Kenneth Ireland Exonerated of 1986 Rape and Murder

Kenneth Ireland of Connecticut was released last week after a judge granted him a new trial. The prosecutor is expected not to retry the case. Ireland was 20 years old when he was convicted of the rape and murder of Barbara Pelkey, a mother of four. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison. At his original trial, witnesses testified that Ireland confessed to them. Ireland contended that those witnesses lied for a large monetary reward. Ireland was released by means of DNA evidence which proved his innocence, obtained with the help of the Connecticut Innocence Project.

Congratulation to Kenneth Ireland and his family, and to the Connecticut Innocence Project!

The Boston Globe: DNA clears Conn. man of killing after 20 years

Bruce Lisker Freed After 24 Years

Bruce Lisker had his murder conviction overturned on Friday after spending 24 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He is currently free on bail while the prosecution decides whether they wish to appeal. Lisker was 17 years old when his mother was murdered. Lisker saw his mother on the floor, broke into his parents' home to help her, and called paramedics. At the time, he was living elsewhere and was battling a drug addiction. He was arrested the same afternoon. Lisker was convicted primarily on four pieces of evidence, including blood spatter on his clothes, a bloody foot print in his parents' home, and a confession to a jailhouse informant. Evidentiary rulings later cast considerable doubt on the evidence that had been used against Lisker at trial, and the original prosecutor admitted that he now had "reasonable doubt". At the time of the murder, the police failed to follow a lead on another suspect, who had been to Lisker's mother's home the day before and who had lied about his whereabouts at the time of the crime. That suspect later committed suicide.

Congratulation to Bruce Lisker and the California Innocence Project!

The Los Angeles Times: Judge overturns Bruce Lisker's conviction in 1983 killing of his mother

DNA Database Solves Cold Cases

The state of Georgia recently reported that more than 1,500 cases have been solved because of the Georgia DNA database. Georgia began testing DNA in 1991 and began adding samples to the FBI database in 1998. In 2000, the Georgia legislature passed a law requiring that DNA samples be taken from all convicted felons. Previously, samples had only been taken from convicted sex offenders. In the first year after the database was expanded, 70 cases were solved. DNA databases also aid those claiming factual innocence, as actual perpetrators may already be in the database.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution: Georgia DNA solves 1,500 cases

Texas Reform Creates Office for Capital Appeals

A new law in Texas will create a state office to handle the appeals of death row inmates. The office was created in response to a series of well publicized scandals which brought international attention to the subpar representation of capital offense appeals. Texas, unlike other states with capital punishment, had not used the public defender's office to handle the habeus corpus writs for their capital offenders, but instead had hired outside attorneys who often missed deadlines or wrote "skeletal writs". The new office will have a budget of a million dollars and a staff of nine, but its services will not be available to those capital inmates who have already used up their appeals. The Office of Capital Writs is expected to handle approximately ten appeals a year.

The Houston Chronicle: State to handle capital appeals

Estate of Kenneth Waters Settles For 3.4 Million

The estate of the late Kenneth Waters, who was exonerated in 2001 after spending 18 years in prison, has settled their case against the town of Ayer for a total of 3.4 million dollars. The estate, headed by Waters' sister, Betty Ann Waters, is still in negotiations with one final insurer. Kenneth Waters was convicted in 1983 of first degree murder and armed robbery. He remained wrongfully incarcerated until his sister Betty Ann Waters became a lawyer and fought to free her brother by means of DNA testing. The civil rights suit against the town of Ayer included the charges that police officers coerced false testimony to convict Waters and withheld exculpatory evidence from the defense. Waters died just nine months after his exoneration, and Betty Ann Waters has worked on his behalf for compensation for his time in prison. Waters was represented by the New York Innocence Project and by New England Innocence Project attorneys when his conviction was overturned.

The Boston Globe: Ayer to pay $3.4m for unjust conviction

NEIP Files Supporting Brief in RI Murder Appeal Case

Stacey Barros was convicted in 2008 of murder, and is currently serving two life terms plus ten years. Barros was convicted of killing Deivy Felipe in 2005, in what appears to have been a drug deal gone wrong. Now the New England Innocence Project has filed a supporting friend-of-the-court brief in Barros' appeals case. Among the issues raised in the brief is the question of why the police recorded only twelve minutes of a four hour interrogation of Barros. Barros confessed to the crime in that recording, but later claimed he was coerced into that confession. In his confession, Barros got facts of the case wrong, including the number of shell casings and the angle at which Felipe was shot. There is no physical evidence linking Barros to the murder. NEIP filed their brief in part to pressure the Rhode Island legislature to pass a law mandating recording of all police interrogations. Similar laws have been proposed in recent years but have failed to pass.

The Providence Journal: Innocence Project filing brief in Providence murder case

Troy Davis' Petition Will Be Heard Next Session

Troy Davis' habeus corpus petition was not heard by the Supreme Court last week when they ended their session, and will be heard when the Court resumes in the fall. Davis is on death row for murder, even though evidence has surfaced since his conviction which raises considerable doubt as to his guilt. The Court's decision to delay hearing his petition means Davis receives a stay on his execution through the summer, a small victory for his supporters.