QUOTE OF THE DAY: "The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals officially overturned the conviction in October and the exoneration was finalized in November. "There exists no evidence in which we could support a conviction and believe Mr. Roark is actually innocent," Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot said. "We firmly believe would the same facts and circumstances occur today, Mr. Roark would be acquitted of any charges brought against him, therefore he should enjoy the presumption of innocence."
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STORY: "Dallas County man exonerated in 1997 shaken baby case," by FOX 4 Staff (from a Dallas County District Attorney's Office release) on November 18, 2024.
SUB-HEADING: (The brief): "Andrew Roark was convicted in Dallas County in 2000 for the death of his girlfriend's 1-year-old daughter. At the time, doctors said the little girl died after being violently shaken. The science behind Shaken Baby Syndrome is no longer accepted in court. Roark's conviction was officially overturned in October and his exoneration was finalized in November."
DALLAS - A Dallas County man who was convicted in a Shaken Baby Syndrome case more than two decades ago has been exonerated.
In 1997, Andrew Roark was arrested for injury to a child after his girlfriend’s 1-year-old daughter was found unconscious in his home. Doctors at the time said the child had been violently shaken.
Roark was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison.
However, the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office said that the theory of Shaken Baby Syndrome is no longer supported by medical and scientific experts.
Roark was released on bond in 2012 after the DA’s office agreed to give him a new trial.
After additional court hearings in 2014, 2019, and 2023, the DA’s office recommended that Roark’s conviction be vacated.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals officially overturned the conviction in October and the exoneration was finalized in November.
"There exists no evidence in which we could support a conviction and believe Mr. Roark is actually innocent," Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot said. "We firmly believe would the same facts and circumstances occur today, Mr. Roark would be acquitted of any charges brought against him, therefore he should enjoy the presumption of innocence."
"The scientific evidence in this case was highly technical and required careful review. After reading the Court of Criminal Appeals’ opinion, it is evident that the high court also thoroughly examined all the evidence when reaching the conclusion that the advancements in science entitled Roark to a new trial and that it is unlikely a jury would convict him in light of those advancements," said CIU Chief Prosecutor Cynthia R. Garza.
Roark is the 47th person exonerated in Dallas County since 2001.
The Innocence Project of Texas represented him.{
The entire story can be read at:
https://www.fox4news.com/news/dallas-county-andrew-roark-exonerated-shaken-baby
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
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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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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;
