# Wilton Dedge was exonerated in 2005 after spending more than 20 years in prison for a rape he didn’t commit.
# William Dillon served 27 years for murder until new DNA testing in 2008 showed he was innocent.
# Juan Ramos, convicted of murder on testimony from Preston, was freed in 1987.
More victims of the abuses may still be behind bars.
Inmate Gary Bennett was convicted of the murder of Palm Bay resident Helen Nardi in 1984 based on evidence Preston provided, though he couldn’t be linked to the case by a rape kit exam, passed a lie-detector test and witnesses testified he was elsewhere when Nardi was slain.
What’s more, two Brevard criminal justice veterans from that era — former prosecutor Sam Bardwell and retired Brevard Circuit Judge Gilbert Goshorn — say Preston was known to be a fraud, yet used repeatedly to trump up evidence.
The travesty cries out for justice, but Florida’s leaders have ignored calls for a probe."
EDITORIAL: FLORIDA TODAY;
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BACKGROUND: This Blog has been delving into the havoc caused by the late John Preston and his magical dog who could purportedly trace scents across water. The focus has also been on Deputy Keith Pikett, another so-called dog-scent "specialist", a canine officer who was formerly with the Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office, just southwest of Houston. Time Magazine has reported on two apparent miscarriages of Justice involving Pikett; The first case studied involves Calvin Lee Miller, who was charged with robbery and sexual assault after Pikett's bloodhounds alerted police to a scent on sheets that Pikett said matched a scent swipe from Miller's cheek. DNA evidence later cleared Miller, but only after he served 62 days in jail. In a second case, former Victoria County Sheriff's Department Captain Michael Buchanek was named as a "person of interest" in a murder case after Pikett's bloodhounds sped 5.5 miles from a crime scene, tracking a scent to Buchanek's home. Another man later confessed to the murder.
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"Candidates for state office promising if elected they’ll order an investigation of criminal practices in the Brevard-Seminole State Attorney’s Office in the 1980s, including use of tainted witnesses, jailhouse snitches and fraudulent dog handler John Preston," the Florida Today editorial published on August 17, 2010 begins, under the heading, 'Our views: Next Florida attorney general should probe unjust convictions."
"With the primary election a week away, there’s new cause for hope that might actually happen," the editorial continues.
"All major candidates for Florida Attorney General — Republicans Holly Benson, Pam Bondi and Jeff Kottkamp and Democrats Dave Aronberg and Dan Gelber — say they’d look into a highly troubling spate of wrongful convictions, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
That’s long overdue and critical. Sham prosecutorial tactics related to Preston put at least three innocent Brevard men in prison for a total of 55 years:
# Wilton Dedge was exonerated in 2005 after spending more than 20 years in prison for a rape he didn’t commit.
# William Dillon served 27 years for murder until new DNA testing in 2008 showed he was innocent.
# Juan Ramos, convicted of murder on testimony from Preston, was freed in 1987.
More victims of the abuses may still be behind bars.
Inmate Gary Bennett was convicted of the murder of Palm Bay resident Helen Nardi in 1984 based on evidence Preston provided, though he couldn’t be linked to the case by a rape kit exam, passed a lie-detector test and witnesses testified he was elsewhere when Nardi was slain.
What’s more, two Brevard criminal justice veterans from that era — former prosecutor Sam Bardwell and retired Brevard Circuit Judge Gilbert Goshorn — say Preston was known to be a fraud, yet used repeatedly to trump up evidence.
The travesty cries out for justice, but Florida’s leaders have ignored calls for a probe.
That includes former Gov. Jeb Bush, Gov. Charlie Crist, Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and Brevard-Seminole State Attorney Norm Wolfinger.
In 2009, Wolfinger ordered an in-house review of some cases involving Preston that was far too narrow. Meanwhile, the Florida Innocence Commission — approved by the Legislature this year — will analyze the high number of wrongful convictions in the courts and recommend policy changes to prevent future miscarriages of justice.
But it lacks the authority to bring the hammer of the law down on the justice system or law enforcement personnel potentially guilty of wrongdoing during the Preston era.
The probe is imperative to rebuild badly damaged trust in the state criminal justice system. To ensure against a whitewash, it should come from outside the state attorney’s office, such as a special grand jury with the power to hand down indictments.
We like to think the candidates will be good to their word, but campaign promises often go up in smoke.
Brevard voters should hold whoever wins the race for attorney general in November accountable for fulfilling the pledge and ordering a probe."
The editorial can be found at:
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20100817/BREAKINGNEWS/308180001/1006/news01/Our+views++Next+Florida+attorney+general+should+probe+unjust+convictions
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be accessed at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
For a breakdown of some of the cases, issues and controversies this Blog is currently following, please turn to:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2010/08/new-feature-cases-issues-and_15.html
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
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