California Innocence Project

California Innocence Project
Tim Atkins greeting family after release. Prof. Justin Brooks, the director of CIP (in suit), stands behind Atkins.
Abbreviation CIP
Formation 1999 (1999)
Founder Justin Brooks, Jan Stiglitz
Type Non-profit organization
Purpose Provides pro bono legal services to individuals who maintain their factual innocence of crime(s) for which they have been convicted
Headquarters California Western School of Law
Location
  • San Diego
Region
California
Affiliations Innocence Network

The California Innocence Project (CIP) is a non-profit organization at California Western School of Law in San Diego, California, United States, which provides pro bono legal services to individuals who maintain their factual innocence of crime(s) for which they have been convicted. CIP's mission is to exonerate wrongly convicted inmates through the use of DNA and other evidence. Since 2003, CIP has succeeded in exonerating 22 incarcerated individuals that have spent a total of 304 years in prison. As a law school clinical program, CIP provides educational experience to students enrolled in its clinic. Working alongside CIP staff attorneys, clinic students investigate and litigate cases where there is strong evidence of innocence. CIP attorneys and students pursue cases by securing expert witnesses and advocating for their clients during evidentiary hearings and trials.[1] Each year, CIP reviews more than 2,000 claims of innocence from inmates convicted in Southern California.[2]

History

The California Innocence Project was founded in 1999 at California Western School of Law in San Diego, California, by Director Justin Brooks and Law Professor Jan Stiglitz. CIP was the fourth innocence project to form in the United States as part of the national innocence movement[3] or Innocence Network.

Exonerations

The California Innocence Project has secured the release of the following innocent people, many of whom otherwise might have remained incarcerated for the rest of their lives:

Brian Banks

Brian Banks was exonerated in 2012 after his accuser recanted her testimony that Banks raped and kidnapped her. Faced with a possible 41 years to life sentence, he accepted a plea deal that included five years in prison, five years of probation, and registering as a sex offender.[4] The California Innocence Project took on the case after Banks came to the project with compelling evidence of innocence. After several months of investigation, the Los Angeles District Attorney agreed to dismiss the case against Banks.[5] On August 20, 2012, Banks became an advocate for the innocence movement by helping the California Innocence Project deliver petition signatures to the California Attorney General in the Daniel Larsen case.[6] On August 29, 2012, Banks continued his advocacy by helping deliver petition signatures to the Nicaraguan embassy in the Jason Puracal case.[7] Since his exoneration, Banks tried out for numerous NFL teams before signing with the Atlanta Falcons on April 3, 2013.[8]

Luis Valdez

In June 1998, a young woman standing at a Los Angeles bus stop was taken at knife point to a deserted parking lot and raped by a unknown assailant. A bagel shop manager, Luis Valdez, was arrested and charged with this crime and with assaults on two other young women. Despite the fact that coworkers at the bagel shop placed him there at the time of the rape (which occurred 20 miles away), based upon ambiguous and contradictory identifications made by the three women, and a prior conviction (for which he had served jail time) for raping a former girlfriend, Vargas was convicted of the crimes.[9][10] Vargas stated at the time of his sentencing on December 7, 1999, "As far as I’m concerned, [the] individual [who] really did these crimes might really be raping someone out there, might really be killing someone out there." Sadly, Valdez' prophecy proved correct, as similar rapes and other assaults continued to take place after Valdez was incarcerated. The CIP became interested in Valdez' case in 2011, when Valdez sent the organization press clippings about recent assaults similar to those of 1998, which were attributed to a serial attacker known as the "Teardrop Rapist." (Vargas himself has a faded tattoo of a teardrop under one eye which was applied at the age of 13; authorities now claim that the "teardrop tattoo" that they originally claimed to be the identifying mark of the assailant may actually have been a mole or other blemish.) The CIP requested that the clothes of the 1998 rape victim be examined for DNA, using technology not available at the time. The DNA samples did not match Valdez' DNA... but did match DNA taken from recent victims whose attacker matched the profile of the Teardrop Rapist. In September 2015, Valdez was exonerated of the crimes for which he had served nearly 16 years in prison. It was the CIP's third DNA exoneration and its 20th overall. Valdez is currently engaged in a civil suit against the Los Angeles Police Department, prosecutors and others, claiming that exonerating evidence was withheld at his original trial.

Timothy Atkins

Timothy Atkins was exonerated after 23 years in prison when witness Denise Powell recanted her testimony that Atkins committed a murder.[11] Based on Powell's recantation, attorney Justin Brooks of CIP brought a state habeas corpus action on Atkins's behalf. On February 8, 2007, Judge Michael A. Tynan granted the writ of habeas corpus, saying that the trial testimony of witness Maria Gonzalez had been "highly questionable, if not totally unreliable" and that no reasonable judge or jury could have found Atkins guilty without Powell's now recanted testimony.[12] On April 6, 2007, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office dropped the charges.[13] Atkins and the California Innocence Project have since been fighting to get compensation from California for his wrongful conviction.[14]

Kimberly Long

On October 5, 2003, Kimberly "Kim" Long went out bar-hopping with her boyfriend, Oswaldo "Ozzy" Conde and a mutual friend, Jeff Dills. When they returned to the apartment in Corona that Conde and Long shared, the couple got into an intense argument and Long left the apartment, accompanied by Dills, to cool off. Dills later dropped Long off at her apartment, where she found Conde brutally bludgeoned to death, the entire place covered with blood. She immediately called 911. No blood was found on Long. After being taken to the police station and questioned, Long was asked to take a polygraph test and passed it. Friends of the deceased man pointed to Conde's former girlfriend as a possible suspect. Dills, however, told police that he had dropped Long off at 1:20 am, rather than at 2:00 am, as she had told police. Police theorized that Long could have committed the murder of Conde after 1:20 am and before she called 911 at 2:09 am. (Dills died shortly afterwards in a motorcycle accident and thus could not be questioned about the time discrepancy.) Long was tried twice for Conde's murder: the first trial resulted in a hung jury, and the second resulted in a second-degree murder conviction. The judge at the second trial, Patrick F. Magers, stated that if it had been a court trial, rather than a jury trial, he would have acquitted the defendant. "This is one of those classic cases where the person who finds the dead person ends up becoming a suspect," said Brooks.[15][16][17] After the CIP became involved in Long's case, they got the case retried in front of the same judge, with forensic evidence proving that Conde had definitely died before 1:20 am that morning; that, contrary to the police claim, it would have been physically impossible for Long to kill Conde and conceal her involvement within the less than 50 minutes from 1:20 (assuming Dills was correct) and the arrival of help after the 911 call; and that a cigarette butt in the apartment revealed DNA from an unknown male. On June 10, 2016, Judge Magers reversed Long's original conviction, determining that she had been inadequately defended, and she was freed on bail after six years in prison.[15][18]

John Stoll

John Stoll was sentenced to 40 years in prison, and later exonerated in 2006 after several child victims recanted their testimony that Stoll had molested them.[19] CIP, in conjunction with the Northern California Innocence Project at Santa Clara University School of Law, uncovered new evidence that disputed the boys' testimony and were granted an evidentiary hearing. Four witnesses who had testified against Stoll as children admitted that the sexual abuse stories they told as children were lies and that law enforcement officials, social workers, and prosecutors had coerced them into making false allegations against Stoll.[20] At the conclusion of the hearing, Stoll's conviction was overturned.[21] He had spent 20 years in prison for his alleged crime. Stoll's was one of many problematic Kern County child abuse cases, of which 34 were overturned on appeal.[22]

Kenneth Marsh

Kenneth Marsh was exonerated in 2004 after the San Diego District Attorney's office agreed to Marsh's habeas petition.[23] Marsh was originally convicted in the death of his 33-month-old baby. After uncovering evidence from medical experts that proved Marsh's innocence, CIP, along with attorney Tracy Emblem, filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus on Marsh's behalf in 2002 seeking a new trial.[24] At the defense's request, the San Diego District Attorney's Office hired an outside medical expert to review all of the evidence. After the review, San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis asked the court to grant Marsh's habeas corpus petition and release him until a new trial could be scheduled. Shortly afterward, the D.A.'s office dismissed the charges and Marsh was released after 21 years of incarceration.[25]

Adam Riojas

Adam Riojas was exonerated in 2004 after spending 13 years in prison for the second-degree murder of Jose Rodarte.[26] Riojas' father later admitted to being involved in the crime.[27] The California Innocence Project appeared on Riojas' behalf at his parole hearing. After listening to testimony related to Riojas Sr.'s confession, a deputy district attorney stated on the record that he was "seriously concerned that this inmate may have been wrongfully convicted."[28] Riojas was released after Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger chose not to block the unanimous decision of the parole board, which had granted Riojas parole for the second consecutive year.[29]

Jason Kindle

Jason Kindle was exonerated in 2003 after spending four years in prison for armed robbery of an Office Depot store, where Kindle was a contracted janitor.[30][31] He was sentenced under California's "Three-strikes" law to 70 years to life.[32] The California Innocence Project, working with a local Los Angeles attorney, reexamined the evidence presented at trial and discovered surveillance video of the crime showing the perpetrator to stand 6 foot 6 inches tall; Kindle is only 6 feet tall. The charges were ultimately dismissed, and Kindle was released.[33]

Rafael Madrigal

Rafael Madrigal was exonerated in 2009 after spending nine years in prison for an attempted murder he did not commit. Homicide investigators focused on Madrigal after the victim and a friend of the victim identified him as the shooter from Sheriff's Department photo lineups.[34] With the help of the California Innocence Project, Madrigal was able to bring forth evidence that his defense counsel failed to present at an evidentiary hearing, including witness testimony that Madrigal was more than 50 miles from the crime scene when the shooting occurred,[35] and a recording of Madrigal’s co-defendant admitting that Madrigal was not involved. The conviction was overturned by a federal judge citing Madrigal's attorney for failing to present this crucial evidence.[36]

Reggie Cole

Reggie Cole was exonerated in 2009 after spending 16 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. With the help of attorney Christopher Plourd and the California Innocence Project, the case against Cole fell apart. CIP filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus on behalf of Cole alleging that Cole's trial attorney failed to investigate and present exculpatory evidence; the prosecution withheld material, exculpatory evidence; false evidence was introduced against Cole at his trial; and the prosecutor engaged in misconduct.[37] On April 8, 2009, Deputy District Attorney Hyman Sisman conceded on Cole's habeas petition that Cole received ineffective assistance of counsel and on April 15, 2009, Judge Jerry E. Johnson of the Los Angeles Superior Court vacated the murder conviction.[38]

William Richards

Shortly after midnight on August 11, 1993, in a desert area of San Bernardino, Pamela Richards was found by her husband, William "Bill" Richards, strangled and beaten to death, her skull crushed, outside the motor home they shared. Bill Richards had to call 911 three times before the arrival of the local police, who failed to secure the crime scene. As a result, before detectives began investigating the murder in the morning, dogs had invaded and contaminated the scene. The police and detectives also failed to conduct routine time-of-death testing to determine whether or not Pamela might have been killed while Bill was still at work. Because the police had no other suspects, they charged Richards with the crime, despite his having no injuries suggesting he had struggled with his wife and despite the lack of a confession. After three trials (the first two had resulted in hung juries), Richards was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.[39] The CIP, taking up Richards' case, established at a 2009 hearing that there were DNA traces from the crime scene that belonged to neither Pamela nor Bill. They also produced two bite mark experts who had testified against Richards at his original trials, who now claimed that current science exonerated Richards. San Bernardino County Superior Court Judge Brian McCarville reversed his earlier conviction, ruling that the developments undermined the prosecution's case and pointed "unerringly to innocence."[39][40] However, the district attorney appealed the judge's decision to the California Court of Appeal, which reversed it. In 2012 the California Supreme Court refused to overturn the appeals court's judgment. In the 4-3 decision, the majority stated that Richards failed to prove that the bite mark testimony was false because "experts still could not definitively rule out [his] teeth as a possible source of the mark."[41] Two years later, the CIP successful introduced legislation that allowed experts to recant their testimony in California trials. In May, 2016, the California Supreme Court reversed Richards' conviction. In the following month, Richards walked free after 23 years behind bars.[39][42][43][44]

Daniel Larsen

Daniel Larsen was exonerated in 2010 yet remained incarcerated until March 19, 2013 because the California Attorney General, Kamala Harris, continued to appeal.[45] Based largely on eyewitness identification by two police officers, Larsen was convicted in 1999 of being in possession of a concealed knife under California’s Three Strikes Law. Because he had prior felony convictions, Larsen was sentenced to 28 years to life in prison. The California Innocence Project, which began representing Larsen in 2002, found witnesses, including a former chief of police and the actual owner of the knife, who testified seeing a different man holding the knife.[46] In 2010, a judge ordered Larsen's release, finding that he was "actually innocent" of the crime and that Larsen's constitutional rights were violated, because his attorney was incompetent. Despite the ruling, Larsen remained in prison for two more years while the state attorney general challenged the judge's ruling because Larsen had missed the appeal deadline.[47] In 2013 the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower court ruling and freed Larsen after 14 years in prison.[48][49]

Uriah Courtney

Uriah Courtney was exonerated in 2013 when the San Diego County District Attorney’s office formally dismissed charges of kidnapping and sexual assault.[50] In 2004, Courtney was sentenced to life in prison for the crimes.[51] In 2010 the California Innocence Project reviewed Courtney's case and eventually convinced the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office to retest DNA evidence from the case using more advanced technology. The results eliminated Courtney and linked to another man to the crime.[52] After eight years of incarceration, Courtney was released.[53]

Jason Puracal

Jason Puracal was exonerated in 2012 after an appeals court overturned his 22-year sentence in a Nicaragua maximum-security prison. Despite lack of evidence, Puracal was arrested November 2010 in San Juan del Sur and convicted of money-laundering, drug charges, and organized crime in August 2011.[54] The California Innocence Project helped bring Puracal's case before a three-judge appellate panel in August 2012. On September 12, 2012, he was acquitted of all charges and ordered released.[55]

Matthew and Grace Huang

In 2012, a couple from Los Angeles, Matthew and Grace Huang, moved to Doha, in Qatar, where Matthew, an engineer, was working on a long-term project. The Huangs had three adopted African-born black children. On January 15, 2013, one of these children, the Huangs’ eight-year-old daughter, Gloria, died suddenly. Officials arrested Matthew and Grace the following day and subsequently charged them with murdering Gloria, on the theory that the couple must have had some nefarious purpose (perhaps organ harvesting) for adopting Gloria in the first place, as she was black and therefore could not really have been wanted (they argued) by the Huangs. Ultimately, although the prosecution presented no substantial case (medical evidence showed that Gloria had not died of starvation – indeed, the autopsy failed to establish cause of death – and no other evidence of abuse surfaced), the couple were convicted on a lesser charge of child endangerment and sentenced to three years in prison. Even so, the prosecution still wanted to charge them with the more serious offense of child trafficking.[56] Representatives of the Huangs created a YouTube video to plead their case, in which Brooks is filmed saying, "In my 25 years of practicing criminal law, I have never seen as outrageous a prosecution theory as there is in this case" and "this case completely lacks any type of due process."[57][58] In November, 2014, the Huangs' convictions were reversed by the Qatari Appeals Court and they were found innocent; they returned to Los Angeles on December 3rd.[56]

Case screening

CIP screens approximately 2,000 claims of wrongful conviction annually. Applicants must be incarcerated and must have at least four years remaining on their sentence. In such cases, new, strong evidence of innocence must exist. CIP only accepts cases where the conviction occurred in the following Southern California counties:

CIP is a law school clinical program. Cases are screened by 12 students. CIP will review a case post-conviction and post-sentencing. CIP will not provide legal assistance during the time of pre-trial or trial.[59]

Innocence March

On April 27, 2013, CIP staff and supporters began the Innocence March, a 712-mile, two-month-long walk from the California Western School of Law in San Diego to Sacramento, where they presented Governor of California Jerry Brown with clemency petitions for "The California 12". In each of these inmates' cases, attorneys had exhausted all legal recourse despite compelling evidence of innocence.[60]

The California 12

Some of these clients had been found innocent by a judge, yet remained incarcerated.[61] The Innocence March ended June 20, 2013, at the steps of the California State Capitol building in Sacramento. Following a rally attended by more than 100 supporters, attorneys from the California Innocence Project met with a staff delegation from the office of Governor Jerry Brown to plead for clemency for The California 12, and to call attention to wrongful convictions and contributing causes, such as flawed eyewitness identification and faulty science.[62]

See also

References

  1. Villaescusa, Ruben (December 19, 2013). "Brian Banks & Reggie Cole: California Innocence Project". Fox Television Stations, Inc. and Worldnow. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  2. "Submitting a Claim of Innocence". California Innocence Project. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  3. "About the California Innocence Project". California Innocence Project. Retrieved May 29, 2014.
  4. Riley, Samantha (April 4, 2013). "Exonerated Football Player Brian Banks Signed by Atlanta Falcons". ABCNews.go.com. ABC News.
  5. "Exonerated California man restarts life, dreams of playing in NFL". May 31, 2012.
  6. Kandel, Jason (August 20, 2012). "Supporters Seek Release of Innocent Man Who Remains in Prison on "Technicality"". nbclosangeles.com.
  7. Matsukawa, Lori (August 29, 2012). "Jason Puracal family hold vigil on one-year anniversary of conviction". King 5 News.
  8. Shoichet, Catherine E. (April 4, 2013). "From a Prison Cell to the football field: Exonerated Brian Banks signs with Atlanta Falcons". CNN.
  9. "California Innocence Project - Luis Vargas". California Innocence Project. Retrieved Dec 4, 2016.
  10. Nestel, M.L. (Dec 1, 2016). "How the LAPD Turned an Innocent Man Into the 'Teardrop Rapist'". The Daily Beast. Retrieved Dec 4, 2016.
  11. "In Lieu of DNA Evidence, Exoneration Proves Tougher".
  12. Possley, Maurice. "Timothy Atkins". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  13. "Timothy Atkins". Bluhm Legal Clinic Center on Wrongful Convictions. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  14. Merina, Victor (November 2012). "The Price of Wrongful Conviction". Retrieved 3 Dec 2016.
  15. 1 2 "California Innocence Project: Kimberly Long". California Innocence Project. Retrieved 3 Dec 2016.
  16. Paige, Randy (24 Feb 2015). "Attorney Says Corona Woman Found Guilty in 2003 Murder of Boyfriend Is Innocent". CBS Los Angeles. Retrieved 3 Dec 2016.
  17. Braun, Siobhan (19 Aug 2015). "When you're guilty til [sic] proved innocent". San Diego Reader. Retrieved 3 Dec 2016.
  18. Blueskye, Brian (26 Aug 2016). "Finally Free: The California Innocence Project Gets Kimberly Long's Murder Conviction Overturned". CV Independent. Retrieved 3 Dec 2016.
  19. Gross, Alexandra. "John Stoll". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  20. "John Stoll". California Innocence Project.
  21. "Who Was Abused?".
  22. "Witch Hunt".
  23. Gross, Alexandra. "Kenneth Marsh". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  24. "Kenneth Marsh". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  25. Davis, Lyle E. (2011-04-21). "I Am Innocent". The Community Paper. The Paper.
  26. Padgett, Julianglenn (April 2010). "Innocence and Exoneration" (PDF). San Quentin News. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  27. Stine, Rachel (2013-03-22). "For pastor, the price was most definitely right". The Coast News. Coast News Group.
  28. "Two California Innocence Project clients freed in the same week". San Diego Source | The Daily Transcript. May 2004.
  29. Lemann, Nicholas (2005). The Best American Magazine Writing 2005. New York: Columbia University Press. p. 203. ISBN 0-231-13780-X.
  30. Denzel, Stephanie. "Jason Kindle". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  31. Timpson, Meredith. "Imperfect Justice". Kalamazoo College. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  32. Reese, Reginald (Reggie). "Stories of Wrongful Conviction from California". Death Penalty Focus. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  33. "Jason Kindle Case Profile" (PDF).
  34. "Rafael Madrigal". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  35. "Conviction of man serving life sentence for East L.A. gang shooting is overturned".
  36. Bigham, Will (August 5, 2011). "Overturned case dropped". Press-Telegram. Long Beach Press Telegram. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
  37. Perry, Michael S. "Reggie Cole". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  38. "Innocent Man Released From Prison After 16 Years".
  39. 1 2 3 "California Innocence Project - William Richards". California Innocence Project. Retrieved 20 Nov 2016.
  40. Dolan, Maura (25 Nov 2012). "Expert testimony on trial in murder case review". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 3 Dec 2016.
  41. "Innocent man's conviction stands even though forensic evidence discredited". Northern California Innocence Project. Santa Clara Law.
  42. "Justin Brooks on defending the wrongly convicted, and Cressida Campbell's woodblock art [radio interview]". Conversations with Richard Fidler. 5 Feb 2009. Retrieved 16 Nov 2016.
  43. Hernandez, David (29 June 2016). "Exonerated man thanks San Diego lawyers, students". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 20 Nov 2016.
  44. Saunders, Doug (28 June 2016). "Judge dismisses charges against Bill Richards in wife's 1993 death in Hesperia". The San Bernardino County Sun. Retrieved 20 Nov 2016.
  45. "'Actually innocent' man freed after 13 years".
  46. Knowles, David (March 19, 2013). "Daniel Larsen, 'innocent' California prisoner, freed after 13 years behind bars". NY Daily News. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  47. Miles, Kathleen (2012-08-22). "Daniel Larsen, Found Innocent By Federal Judge, Has Been In Prison For 13 Years". Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  48. "Larsen vs. Soto" (PDF). United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 2013-09-16.
  49. "Daniel Larsen". National Registry of Exonerations. January 27, 2014. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  50. Possley, Maurice. "Uriah Courtney". The National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  51. Davis, Kristina (2013-06-25). "DNA clears man convicted of rape". U-T San Diego. The San Diego Union-Tribune, LLC.
  52. London, Christina (2013-06-15). "Man Freed After Eight Years in Prison Speaks Out". NBC San Diego. NBC Universal Media, LLC.
  53. "California Innocence Project Works with San Diego DA to Overturn Wrongful Conviction".
  54. "Jason Puracal, U.S. Man Jailed In Nicaragua, Freed". The World Post. September 19, 2012.
  55. Slosson, Mary (2012-09-14). "American freed from Nicaraguan jail has left country: supporters". Reuters. Thomas Reuters.
  56. 1 2 "California Innocence Project - Grace & Matthew Huang". California Innocence Project. Retrieved 20 Nov 2016.
  57. "Matt and Grace Huang- Americans Institutionally Kidnapped in the Middle East". YouTube.com: The David House Agency. Retrieved 13 Nov 2016.
  58. Gladstone, Rick (11 May 2014). "A Push to Aid American Couple Held in Child's Death in Qatar". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 Nov 2016.
  59. "CIP: Submit A Case".
  60. Elmusa, Karmah (May 2013). "Innocence March". California Lawyer.
  61. "California Innocence March kicks off in San Diego". April 2013.
  62. "Innocence March".

External links

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