Search | Wrongly Convicted

$7.75 Million Settlement for Exonerated North Carolina Prisoner

Article • June 1, 2025 • from PLN June, 2025

Filed under: Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

$7.75 Million Settlement for Exonerated North Carolina Prisoner by David M. Reutter The city of Durham, North Carolina agreed on May 20, 2024, to pay $7.75 million to resolve the wrongful conviction claim of exonerated prisoner Darryl Howard. He spent almost 24 years in prison before a federal jury agreed …

Wrongfully Convicted North Carolina Man Receives $4 Million

Article • July 6, 2018 • from PLN July, 2018

Filed under: Settlements, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

Wrongfully Convicted North Carolina Man Receives $4 Million by A North Carolina man who served 37 years for a double homicide he did not commit has received a $4 million settlement from the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) in a federal lawsuit. Joseph Sledge, Jr. became a suspect in the …

North Carolina Brothers Settle Lawsuit Over 31 Years of Wrongful Imprisonment

Article • January 31, 2018 • from PLN February, 2018

Filed under: Wrongful Imprisonment

North Carolina Brothers Settle Lawsuit Over 31 Years of Wrongful Imprisonment by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke On April 11, 2017, two North Carolina brothers who had been wrongfully convicted ...

Five Wrongfully Convicted North Carolina Men Receive Almost $8 Million

Article • February 7, 2017 • from PLN February, 2017

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Malicious Prosecution, Guilty Pleas, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Due Process, Police

Five Wrongfully Convicted North Carolina Men Receive Almost $8 Million by David Reutter Five former prisoners who were wrongfully convicted in a home invasion murder have received settlements and compensation totaling nearly $8 million following a botched investigation and misconduct by the sheriff’s office in Buncombe County, North Carolina. Three …

North Carolina Man Awaits Compensation Four Years After Death Row Exoneration

Article • September 9, 2016

Filed under: Release and Reentry, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Collateral consequences of prison, Family

North Carolina Man Awaits Compensation Four Years After Death Row Exoneration by Matthew Clarke Glen Edward Chapman's conviction for two Hickory, North Carolina murders was reversed and a new trial ordered because lead investigator Dennis 'Money had lied during his trial testimony and detectives had "lost, misplaced or destroyed" evidence …

Justice Department Impedes Release of "Legally Innocent" Prisoners

Article • September 9, 2016

Filed under: DOC/BOP misconduct, Government Misconduct, Release and Reentry, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Overdetention

Justice Department Impedes Release of "Legally Innocent" Prisoners by Derek Gilna Despite several recent high-profile cases where the U.S. Justice Department has urged the release of prisoners who all parties agreed were "legally innocent, dozens more remain behind bars.in North Carolina. The cases arise in instances where men were imprisoned …

Prosecutorial Misconduct: Taking the Justice Out of Criminal Justice

Article • November 8, 2014 • from PLN November, 2014

Filed under: Government Misconduct, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Criminal Prosecution, Attorney Misconduct, Attorneys General, Prosecutors, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Prosecutorial Immunity, Criminal Procedure

Prosecutorial Misconduct: Taking the Justice Out of Criminal Justice by Christopher Zoukis Prosecutorial Misconduct: Taking the Justice Out of Criminal Justice by Christopher Zoukis The prosecutor has more control over life, liberty, and reputation than any other person in America. His discretion is tremendous.... While the prosecutor at his best …

North Carolina: Hundreds of Federal Prisoners Legally Innocent, Some Still Incarcerated

Article • July 11, 2014 • from PLN July, 2014

Filed under: Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

North Carolina: Hundreds of Federal Prisoners Legally Innocent, Some Still Incarcerated by Derek Gilna North Carolina: Hundreds of Federal Prisoners Legally Innocent, Some Still Incarcerated by Derek Gilna Following a 2011 federal appellate court ruling, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) initially tried to delay the release of federal prisoners …

North Carolina Governor Pardons Wilmington 10

Article • January 15, 2013 • from PLN January, 2013

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Racial Discrimination, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Pardons/Clemency

North Carolina Governor Pardons Wilmington 10 by In 1971, during a time of racial unrest in Wilmington, North Carolina, shortly after schools were integrated and amid protests and race-based violence, a white-owned business, Mike’s Grocery, was firebombed. Responding firefighters claimed they were targeted by gunfire from unknown shooters at a …

Problems at North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab

Article • January 15, 2012 • from PLN January, 2012

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Malicious Prosecution, Crime Labs, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

Problems at North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab by Recent revelations of shoddy blood analysis at the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) crime lab led to an investigation that uncovered at least 190 cases of serious blood work errors in criminal cases. Those cases included three …

North Carolina Innocence Commission Verifies Wrongful Conviction

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

North Carolina Innocence Commission Verifies Wrongful Conviction by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke After examining hundreds of cases, the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission has verified its first claim of innocence – which resulted in both controversy and stinging criticism from prosecutors. In 2006, North Carolina became the first state …

Political Uproar Follows NC Court Ruling that Life Sentence is 80 Years

Article • May 15, 2010 • from PLN May, 2010

Filed under: Government Misconduct, Sentencing, Good Time, Parole, Habeas Corpus, Wrongful Imprisonment

Political Uproar Follows NC Court Ruling that Life Sentence is 80 Years by David Reutter by David M. Reutter A political brouhaha arose in October 2009 in the wake of a North Carolina appellate court decision which held that a “life sentence is as an 80-year sentence for all purposes.” …

Gell v. Town of Aulander, NC, Settlement, Malicious Prosecution Wrongful Conviction, 2009

Brief • October 1, 2009

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Malicious Prosecution, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

Gell v. Town of Aulander, NC, Settlement, Malicious Prosecution Wrongful Conviction, 2009 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA CAROLINA DIVISION NORTHERN DIVISION 2:05-CV-21-FL(1) CASE NO.: 2:05-CV-21-FL(1) JAMES ALAN GELL, Plaintiff, v. ) ) ) ) ) TOWN OF AULANDER, AULANDER ) POLICE …

One-Off Offing: Why You Won't See a Disbarment Like Mike Nifong's Again

Article • December 15, 2007

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Criminal Prosecution, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

One-Off Offing: Why You Won't See a Disbarment Like Mike Nifong's Again by David Feige By David Feige Posted Monday, June 18, 2007, at 6:04 PM ET Now that justice has prevailed in the Duke rape case, with the nice innocent boys exonerated and the prosecutor who hounded them disbarred, …