Search | Wrongly Convicted

Texas Counties Waste Millions by Jailing Defendants Charged with Citation-Eligible Misdemeanors

Article • December 10, 2019 • from PLN December, 2019

Filed under: Jail Specific, Wrongful Imprisonment

Texas Counties Waste Millions by Jailing Defendants Charged with Citation-Eligible Misdemeanors by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke In April 2019, social justice advocacy nonprofit Texas Appleseed released an analysis of jail bookings in a dozen of the most populous counties throughout Texas. The study examined the most serious charge that …

Texas Couple Wrongly Convicted in “Satanic Panic” Receive $3.4 Million

Article • August 6, 2018 • from PLN August, 2018

Filed under: Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

Texas Couple Wrongly Convicted in “Satanic Panic” Receive $3.4 Million by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke An Austin, Texas couple wrongly convicted of sexually abusing a child at the day-care center they ran in the 1990s has been declared innocent and received over $3.4 million in compensation from the state. …

Illegal 24-Day ICE Detention Nets Lawful Permanent Resident $99,000 Settlement

Article • September 13, 2017

Filed under: Wrongful Imprisonment, Immigration

Illegal 24-Day ICE Detention Nets Lawful Permanent Resident $99,000 Settlement by Lonnie Burton by Lonnie Burton In 2008 a lawsuit filed by a Mexican citizen who had obtained lawful permanent resident status in the United States and was later detained while trying to return to the U.S. from Mexico was …

Former Texas Police Officer’s Sexual Assault Case Reversed After 21 Years

Article • May 5, 2017 • from PLN May, 2017

Filed under: Sexual Assault, Wrongful Conviction, Habeas Corpus, Wrongful Imprisonment

Former Texas Police Officer’s Sexual Assault Case Reversed After 21 Years by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke Brian Edward Franklin was a Fort Worth, Texas police officer for more than a decade before he was convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child and sentenced to life in prison in …

Texas: “San Antonio Four” Exonerated after Two Decades

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

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

Texas: “San Antonio Four” Exonerated after Two Decades by In 1997, Elizabeth Ramirez, Kristie Mayhugh, Cassandra Rivera and Anna Vasquez were convicted of sexually assaulting two young girls. The women came to be known as the “San Antonio Four.” With help from the Innocence Project of Texas, all four were …

Texas Man Exonerated By DNA Test He Didn't Request

Article • August 10, 2016

Filed under: Racial Discrimination, Guilty Pleas, DNA Testing/Samples, Witnesses, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Racial Profiling

Texas Man Exonerated By DNA Test He Didn't Request by Matthew Clarke A Texas man, Michael Phillips, 57, recently became the first person to be cleared of a crime by DNA testing he did not request. Phillips was accused of raping a white teenage girl at a Dallas motel in …

DNA Keeps Overturning Convictions, But Spike in Exonerations Owed to Other Factors

Article • August 5, 2016

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, DNA Testing/Samples, Witnesses, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

DNA Keeps Overturning Convictions, But Spike in Exonerations Owed to Other Factors by Joe Watson Nicole Harris, Henry Lee McCollum and Leon Brown have lived through their own nightmares of injustice. All three were wrongfully convicted of the heinous murders of children. Combined, they spent nearly 70 years in prison …

Dallas Conviction Integrity Unit Gains National Notoriety

Article • July 6, 2016 • from PLN July, 2016

Filed under: Police Misconduct, DOC/BOP misconduct, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Advocacy, Prison Reform, Evidence, Statistics/Trends, Attorney Misconduct, Release and Reentry, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Pardons/Clemency

Dallas Conviction Integrity Unit Gains National Notoriety by Matthew Clarke The word “first” was applied to Craig M. Watkins multiple times after his election to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office in 2006. He was the county’s first black D.A., the first D.A. who had been a public defender before …

Exonerees Fulfill Dreams, Help Other Prisoners Overcome Wrongful Convictions

Article • June 3, 2016 • from PLN June, 2016

Filed under: Lobbying, Advocacy, Prison Reform, Rehabilitation/Recidivism, Release and Reentry, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Pardons/Clemency

Exonerees Fulfill Dreams, Help Other Prisoners Overcome Wrongful Convictions by David Reutter by David Reutter and Joe Watson Former Louisiana death row prisoner John Thompson has spearheaded an organization that aims to help the wrongfully convicted and former prisoners successfully rebuild their lives. Thompson was sentenced to death for the …

Texas Remains Leader in Exonerations of Wrongfully Convicted

Article • May 12, 2016

Filed under: Statistics/Trends, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

Texas Remains Leader in Exonerations of Wrongfully Convicted by Derek Gilna A new report by a national prisoner-rights organization says that once again the state of Texas led the nation in 2013 in exonerations, with 13 cases, and Illinois and New York were not far behind with 9 and 8, …

Texas Prisoner Held in Prison 35 Years after Conviction Vacated

Article • August 28, 2015 • from PLN September, 2015

Filed under: Wrongful Imprisonment, Overdetention, Mental Health

Texas Prisoner Held in Prison 35 Years after Conviction Vacated by Matthew Clarke Texas Prisoner Held in Prison 35 Years after Conviction Vacated by Matt Clarke The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas denied a bid to halt the retrial of a mentally challenged prisoner whose original …

Texas Cops Granted Qualified Immunity for False Arrest, Malicious Prosecution

Article • June 12, 2015

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Wrongful Imprisonment, False Arrest

Texas Cops Granted Qualified Immunity for False Arrest, Malicious Prosecution by David Reutter Texas Cops Granted Qualified Immunity for False Arrest, Malicious Prosecution by David Reutter The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed the grant of summary judgment to two police officers sued for false arrest and malicious prosecution by …

Exonerated Texas Prisoner’s Ex-Wife Not Entitled to Compensation

Article • March 5, 2015 • from PLN March, 2015

Filed under: Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Family Law

Exonerated Texas Prisoner’s Ex-Wife Not Entitled to Compensation by Matthew Clarke Exonerated Texas Prisoner’s Ex-Wife Not Entitled to Compensation by Matt Clarke In a May 12, 2014 opinion, a Texas Court of Appeals held that the former wife of a prisoner who spent over 24 years in prison was not …

Houston Settles Wrongful Conviction Suit for $3 Million

Article • January 15, 2015

Filed under: Crime Labs, Sentencing, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

Houston Settles Wrongful Conviction Suit for $3 Million by Houston Settles Wrongful Conviction Suit for $3 Million by Matt Clarke On November 2, 2012, the City of Houston, Texas agreed to settle a lawsuit arising out of the wrongful conviction for rape and imprisonment for 17 years of George Rodriguez. …

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 …

Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Sets Aside Convictions Based on Actual Innocence

Article • February 15, 2013 • from PLN February, 2013

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Wrongful Conviction, Habeas Corpus, Wrongful Imprisonment

Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Sets Aside Convictions Based on Actual Innocence by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke In a 7-0 opinion with two judges not participating, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals held on February 15, 2012 that a former prisoner who claimed exculpatory evidence was withheld in his …

Texas Supreme Court Rules Compensation Required in Schlup-type Innocence Cases

Article • February 15, 2013 • from PLN February, 2013

Filed under: Attorney Misconduct, Malpractice (Attorneys), Civil Procedure, Damages, Wrongful Conviction, Habeas Corpus, Wrongful Imprisonment

: In re Allen, 366 S.W.3d 696 (Tex. 2012). “Now that we have helpful guidance from the Supreme Court, we have immediately started the process of paying Billy Allen approximately $2 million for wrongful ...

Texas Compensates Exonerees Unequally

Article • October 15, 2012 • from PLN October, 2012

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Damages, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, State Legislation

), with no cap. And in 2009 Texas lawmakers changed the compensation statute to $80,000 per year of wrongful imprisonment and added a monthly annuity in the same amount plus free state health insurance and free ...

Texas Harasses, Denies Compensation to Wrongly Convicted

Article • April 15, 2012 • from PLN April, 2012

Filed under: Sentencing, Parole, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Probation, Family Law

after the Texas legislature passed a bill (HB 417) to compensate him for his wrongful imprisonment regardless of the wording in the court order granting his release. Governor Rick Perry signed ...

Texas State Bar, Exonerated Ex-Prisoners File Suit Against Attorney Over Fees

Article • December 15, 2011 • from PLN December, 2011

Filed under: Attorney Misconduct, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

Texas State Bar, Exonerated Ex-Prisoners File Suit Against Attorney Over Fees by The State Bar of Texas has filed a lawsuit against Lubbock attorney Kevin Glasheen, alleging that he grossly overcharged clients in violation of the Bar’s Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct. Glasheen, who represents over a dozen exonerated former …