PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This Blog is interested in eye-witness identification issues because wrongful identifications are at the heart of so many DNA-related exonerations in the USA and elsewhere - and because so much scientific research is being conducted with a goal to making the identification process more transparent and reliable- and less subject to deliberate manipulation. I have also reported far too many cases over the years - mainly cases lacking DNA evidence pointing to the suspect - where the police have rigged the identification process in order to make an identification inevitable. Sure sounds like obstruction of justice to me.
Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
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POST: "Darrill Henry walks out of Angola Prison after more than 15 years of unlawful imprisonment," by Innocence Project staff, published on May 5, 2020.
SUB-HEADING: Henry's conviction was overturned and a new trial was ordered in his case based on DNA evidence on March 20.
POST: "Darrill Henry walks out of Angola Prison after more than 15 years of unlawful imprisonment," by Innocence Project staff, published on May 5, 2020.
SUB-HEADING: Henry's conviction was overturned and a new trial was ordered in his case based on DNA evidence on March 20.
BACKGROUND: "From previous post of this Blog: (April 20, 2020): "Henry was convicted in 2011 in the vicious double slaying of an octogenarian seamstress and the daughter who raced to her aid at a 7th Ward home. But after his conviction, defense attorneys said newly developed DNA evidence cast doubt on the eyewitness testimony that sent him to prison for life. In March, Waldron agreed with Henry’s defense team and granted the 44-year-old a new trial. Prosecutors are appealing that decision. He also set a $400,000 bail — assuming that amount was out of Henry’s reach, since the New Orleans man said he was a pauper after years in prison. However, Henry’s supporters used an internet GoFundMe campaign to raise the fraction of the bail needed to free him from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola while he awaits a possible second trial. Relatives and defense attorneys said the coronavirus outbreak in Louisiana’s prison system gave them added urgency. Henry had already given his possessions to other prisoners when the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office obtained an emergency order blocking his release."
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Henry’s conviction rested solely on flawed eyewitness identifications provided by the three neighbors. The first eyewitness, who was closest to the crime scene, was presented with an unbiased line-up a few days after the murders and did not identify Henry as the perpetrator. It was only seven years later, after being arrested for a series of serious crimes, that this eyewitness claimed to have suddenly recalled that in fact Henry had been the person he saw fleeing the scene. The other two eyewitnesses were each presented with biased line-ups in which Henry was the only person wearing a red shirt, the same color of the shirt worn by the perpetrator of the crime. Eyewitness misidentification is the leading contributing factor in wrongful convictions proven through DNA testing. "
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Henry’s conviction rested solely on flawed eyewitness identifications provided by the three neighbors. The first eyewitness, who was closest to the crime scene, was presented with an unbiased line-up a few days after the murders and did not identify Henry as the perpetrator. It was only seven years later, after being arrested for a series of serious crimes, that this eyewitness claimed to have suddenly recalled that in fact Henry had been the person he saw fleeing the scene. The other two eyewitnesses were each presented with biased line-ups in which Henry was the only person wearing a red shirt, the same color of the shirt worn by the perpetrator of the crime. Eyewitness misidentification is the leading contributing factor in wrongful convictions proven through DNA testing. "
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GIST: "(New Orleans, LA – May 7, 2020) Today, Darrill Henry walked out of Angola prison two months after Judge Dennis Waldron — the judge who presided over his 2011 trial – granted post-conviction relief and ordered a new trial in his case based on DNA evidence that excludes Henry.
On April 2, the court set bail in Henry’s case. Overnight, his family had raised the minimum amount necessary to post his bond through a community fundraiser. As the prison started processing Henry to leave, he gave away all of his possessions to the men he thought he was leaving behind at Angola only to have his release delayed another 5 weeks. During this time, the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office filed four separate appeals of the court’s grant of bail and argued that his bail should be increased to an insurmountable $8 million. On May 6, the Louisiana Supreme Court rejected the state’s final appeal of bail. Henry was reunited with his two children and family today after more than 15 years in prison.
“When Darrill went away his children were just starting elementary school, and one of their most cherished memories was having their father pick them up from school,” said Vanessa Potkin, director of post-conviction litigation at the Innocence Project. “Today Darrill Jr, now 22 years old, made the drive to Angola to pick his dad up, and finally bring him home. Given the new evidence of his innocence, we hope that he is fully vindicated of these charges soon.”
“I never lost faith that this day would come,” said Henry. “I appreciate what everyone has done to fight to bring me home.”
On June 15, 2004, an 89-year-old woman was confronted in her kitchen and stabbed 14 times and her house set on fire in what law enforcement believed to be an apparent robbery. Her daughter, who had come to check on her mother that day, was shot on the porch as the assailant left. Just after the shooting, three neighbors, who were standing across the street, briefly saw a stranger in a red shirt leaving the scene.
“I never lost faith that this day would come. I appreciate what everyone has done to fight to bring me home.”
Henry’s conviction rested solely on flawed eyewitness identifications provided by the three neighbors. The first eyewitness, who was closest to the crime scene, was presented with an unbiased line-up a few days after the murders and did not identify Henry as the perpetrator. It was only seven years later, after being arrested for a series of serious crimes, that this eyewitness claimed to have suddenly recalled that in fact Henry had been the person he saw fleeing the scene. The other two eyewitnesses were each presented with biased line-ups in which Henry was the only person wearing a red shirt, the same color of the shirt worn by the perpetrator of the crime. Eyewitness misidentification is the leading contributing factor in wrongful convictions proven through DNA testing.
“Today Darrill Jr, now 22 years old, made the drive to Angola to pick his dad up, and finally bring him home.”
Henry has always maintained his innocence. The day of the crime he was applying for jobs in a different part of town. His ability to demonstrate his alibi at trial was impacted by the loss of witnesses and records due to Hurricane Katrina — which also contributed to an unprecedented seven years of pre-trial detention.
The court’s decision to overturn his conviction and order a new trial was based on the results of new DNA evidence that identified male DNA underneath one victim’s fingernails and on her wallet, which excluded Henry as the source. Judge Waldron noted that “eyewitness testimony is at the same time the most trusted of evidence and too often the least reliable.” He also highlighted several cases from 2019 where the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office secured convictions based on DNA found under a victim’s fingernails, stating, “The advent of DNA evidence has provided both the prosecution and the defense with a most valuable, convincing and compelling evidentiary tool.” The Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office is appealing this decision.
At the time of his arrest, Henry was raising his son Darrill who was six and his daughter Daranika who was eight years old. Darrill, Jr, now 22 years old, picked up his father from Angola and the two will reunite with Daranika, who is now, 23, and five months pregnant with Henry’s first grandchild.
Henry is represented by Vanessa Potkin, director of post-conviction litigation, Innocence Project; Aaron Delaney, Ariane Rockoff-Kirk, Daniel R. Friel, and Johan Tatoy of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP; and Letty Di Giulio of the Law Office of Letty S. Di Giulio."
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The entire story can be read at:
https://www.innocenceproject.org/darrill-henry-walks-out-of-angola-prison-after-more-than-15-years-of-wrongful-imprisonment/
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;
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The entire story can be read at:
https://www.innocenceproject.org/darrill-henry-walks-out-of-angola-prison-after-more-than-15-years-of-wrongful-imprisonment/
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;
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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