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Marvin Fong / The Plain Dealer
David Ayers, center, walks out of the Justice Center as a free man, Monday, Sept. 12, 2011. Ayers, who was serving time for murder, had his charges dropped because of DNA testing that did not trace back to him. Carrie Wood, from the Innocence Project, leads him outside.
A man who spent 11 years in prison on a murder conviction that was later reversed has won a $13.2 million award in a civil rights lawsuit against the city of Cleveland.
A federal jury found Friday that two Cleveland detectives fabricated or withheld evidence in the 2000 trial of David Ayers, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported.
Ayers was convicted of aggravated murder in the Dec. 17, 1999, beating death of Dorothy Brown, a 76-year-old woman who lived in a high-rise run by the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority. Ayers was a resident of the same complex and a security guard for the housing authority, according to court documents.
He was arrested in March 2000 and convicted late that year.
He maintained his innocence, and after the Ohio Innocence Project took up his case in 2008, Ayers got a state appeals court to order the trial judge to allow DNA testing of a single pubic hair found on Brown’s body – the results of which showed the hair did not come from Ayers.
But while the hair was being tested, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed his conviction (read the decision here in PDF), saying the trial judge improperly allowed testimony of a jailhouse informant who said Ayers confessed to killing the victim and stealing money from her.
Ayers was freed in 2011.
One detective settled with Ayers out of court. But in the civil rights trial, the Plain Dealer reported, Ayers’ lawyers said two other detectives, Denise Kovach and Michael Cipo, had tried to frame Ayers because he was gay – despite evidence that Brown had also been sexually assaulted.
According to The Associated Press:
Among the most serious allegations by Ayers against Kovach and Cipo were that the two detectives conspired with each other to fabricate a confession that he never made, coerced a friend of Ayers to lie by saying that Ayers had told him of the murder before Brown's body was discovered, and gave key information about the crime to Ayers' prison cellmate so he could later testify against Ayers about an admission he didn't make.
The detectives had denied any wrongdoing.
After the civil rights verdict, The Plain Dealer reported, the director of Cleveland's law office said the city was "considering our options."
As for Ayers, the newspaper quoted him as saying: "My goal is that it never happens to anyone else ever again."
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a measure of justice ...but he can never bring back those years...how sad...the justice system fails once a while.
Our criminal justice system is fundamentally flawed. When testimony is deemed to be truthful merely by the witness placing their hand on a Bible, a work of pure fiction, and swears to God, a man made diety, affirming that they will tell the whole truth, how can we expect anything other than lies, deceit, and falsehoods. Get real, give them a polygraph while on the stand. Its more believable than a Bible.
Good for him. @!$%#ing cops, I don't know how they sleep at night knowingly sending people to prison by setting them up, just to clear their backlog, and their prejudices!
And, more importantly, the real murderer is running around, free, doing who knows what. I doubt Cleveland has 13 million dollars to pay this man, even though he deserves it. And, do those two cops still have a job ? Do they have to pay back the city for their wrong-doing ? Will they be charged with a felony for their perjury ? How many other innocent people are serving time because these two lazy cops lied about them and coerced others to do the same ? Lots of unanswered questions this article didn't cover.
It fails more often then "every once in awhile". Because cops are smart and they decide who is guilty, no matter the evidence or the lack of it. Watch out...you may be next.
This is exactly why we do NOT need the death penalty!
It is not a broken system that caused this injustice but two corrupt and inept police detectives. If the detectives spent their time looking for the real perpetrator rather than fabricating a case against an innocent man there would be no need for penalties to be paid for undue incarceration. This is poor training, poor oversight, and poor judgement all around. The detectives should be put on trial and sent to prison for their deliberate dereliction of duty.
The three Cleveland cops should be imprisoned for 13 years and the judge who forbid the DNA testing should join them.
The police state must be reigned in.
Not to mention making false statements and subornation of perjury.
All this at public expense. The lawyer, probably a public defender, he had at the time apparently didn't help his case either.
yeah yeah yeah...just blame me, pigotry?
Those two Monsters need serious Prison Time. They are not Police Officers, Guadians of the Public Trust, which no longer exist. Yes, that Police Office who bought shoes for the Street Person in New York is an excellent Example of Good Police Officers, not those two facists.
Tracontech, if you ever had a polygraph test you would not say that. They are suppose to catch you when you lie and they are fairly good at that but, they aren't so good when you are telling the truth. After holding a government Top Secret clearance for nearly 30 years, I was required to take a polygraph test. They were doing it with everyone who had high security clearances, at the time. I went in thinking, "no big deal" because I knew I had done nothing wrong. When I came out, my results were "indeterminate." When I got back to my office, I told them that if I were ever required to take another polygraph test I would retire first. Fortunately, they discontinued the program because it appeared to be a waste of money and time.
What he went through is terrible. However, this man is very lucky considering the situation. He walks away with his name cleared, those responsible will probably be held accountable for it and he has enough money to retire very comfortably on. There are a ton of people that are incarcerated wrongfully. Oregon state police screwed my mom over big time. Accused her of a DUI when she was driving for her employer. It cost her career, being stuck in Oregon for a over a month (due to blood test results, they take 30 days) when she lived in Florida, about 10k and when they results came back, she was let go because there was absolutely no evidence to convict. All because some dude hit her, ran from the scene, they found a bottle of antibiotics in her car and accused her of being on drugs cause she was shivering... hell it was like 10 degrees outside, middle of freaking winter. Police used to serve and protect, now they're fundraisers for the states! I think I'd be more likely to find a unicorn before I met an honest, good-hearted cop.
13 million seems like a lot of money for a wrongful conviction. Of course it is horrible he was kept in jail falsely, but was he going to earn anywhere near 1 million a year as a security guard?
Even accounting for pain and suffering, our servicemen endure hardships in battle overseas and don't get paid nearly that amount. I think 3-5 million would have been more than sufficient as compensation
@Pigotry, Are justice system is a complete joke. If you commit one crime the courts will find at least a half dozen charges to bring against you. The judge, the prosecutor and the D.A. will threaten you with decades in jail unless you waive your rights to a fair trial and take a plea. In fact if you are unfortunate enough to be poor and stuck with a public attorney, your own legal representative may very well try to con you into taking a plea.
At least this guy made it out, I hope he enjoys his new found freedom.
I'd certainly enjoy it with $13 million.
Mr. Binkie, would you be willing to spend 11 years FALSELY imprisoned to enjoy it?
jw101, I'll try to keep this simple so even you can understand. Our brave people in the armed forces volunteer to serve (and I thank them as often as I can). Mr Ayers did not volunteer to be falsely convicted of a heinous crime. See the subtle difference there? And as others will say, this is indeed why the death penalty is obscene. There are reasonable reasons to favor or oppose it, but cases like this, and there are many, are why we cannot have it.
Thanks, justme, you took the words out of my mouth. Jw, I can tell you from first hand experience that the dehumanization you go through just being processed into a state correctional facility can cause nightmares, not to mention what may happen afterwards. Oh, and I'm fairly sure the average term of military service is less than 11 years.
Ok, the law suit money helps, but I've always thought that the perpetrators of such wrongful imprisonment,ie, the lying cops, or DAs or witnesses (unless themselves coerced) should have to do double the time that the wrongly imprisoned person does.
jw101. It sounds like you should do thirteen years in prison for something that you didnt do. I would bet that you would change your tune. Thirteen Million is not a lot of money when you think about what this man went through. Lets face it, cops are like our Politicians, all Liars, Crooks, and cheats. You had better wake up, you could be next.
"Even accounting for pain and suffering, our servicemen endure hardships in battle overseas and don't get paid nearly that amount. I think 3-5 million would have been more than sufficient as compensation."
I've done that and been rousted at 1am for driving junk. No amount of money makes up for the lies, under color of law, of an arrogant smart ass who laughs with his pal all the way home. And yes they have poisoned the death penalty well.
That's about what he'll get, after the lawyers and the IRS take their shares.
This case also goes toward the integrity of those we have in our police forces and the detectives they create within these offices. Our laws are it seems only as good as those we hire to enforce them..and they, the hired, are not up to their jobs in many cases. I do not want to put down good officers..but there are too many that are not good at all and should not be there. Of course, we have judges and politicans who fit into this same catagory.
Its a known fact of who the biggest liars are in court, anything to get a conviction that kind does not care who rots in jail long as they can get a conviction and a feather in their hat. The ones that put them their should get double the time and even that does not seem fair enough . Justice, wondered why the blindfold was there
Its a sick game they play with lives with no recoarse its about time they were sent to rot
Lazy corrupt cops. What a surprise.
@jw101
It's not just about compensation as much as it's about deterring POS like these liars from pulling this kind of sh!t again, hence the newspaper quoted him as saying - "My goal is that it never happens to anyone else ever again."...as it should be.
It shouldn't be determined on what he "might have earned". It is a decent settlement for someone that had even the ability to go get a cup of cofee taken away from him. To see his relatives and to see his friends. To be able to just use the bathroom in peace. Erased because of sick human beings. Several points to ponder regarding previous posts. Things went wrong long before anyone "placed their hand on a bible." If you don't want to believe, fine, but this story and bringing up your non-belief is a stretch on many levels. Ones that tend to bring that topic into EVERY situation are the ones that are seriously not sure they are making the right decision regarding God. Don't believe? Great. Zip it!
Cops, prosecutors and judges are human beings. Flawed just like the rest of us. If you think for one minute that just because someone has a badge or a robe they are always going to do the right thing, guess again. And what is a judge? A lawyer who has been elected or appointed to their position. Enough said.
I also think this is a great example why the death penalty should be stopped. Too many people are too quick to want to put someone to death thinking it will solve everything. It is the easy way out. Regardless of what you believe will happen after a person dies, staying here, in prison, with the rest of this crazy society, until they die a natural death, is far, far wose than the "humane" death penalty of today.
I hope this man can get on with his life and live his remaining years with some peace and happiness. Given the crazy state of affairs the world is in today coupled with the fact that he has not been among society for several years, it will be a long road for him, I'm afraid. A lot of folks that have not been outside a prison system for years, find they are unable to deal with the outside world. Even the years he spent inside the walls, look how much the world has changed and how hard it would be for someone to deal with that. Best of luck, because I'm also afraid, it's only going to get worse. Much, much worse!
Never, Ever, under no circumstances; believe a statement from a prison inmate that says the accused confessed to him that he did the deed;Jail house confessions are bribes , so the inmate can get his prison time cut; they are never reliable; as for polygraph tests, they should never be admissible in trial, use them as a tool to test a persons creditability only; they are very often wrong.
"... the IRS take their shares."
It's not income - no more than a damage payout by your insurance. He suffered a loss and is compensated.
Miscarriages of justice like this happen and we know they happen, yet we are not smart enough to outlaw the death penalty. Maybe we are just so eager to get our revenge that a few innocent people killed by the state are just the collateral damage we can live with.
ABOLISH THE DEATH PENALTY!
So the two corrupt and inept police detectives are not part of the system? Our system of justice is broken. This man is as innocent as you and I. The only difference between him and us is that he got unlucky. If we happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, it could happen to you and it could happen to me.
It's kind of funny. You will find a bunch of Republicans who have a deep suspicion of all forms of government. Yet they will put an absolute faith in a system of justice that has been proven time and again to be broken.
The people who did this to him are getting off scotfree, and the taxpayer is on the hook for compensating him. At the very least, everyone involved in sending him wrongly to jail should be penalized for this. They are criminals. Why are they getting away with it?
Byron
"Broken" is an exaggeration. The system has flaws. We need to be constantly vigilant and the press plays a very important role in keeping the system honest. But a look back at history shows you that the justice system now is far better than it was in the early days of the republic and far better than in the pre-civil rights era barely 50 years ago.
The system is not broken if a small percentage of police and/or judges are corrupt ..... the system is broken if there exist major impediments to a fair trial. I don't think that is the case.
11 Years, he was Damn lucky that he lived to walk out, many don't .... That's why Execution has to be used only when proved beyond a reasonable doubt, you just can't bring someone back to life.
Sam
Execution is ALWAYS used only when proved "beyond reasonable doubt". Those juries who have no reasonable doubt are too often wrong. THE ONLY WAY TO AVOID WRONGFUL EXECUTIONS IS TO ABOLISH THE DEATH PENALTY.
The problem is that this happens a lot in the good old USA. It needs to stop and the people who are responsible for it need to go to prison. I for one do not trust most cops or prosecutes. They sure are not there to protect you or me.
the cops who lied & otherwise abused the justice system need to go to jail - maybe for life. Horrid that people in positions of trust would do such things!
The fact is, this doesn't happen a lot but, when it does it makes big news. Unless the statute of limitations has run out, I would bet that the cops involved will be arrested, tried and convicted for filing false documents and perjury at the very least. Of course, unless you live in or near Cleveland, you, probably, won't hear about it because that won't be news.
tired--this happpens all the time even today---OMG your head is buried in the sand if you do not know what is presently happening to send people to jail for~
I have to wonder how the jury members that convicted him feel after he's been exonerated? Do they feel guilty for being part of his wrongful punishment? Angry because they too were misled into convicting him? They should have the same 12 people decide the fate of the lying cops.
Tired you are right it does not hapen lots it happens all the time
Don't count on it. Read about Timothy Masters' false conviction in Colorado, and his exoneration. After almost 15 years of imprisonment he won a multimillion dollar suit against the city of Ft. Collins because the investigating officer lied under oath, but the DA's office just dropped the perjury case because "they felt they would be unable to get a conviction."
They should be made to forfeit their wages and/or retirement to repay the settlement to the taxpayer.
Justin that is deep but true ....
And the two detectives who fabricated/withheld evidence?
Probably retired to Miami with full benefits.
That happens all the time early retirement full pension , and full pay when up on any charges but anyone else they label cant even get a job seems something wrong there
keep giving power see what happens
A+ to you Mr. Ayers. Now lets get those two dectectives who lied a prison room with Bubba........
He needs to hunt down the families of all those involved in his wrongful incarceration and torture them to death slowly. Wiping their seed from the face of the earth and leaving them alone to constantly think of the wrong they committed against him.
He just got out of prison, But I do see a prison cell in your future with your violent mind.........
@IXLR8- No, I would rather die in a shootout with the police. As long as I kill one the score would be tied. If I kill more than one I win.
mb59059 ...... another "law abiding citizen" gun owner.
Be afraid .... be very afraid. We have too many people like mb among us.
mb, if you get a knock on the door Sunday you should know why. And they will bring it all and take your sick @ss to jail. I seriously cannot believe you wrote that.
@don97524- The detectives purposely tried to ruin his life. They deserve punishment to the extreme extent.
Hey ya'll, collapse this so this man does not go to jail. I hope it's just too many Budweisers.........
@IXLR8- Why would I go to jail? I'm protected by the 1st Amendment.
@IXLR8 No... mb59059 has a very good point...but I strongly disagree with his #5 post about the families. However, the cops, detectives and prosecutors should be punished to the fullest extend of the law + X 2 of what their "victim" suffered as a result of their deliberate "mishandling" of evidence/testimony etc. just so that they can get a conviction and ruin a persons life forever. I would gladly inflict the punishment...slowly...on all of these jacka$$es. Supposedly they are there to protect and serve...protect and serve whom? Once they get their hands on you and decide to charge you with a crime...the "State/Gov't" will do anything and everything to get you convicted, and they have unlimited resources to do that...your only prayer is your money and/or your lawyer but most of the time neither is nearly enough to save you. Once you are charged with a crime...these people don't care which way the evidence (or non-evidence) points out...they just want to get you convicted at any price. Ask me about it.
Folks, don't feed the troll!
Aaah, suicide by cop. That's getting more popular these days, I hear.
I was wishing for a vote down button for the comment about murdering innocent family members. But I had to vote up the one about the First Amendment.
so is murder i hear, Justin
Don't worry, mb. They won't put you in jail just for being an irrational moron.
@don97524- What I suggested has been practiced longer in human history than our current set of morals/values. Maybe I'm not being irrational but basing my assessment more on human nature.
I absolutely hate crooked cops and that is why I rejoice when they get caught and get what's coming to them. I have experienced police harrassment and that's why I'll always feel this way. It's even worse when the trusted servant has power, like these detectives had. Hopefully this dudes story is water under the bridge and he can go on living the remaining years happy...or as happy as can be, considering he'll always distrust authority now and no amount of money can take that away. Yay for the First Amendment. And the 4th!
It is time for court reform. One place they can start is by limiting the ultimate duration of civil contempt and also restricting it's use to those who have been PROVEN to willfully disobey or disrespect a court. As it stands a judge can assign a person to jail for civil contempt for an indeterminate amount of time and do so without proving the the contempt ( out of the courts sight ) was willful.
Also, more to the point of the story at hand. There needs to be stiffer penalties for anyone who lies in court for any reason and there needs to be an enhanced requirement to verify a witness statement when jail time is involved.
11 years for 13.2 million, not a bad trade off if you ask me. I would gladly do 11 years for 13 million it beats the hell out of working for 11 years for chump change, lol. Shows you how fickle and absurd our justice system is though. Doesn't it seem weird that we allow 12 yahoos to sit in a jury and decide someone's fate. Good for him I'm glad he won the suit.
Do the 11 years and then tell me if you feel the same way...
13 million? How about 10 bucks?
"Im not that kinda man!"
Sure you are....we are just haggeling ova price ya sexy thing you!
Freedom isn't free....and isn't available to the brain dead.
Either you're institutionalized or, you have no idea what 11 years in a penitentiary would entail, even for a million bucks a year.
In the first place, you wouldn't actually know if you would be released, ever. You don't know what the other convicts would do if they knew you would be paid 11 million bucks for 11 years. If they didn't kill you because of jealously, there would probably be someone waiting at the prison gate to help you spend that money and, that person may insist on the majority of the money.
this is a good deal for this guy though, he's black probably wouldn't ever have a decent paying job and probably lived in the projects. This was all a blessing in disguise, god works in mysterious ways. Money is freedom, people that say money doesn't bring happiness don't have any, lol.
stargazer you are totally sick--get help
Losing 11 years of your life is not a good deal. I don't care if they paid him 100 million. Like Slater said, you have no idea what would happen to you in there, and if you've never been locked up you have no idea what you're talking about in the first place. It's not like he was sitting around eating twinkies for all that time, watching cartoons.
They tell you when you can Piss, Sh-t, Eat, Sleep, every little thing. That is NO way to Live.
This is just one guy out of how many that are still wasting away in jail knowing they are innocent, but unable to get the help they need to prove it. It's a shame. DNA proof should at least be a requirement in all death penalty cases just because of situations like this man was in.
"A federal jury found Friday that two Cleveland detectives fabricated or withheld evidence"
They should serve 11 years.
No, they should spend the rest of their lives in the general population
Unfortunately, cops that are sent to prison are usually segregated from the other prisoners. Personally, Joe, I'm with you. Throw 'em to the dogs.
Let me say this first..Stargazer your full of crap..you would trade 11 years of getting in fights to avoid getting poked up the hiney. i don't think so. Anyway..What happened to our forefathers generating the idea of having 12 guilty men go free rather than jail one innocent man.
you guys aren't looking at the long term here. Now he is free and has the money to live the life he's always dreamed. He'll never have to worry about money which is like living in prison. He can move away from the projects and away from crime and live in paradise. Had he not been wrongly accused and went to prison he would have never had this oppurtunity, that's what i'm saying. Sometimes things are blessings in disguise and we'll never quite understand it.
stargazer--I see you are here to provoke controversy---no --no amount of money is worth spending time in prison--and who are you to say that living in the projects doesn't have it's experience that some may stay for--family and freinds?-who is to say living in the suburbs with all that money is being better off than having the freedom to chose?
It must be nice to see the world through rose colored glasses.
It is not the actions of a few that cause the public to loose faith in the police and prosecutors. Most people understand that there are a few bad apples in every bunch--whether it's plumbers, priests, psychologists or police.
What causes us to loose faith is when the system seeks to cover up and protect such egregious misconduct. That is how the mistrust spreads from the actions of a few to the system in general. And thus all police officers become tainted by these actions.
False imprisonment is a crime. Perjury is a crime. This article says nothing about whether these police officers have been charged with a crime. They should be in prison. All of their benefits should be forfeit.
I can accept that police officers make mistakes. This is a dangerous line of work and constantly worrying about whether your going to get shot can make you a little jumpy. I can understand that the department might want to protect officers who make a bad call in the field. Honest mistakes get made in such a dangerous line of work.
However, these were not mistakes. These were calculated attempts to obstruct justice. They are not entitled to a margin of error due to their dangerous line of work.
A dangerous job? More cops die from choking on donuts than from gunshots.
Man, homeboy don't care about all these comments. Homie won the ghetto lottery. He gonna get himself some smoke, drink and a mess of hoes.
read my next post idiot.
Im white from the south and called a bigot and racist many times but there is too many black people wrongfully in prison today because of changing times. Many of the blacks today need to be killed, they are different from the ones of 40 years ago. Strongly feel today if anyone has to be in prison more than 5 years that they should be offered the death penalty or even required to do so. Prisons don't make better citizens they make better criminals.
Warren--you a truly a bigot---the thing --funny I do agree with you is--the priosn make better criminals--lets work on a way to keep people out of them!
hey warren what is your response to MASS killings since plymouth rock?
Are you as out spoken against WHITE MALES who have commited MASS killings since plymouth rock simply becuz?
I betcha you're as silent as a RAT pissin on cotton when it comes to white males and the historic crimes committed against non whites since plymouth..
..yes you're truly a trained bigot and a racist trained PIG.. atleast you're honest..I hope you can sleep at NIGHT without taking drugs of any kind..
..just end your life of RACE BASED HATE..you won't be MISSED.. this WORLD and namely AMERICA is moving FORWARD and becoiming united ans EQUAL as GOD meant for it to be..
I firmly believe that most every family that has had a family member murdered , would not want a person put in jail who is not guilty , even if it means an unsolved case . The people who alter things or withhold evidence , surely need to be removed from there power and if a law is broken be charged . The dishonor they do has far to many consequences for the victims and there familys and surely takes away from finding the real murderer . This behavior costs tax payers millions of dollars and worst of all ... A murderer roams free to harm others .
Nice speech Lonnie but where is the responsibility of the FAMILY to do what is right and find the killer and dispose of IT. The law has only been effective at documenting crimes and collecting revenue. Guns are the answer to Crime.
Mistakes are made, and I can accept that. HOWEVER, this was a gross AND deliberate miscarriage of justice, and those detectives that fabricated/withheld evidence against David Ayers should NOT ONLY lose their jobs and forfeit ALL of their benefits, they should serve DOUBLE the time that man had to serve for trying to prove his innocence. They should serve TRIPLE the time for the level of power and public trust that was so egregiously abused, AND I will go further to say that the Cleveland Police Department AND the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority should foot the bill for HIS attorney's fees; it SHOULD NOT come out of his pocket!!!! Thirteen point two million dollars will not give Mr. Ayers back the years that was wrongfully taken from him, but at least Mr. Ayers will be able to live out the remainder of his life in relative ease and comfort.
These cops should be tried for the murder of the old lady. They could be the guilty ones. Let's give them the same type of trial. I'll stand with my hand on the bible and lie about seeing them do it.
This is only 1 picture of how so many are imprisoned wrongly by our justice system, there is a great need for Reform. A cry which has gone unheard for too long.
The only thing that would make me really smile about this case is WHEN the criminals guilty of the crime of framing this guy (cops and prosecutors and others) are sent to prison where criminals actually belong. Then I will say justice has been served correctly.. Too often the so called "GOOD" guys lie just to get a bogus conviction to make themselves look good. Its not just a few cops and prosecutors in one city, its way too many of them across the country committing FRAUD against an innocent person, then getting paid for it. Good luck to Mr. Ayers...
And where are all those people that were demanding his execution 11 years ago?
Congratulations Mr Ayers...I hope you have a long healthy life and fight for others like yourself!
We have come to a point where our standards have fallen so badly that we are thankful that people are wrongfully convicted for only five months in stead of five year, or they have been sent to prison for six years in stead of sixteen. We have to be thankful someone did not burn our entire body and gave us only a facial burn. We have to be thankful that we did not get raped just stalked. We have to be thankful that we got a few million dollars after losing fifteen years of our life, our health, our psychological well being, etc.
I hope cops, lawyers and judges who don't do their job get fired and those who falsely convicted go to prison for life. That is the only way these boys with power and enforcement rights will ever learn. As they say, "Sensitive minds learn from listening, observing, thinking and feeling. Insensitive oafs only learn when they are kicked hard and experience horror themselves!"
For every case like this imagine the number of innocent people who have been in prison for decades or have been executed?
Scary...
As for Ayers, the newspaper quoted him as saying: "My goal is that it never happens to anyone else ever again."
Good luck with that. Between police and prosecutorial misconduct, once someone is in their sights they don't stand a chance.
State will probably send him a bill for RENT
Wrongful convictions happen too frequently and need to stop. Overzealous prosecutors should be held accountable for misleading jurors and judges. Time in prison should be required for such conduct. Police officers deliberately manipilating evidence and testimony should be charged, tried, convicted, and serve a minimum of 25 years in prison.
Too many prosecutors forget that their job is to obtain justice, not convictions. But, the voting public has to remember that, too. They shouldn't vote for an incumbent District Attorney simply because his office has a high conviction rate.
It's real simple. When something like this happens, those responsible get to take the place of the person that was wrongfully imprisoned. No trial, no appeal, no BS...the perpetrator/s get/s to instantly serve the punishment they inflicted on the person wrongfully put away. Cops, District Attorneys, Judges and Politicians...and anybody else involved should be rounded-up, locked -up and forgotten about...and no parole in these cases.
Of course, I also feel the same should happen to those making wrongful accusations as well. Way to many people accuse someone of a crime just to get revenge. Accusers get caught in a lie...lock them up to.
This is all bs. our system is a pos and we live it all day everyday. We hurt people that never did it and the f***s that did go free. I wish our goverment sent the men and women from prison that did do it, to war. Heres your gun and one bullet. Kill or be killed. No more killing for our great men and women in this country. Kill the a**holes that kill our fam and friends. The ones the hurt our children. Lets not sit back and watch our good people die. Let the low life as*holes die off.I'm glad he was found not guilty and we need too look at more cases. Human or not. Cops need to be cops not f*ckheads and look at everything.F*cken pigs