Back in action: Catch-up: (6): Phillip Thurmin; Willie Davidson; Virginia; A fascinating 'Special Report" by reporter Frank Green in the Richmond Times-Dispatch about a groundbreaking long-running DNA exoneration effort which is coming to an end..."Two exonerations in just the trial run of 31 cases was a surprise to Warner, and there were hundreds of other cases with old evidence. "I was shocked because you could extrapolate from that ... there might be tens if not hundreds of individuals serving time in Virginia penitentiaries that didn't deserve to be there," Warner said."

PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "The two exonerations would not be the last. The sample run morphed into Virginia's Post-Conviction DNA Testing Program and Notification Project, which is set to finally wrap up in the next few months, an effort made possible by a body of biological evidence that should not have existed and that might have remained untested. Instead, almost 13 years and $6 million later, nine men have been exonerated of serious crimes they did not commit. "We thought it would be six months, a year, maybe two years at the most - had absolutely no idea, absolutely no idea that it would be more than a decade later," said U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, who as Virginia's governor ordered the full project. Two exonerations in just the trial run of 31 cases was a surprise to Warner, and there were hundreds of other cases with old evidence. "I was shocked because you could extrapolate from that ... there might be tens if not hundreds of individuals serving time in Virginia penitentiaries that didn't deserve to be there," Warner said."

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STORY: "Special Report: Groundbreaking, long-running DNA exoneration effort coming to an end," by reporter Frank Green, published by The Richmond Times-Dispatch on September 27, 2018.

GIST: "On Oct. 21, 2005, police were outside Phillip Thurman's apartment in Alexandria when he returned from the graveside services for his sister. On parole after 20 years in prison for rape, the detectives stunned him with some news: DNA had proven that he was innocent, a claim he had been making since his 1984 arrest. "Nobody believed me. Everywhere I went to try to get help, there was none," he said. "I cried. It was a big relief. He said he felt that his sister, Shirley Mae Reid, was helping him from above that day. “I got two blessings. I got an opportunity to bury her, knowing that she’s going to heaven. And I got to meet my heaven here because through her, I got to be freed," he said. More than an angel was at work: For the first time anywhere in the world, authorities were using DNA to systematically hunt for wrongfully convicted persons - and they succeeded shockingly well. Alarm bells went off in Richmond and across the country when Thurman and another man, Willie Davidson of Norfolk, were exonerated of rape convictions by testing of biological evidence in 31 old sexual assault cases. The 31 cases were randomly selected and occurred before authorities began conducting DNA testing. The two exonerations would not be the last. The sample run morphed into Virginia's Post-Conviction DNA Testing Program and Notification Project, which is set to finally wrap up in the next few months, an effort made possible by a body of biological evidence that should not have existed and that might have remained untested. Instead, almost 13 years and $6 million later, nine men have been exonerated of serious crimes they did not commit. "We thought it would be six months, a year, maybe two years at the most - had absolutely no idea, absolutely no idea that it would be more than a decade later," said U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, who as Virginia's governor ordered the full project. Two exonerations in just the trial run of 31 cases was a surprise to Warner, and there were hundreds of other cases with old evidence. "I was shocked because you could extrapolate from that ... there might be tens if not hundreds of individuals serving time in Virginia penitentiaries that didn't deserve to be there," Warner said. Not nearly that many were found, it turned out. But those who were cleared included a terminally ill cancer patient who was able to vote for the first time in his life shortly before he died; a severely mentally ill man who falsely confessed to a brutal rape and murder; and a Thomas Haynesworth, of Richmond, who spent 27 years in prison for 1984 sexual assaults committed by a notorious serial rapist. For all the project's success, the work has not been entirely smooth or without controversy."


The entire Special Report can be read at:
 https://www.richmond.com/news/local/plus/special-report-groundbreaking-long-running-dna-exoneration-effort-coming-to/article_8b4d6b9e-c266-11e8-9f8c-7f87ad2f866f.html  

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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 found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com.  Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;