of the most respected universities to full-fledged nonprofit organizations with a solid staff and base of funding to small clinics at law schools that are still setting up a process to review cases. You can learn more about the Innocence Network or find an organization near you at www.innocencenetwork.org.

Kentucky Man to Celebrate First Christmas with his Family in 14 Years

December 21st, 2011

Kerry Porter was granted an official exoneration and was released from prison on Monday after spending 14 years in prison for a murder that he always maintained was committed by another person. The Kentucky Innocence Project in conjunction with Louisville Metro Police re-investigated the case and uncovered new evidence which helped free Porter. Metro Police recently took a statement which, “clearly implicates a different person” and DNA tests conducted on a piece of duct tape that was used to make a homemade silencer returned a profile of a different, unidentified man.

Police initially suspected Porter killed the victim, Tyrone Camp, out of jealousy. Camp was married to Porter’s former girlfriend. Tyrone Camp’s twin brother, Jerome Camp, says he believes another suspect, Juan Leotis Sanders, who is currently in prison on unrelated manslaughter charges, committed the crime. He said, “I feel real good for Kerry,” adding, “I think he is getting the justice he deserves.” Porter’s mother has also urged the public not to forget Camp’s family and the struggles they have faced. Contributing factors to the wrongful conviction included a bad eyewitness identification and jailhouse snitch testimony.

How False Confessions Occur

December 9th, 2011

Local NPR station WBUR ran a powerful two-part story recently about how false confessions occur. Many people cannot imagine why anyone would admit to committing a crime that they did not commit and in fact, confessions are the single most convincing piece of evidence to a jury, even more so than DNA. What’s frightening then is that in the first 250 DNA exonerations in the United States, 16% of exonerees gave false confessions to crimes that they did not commit and were eventually exonerated for. The WBUR story, and accompanying videos of a young 16-year-old mother who was pressured into falsely confessing to the murder of her baby, demonstrates how false confessions can occur and why they are not the slam dunk evidence they are often thought to be. Learn more about false confessions.

Read, listen and watch the story: Part 1
Read, listen and watch the story: Part 2

UPDATE- Freed Virginia Man Works to Clear his Name

December 6th, 2011

(originally posted 9/30/11) In 1984 18-year-old Thomas Haynesworth went to the grocery store to pick up a few things for his mother. He never made it home. He was arrested by police on suspicion of committing five different rapes in the area after one of the victims identified him as the perpetrator. Haynesworth was convicted and sentenced to 84 years in prison. After DNA testing became available, tests conclusively demonstrated that Haynesworth could not have committed two of the rapes; rather, the test results pointed to a serial rapist who committed rapes in the area after Haynesworth’s conviction. The DNA results, along with strong circumstantial evidence, led a Virginia parole board to release Haynesworth from prison this past March on his 46th birthday, 27 years after he was first stopped by police.

Haynesworth is now seeking full exoneration for all five of the rapes. Since he has not been exonerated on all the prior convictions, he has to register as a sex offender and request permission to visit his nieces. In July, a three-judge panel in the Court of Appeals for Virginia requested additional briefs, rather than granting Haynesworth’s request for a writ of actual innocence. One of Haynesworth’s supporters is Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli who believes that the judges are interpreting the law governing granting writs of actual innocence too strictly. He argues that they should not focus narrowly on identifying “conclusive” exonerating evidence, pointing out that the state destroyed the DNA evidence in the other cases, and saying, “It seems paradoxical to demand ‘conclusive’ evidence from Haynesworth when the commonwealth has deprived him of the opportunity to produce such evidence.” As Haynesworth fights to clear his name, the other pieces of his life seem to be falling into place. He was offered a job soon after his release working in Attorney General Cuccinelli’s Richmond office.

Read the NYT article here.

UPDATE- Thomas Haynesworth’s long journey towards establishing his innocence is finally over. Today the Virginia Court of Appeals granted Haynesworth a writ of actual innocence, officially clearing him of any involvement in a series of rapes from the 1980s. Haynesworth spent 27 in prison for the crimes, despite always maintaining his innocence. In March, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell released Haynesworth on parole after DNA tests cleared him and instead implicated a convicted rapist from the same area named Leon Davis. Despite his release from prison, Haynesworth was still considered responsible for the crimes in the eyes of the law and had to register as a sex offender. Today’s decision officially expunges Haynesworth’s record and validates his 27-year-odyssey to clear his name.

MA Deputy Police Chief Discusses Line-up Reforms in CT

November 30th, 2011

Wellesley Deputy Chief of Police William Brooks spoke before a legislative task force in CT in mid-November to discuss the feasibility of implementing best practices for criminal line-ups, particularly in small police departments. Studies have shown that when suspects in line-ups are shown to witnesses one-by-one, accuracy rates improve. When presented with each photo individually, witnesses were more likely to examine each photo individually to see if it looked exactly like the perpetrator, rather than comparing all the photos to find the photo that most resembled the perpetrator.

Similarly, when the officer administering the line-up does not know at which photo the witness is looking, accuracy rates also improve. This technique is called blind administration. Studies suggest that officers can give unintentional and non-verbal cues to witnesses if they know which photo the witness is viewing. Blind administration seeks to limit the officers’ influence over the witnesses’ decision making.

Brooks’ department first implemented some of these best practice techniques in 2005. While Brooks said he was initially hesitant to change line-up procedures after conducting them in the same manner for years, once he learned about the science behind different types of line-ups, he embraced the recommend changes. He explained how even small departments can improve the accuracy of eyewitness identification by using simple techniques such as putting photos in folders and shuffling them before giving them to witnesses. Brooks’ department has had no problems implementing the new procedures and routinely conducts trainings about improving line-up practices.

You can watch a video of the folder shuffle technique on our website here.

News Roundup: DNA Access Bill

November 30th, 2011

As the House of Representatives debates pending legislation granting inmates access to post-conviction DNA testing several news outlets have written stories exploring the topic. In July, the Massachusetts State Senate unanimously passed S.1987 granting inmates access to post-conviction DNA testing. The legislation is currently under review by the Ways and Means Committee in the House of Representatives. The House has until July to pass the bill by majority vote, or next December by unanimous vote. Massachusetts is currently one of only two states without a post-conviction DNA access law. (The other is Oklahoma.) Bills relating to post-conviction DNA testing have been brought before the legislature several times since 2003, although to date none have passed. Below is a compilation of recent articles about the proposed DNA access bill.

WGBH 89.7 Public Radio: part 1- 11/21/11 & part 2-11/22/11

WBUR 90.9 Boston’s NPR News Station: 11/23/11

NEIP on NPR

November 23rd, 2011

Executive Director, Gretchen Bennett, exoneree Dennis Maher, and reporter Michael Blanding will be featured on another local NPR station, WBUR 90.9 FM, tomorrow, discussing the DNA access bill. You can listen to them live on Wednesday, 11/23 at 3:00 pm. During the segment they’ll also take calls from listeners. The live call in number is (800) 423-TALK.

UPDATE:

Portions of the post below were originally posted on November 21, 2011.

Local NPR station WGBH 89.7 has featured a two-part story on DNA access in Massachussetts.  The pieces aired on Monday, November 21 and on Tuesday, November 22.  Both interviews are available online.

NEIP executive director Gretchen Bennett and Betty Anne Waters were both interviewed for this story.

Listen to DNA Evidence and Tyrone Dixon: Part 1.

Listen to Part 2: Inmates’ Access To DNA Evidence.

Arson science reconsidered: NPR article

November 21st, 2011

NPR interviews Doug Starr, co-director of Boston University’s Center for Science and Medical Journalism, on new arson science.  Strong research and controlled lab experiments in recent years have challenged long held beliefs about the nature of fire, raising significant questions in arson investigations and convictions across the country.

Read the article and listen to the interview at the link.

Boston Globe Magazine examines post-conviction DNA testing in MA

November 21st, 2011

Massachusetts is one of two states without a post-conviction DNA access law. Gretchen Bennett (executive director), Dennis Maher, Anthony Powell, Kenneth Waters (exonerees) and Betty Anne Waters were featured in Sunday, November 21, 2011, Boston Globe Magazine story about legislation to change that.

The post-conviction DNA bill has passed unanimously in the state Senate and is currently awaiting a decision in the House.

UPDATE- Texas Man Free After 25 Years

November, 11th, 2011

(Originally ran 10/5/11) An Austin, Texas man walked free from prison today after serving 25 years for a crime that he didn’t commit. In 1986, Michael Morton was convicted for beating his wife to death after allegedly becoming enraged when she refused to have sex with him. Morton’s conviction rested on circumstantial evidence.

DNA tests conducted this summer on a bloody bandana found near the crime scene implicated another man who was involved in a similar murder in 1988 – after Morton was already behind bars. The Innocence Project discovered through the Texas Public Information Act that the county district attorney, John Bradley, suppressed evidence that could have been helpful to Morton’s team, including a police interview transcript in which Morton’s son said that his father was not the attacker. Nina Morrison, an attorney with the Innocence Project, said that they had identified six instances where prosecutors and investigators hid non-DNA evidence from Morton’s defense attorney that could have been exculpatory during the original trial. Morton had consistently maintained his innocence.

Read the Los Angeles Times story here.

UPDATE (11/11/11)– The case of Michael Morton took on a new twist on Wednesday when police arrested Mark Alan Norwood, 57, and charged him with the murder of Christine Morton in 1986. The Innocence Project fought for DNA testing on a bloody bandana found near the Morton’s home on the day of the murder. DNA results cleared Michael Morton and implicated another man. The DNA also linked this unknown male to the eerily similar murder of Debra Masters Baker that occurred two years after Morton’s murder. Norwood is now being considered a suspect in the 1988 murder of Debra Masters Baker as well.

Texas to Re-examine Old Arson Cases

November 3rd, 2011

A Texas Commission charged with investigating the Cameron Todd Willingham arson case released its final report last Friday, October 28. Willingham was convicted of killing his children by intentionally setting the fire that destroyed their home. Modern advances in arson science indicate that the evidence used to convict Willingham may have been faulty. Despite doubts about his guilt, Willingham was executed in 2004 for the crime.

The Texas Forensic Science Commission re-examined the evidence in the Willingham case and made recommendations for improving arson investigations in Texas. The Commission made 17 recommendations for incorporating new science and procedures into arson investigations to reduce the risk of wrongfully convicting people based on improper science.

The commission’s findings will also spur the re-review of over 700 old arson cases, with the State Fire Marshall’s Office as well as the Innocence Project of Texas working to examine the cases. They will be looking for bad forensic science and practices that may have lead to other questionable or wrongful convictions.

NEIP Hosts First Annual Exoneree Picnic!

October 28th, 2011

NEIP hosted a picnic for New England exonerees and their families Monday, October 10th on George’s Island in Boston. Four New England exonerees and their families joined current and former NEIP staff for a day of food, games and discussion. This is the first time that exonerees from New England have had the chance to come together in New England and share their experiences with each other and their families. Exonerees in attendance included Bernard Baran, Scott Hornoff, Dennis Maher and Anthony Powell, who spent a combined 56 years in prison for crimes they did not commit. The event was designed to give exonerees the chance to discuss their struggles and successes adjusting to life after being freed from prison. 
While some exonerees have found jobs, started families and bought houses, many struggle with the lack of resources available to help them transition to life on the outside. People who are proved innocent are often not eligible for the same post-release services available to people who are released after they complete their prison terms.

NEIP provides pro bono legal assistance to inmates who have claims of actual innocence. The New England Innocence Project’s mission is to represent persons wrongly convicted in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island or Vermont and to advocate for the reform of our criminal justice system. It is the New England Innocence Project’s vision that no one in New England will ever go to prison for a crime he or she did not commit.
Please consider making a donation so that we can continue to fulfill our mission of helping the wrongly convicted in New England.

Clockwise from top right: Scott Hornoff passes the frisbee to Dennis Maher’s daughter Aliza. Bernard Baran (center, blue shirt) speaks to a group of NEIP staff. Anthony Powell (white shirt) with NEIP Executive Director Gretchen Bennett (navy blue shirt). Scott Hornoff’s daughter Abbie performs in front of NEIP staff. Dennis Maher and his son Josh enjoy the ferry ride to George’s Island.

The Evolving Role of Fire Science in Wrongful Convictions

October 27th, 2011

Douglas Starr, a local journalist, published an article in the November issue of Discover Magazine discussing the evolving field of fire science and the role it will play in wrongful conviction cases. Scientific study of fire scenes began in earnest during the 1970s, but it was not until the early 1990s that experts realized that many of the classic arson indicators that investigators relied upon where not, in fact, signs that a fire was set intentionally. Despite the increase in scientific analysis, expertly trained fire scientists were still largely only attracted to high-profile fires. Thus, most fires were handled by investigators who learned on the job. Few had taken college-level courses in fire science, chemistry or physics. Their on-the-job training consisted mostly of observing other investigators who in turn had learned from their supervisors. This ongoing cycle did not allow for introduction of the newer scientific information, and caused a perpetuation of investigators’ reliance on the indicators that science proved wrong.

John Lentini, a renowned fire expert, recognizes that his whole perspective on arson science changed early in his career. Lentini was called in to investigate a fire in Jacksonville, Florida that had killed six people. Before Lentini arrived, prosecutors already believed it was an arson case. The scene showed what were considered to be the classic signs of arson, including pour patterns. Pour patterns are burn areas surrounded by relatively unaffected material that for years were relied upon to demonstrate that accelerant was poured on the area and had burned. Interested in testing the conclusions that arson investigators had relied on for years, Lentini’s team received permission to re-create the fire in an abandoned house virtually identical to the one involved in the alleged crime. In a landmark experiment, known as the Lime Street Fire, Lentini’s team reproduced the fire with shocking results. Without using accelerant, the fire caused damage that included many classic signs of arson, including pour patterns. All charges against the defendant were dropped, and the study raised the likelihood that erroneous science was used to put others behind bars.

Despite a movement towards more scientific investigation, most states still lack any legal requirements for a person to become a fire investigator. In some states, a private investigator’s license is the only credential needed to investigate a fire and testify to its origins. While only a handful of Innocence Projects accept arson cases, The New England Innocence Project won a victory in an arson case just before Thanksgiving last year. James Hebshie, who was convicted of arson, was exonerated after John Lentini testified in support of his case.

Above: James Hebshie who was freed from prison after arson expert John Lentini testified in his defense.
photo credit: Matt Kalinowski

Read the full Discover article here.

Exonerated NY Man Makes Boxing Debut

October 19th, 2011

Dewey Bozella always dreamed of boxing professionally. As a teenager, he had boxed as an amateur before his arrest at age 18 for the murder of 92-year-old woman in Poughkeepsie, New York. His conviction primarily rested on the testimony of two criminals who repeatedly changed their stories. However, a fingerprint found at the scene matched Donald Wise, who was later convicted of a similar murder in the same neighborhood. Bozella was retried for the crime in 1990 and prosecutors offered a deal where if he pled guilty, he could go free. Refusing to admit to a crime that he did not commit, he was re-convicted by a jury. In 2009, the Innocence Project referred the case to the law firm WilmerHale where lawyers working on the case located a file that the police lieutenant had saved. The file contained exculpatory evidence that was never turned over to defense attorneys. After 26 years in prison, Mr. Bozella walked free on October 28, 2009.

Now 52, Mr. Bozella’s dream of becoming a professional boxer has finally come true. During the 26 years he spent in prison, Mr. Bozella continued to box, working out in a space formerly used for executions performed in the prison. While at Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York, he was the light-heavyweight champion. In September 2011, he passed the licensing test to become the oldest boxer ever licensed in the state of California. On Thursday afternoon, President Obama called Bozella to wish him luck in Saturday’s fight. In what he says will be his first and only professional fight, Bozella defeated his opponent in a unanimous decision on Saturday. After the fight he said, “Dreams do happen if you never give up hope and always believe in yourself.” He says that his next fight will be to help kids stay off the streets by opening his own boxing ring in upstate New York.

Read the New York Times article about Dewey Bozella’s boxing debut and the post-fight recap.

Texas Man Free After 25 Years

October 5th, 2011

An Austin, Texas man walked free from prison today after serving 25 years for a crime that he didn’t commit. In 1986, Michael Morton was convicted for beating his wife to death after allegedly becoming enraged when she refused to have sex with him. Morton’s conviction rested on circumstantial evidence.

DNA tests conducted this summer on a bloody bandana found near the crime scene implicated another man who was involved in a similar murder in 1988 – after Morton was already behind bars. The Innocence Project discovered through the Texas Public Information Act that the county district attorney, John Bradley, suppressed evidence that could have been helpful to Morton’s team, including a police interview transcript in which Morton’s son said that his father was not the attacker. Nina Morrison, an attorney with the Innocence Project, said that they had identified six instances where prosecutors and investigators hid non-DNA evidence from Morton’s defense attorney that could have been exculpatory during the original trial. Morton had consistently maintained his innocence.

Read the Los Angleles Times article here.

Freed Virginia Man Works to Clear his Name

September 30th, 2011

In 1984 18-year-old Thomas Haynesworth went to the grocery store to pick up a few things for his mother. He never made it home. He was arrested by police on suspicion of committing five different rapes in the area after one of the victims identified him as the perpetrator. Haynesworth was convicted and sentenced to 84 years in prison. After DNA testing became available, tests conclusively demonstrated that Haynesworth could not have committed two of the rapes; rather, the test results pointed to a serial rapist who committed rapes in the area after Haynesworth’s conviction. The DNA results, along with strong circumstantial evidence, led a Virginia parole board to release Haynesworth from prison this past March on his 46th birthday, 27 years after he was first stopped by police.

Haynesworth is now seeking full exoneration for all five of the rapes. Since he has not been exonerated on all the prior convictions, he has to register as a sex offender and request permission to visit his nieces. In July, a three-judge panel in the Court of Appeals for Virginia requested additional briefs, rather than granting Haynesworth’s request for a writ of actual innocence. One of Haynesworth’s supporters is Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli who believes that the judges are interpreting the law governing granting writs of actual innocence too strictly. He argues that they should not focus narrowly on identifying “conclusive” exonerating evidence, pointing out that the state destroyed the DNA evidence in the other cases, and saying, “It seems paradoxical to demand ‘conclusive’ evidence from Haynesworth when the commonwealth has deprived him of the opportunity to produce such evidence.” As Haynesworth fights to clear his name, the other pieces of his life seem to be falling into place. He was offered a job soon after his release working in Attorney General Cuccinelli’s Richmond office.

Read the NYT article here.

Troy Davis Debate Highlights Importance of Eyewitness Identification Reform

September 29th, 2011

The debate over the death penalty in the United States was brought to the forefront last week with the execution of Troy Anthony Davis. A secondary issue to emerge from the debate is the need for eyewitness identification reform in police stations and courtrooms across the country. Media reports confirmed that seven of the nine eyewitnesses who testified in Davis’ case recanted their original testimonies, with several citing police pressure as a reason for their original identifications. Inherent in these admissions is the fact that these seven witnesses were either lying during the original trial, or are lying now. This overall truth indicates just how unreliable eyewitness identifications can be.

Another problem in the Davis case was the handling of the witnesses when they were initially questioned. Police brought all nine witnesses to the parking lot where the murder took place to walk the witnesses through the events of that night and have them recreate the crime. This type of policy has the effect of unifying witness stories and gives them the opportunity to coordinate their stories and memories. Best practices show that witness reliability is much higher when witnesses are questioned separately and not allowed to compare stories. With the debate over these issues brought into the spotlight, hopefully the Davis case will have the effect of spurring eyewitness identification reforms.

To read the TIME article, click here.

NC Innocence Investigation Leads to the Release of Two Men

September 23rd, 2011

Last Thursday, two North Carolina men walked out of prison for the first time in a decade. Kenneth Kagonyera and Robert Wilcoxson pled guilty to the murder of Walter Bowman in 2000 despite maintaining their innocence. Attorneys for the two men argue that Kagonyera and Wilcoxson pled guilty to avoid life sentences; they were sentenced to 12-15 years in state prison. The case was investigated by the North Carolina Innocence Commission, a state agency including judges, attorneys, and a member of the public who review post-conviction claims of innocence. The North Carolina Innocence Commission, the only such body in the country, found enough evidence to cast doubt on the men’s convictions this past April, including DNA results that implicated others. This is the fourth case heard by the North Carolina Innocence Commission.

New Study Validates Revised Photo Lineup Procedures

September 21st, 2011

On Monday, September 19, the AJS Center for Forensic Science and Public Policy, in collaboration with the Innocence Project, the Police Foundation, and the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing, released a study conducted over the past three years examining eyewitness identification procedures. The study analyzed over 850 lineups in four different police departments: Austin, TX; Charlotte-Mecklenburg, NC; Tucson, AZ; and San Diego, CA. Researchers found that when witnesses view photo lineups in a sequential manner, meaning they are shown one photo at a time, rather than in a simultaneous manner, meaning they are shown all of the suspects’ photos at once, the rate of identifying “filler” photos, photos known definitively not to be the suspect, fell by 6%. Erroneous eyewitness identifications are a factor in over 75% of wrongful convictions, making systemic improvements in the way lineups are conducted all the more important.

Read the full report.

Read the NYT article about the report.

Troy Anthony Davis Denied Clemency

September 20th, 2011

In an article published today by Slate, Universtiy of Virginia Law Professor and author Brandon Garrett details the eyewitness identification procedures used when investigating the Troy Anthony Davis case. Garrett explains how the lineups were not double-blind and were suggestive to the witnesses. Furthermore, Garrett states that the photo lineups were not conducted until at least five days after the crime had occurred, during which time they circulated Davis’ picture widely in the community and on the news, stating that they were looking at him as a suspect. All of these factors could have led to erroneous eyewitness identifications, the most common culprit in cases of wrongful convictions. Indeed 7 of 9 witnesses have since recanted their statements. Despite recent media coverage explaining the fallibility of memory and the need for reform in the way eyewitness identifications are obtained, the Georgia Board of Pardons this morning denied clemency to Davis, who is scheduled to die tomorrow night by lethal injection. There is no physical evidence linking Troy Anthony Davis to the crime and he has always maintained his innocence.

Read full Slate article here.

Read the letter submitted by the Innocence Network to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole.

Read the letter submitted by the Innocence Network to Chatam County District Attorney Larry Chisom.