Bulletin: Selwyn Days: New York State; False confession case: Man may face fifth trial in Eastchester murders; Conviction overturned on basis that he was not allowed to introduce expert testimony on the issue of false confessions: Case sent back to Westchester County Court for a new trial, which would be his fifth in the case. "The expert testimony was relevant in Days' case, though, according to the appellate court, which noted the lack of physical evidence or eyewitness testimony linking Days to the murders, as well as the videotaped confession, in which officers "repeatedly employed suggestive and leading questions, fed the defendant specific details related to the crime scene, and used rapport-building techniques." The appellate court also said that "significant concerns" were raised by the fact that only the last 75 minutes, the confession, of the seven-hour interrogation were videotaped." Lohud.

Countdown to Wrongful Conviction Day:  Friday, October 2,  2105; 27 days. For information: http://www.aidwyc.org/wcd-2015/

"The next chapter of Selwyn Days' legal saga could feature a fifth trial for two 1996 Eastchester murders after his latest conviction was overturned by a state appellate court on Wednesday. The Mount Vernon man continues to fight for his freedom after being found guilty of killing 79-year-old millionaire Archie Harris and his 35-year-old home health aide, Betty Ramcharan. He claims he's innocent. The Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department, reversed the Dec. 20, 2011 conviction based on Days' appeal that he was not allowed to introduce expert testimony on the issue of false confessions, according to the court's ruling. The case back to Westchester County Court for a new trial, which would be his fifth in the case.........Days, a career petty criminal, had accused Harris of sexually abusing his mother four months before the real estate investor was killed.  He became a suspect after he was arrested for violating an order of protection against his former girlfriend, who went to police later that day and said that he had confessed the murders to her. He confessed to police after a seven-hour interrogation and nearly 14 hours in custody, according to the ruling......... The appellate court's decision Wednesday to overturn that conviction was based on the Westchester County Court's decision in 2011 to bar expert testimony on the issue of false confessions. The Westchester County Court did not allow the expert testimony because it deemed the issue to be "within the understanding of an average juror," according to the appellate court. The expert testimony was relevant in Days' case, though, according to the appellate court, which noted the lack of physical evidence or eyewitness testimony linking Days to the murders, as well as the videotaped confession, in which officers "repeatedly employed suggestive and leading questions, fed the defendant specific details related to the crime scene, and used rapport-building techniques." The appellate court also said that "significant concerns" were raised by the fact that only the last 75 minutes, the confession, of the seven-hour interrogation were videotaped. Days' two experts in false confessions, Dr. Jessica Pearson and Dr. Richard A. Leo, had determined Days to be particularly vulnerable to false confessions, based in part on his low intelligence and history of mental illness, according to the ruling."
http://www.lohud.com/story/news/crime/2015/09/02/selwyn-days-conviction-overturned/71616194/