Unluckiest man alive?

[kwame k]

Texas man wrongly put away for 18 years denied compensation after legal glitch

A courtroom technicality has cost a wrongly convicted Texas man the compensation that would otherwise be due him for the 18 years he'd served in Texas prison--14 of which he spent on Death Row.

Anthony Graves would have received $1.4 million in compensation if only the words "actual innocence" had been included in the judge's order that secured Graves's release from prison. The Comptroller's office decided the omission means Graves gets zero dollars, writes Harvey Rice at the Houston Chronicle, even though the prosecutor, judge, and defense all agreed at trial he is innocent.

So how did this happen? Cory Session, a Texas Innocence Project policy director and one of the architects of the 2009 Tim Cole compensation law for exonerated prisoners, tells The Lookout that the Brenham prosecutor's office decided to dismiss the murder charges they originally filed against Graves, instead of retrying him all over again and finding him innocent. The compensation law provides $80,000 per year in prison only to claimants explicitly found innocent in a retrial or who are granted a pardon. Neither status now applies to Graves.

Session says he has no idea why the Brenham prosectors neglected to explicitly say in the court order that Graves was innocent. By simply dropping the charges, prosecutors could always retry Graves for the same crime if new evidence surfaced. Double Jeapordy rules would not apply, because the original charges against him have effectively disappeared.

Graves's lawyers are now pointing fingers at Burleson County District Attorney William Parham, who "declined to sign an order asking District Judge Reva Towslee Corbett to amend Graves' order of release to include the words 'actual innocence,'" according to the Brenham Banner Press. Parham said last month he also believes Graves is innocent, but that "actual innocence" carries no strict legal meaning; he also said he made no recommendations on the compensation case. Parham's office informed The Lookout he was not available for comment on the Graves case.

Session says Graves could now sue under federal civil rights law on the grounds that he suffered cruel and unusual punishment. Judge Corbett could also rescind the original order and add the words "actual innocence." If Graves sues the state of Texas in civil court, tort laws there limit any compensation to $200,000.

Meanwhile, Texas GOP Gov. Rick Perry won't be able to rectify the other judicial technicality that's blocked his qualification from the state compensation fund: Graves is not eligible for a pardon because he is no longer accused or convicted of any crime.

The Tim Cole Act is named after Session's brother, who was exonerated of a rape conviction after he died in prison. Session says he plans to lobby to amend the law and close the loophole Graves slipped through.

"It's obvious to us that under the spirit of the state legislation passed in 2009, Graves deserves compensation," The Houston Chronicle editorialized. "No one disputes the fact that the man is actually innocent. And the $1.4 million payment that he's due according to the state's formula hardly makes up for the loss of freedom for most of his adult life. The state has paid more than $30 million to 67 wrongfully imprisoned Texans. Graves should be the 68th."

"I need some help," Graves told The Chronicle in a video before the decision. "It doesn't feel good being a 45-year-old man and having to depend on your family just to make sure you eat. It's kind of embarrassing. But right now, this is my life."

For more background, Pamela Colloff at Texas Monthly has a fascinating chronicle of the crime, reconstructing how Graves was falsely accused.

Link

[kwame k]

First off.......

18 years in prison for a crime you didn't commit.....check.
14 years on Death Row.....check.
Fully exonerated.......check.
1.4 million coming my way.....check.

Burleson County District Attorney William Parham, who "declined to sign an order asking District Judge Reva Towslee Corbett to amend Graves' order of release to include the words 'actual innocence,'

SHIT, forgot two words "actual innocence"...........
Living on sister's couch.......FUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[chefcraig]

There are currently 12 men that were wrongly convicted in the state of Florida, who's cases were overturned but have not been able to collect a penny because of dubious measure called the "Clean Hands" act. It states that if you have a felony on your record, you are inelligible for compensation funds. So these poor bastards have not only lost a good portion of their lives locked up while innocent, now they are subject to living in poverty upon release. The situation is absurdly wrong, and was the source of an editorial in our local paper yesterday.

Wrongly-convicted Deserve Compensation


Sun Sentinel February 16, 2011


THE ISSUE: Wrongly convicted living in poverty.

Sure, it's a brutally tough budget year for Florida. That cannot be an excuse, however, for not righting a terrible wrong.

Three years ago, the Legislature passed a bill authorizing payments for those individuals wrongly convicted and sent to prison. The measure designated payments of up to $50,000 for each year they were erroneously locked up.

The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board strongly supported that measure, with the exception of something called the "clean hands" provision — a provision which, according to a Sun Sentinel story, has meant that none of the 12 men cleared by DNA has been able to collect a penny from the statute. Several of the men, who spent more than 20 years in prison for crimes they did not commit, are now living in poverty.

The "clean hands" provision bars the state from paying anyone who has a previous felony conviction prior to the wrongful incarceration. Even if the person did his time for that previous conviction, then was later wrongly sent away for decades for a crime they did not commit, they still can't collect a cent.

It's an obvious injustice. And the "clean hands" provision needs to be eliminated.

It is particularly cruel for people like Anthony Caravella, the Broward man who spent 26 years in prison for rape and murder before being cleared by DNA evidence. He can't collect because of an infraction on his juvenile record. Without any savings to tide him over until he could find any kind of income, Caravella wound up sleeping in a homeless shelter after being released from prison.

A couple of bills have been filed for this legislative session to obtain some remuneration for specific inmates who have been cleared, but neither is expected to pass.

One of the bills involved Larry Bostic, who spent 19 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit, and now relies on food stamps. Another involves William Dillon, who spent 27 years in prison before being freed, but has been unable to collect the $1.35 million he would be owed because of a prior felony involving possession of one Quaalude tablet.

It is long past time for the Legislature to do the right thing and eliminate the "clean hands" provision for all the prisoners who served time for crimes they didn't commit. And to offer some compensation, perhaps not all they can seek under the law, but enough to keep them from falling destitute — and on other government assistance.

Yes, it will cost. But not nearly as much as the cost already paid by those who were wrongly locked up in prison for many years.

BOTTOM LINE: Time for Legislature to right a wrong.

[Seshmeister]

At least they weren't murdered by the State...

[Nitro Express]

Alligators think politicians are tasty.

[kwame k]

At least they weren't murdered by the State...

Unless you're mentally retarded then it's OK........stay away from Texas, Forrest!

The Supreme Court gave no reason for its rejection of the case despite new evidence that indicates three federal doctors thought Webster may be mentally retarded when he applied for disability benefits in 1993, a year before 16-year-old Lisa Rene was killed.

A federal appeals court judge previously acknowledged that the new evidence appears to show Webster is mentally retarded. The judge and his two colleagues on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said, however, that Webster's execution could not be halted because he exhausted his appeals to the point that new evidence cannot be considered unless it is likely to prove his innocence.

Link

[sadaist]

Yeah, I read that article. Makes me mad. This guy had the prime of his life stolen from him. After 18 years of deplorable shit, he deserves to live nicely for a while. A nice big clean house, a nice new car, steaks for dinner, fluffy feather pillows, a blanket that actually covers his entire body, and a toilet with a fucking seat on it.

They should just give him one of the houses from the Bell, CA city council people. They won't be using them for a long, long time anyways.

[fifth element]

There are currently 12 men that were wrongly convicted in the state of Florida, who's cases were overturned but have not been able to collect a penny because of dubious measure called the "Clean Hands" act. It states that if you have a felony on your record, you are inelligible for compensation funds. So these poor bastards have not only lost a good portion of their lives locked up while innocent, now they are subject to living in poverty upon release. The situation is absurdly wrong, and was the source of an editorial in our local paper yesterday.
[/B]

should be called the "slap a man while he is down" act.

[FORD]

Texas and Florida again...... what a surprise that the two states most corrupted by the BCE are the ones with the most fraudulent convictions.

[fifth element]

Texas and Florida again...... what a surprise that the two states most corrupted by the BCE are the ones with the most fraudulent convictions.

somehow, that didn't shock me a bit......

[ace diamond]

Texas and Florida again...... what a surprise that the two states most corrupted by the BCE are the ones with the most fraudulent convictions.

you think that is bad, Arizona is even worse!