PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This Blog is interested in false 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 (or other forensic evidence pointing to the suspect - where the identification is erroneous - in spite of witness’s certainty that it is true - or where the police have somehow rigged the identification process in order to make a desired identification inevitable.
Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
----------------------------------------------------------------
PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "An investigation launched by the brother of one of the victims also found that Holmes' car was likely misidentified at the time and that key differences between his Oldsmobile and the one used by the robbers were overlooked, Pryor said. Based on the review, five of six independent panelists voted that Holmes was innocent and his conviction should be thrown out immediately. The victims in the case both said they thought Holmes should be released. Deputies involved in the original investigation were also shocked Holmes served 34 years in prison and had been sentenced to 400 years."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
STORY: "Florida man serving 400-year prison sentence walks free after being exonerated of robbery charges," CBS News (Reporter Aliza Chasan) reports, published on March 14, 2023.
GIST: "A man who served more than three decades of a 400-year prison sentence for armed robbery charges was freed Monday after being exonerated.
Sidney Holmes, 57, was convicted in April of 1989 for a 1988 robbery in which he was accused of being the getaway driver.
Holmes was greeted by his family as he walked free Monday, and said the first thing he wanted to do was get something to eat, CBS Miami reported.
"We have one rule here at the Broward State Attorney's Office – do the right thing, always. As prosecutors, our only agenda is to promote public safety in our community and to ensure that justice is served," Broward State Attorney Harold F. Pryor said in a statement.
"I commend the victims, witnesses, and law enforcement officers for their candor and assistance in reinvestigating a crime that occurred more than 34 years ago."
Holmes had been convicted of acting as the getaway driver for two men who robbed two people at gunpoint and stole one of the victim's car just west of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on June 19, 1988, according to the state attorney's office. The two robbers remain unidentified.
Holmes contacted the State Attorney's Conviction Review Unit (CRU) in 2020 and told investigators he was innocent. The CRU then determined that Holmes had a plausible claim of innocence.
During CRU's review of Holmes' case, it determined eyewitness identification of Holmes during the initial investigation was likely incorrect and that there was no evidence connecting Holmes to the robbery outside of the flawed identification.
An investigation launched by the brother of one of the victims also found that Holmes' car was likely misidentified at the time and that key differences between his Oldsmobile and the one used by the robbers were overlooked, Pryor said.
Based on the review, five of six independent panelists voted that Holmes was innocent and his conviction should be thrown out immediately.
The victims in the case both said they thought Holmes should be released. Deputies involved in the original investigation were also shocked Holmes served 34 years in prison and had been sentenced to 400 years.
The nonprofit OIC of South Florida is set to help Holmes with reintegration services along with job training and placement."
The entire story can be read at:
sidney-holmes-exonerated-400-year-sentence-florida
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Read recent National Registry of Exonerations entry at the link below: (Contributing factors: Mistaken Witness ID, Official Misconduct);
-------------------------------------------------------------
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. 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;
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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;
—————————————————————————————————
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
------------------------------------------------------------------
YET ANOTHER FINAL WORD:
David Hammond, one of Broadwater’s attorneys who sought his exoneration, told the Syracuse Post-Standard, “Sprinkle some junk science onto a faulty identification, and it’s the perfect recipe for a wrongful conviction.”
------------------------------------------------------------------
