by TChris

Last week, TalkLeft wrote about Bernard Baran, a gay man who was swept up in the nationwide hysteria generated by false accusations of child molestation in daycare centers during the 1980's. The good news for Baran in his bid for a new trial is that he's represented by an excellent team of lawyers.

Led by attorneys John G. Swomley and Harvey A. Silverglate, with the assistance of Pamela Nicholson, Baran’s lawyers have discovered more evidence of potentially unreliable testimony by Baran’s accusers, alleged prosecutorial misconduct, and an ineptly presented defense — all of which speak to Baran’s innocence.

You can read about the compelling new evidence of Baran's innocence here.

Speaking of Silverglate, you may enjoy reading his comparison between John Ashcroft's version of justice and the show trials (i.e., coerced guilty pleas) favored in the former Soviet Union.

See the emerging picture? It’s an endless series of faux prosecutions in which defendants are threatened to "cooperate" and plead guilty, or face indefinite incommunicado imprisonment, with all the physical and psychological terrors that accompany finding oneself in a bottomless legal pit. ... None of the "evidence" ever gets to be heard and evaluated by a jury of honest Americans, but the march of prosecutions and guilty pleas rolls onward, and the Bush administration’s war on terror is palmed off on the public as a huge success.

by TChris

Darnell Williams is scheduled to die on July 9. There are so many doubts about his guilt that even his prosecutor doesn't believe he should be executed. Many of his jurors now agree that his life should be spared.

Williams' initial accuser later named someone else as the killer, and another man at the murder scene later recanted his testimony about Williams. New DNA tests revealed the presence of blood that didn't belong to either murder victim or to Williams.

Williams pleaded his case Monday before the Indiana Parole Board, which was told he met only twice with his defense attorney before the trial, which calls into question the quality of his representation.

An editorial in the Northwest Indiana Times says it well: "Putting Williams to death without erasing all doubts would be an injustice that cannot be corrected."

by TChris

Two months ago, TalkLeft wrote about Thomas Goldstein's ordeal. Goldstein was convicted of murder on the testimony of a jailhouse snitch (who lied about the benefits he received for his testimony) and an eyewitness who later recanted after realizing that the police had prompted him to make an identification he wasn't in a position to make.

Today Goldstein is working as a paralegal in a small Pasadena firm. The NY Times profiles his story as he attempts to begin his life anew.

by TChris

Unfounded hysteria about sexual abuse of children in daycare centers swept the nation in the 1980's, resulting in the convictions of innocent men and women. Bernard F. Baran Jr., convicted in 1985, says he's one of them.

Baran's lawyer, John Swomley, says the first family to accuse Baran was motivated by a stepparent's prejudice against Baran, who was openly gay.

The mother and her boyfriend were homophobic and had previously complained to the day care center about Mr. Baran because they thought he was gay. They had a history of severe drug abuse and mental health issues. The mother was fearful that she would not regain custody of her children if she did not testify in the manner expected by the prosecutor.

Swomley says Baran's lawyer, hired for $500, did nothing to investigate the suggestive questioning techniques that produced the accusations. He also argues that the prosecution withheld key evidence, including claims by two of the alleged victims that it was actually their mother's boyfriends who sexually assaulted them. Three of the six kids who accused Baran have now recanted their stories, but Baran is still serving multiple life sentences.

Swomley has filed a motion for a new trial, contending the evidence was unreliable, the defense lawyer was incompetent, and the prosecution withheld exculpatory evidence. No date to hear the motion has yet been set.

In an unprecedented settlement, the city of Cleveland, Ohio has agreed to pay a wrongfully convicted man $1.6 million--and reopen more than 100 cases to see whether the forensic fraud that infected his trial also occurred in other cases.

"(Cleveland) agreed to pay (Michael) Green $1.6 million for the 13 years he spent in prison for a rape he didn't commit. The payment is only a fraction of the $10 million Green demanded in a lawsuit, but he accepted less because the city also agreed to reopen more than 100 cases that included testimony from the same forensics lab worker who falsely testified in Green's trial. "

"This is virtually unprecedented," said Barry Scheck, co-founder of the Innocence Project in New York City, which used DNA evidence to free Green. "This is a model for the rest of the country, and to my knowledge this is the first time that public officials have voluntarily agreed to do this."

An interesting note - after Green was freed from prison, the Plain Dealer ran a series of articles about his ordeal. The real rapist was so overcome by guilt when he read the articles that he turned himself in and confessed to the crime.

by TChris

Anatomy of a wrongful conviction: Parents accuse a synagogue employee of sexually molesting their child. The defense fails to conduct an adequate investigation or to call some of the witnesses needed to cast doubt on the accusation. Although the child can barely understand the questions asked at trial, has told incoherent and contradictory versions of her story (including claims that the accused also sexually assaulted her parents), and fails in her testimony to identify the man who supposedly assaulted her, the prosecution calls "experts with impeccable credentials" in the sexual abuse of children to buttress the child's accusation. The judge adds to the risk of a wrongful conviction by making remarks that bolster the child's credibility.

Alfredo Vargas was convicted of molesting a 4-year-old girl while they attended religious services at Congregation Adat Yisrael, where Vargas worked as caretaker. The jury never heard that there was almost no location in the synagogue where a sexual assault could occur without being witnessed. Nor did the jury hear that the girl's family has repeatedly accused others of sexual abuse. Their motivation for the false claims?

The family that accused Mr. Vargas has sued the rabbi, his wife and the congregation, and a court has ordered that $2 million in the defendants' real estate assets be attached, so they cannot be sold.

The judge's improper comments caused an appellate court to give Vargas a new trial, but even if he prevails, his troubles won't end. Vargas overstayed his visa and will likely face deportation to Nicaragua.

by TChris

Kevin Cooper's effort to prove his innocence and avoid execution took a step forward as U.S. District Judge Marilyn Huff ordered DNA testing on hairs found in the clenched hand of a murder victim. If the hairs don't belong to any of the victims or to Cooper, it would be reasonable to infer that they belong to the actual killer, as Cooper contends. Prior TalkLeft coverage of Cooper's case is collected here.

The judge also set a tentative date to hear evidence in support of Cooper's argument that prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense at his trial.

The hearing later this month will deal with statements from several patrons of a bar near the [victims'] home who said San Bernardino sheriff's deputies were called to kick out three disorderly patrons with bloody clothes on the night of the killings.

by TChris

Shawn Drumgold was convicted of murdering a 12-year-old girl in 1989. A Boston Globe investigation in 2003 revealed that his conviction was flawed.

The Globe found that a key witness against Drumgold was suffering from brain cancer when she testified about seeing Drumgold at the murder scene. The Globe also found that other prosecution witnesses recanted sworn testimony and statements used to convict Drumgold.

Last November, a judge vacated Drumgold's conviction, and after serving 15 years for a crime he didn't commit, Drumgold was set free. Now he's suing the Boston police, alleging that they withheld evidence of his innocence and pressured a key witness to lie at his trial.

"This is a very strong case," said Drumgold's lawyer, Stephen Hrones, noting other wrongful convictions in the state. This is "another case of Boston police officers so bent on obtaining a conviction in a high-profile case that they broke the rules, violated the Constitution, and wanted the conviction at all costs."

Drumgold is seeking an unspecified amount of damages for the 15 years that were stolen from his life.

Our favorite story of the day, by far. A man in Miami who spent 5 1/2 months in jail on a murder charge for which he could have faced the death penalty if convicted was freed when an HBO filming of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" established his alibi--he had been at a baseball game with his daughter eating a hot dog at the time of the murder. Kudos to defense attorney Todd Melnick whose persistence for his client paid off. Really, read the article, it's heartwarming.

Police arrested Catalan in August, alleging he killed Martha Puebla, 16, in the San Fernando Valley on May 12, 2003, because she had testified against his brother in another case. Catalan insisted he and his 6-year-old daughter were watching the Los Angeles Dodgers lose to the Atlanta Braves, 11-4, minutes before Puebla was killed about 20 miles north of the stadium.

He said he had ticket stubs from the game and testimony from his family as to his whereabouts the night Puebla was killed. But police still believed he was responsible, saying they had a witness who placed Catalan at the scene of the slaying. Catalan said he asked to take a lie detector test, but was refused.

by TChris

Josh Connole thinks the FBI viewed him as a suspect in an arson at a Chevrolet-Hummer dealership in West Covina, California because of his liberal politics. West Covina police arrested Connole at the direction of the FBI. He was detained for four days. A Caltech graduate student has since been arrested as a suspect in the crime.

Although the City of West Covina maintains that its officers did nothing wrong, the City paid Connole $20,000 to settle his false arrest lawsuit. Now Connole plans to sue the FBI. He's angry that he was labeled an "environmental terrorist."

Why did the FBI issue a warrant for Connole? Connole is described as "an outspoken environmentalist and antiwar activist who matched the general description of one of two men caught on a security videotape at one of the dealerships." Large numbers of people match "general descriptions," so it's difficult to believe that Connole's politics didn't motivate the FBI to view him as a suspect.

by TChris

Add one more name to the list of wrongly convicted prisoners: Randy Steidl.

Steidl, 52, of Paris, Ill., spent a dozen years on death row for the murder of Paris newlyweds Dyke and Karen Rhoads and about five additional years after he was resentenced in 1999 to life in prison.

An Illinois State Police detective concluded four years ago that Steidl and a second Paris man convicted in the case, Herbert Whitlock, were innocent and that strong evidence linked an unnamed individual to the murders.

A federal judge ordered a new trial for Steidl after concluding that a jury would probably have acquitted him if his lawyer had done a better job. Developments after the trial also provided reason to question Steidl's guilt. A prosecution witness who said she saw Steidl killing the couple has recanted, and new DNA testing supports his innocence.

As is typical, the prosecutor in the case refuses to concede that he prosecuted an innocent man. Nonetheless, the prosecutor filed a motion asking that the charges be dismissed because he deems it impossible to pull together enough evidence to secure a conviction within the 120 day window during which (according to the federal judge's order) the state must either retry Steidl or set him free. He says -- presumably to save face -- that the case will require more investigation and that the charges will eventually be refiled. Translation: "I hope that after awhile everybody forgets about this case."

Whitlock is still in prison, but his lawyer is hopeful that these developments will eventually lead to Whitlock's freedom as well.

by TChris

It isn't unusual for states to erect barriers that make it difficult or impossible for wrongfully convicted inmates to win their freedom by proving their innocence. Conservative lawmakers seem to believe that "finality" rather than justice should be the ultimate goal of the criminal justice system: get the case done, don't worry so much about whether it was done right, and don't burden the court with these pesky claims about innocence.

Virginia recently repealed a law that barred inmates from seeking a new trial based on newly discovered evidence of innocence unless they presented that evidence to the court within 21 days of sentencing. If the true culprit confessed on day 22, too bad for the innocent man who was sentenced to life. That law would have prevented David Wayne Boyce (featured yesterday in TalkLeft) from presenting DNA evidence showing that someone else probably committed the murder that resulted in his conviction.

But Virginia replaced that law with a requirement that limits an inmate to one and only one chance to prove his innocence. The result: if you aren't successful on the first try and later find compelling evidence of innocence, you're out of luck.

"Some members of the General Assembly are more concerned about finality of convictions than correctness," said Steven D. Benjamin, president of the Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, in Richmond. "There is no moral justification for closing the courts for a person who is able to prove his innocence.