US state lacks evidence, frees man after 30 years

[Seastallion]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

I hope he will sue and get a lot of money, not that it will bring back 30 years.

He will get a ton of money and he doesn't need any money himself to get it. There is so much money here that a really good law firm will take this case on a contingency - for part of any award rather than the normal hourly fee. The law firm will front any costs such as court costs, expert witness fees - everything. Because they have a financial interest in the outcome they will do a fine job and go for the throat.

The award is collectible because the defendants have deep pockets. The defendants appear to be the county in Alabama whose employees were the prosecutors. The state will also be sued because it has jurisdiction over the county in that it's a state court in that county. Also it's likely that the state crime lab did some of the initial work which convicted him. Few counties have a lab like that to do ballistics tests and certainly not 30 years ago.

Because the behavior of the state and county was callous and outrageous, a jury is going to be outraged. That jury will be at least 1/2 black and will be ordinary citizens of the state. The trial will probably be moved out of the county to avoid any conflict.

If there is a hint of racial bias in this case it's a federal offense and the feds will drop the hammer too. It could wind up being tried in federal court if there are both state and federal complaints against the defendants.

This is going to be one of the biggest monetary awards we've ever seen because the evidence was right there for at least 15 years and the defendants refused to act on it. The award will be trebled by the court due to the nature of the offense. The jury won't be told that in advance. I don't see less than $30 million and it could be a lot more.

Cheers

Sounds about right on all but one aspect; the racial one. That would be so hard to prove, unless there are blatant things on paper, that I doubt if they'll go down that road.

[NeverSure]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

I hope he will sue and get a lot of money, not that it will bring back 30 years.

He will get a ton of money and he doesn't need any money himself to get it. There is so much money here that a really good law firm will take this case on a contingency - for part of any award rather than the normal hourly fee. The law firm will front any costs such as court costs, expert witness fees - everything. Because they have a financial interest in the outcome they will do a fine job and go for the throat.

The award is collectible because the defendants have deep pockets. The defendants appear to be the county in Alabama whose employees were the prosecutors. The state will also be sued because it has jurisdiction over the county in that it's a state court in that county. Also it's likely that the state crime lab did some of the initial work which convicted him. Few counties have a lab like that to do ballistics tests and certainly not 30 years ago.

Because the behavior of the state and county was callous and outrageous, a jury is going to be outraged. That jury will be at least 1/2 black and will be ordinary citizens of the state. The trial will probably be moved out of the county to avoid any conflict.

If there is a hint of racial bias in this case it's a federal offense and the feds will drop the hammer too. It could wind up being tried in federal court if there are both state and federal complaints against the defendants.

This is going to be one of the biggest monetary awards we've ever seen because the evidence was right there for at least 15 years and the defendants refused to act on it. The award will be trebled by the court due to the nature of the offense. The jury won't be told that in advance. I don't see less than $30 million and it could be a lot more.

Cheers

Sounds about right on all but one aspect; the racial one. That would be so hard to prove, unless there are blatant things on paper, that I doubt if they'll go down that road.

True. 30 years ago there could be racial overtones including comments or terms used in the trial or sworn deposition transcripts. Suppose that just one important witness used the N word on the stand showing racial bias... 30 years ago a few people in the South still had that as a habit. Ugly but true.

30 years ago was far better than 60 years ago, but something went wrong and persisted.

I'll bet the DoJ digs into this, and this time I hope they do. IMHO, sometimes that department is biased the other way, but this time I hope they dig as hard as they can.

There's no excuse for what happened and I don't care what happens to those who are responsible.

[Chonburiram]

This is, why I think death sentences should be carried out immediately.

This guy got a roof over the head and 3 meals per day for 30(!) years on tax payers money. The compensation will be paid from the same coffers. How stupid is that?

I think more

like "how stuipd is your post"

[puck2]

There's no excuse for what happened and I don't care what happens to those who are responsible.

or

This is, why I think death sentences should be carried out immediately.

This guy got a roof over the head and 3 meals per day for 30(!) years on tax payers money. The compensation will be paid from the same coffers. How stupid is that?

The US rightwings at their best. Being the master of wisdom when awful things happened as shown by the OP

.

That is missing the problem. When the child has fallen into the deep well they ask for who is/was responsible for the child's death or forget the story and not WHY this happened.

It's a cruel reality that misjudgements happen too many times in the US, a lot more than in other so called civilized countries. Actuel examples?

• Anthony Ray Hinton ......

• Debra Jean Milke (born March 10, 1964 in Berlin, Germany) was wrongly convicted of murder, and became the second woman to be exonerated from death row

• and so on, and so on ......

The rightwings talk about what should happen after the US judical system stole them so many years of their life. No money can heal the wounds received by the misjudgements. And don't forget the death penalty. Who has been killed by the so-called law cannot improve that she/he is inculpable.

Everybody with a common sense would ask :

what is wrong in our judical system, because we have far too many false judgements.

[Scott]

Off-topic, inflammatory posts and replies removed.

[F430murci]

In some states, they end up paying about 1 million (or much more) to the person incarcerated. I think I read of a guy getting 3 million.

The 150 people on the airplane, I read, get at most 150,000 USD. And they are trying to give them 50k for each life.

It's one weird world.....

And the woman who puts her poodle in the micro wave or the woman that spills MacD coffee in her lap get 5M+ each

At least get some of your facts correct if trying to make a valid point.

The microwave dog case for millions of dollars . . . urban legend. Dorothy Johnson's case was quickly dismissed.

The plaintiff in the McDonald's case did not "5M+" and you clearly do not understand the case, theories or the verdict. At trial, the court awarded $ 160k in compensatory and $ 480,000 in punitive damages. The case was settled for less pending appeal. She actually had horrific injuries (3rd degree burns over 6% of her leg including genitals) and McDonald could have settled the case pre suit for just the hospital bills.

More examples of educated by the Internet.

[F430murci]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

I hope he will sue and get a lot of money, not that it will bring back 30 years.

He will get a ton of money and he doesn't need any money himself to get it. There is so much money here that a really good law firm will take this case on a contingency - for part of any award rather than the normal hourly fee. The law firm will front any costs such as court costs, expert witness fees - everything. Because they have a financial interest in the outcome they will do a fine job and go for the throat.

The award is collectible because the defendants have deep pockets. The defendants appear to be the county in Alabama whose employees were the prosecutors. The state will also be sued because it has jurisdiction over the county in that it's a state court in that county. Also it's likely that the state crime lab did some of the initial work which convicted him. Few counties have a lab like that to do ballistics tests and certainly not 30 years ago.

Because the behavior of the state and county was callous and outrageous, a jury is going to be outraged. That jury will be at least 1/2 black and will be ordinary citizens of the state. The trial will probably be moved out of the county to avoid any conflict.

If there is a hint of racial bias in this case it's a federal offense and the feds will drop the hammer too. It could wind up being tried in federal court if there are both state and federal complaints against the defendants.

This is going to be one of the biggest monetary awards we've ever seen because the evidence was right there for at least 15 years and the defendants refused to act on it. The award will be trebled by the court due to the nature of the offense. The jury won't be told that in advance. I don't see less than $30 million and it could be a lot more.

Cheers

Doubt there will be a change of venue and the case will likely be settled without ever going to court.

Observations:

He was picked out of a line up by an eye witness. Experts did not conclusively establish that the bullets did not come from his gun. The examination appears inconclusive. He has not been exonerated. He actually could be guilty, none of us actually know and none of us are actually in a position to judge.

RE: Wealth results in better defense fiction

Evidence and forensic examination, as well as measures in place for defense of death penalty cases has changed a lot since his case was originally tired 30 years ago. Some of the best criminal defense lawyers in each state are now on the death eligible case defense list for indigent defendants. Defendants in death eligible cases get 2 lawyers and have unlimited access to experts of their choice. Accordingly, wealth of defendants has very little to do with defense in death eligible cases anymore and indigent defendants perhaps get the best defense money can buy and certainly get a better defense than 99% of the US population could afford to pay for . . .

The reality is a poor black man will get a much better defense team than the middle class white family dude with limited means these days. That said, carry on with the Stella urban legend verdict and complete and utter lack of knowledge about how the legal system works. Gotta love all of this education by the Internet.

[Humberstone]

There was a gentleman incarcerated in California for 1st degree murder and served 27 years before he was acquitted. He got 1 million $ for every year he spent inside from the state as compensation (it's an episode of CBS's '48 Hours' BTW).

[CMNightRider]

The judicial system in the USA is a joke.

I'm sure "the judicial system" is equally as funny where you came from, probably even more so.

[F430murci]

Well I'd say letting this POS out and giving him $ 25 mn was a great use of resources. A lot of these so called wrongly convicted were gang members IDed by other gang members that were typically survivors of the crimes. Don't run with gangs and commit crimes and might not be in such a position . . .

__________

Even $25 million can't keep wrongfully convicted Chicago man out of trouble

It was Jimenez’s seventh arrest since he hit the figurative lottery, winning a $25 million jury verdict in 2012 in a wrongful-conviction lawsuit against the city of Chicago stemming from a murder conviction that was later vacated.

The cash has provided Jimenez, who’s now 35, with homes in Chicago and the suburbs. He also has 14 vehicles registered in his name — including the $130,000 Lamborghini sports car, a second Lamborghini, a Bentley convertible and other expensive vehicles.

. . .

Since winning his own freedom, Jimenez has rekindled his childhood association with the Simon City Royals street gang, according to police sources.

. . .

On the streets, a lot of people know about the guy who won the $25 million wrongful-conviction award, drives the blue Lamborghini and still keeps getting in trouble.

“Everybody is hearing about his newfound notoriety on the streets,” says Tio Hardiman, former director of the antiviolence organization CeaseFire. “He wants to become a rising star in the gang lifestyle.”

http://chicago.suntimes.com/news-chicago/7/71/400788/even-25-million-couldnt-keep-wrongfully-convicted-chicago-man-trouble

Edited April 6, 2015 by F430murci

[manarak]

......and this is the reason why state sponsored murder, the judicial death sentence should be repealed.

Actually, I don't think so.

But it certainly illustrates the need for a watertight judicial process requiring overwhelmingly compelling evidence to be able to sentence someone to death.

[Scott]

I believe that this guy had an alibi. He was at work for one of the murders. If he was working, he probably wasn't a gang member. If he was a gang member, the others are probably dead, in prison or have found Jesus.

[Linky]

Well I'd say letting this POS out and giving him $ 25 mn was a great use of resources. A lot of these so called wrongly convicted were gang members IDed by other gang members that were typically survivors of the crimes. Don't run with gangs and commit crimes and might not be in such a position . . .

__________

Even $25 million can't keep wrongfully convicted Chicago man out of trouble

It was Jimenezs seventh arrest since he hit the figurative lottery, winning a $25 million jury verdict in 2012 in a wrongful-conviction lawsuit against the city of Chicago stemming from a murder conviction that was later vacated.

The cash has provided Jimenez, whos now 35, with homes in Chicago and the suburbs. He also has 14 vehicles registered in his name including the $130,000 Lamborghini sports car, a second Lamborghini, a Bentley convertible and other expensive vehicles.

. . .

Since winning his own freedom, Jimenez has rekindled his childhood association with the Simon City Royals street gang, according to police sources.

. . .

On the streets, a lot of people know about the guy who won the $25 million wrongful-conviction award, drives the blue Lamborghini and still keeps getting in trouble.

Everybody is hearing about his newfound notoriety on the streets, says Tio Hardiman, former director of the antiviolence organization CeaseFire. He wants to become a rising star in the gang lifestyle.

http://chicago.suntimes.com/news-chicago/7/71/400788/even-25-million-couldnt-keep-wrongfully-convicted-chicago-man-trouble

So what? The state made a bad error and the victim should be compensated. What he does with his life and his money is up to him, if he does bad he should pay the consequences.

But that doesnt absolve the state of its wrongdoing.