Note he was exonerated: Not declared innocent; because of this, he is NOT entitled to compensation from the state

Um. The headline states: "declared innocent" btw, assuming msnbc got it right. Ik, big assumption

NO it is not:

Exonerate is; to clear, absolve, acquit.

Innocent is; blameless, not guilty.

I speak English, not the bastardized version you obviously subscribe to.

The headline may state declared innocent but the text of the article does not. Good ol' MSNBC reporting!

You do realize that there is no "declaration of innocence" in US legal proceedings? You are either "guilty" or "not guilty". Exoneration is a reversal of a "guilty" finding, ergo, the defendant is legally innocent...aside from which, there is direct physical evidence which leaves zero shadows of doubt he was not party to the crime, it is therefore impossible for him to be guilty of it...

He is not guilty, therefore he is innocent. Anything less is trite wordplay hoping to twist intent more severely than the Texas courts twisted the proceedings to lock him up in the first place.

He had 3 strikes against him from the beginning. He was the wrong color.

James - I think you've said it all. People like Phil-673730 will use any excuse to make sure they never see a truly innocent person as innocent. TX thinking says "he was convicted so by golly he's guilty...no matter what!"

DNA forensics has been the greatest advancement for the exoneration of the innocent as well as a tool to combat corrupt, lazy and prejudicial law enforcement personnel and prosecutors. Of course the truly rotten cops and d.a.s will still find ways to destroy and plant DNA evidence for their own evil agendas. Nevertheless, advancements in forensics seem to be leading us to a place where we may actually be able to have a mostly objective legal system. Now if we can only find a way to reduce the raging blood lust and draconian laws that seems to have infested so much of the United States of Prisons.

Texas has the highest rate of executions and the highest number of people found innocent (ok, exonerated) after lengthy prison terms. There is little doubt that the state of Texas is murdering innocent persons for crimes they did not commit. Their justice system is not only broken and corrupt, it's a disgrace to our country. But this has been known for years. Read Grisham's, The Confession, for an accurate portrayal of Texas justice.

I agree. This man should win a compensatory judgment so large it reaches into jurors' moral fiber. The 'great' state of Texas has created an atmosphere which enables (if not promotes) this sort of thing and what else will turn this corrupt mind set around. Everything above 100 mil should be diverted to the education system, in hopes it will teach Civics in addition to 'creationism'.

30 years wasted for something he didn't do, how do you make up for something like that?

This is just one of the reasons I am against the death penalty. You can free a person from prison, you can't bring them back to life. I also think the death penalty is wrong because it brings us down to the level of criminals; it is nothing more than a "legal murder". I understand how people who have lost a loved one to a violent death or a parent who has lost their child to a demented creep would want them to die. When I read about how awful the acts are, I feel that way too but shouldn't we, the law abiding citizens, behave better than criminals? I think this man deserves compensation, he lost 30 years of his life, all people who have been wrongly imprisoned do.

Sad thing is when they find police and DA abuse none of these people ever get charge with a crime. Also makes me against the death penalty. The Innocent Project just showed a man through DNA evidence who was put to death was innocent of his crime. It took the Innocent Project three years to get the testing done because the DA fought them.

according to the 2005 Texas Civil Practice and Remidies code Chapter 103. Compensation to persons wrongfully imprisoned. The state of Texas owes this man $500,000.00. compensation is at the rate of $25,000.00 per year if they served 20 years or less but is capped at $500,000.00 if you served more than 20 years. this amount would be payable in two annual installments. small price to pay for taking away 30 years of a mans life. Texas judicial system sucks, the comedian Ron White use to joke about how other states were doing away with the death penalty , but not Texas, they were actually installing a drive thru. how sad when you think about how many innocent men may have been executed in Texas.

Some of you will say anything to make this racist, right bopdaddy and some other of you yahoos.

Marv Leit is right. Also check out the movie "American Violet" to see how damaging the Texas justice railroad has been.

Good point! Prosecutors and any law enforcement officials involved in a case such as this need to be investigated and held responsible for such a travesty of the law. Especially the egotistical politically motivated puss head prosecutors out there. They fight tooth and nail to defend their actions then shrug off the findings contrary to their prosecution efforts. Fine them, dis bar them and lock them up! Send a message that over zealous unlawful prosecution will NOT be tolerated in this Country!!!

Phil, choose the english speaking country you claim to come from where english is 'real'.

The fact is you can only be exonerated by being 'proved innocent'. Yes exoneration does not mean innocent, it is the action taken after being proven innocent.

Ever hear of someone being exonerated because of a preponderance of 'reasonable doubt' after a jury trial? No you haven't. Yes, you can also be released (and retried) because of judicial or prosecutorial misconduct and the like, but that's not the case here. Somebody had to go back to the court and prove he was innocent. That's why he was released by the judicial system.

The bottom line is this guy didn't do it. What a miscarriage of justice for an innocent man to serve 30 years in prison. I hope he does have legal recourse and is compensated. If anyone deserves it he does.

One other note; Texas is the leading death penalty State in the union. I wonder how many innocent people they've killed? I am a proponent of the Death Penalty for the most heinous crimes, but they damn well better be sure the person is guilty. And I agree, this man was probably found guilty by being black.

About a week later, DNA test results came back proving his innocence.

Phil, you ignorant jerk! Right there in the article is the above quote, stating about as clearly as possible that he was proven INNOCENT, not just exonerated.

By the way, here is a dictionary definition of exonerate:

ex·on·er·ate [ ig zónnə ràyt ] (past and past participle ex·on·er·at·ed, present participle ex·on·er·at·ing, 3rd person present singular ex·on·er·ates)

transitive verb

Definition:

1. free somebody from blame or guilt: to declare officially that somebody is not to blame or is not guilty of wrongdoing

Sounds a lot like "innocent" to me.

And your bias against MSNBC's reporting nothwithstanding, please note that the article itself is from the Associated Press, not MSNBC.

I suggest that you stop breathing from your mouth, it might help your powers of observation.

He is a very lucky man. There have been at least three cases currently being investigated of TX executing a man even though the DNA evidence clearly showed they were innocent, and the prosecution and/or police hid that fact from the defense and the courts, even through appeals; or simply would not allow new DNA to be taken until the person was dead. Yet TX leads the nation in executions year after year.

Ah, yes! Our perfect judicial system is finally working for some of those not considered of wealthy, elite status. For too long, there has been a separate judicial system for the elite, who spent little to no time at all in jail for their crimes. Look at what happens in Congress, where the offenders just get their hands slapped with no jail time at all.

Really people are pulling the race card out on this one huh. Black schmack get over it nobody gives a crap if you are black, white, blue, or purple the legal system failed as usual inthis case, if the defense attorney's would have done thier job then he would never have been sent to prison. There was proof beyond a resonable doubt. So it was the legal system not because he was black, idiot. bopdaddytoo it's people like you that keep the world in the past move on into the 21st century, if there weren't people like you the world would get over it and move on.

Why does everyone want to bring race into it. You don't know if the victim was white,black,yellow,purple or pink! It's people like you that keep racism alive! Why don't you guess my race and lets see if you are right!

He should at least receive a pension after serving the state 30 years!

I don't know, 'No Party Affiliation', I almost would rather the State send me back to the Creator than to rot in a Texas prison for 30 years!! Tough call, inho.

On that note, I agree with 'Blondeness' about the death penalty. Sure, I've often felt that true justice would be served by frying some of these vicious criminals, but as I've gotten older I have become more aware of the inconsistencies in our justice system, as well as gradual changes to my personal philosophical worldview. I'm not so sure that capital punishment is justified within a 'civilized' system. If a man can be put in prison for 30 years, only to be then found innocent, then undoubtedly we have sent other innocent men to the gallows. There is only shame in this notion. And how can we condemn others' to death- and yet maintain our prestige of American values?

Or is it that our American values need some fine-tuning?

I'm sorry for this man who spent the best, most productive years of his life behind bars. This is a travesty that can only be truly repaid by making the necessary corrections in our justice system to reduce the chances that this will happen again.

I believe it was Marshall Thurgood who stated: "It is better for ten guilty men to go free, than to hang one innocent man"

It's called "the victim picked him out of a line-up and he wasn't able to convince a jury she was wrong".

That said, I think DNA forensics is a major boon to the field. Mistakes like this are far less likely to occur these days.

White people have also been exhonerated...

Kudos for Texas stepping up to the plate to re-evaluate the evidence by newer better standards! Good job! The truth is far more valuable than saving face, and they are doing the right thing.

The justice system does not always work properly. Sometimes guilty people are acquitted and sometimes innocent people are found guilty. DNA has been a great tool for re-examing evidence. I the OJ case I still cannot figure how a jury found him innocent.

Go ahead and secede, Texas.

We won't miss you.

Why do all of you think this doesn't go on in your own back yards?

bicfj ... you'd miss us more than you know ... ;))

Until Texas gets rid of its execution assembly line and America joins other civilized nations in getting rid of the death penalty, maybe it should keep its nose out of stonings in Iran (particularly since it seems to have few, if any, objections to stonings occurring in nations allied with it such as Saudi Arabia).

No Undead Ashamon it's people like you that refuse to acknowledge racism exists that problems persist in the legal system. You are found guilty by a jury of your peers. If you are in the south where racism is rampant and a majority of them are white, what do you think will happen? The justice system is not blind and racism is very real in this country beyond a doubt. Sterotypes run deep and negative things are said about black people all the time. Do you think that doesn't effect how they are viewed by average people when jurors are average people? And this case took place thirty years ago, before the 21st century mind you and the whole idea of guilty beyond a reasonable doubt for black men in the south was a fallacy. Period. Trials were often unfair with no real proof of any kind. So you Undead Ashamon and people like you who like pretending as if black people were never treated unfairly in the justice systemonly perpetuate the problem.

best part of the picture is the 2 whites acting like they are happy for him when we all know its for themselves

i feel that it's a race thing also. if you think about it, out of all the 47 men that were exonerated only one was white. i feel if they had to pay 1 to 2 million a year for the time they served behind bars to those people they'll started getting it right

How can you possibly bring race into it? Are you kidding me? The victim picked them out of a line. Do you REALLY think she couldn't tell whether they were black or white when all of this was going on . . . so she just decided to pick the black guys out of the line? Obviously, the victim new it was a black guy who did it. How is that racism on ANYONE'S part? Come on . . .

Then that means you must be guilty of something too, sfb.

A funny statement but really not appropriate in this thread. If we were all imprisoned for what we did wrong the earth would be a large penal colony.

i think phil should do a couple of years to get his thinking right, btw, i will never live in texas

bspurloc -- what is with that statement? Of course, they're happy for him. Why else would they have spent all this time and effort (free of charge, by the way) getting him out of prison? This took years of work.

The only people who are "red-faced" over this miscarriage of justice, are the Texans who put him in jail in the first place, without the proper evidence. It has been proven time and time again, that eye witness identification is the most unreliable evidence. Sometimes, people see what they want to see.

This sort of case is the reason that I support legislation generally called "proxy sentencing." No state has yet adopted it because most legislators are lawyers and it is very scary for them.

Currently almost all states and the federal government have "shield laws" of varying degree that shelter prosecutors and law enforcement from all but the most blatant charges of crime in the performance of their duties. This is a form of sovereign immunity.

In proxy sentencing, if a person is WRONGFULLY convicted AND there was ACTIVE misconduct by the prosecution, defense, or law enforcement, then the person(s) who committed the misconduct should be tried for abuse of sovereign immunity. If convicted, their individual sentence(s) would be the same as the person wrongfully convicted --- up to and including capital punishment if it was inflicted. The minimum sentence before eligibility for parole would be the amount of time the wrongly convicted person spent in prison.

This sort of situation usually comes about because the police catch someone that they believe committed a specific crime. They, often together with prosecutors, then suppress evidence, manufacture evidence, or ignore evidence that would complicate the case and "confuse" the jury. Most law enforcement officers and prosecutors see juries as woefully stupid people who are easily confused and unable to deal with the complexities of law.

I used to live in Roanoke, VA. A neighbor (two streets over) was convicted of rape. A young girl complained to the police that she had been raped on the Blue Ridge Parkway at a scenic overlook. She said that she did not get a good look at the assailant, but that he appeared to be a black man driving a red pickup truck. The police staked out the Parkway and a couple of nights later a red pickup truck came by at approximately the same time in the evening. It was driven by a white male who was a foreman in a textile plant and drove this route to and from work 5-6 days a week.

There was no physical evidence at the scene to link the man to the crime. He did not fit the description of being black, and there was no hair, fiber or other evidence that would link the woman to the man's vehicle or home despite that, judging from the woman's clothing, there was a lot of blood. The girl could not pick him out of the lineup until she was prompted to pick out that specific man by telling her that they had other evidence (not true), that he had confessed (not true) and that he was a serial rapist who would continue to rape young women if she did not identify him (he had no police record --- not even parking tickets.)

The trial was a travesty. The court-appointed defense attorney tried repeatedly to get off the case and never presented any sort of defense, not even calling the man to testify on his own behalf. The police claimed falsely to have found a rag with both the man's blood and her blood co-mingled (this rag was of unknown origin and later proved to have come from another case.) The conviction was swift and he was sentenced to 30 years.

His wife left him and his two children became estranged because he refused to admit his "secret life." His home was foreclosed and his red pickup truck repossessed.

After, I believe, 11 years, he was freed by the Innocence Project based on DNA evidence from both the rag and the girl's clothing. When confronted by the police she admitted that she had been there with her boyfriend and that they had consensual sex. She had been a virgin, however, and there was a lot of blood in her father's car and and on her clothing. She became convinced she was pregnant. She made the whole thing up and picked the man from the lineup (she was not required to appear in court) because the police told her that he was guilty of many other rapes and she figured that it would kill two birds with one stone.

But the man was freed and given a large amount of cash by the state. But his wife had remarried and moved to another state and his kids were calling another man "father." He was offered his old job back, but was soon fired because his mindset had become so used to following instructions to the letter and having his every moment supervised that he could no longer supervise other people. He used much of the state award to buy back his old house where he lived alone.

Nothing was done to the police or lawyers involved.

Proxy sentencing laws would subject the prosecutors, police, and even possibly the defense lawyer to a mandatory 30-year sentence with 11 years before being considered for parole.

Another piece of helpful legislation would make a law enforcement officers personal briefcase or locker searchable and possession of certain items a serious felony with at least a 20-year mandatory sentence with no parole. The types of items that would be forbidden for an officer to have in his possession would include, but not be limited to, knives, cheap pistols with the serial number removed and small amounts of prescription drugs not prescribed for the officer, cocaine, heroin, marijuana, or other controlled substances. These can be presumed to be in the officer's possession so that they can be used, if necessary, to justify other actions against a suspect.

There was a 90-year-old in Atlanta who was shot in bed in a botched drug raid. The detectives involved planted small bags of marijuana and cocaine in her apartment and planted an untraceable handgun as well. Just as possession of burglar tools is a crime in itself, just possession of this sort of item is a fair presumption that an officer will use them to wrongfully convict someone or to justify a wrongful use of force.

And for @Undead: There is really no race card to play. Latinos are wrongfully convicted at a rate of 16 times that of middle- to upper-class whites and poor blacks at a rate around 80 times that of middle- to upper-class whites. Those are just facts. And the numbers are even worse for Texas which leads the country in wrongful convictions.

For further reading, try: http://www.innocenceproject.org/

And here is a study that is more focused on capital cases. Capital cases do have a lower rate of wrongful conviction that all cases together, but this is because of things like automatic appeal and the separation of conviction and sentencing trials in capital cases tend to force more scrutiny of the case. But even there 43% of those wrongfully convicted in capital cases are black.

http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/spring2003/death_penalty.html

This really is a serious problem in this country and causes serious credibility issues with our justice system. We have the largest percentage of out population incarcerated --- far more than even the old Soviet Union with its gulags. We have the highest return-to-prison rate despite having the stiffest sentences in the world. And these are not country clubs --- over half the facilities in this country are currently under court orders because of overcrowding.

And even the dollars and cents issues are ignored. It costs more to keep a person in prison than to keep a person in college. And almost half the people in our prisons are guilty of victimless crimes or crimes that the rest of the industrialized world does not consider serious enough to warrant prison time. It is a system that obviously doesn't work and is costing the taxpayers huge amounts of money to actually harm society and undercut the criminal justice system.

i think it might be mike-----superior guy you're still a dik

Thank God for this gentleman's honor and persistence---most of all, thank God for men like Barry Scheck for tirelessly working on behalf of the falsely convicted and wrongfully accused.

Good luck, blessings to you, and good wishes that all of your dreams will come true, Sir. There definitely is a God and vindication!

Just for the heck of it, rent the flick, 'The Thin Blue Line' and you'll get to see Texas justice at it's worse!

Do you know thte specifics of the case? And how he was convicted in the first place? I'm not saying that you couldn't be right, But don't make that kind of statement without any proof. If you do so you are as biggoted as "they" are.

Boppdaddytoo................

Your statement implies Blacks never commit crimes, and are all, each and every one, completely and totally railroaded by an unjust, prejudiced, and racist system. I wonder what it must be like to live in your completely irrational, prejudiced, and racist mind? Dave Ramsey would be proud of you. With that brain, you must have saved a fortune, and paid off all of your credit cards by not having to pay the exorbitant prices demanded for entertainment at Disneyworlds' Fantasyland. What a cost savings! If only we silly, mature adults who are trapped here in the real world were as smart as you.

Are you all a bunch of English majors? Did you miss the actual content/message. An innocent man was release from prison after 30 years. It doesn't matter if the courts found evidence and "aquitted" him or whatever term they you use and argue over. The man is innocent and I am sure he knew it before they released him......he knew it for over years.

As a former resident of Texas, I want to add a big Amen to that

Bottomtimer, they show a pic of him and his new wife. That said, I do agree with you somewhat. It does not matter what color or for that matter what religon you are, this man's life has been put on hold for what, the stupidity that the texas government has shown. They will find someday that they have wronged too many. Wander if we can remove them from being a state??

Thank goodness for the Innocence Project!

When, oh when, will routine DNA testing be done?

The attitude of some law enforcement persons is sickening. I've seen several interviews in which it was stated "The court system found them guilty. End of story." The fact that DNA testing could reverse the court decision was distasteful to these persons. I was awed with disbelief.

I think sending a few bucks to the Innocence Project might be in order . . .

The jury convicted him, only real evidence was woman's mistaken identifying him; if any of you ever serve on a jury, if the only evidence is a victims ID of the perv, then remember witness identification of a individual is the most unreliable, if not backed up by other evidence; Jurors start off believing the person charged is guilty, innocence until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, is only for tv and movies, not real courtroom jury's !

For those of you complaining about the race card being pulled, you might have a valid complaint if the guy was arrested in 2009, but in the seventies and eighties the situation was very different in certain areas of the country, not just Texas either. I spent some time in a small town about 90 miles southeast of Austin in 1984. I almost got the crap kicked out of me by a few of the yokels in a convenience store when I let a older black woman go ahead of me in line. They decided I was a N^&*%r lover was the term they used. Anyway thank goodness my cousin's husband was there, (from the area) and diffused the situation. I know this should not be an indictment of the whole state and criminals do come in all shapes and colors, but I really got the idea that at that time, these people were far from enlightened.

Anyway I'm glad the state of Texas has seen fit to review these cases and try to rectify some of the errors of the past. May this guy enjoy the remainder of his life.

@ Phil-673730 I don't usually indulge in name calling but you've earned it. You are a total moron! You have never read the Tim Cole Act which is the act this man can receive compensation under. It does not state he has to be declared innocent. In fact, it states he must be found "not guilty". Since I am sure you're arrogant enough to want to argue this, I am quoting the actual law for you and is says as follows:

14 vSec.A 103.003. LIMITATION ON TIME TO FILE. Not later than

15 the third anniversary of the date the person on whose imprisonment

16 the claim is based received the pardon or was granted relief [found

17 not guilty ] as required by Section 103.001, a person seeking

18 compensation under this chapter must[:

So you see Phil, you are absolutely wrong and have no right to insult James or born late on what sort of english they read as you were talking out your backside. You think about the old saying that it's better to remain silent and thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.

Listen, with every system there is always some minor collateral damage. A small price to pay to ensure the rest of us are safe from those who need to be locked away.

CS...your name is so far from being accurate. Have you ever noticed that rightwing nuts and domestic terrorists always talk about "collateral damage" (read innocent victims) being okay when trying to justify acts that they agree with? Timothy McVeigh did it when he bombed the Oklahoma City Federal Building too.

Hey- dodo- what do you think "exonerated" means?

These same clowns are the first to defend the death penalty. In southern states they talk Justice but it is really all about vengeance. It is really a extension of the fundamentalist extremest version of Christianity too many of them practice.

To bottomtimer:

To quote your words: "Why does everyone want to bring race into it. You don't know if the victim was white,black,yellow,purple or pink! It's people like you that keep racism alive! Why don't you guess my race and lets see if you are right!"

Take a close look at the picture in color in this article and then look at your second sentence. Pictures speak a thousand words with a sealed mouth . Therefore, your last sentences points your finger directly back into your face in regards to your naive question followed by the second sentence of your comment about not knowing the skin color. You are, also, contributing to the attempt of keeping racism alive. It is not important what the color of one's skin is. But what is important in this article is: A man wrongly convicted through an over zealous court was finally freed (with concrete facts--DNA) after spending 30 years in jail. Now he deserves to have pay compensation for all the years spent in jail. So try leaving the trite racism complaint out for a change! You and others need to stick to the facts written in the article. Another comment to mention is: The officials running the four R's sex offender treatment program (before Dupree could go home) should have been fired on the spot, since Dupree was forced to remain for the program before going home, and most importantly was found not guilty of the crime. But then again, it takes a long time to retrain the overzealous Texans.

The Innocence Project via AP
Cornelius Dupree Jr., right, and his wife Selma Perkins Dupree embrace. Dupree, who made parole six months ago, was declared innocent Tuesday of an aggravated robbery conviction that put him in prison for 30 years, more than any other DNA exoneree in Texas.

Not just Texas its every state. Texas has the worst record. So many innocent people in prison with no DNA to help them against wrongfull convictions. About time DA and police are charged when its a clear cut case of abuse.

We need to leave the FEDERAL government out of everything. They are more corrupt than the state of Texas would ever dream of being.

Wait now...Let me see if I've got this right. This guy goes to jail for 30 years on a charge of aggravated robbery and Ken Lay of Enron robs 33,000 Enron employees of their retirements and that's not aggravation? and this guy gets 30 years while Jeff Skilling Enron's wonder boy get less than a decade?

Then, there's the matter of the Ahole Texas government showing what it is really all about: this guy gets 30 years and is exonnerated so he can't sue the state but Ken Lay's record gets expunge so wifie Most Texan can collect what's left of the robbery money Lay stole from his employees?

All that petrochemical air pollution in Texas has their state government's brains addled. Either that or they've been doing the swagger, swagger, boom, boom routine so long their brains are fried.

Courts are required by law to have mistakes. Sound shocking! Sorry, but that's the way our forefathers carved it out. If you're not interested in having mistakes than you would not implement justice using an 'adversarial system'! Both sides are adversaries against each other, neither side is required to care one whit about truth or justice.

There is nothing in our justice system that requires our judicial system to care for, search for, or even desire, the truth of any judicial claim or argument. They just have to prove the letter of the law as it applies to any specific situation and meet the required burden of evidence.

It's literally just a really big expensive 'game of chance' played by adults. The only guaranteed winners are lawyers. Sound familiar? Yep, it is a lot like wall street, just substitute brokers for lawyers.

Amen to that brother!!!!

" just substitute brokers for lawyers."

Or Politicians or Drug dealers...

Yeah, I'd say all four are about the same thing (Lawyers, Brokers, Politicians, Drug Dealers...) They all want to "help" you, but make their money off of our pain, weakness, apathy, or stupidity.

Right on, rrobeson!

all bible belt states and below.....

christianity being the #1 most violent religion and twined into the government is always bad news

@Idaho-steven,

I don't know if they are actually more corrupt, but they can certainly muck things up with the best of them. The problem is that all of these positions, judges, prosectuters and the like are too politically motivated and influenced by special interest on either conservative or liberal groups. The only way to solve these issues are better checks and balances in place and a great deal more transparency. Judges and lawyers need to be held to standards and responsible for their actions.

Its not just men that get railroaded in Texas. My daughter was raped by three men so CPS took her son from her. REAL justice, right? I'm moving to Vermont.

Vermont, too COLD!

Yea, but that's only because the offense was "Jay Walking"!

actually the offense he was convicted of 'aggravated robbery' was given a sentence of 70 years? Wow, what does involuntary manslaughter get you? 200 years?

rrobeson...It got Enron's Ken Lay's record of criminal activity expunged so his "heirs" could inherit his fortune. Texas doesn't abide by the Constitutional right to due process of law. All you have to do is get yourself handcuffed and your guilt is already pronounced and your sentence isn't far behind.

This is how utterly backward Texas government is. It proves that Texas judges people on their financial worth. If you are a moneyed Texan, the laws don't apply to you. God help you if you were born poor and didn't become "Big Oil".

True, we dont coddle rapists and murderers in Texas.

No, Rawdy...and apparently you don't care if you lock up innocent people for 30 years, either.

Carianne, if you think that every other state in the US doesn't lock up innocent people then you're absolutely incorrect about that.

Dallas Texas is the ONLY city that carries their evidence for 30+ years after a case has been "solved". Other cities and other states do not... If any other cities in any other state still had their evidence from cases 30 years ago, then you'd be hearing a lot of "declaired innocent after 30+ years" articles from those states as well.

But Texas is the only state that can and is willing to correct tragic errors and you apparantly don't care that there are 49 other states that can't and won't correct their tragic errors.

And since this hanging never came to pass and instead a remorseful state makes him a wealthy man, well your accusation of Texas shows you are kind of all wet and maybe prejudiced.

I agree. I recently had $200 in gift cards stolen from my wallet, and im pretty confident that my coworker did it. But, do you think based on my "hunch" that I should launch an accusation at her? NO WAY.

Our judicial system would work much differently if the accuser was put in prison, wants it was learned that they made false accusations. And being "mistaken" about the person you are fingering, is in fact a false accusation. If you cant know or dont know based on a lineup, all you have to do is say "I dont know, this sucks"...rather than saying "well catching SOMEONE is better than catching NO ONE"...

My brother in law was accused of rape, after meeting a girl at the bar and driving her home, and she invited him to her room ...and they didnt even have intercourse, and he left when she asked him to. She couldnt remember a single thing about that night, but deep down she KNEW she had been raped, and probably was drugged too...since she at least remembers not having drank enough to black out. She took him to trial and the whole thing lasted 2.5 years...but he was aquited just before christmas. This was no skin off her back, all she had to do was make an accusation and let eveyone else do the actual work. and if she's wrong, oh well...no biggie right?

Except, his life was on hold for 2.5 years because he couldnt get a job, go back to school, or leave the state...his life was essentially in prison because SHE wasnt sure what happened that night, so clearly, she must have been raped.

I feel bad for her, clearly she THINKS something bad happened, even though it didnt...but is that a valid reason to attempt to put someone away for 15 years to life? REALLY?

Wouldn't it be the jury you sentence then? Not the victim. Or would you rather go after the lawyer, or the police. At some point you have to stop trying to get revenge and live the rest of your life- just like the victim. Now she knows the real person who did this is still out there somewhere. There is no real winner here.

an eye for an eye and the whole world is blind

Not really. The witnesses may have been lying, the evidence altered or manufactured, etc. Juries only know what they've been told.

xetheare

an eye for an eye and the whole world is blind

With that said, why even have a legal system in the first place... Think about it for a second.

Very good point Elizabeth, many times its difficult to tell where the injustice presented itself. Was it the police, the prosecutor, perhaps the jury was bias, or even the judge. It could have been a case where the victim was just mistaken, or the defense attorney did a poor job. Perhaps the error was spread across everyone involved. What is relevant is that the situation could be rectified. It would also be nice to discover what went wrong so that perhaps measures could be put in place to try to avoid them.

US justice system-- The blind leading the deaf and dumb.

I couldn't agree with your opinion more! Further, if the accused were politicians, the rich and the elite, they probably would have never seen a damn day in prison. If they did, they would've been out within days, if not hours. The good old US Justice system usually only works for those who can afford it. One thing is sure: it is unfair and biased. I feel so incredubly sorry for this man who lost most of his life for a crime he didn't commit, and esp. because the scumbags who put him there will walk away.

jmitco...That depends on who the politician happens to be. If he's one of Texas' good ole boys like Tom Delay, why that trial could take years and count on it. He won't get a 70 year sentence even though this isn't DeLay's first brush with the law.

All the more reason to try to gain more wealth and political favor.

I agree, find the prosecutor. The problem with our judicial system is that it has very little to do with truth, it is a political process where da;s climb the ladder by number of convictions, screw the poor person who cant afford a real attorney and has to rely on public pretenders, who are lawyers who graduate at the bottom of their classes. We need a complete overhaul of the judicial system.

screw the poor person who cant afford a real attorney and has to rely on public pretenders "" that is the real truth!!!!! If you can afford a 'good' lawyer you might have a chance................. this story should give everyone a reason to pause. it could happen to you or yours. i hope that he is able to make the transition.... that's a long time to confined.

luvmy2boys...Dollar to a donut that prosecutor is in that Good Ole Boys network and paid as a US attorney. That's the heritage of being in the "in" crowd in Texas. You get a bump up in pay for every sentencing and a chance at the US attorney's chair.

ewent,

no doubt!

Justice is not a priority for prosecutors in this country.

Take a load of this guy:

"http://reason.com/archives/2011/01/03/scott-andringa-for-judge"

After viewing, do a Google search for "UNTESTED RAPE KITS"

The only things our justice system takes seriously are drugs and traffic. All other concerns regarding protecting the public or serving justice are given low priority. Our justice system is diseased.

agreed.

-not bob levy

Matt: I tend to agree with you, although it's not the only reason I am against the death penalty.

If we kill another human being and make it acceptable just because we pass a law saying it's acceptable, then we're no better than the murderer.

I also agree with you, Matt. I am from the South and darn proud of it but, God Almighty, these cases drive me crazy. How many innocent people have been executed in this country?

Cases like this are the only reason I'm against the death penalty

Cases like this is why I would like to see a 3 out of 5 requirement for the death penalty that would ensure the death penalty was only given to those where there is no room for doubt and 2 speed up the death penalty process. The 3 of 5 requirement is where 3 of the following 5 things must exist in order for the death penalty to be acted on:

Multiple Witness Account (2 or more witnesses identify the suspect from random lineups)
DNA evidence
Video/Electronic evidence
Forensic Evidence beyond DNA (Fingerprints, shoe prints etc...)
Sworn confession in court

That means if 3 of the above show the convicted commited the crime that the death penalty would be enforced, if not the death penalty would not be enforced. The case would automatically be reviewed by a federal appeals court made up of 5 judges that would look over the evidence and determine if at least 3 of the 5 were properly collected and presented. If they found that only 3 of 5 were available the would rule that the death penalty could be carried out in 5 years so that time is given to the convicted to mount a proper appeal to the state supreme court or a federal district court. If the 5 judge panel found that 4 or all of the elements were presented and properly collected that the execution could be carried out in 90 days. This would prevent the "wrongfully" accused from being executed and would speed up the execution for those that are guilty.

Now using this case as an example (which I know he wasnt sentenced to death). There would have been 0 of the 5 elements and the death penalty would not have been permitted. Because;

Only the female victim identified the men the male victim did not
There was no DNA evidence to convict him
There was no video or electronic evidence
There might have been some foresenic but from the story in the article there was none
THere was no sworn confession in open court

I agree with Matt. I actually was once "for the death penalty." And, yes, Debi, I would have ZERO problem of pulling the plug -- myself -- on someone who harmed someone that I love. And, I would never forgive a monster for hurting someone I love -- but, that's just me.

However, when DNA evidence started clearing wrongly accused people who were actually innocent, I have re-thought the death penalty, and now I believe it is greater punishment for them to live the remainder of their miserable lives in prison. However, then they get out on parole! We really need to make some dramatic changes in how we address crime in this country!

In regard to this article, this poor man will never regain 30 years of his life! No amount of money can compensate him for what he and his wife lost. I was so touched by their picture together. What a strong woman, and she was tormented by this too. I hope he gets a HUGE settlement, but no amount can ever repay them for what they went through.

I'm against the death penalty simply because I cannot image life in prison being better then death. God or no God.

Sandra: I too have had thoughts of wanting someone to die and pay for their sins; i.e., bin laden, but again, that would put me on the same level as the perpetrator.

Oh one other thing. They have just proved that without question two people were put to death in Texas that were not guilty of their crimes. Wonder how many more they will find. If Texas had to pay 50 billion dollars for every innocent person they put to death, they would look long and hard before doing it. And it every prosecutor and police officer had to go to jail for 30 years every time they withheld evidence or other wrong doing, you would see a change. There are good and there are bad police and prosecutors, its time for a change, but sadly it will not happen. The more money you have, the easier it is to get away with crimes. The only thing that will change minds, is to hit them hard in the pocket book, until you do that, it will never change.

HonestIndy- I haven't heard of your proposition before now, but I must say I like the inherent logic in it. It begs the question WHY don't we already have something in place, like your suggestions, in order to create greater scrutiny for those we have condemned to death? This is America, for God's sake, doesn't our government take pride in justice?? (Please don't answer, I already know....)

BTW- No 'relation' to HonestIndy, but I like the name!

75yrs, Life; little difference! Might as well be on death row.

Texas has a higher execution rate than communist Cuba; Cuba executed 3 people in the last 10 years (2003).

Cuba? Three people? Do you have some documentation on that? And does it include those who just "disappeared"?

Don't make the leap that just because only 41 were exonerated, that this means all the others are guilty.

You have no idea how many people are in prison on the scantiest of "evidence"

41 is the tip of the iceburg.

So other than these 41 cases...the Texas Judicial System has been correct 100% of the time?

Thats 41 (so far) for whom DNA technology has been able to help clear their names. Given the culture of corruption, racism and "rush to justice" that these cases and others indicate has been rampant in the Texas judicial history...there are likely hundreds if not thousands of other innocent individuals serving time who will never be able to prove their innocence. So I wouldnt be so very quick to praise them for their "fantastic good record of accuracy 99.977%". No more than you could praise them for 100% accuracy before these 41 cases came to light.

Nor do you have any idea of how many are over-sentenced for minor cases because of political gains by those in the judicial system.

Dead men tell no tales. A 99.977% accuracy rate is not good enough. DNA testing is not performed when someone has already been executed since the Innocence Project saves its resources for those it can still help. Not every inmate who protests his/her conviction is able to have DNA testing done which further dilutes your claim of 99.977% accuracy. I sure your claim of 99.977% accuracy would be of small comfort to you if you found yourself in jail as in this man's circumstances and it would be of little comfort to the family of someone executed while protesting their innocence because DNA testing was not available to them due to lack of resources, crime scene DNA samples, or judicial denials.

I think Everybody in Jail is innocent. So do you bunch of Wimpy bleeding heart libs tree hugging save the earth love everybody people.

Clarke - you make the same assumption, just on the other side of the hill. You don't know it's the tip of the iceberg - you assume because there are 41 that there are more.

I do agree somewhat with ThisShouldHurt - how perfect can we make it? Do you really think innocent people don't get hurt/killed/trapped by criminals? By our government? I'm not talking any grand conspiracies here - traffic accidents by the National Guard or police while on the streets kills people. Heck - more people die from Deer than we've uncovered as innocent people locked up...

Tarzan7- What exactly was the point to your sophomoric rant? You honestly think this topic has much to do with partisan politics? Or can you not fathom the idea that maybe those "wimpy bleeding heart liberals" take more stock in trying NOT to convict innocent people than you do?

Either way, you've earned yourself a Moderator report for inflammatory comments. Grow up, be more respectful of the forum, and next time make a valid point.

The point is what you read.Stupid.

tarzan might be stupid, but he's "funny"stupid, and short with his remarks. No long envolved thesis, just quick dumb sh*t then out...still dumb though lol

Except, of course ThisShouldHurtALittle, is that the whole underpinnings of the American judicial system are SUPPOSED to be that it's better to let 1000 guilty people go than to infringe the rights and freedoms of a single innocent person. That's why we have innocent until proven guilty and not the reverse. Except in Texas it seems...

HA25: How perfect should we make it? 100%. Can we do that? Of course not, but we must try because nothing less is acceptable.

Not this one. Just the others executed while he was governor.

And to be fair, George could always plead insanity or diminished capacity.

clarke.....i am guess you have used that excuse many times, and you never were elected president

GB does shoulder some of the blame. Didn't he famously proclaim that he didn't need to review any capital cases or allow DNA testing because as he put it "Texas didn't convict anyone who was innocent"? What a clueless moron.

It's been declared countless times how idiotic our 43rd president was, and still is. No doubt some of these exonerated convictions were handed down during his governorship. Hell, I'd be the first person to state that if Bush somehow decided he could fly, and attempted to prove it off the Golden Gate Bridge, then I would gladly stand in line to throw confetti at his 'attempt'........

However, THIS IS NOT ABOUT BUSH!!!!! SO STOP TROLLING FOR PARTISAN POLITICAL ARGUMENTS!!! Thanks, and have a nice day!

I can think of a place that is more corrupt than texas, chicago!

Amen to that!!!!!!! Osama, Daly, Emanuel all crooks!!!

saky....For a state that assassinated one president and gave us a second president who was a failure, I wouldn't look anywhere but in Texas for corruption. You know...phony voting redistricting, Tom DeLay, Condoleeza Rice and Harriet Meiers and all that oil polluting the Gulf.

Illinois = North Texas?

I lived in Texas for five (5) years. Now, I live in Chicago. It's a wonderful city. As a matter of fact, I've lived all over this country, and in the Far East, and I can tell you that Texas was the only place I have lived where I felt the need to carry a gun.

I met some of the best people ever while living in Texas, and unfortunately, I met a some of the most ignorant and hateful people I've ever seen, and some of the worst poverty I have ever seen. It blew me away.

Not bashing Texas, just stating my experience there. I would never go back.

don't forget Texass originally wanted to be a republic before it was a state. it kinda of has a streak for independance. it should of stayed a republic.it's the execution capital of the country, and sooooooo ignorantly proud to be.

i hope this man sues hell out of that heee haaw state. he deserves every penny he gets. 1million dollars for each year of false inprisonment.i hope he finds a low life, sneaky, sleaze bag of a lawyer, that can win his case.Good Luck to Him.

Which is why we have the right to Secede

I figured you were Texan, Phil...makes perfect sense now.

I'll bet the remaining oil under your feet your a prosecuting attorney sweating his butt off, too.

Gloria it was a republic before joining the US.

Right to seceed, thought texas gave the right to seceed away after the civil war along with the other states!

No Phil, you don't. John is right, the right to secede was given up by all of the confederate states so they could rejoin the Union after the Civil War.

I'm ready to Secede right now!!!!!!!!!!!! Need to keep all the Northern and South of the border trash out!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey now, let's not be too hasty telling Texas it can't secede from the Union. I think the rest of the country could get along okay without the Texas School Board rewriting history textbooks in favor of Jefferson Davis and Creationism, and locking up every black man they can find. Heck, put up a border fence around *the whole thing*. Apologies to Austin, of course.

8)

Please do! Today! Need any help?

ah Phil, a right to secede? by all means please do. then stand by and watch the United States government kick your ass.

after all Phil, Texass isn't that big.

Jwright you're right on that one.

Texas was a Republic before it was a state. It remains in our Texas Constitution that Texas has the right to become a republic.

About the legal system here in Texas, y'all come on down, all are welcome but be good!

Gloria thanks. I still remember some of my 7th grade Texas History.

Check out #9.4- I like his/her ideas.

Bigot alert!

Did your Daddy spank you daily for what you were going to do in the future?

Being in prison kept him out of trouble? What makes you think he needed to be locked up to be kept out of trouble?

Good news?! Oh I see, because surely a black man would commit a crime in 30 years. You must be a genius to think that DNA might deteriorate when all those stupid scientists who developed the technology missed it. I'll bet you think you're a christian too.

Blacks commit crimes? I can't believe it. When did this happen.

Tarzan, THIS black did not commit a crime. Can't you grasp that? What do you have against him?

Ummm, Tarzan is a racist and a bigot who enjoys inflaming the emotions of others on this thread because he already got booted off his other chatlines.......

Can you say, "deleted by community"?

Aww the ignorance of the bigot!

hey dimwhit....go back to sleep

believe me, nobody's going to TEXAS to live.

I guess that why I see all the vehicle plates from Ohio and Michigan and Illinois everyday while I am driving to work all loaded down with personal possessions. If you arent here and dont see it, dont run your mouth a-hole....

once again clarke is a fool....i guess clarke didnt read how texas is growing and states like california are losing people

saky are those you see white people or minorities?

Breweyez,

Places like Texas are growing, not because people are sitting around, thinking...hmmm, where would I really really like to live. I know, lets move to Texas! Californians are moving out purely for economic reasons, not because they necessarily want to, but moreso because they have to. I live in SoCal, and believe me, it is not cheap. With that said, I will make the necessary lifestyle changes to financially be able to afford to stay, rather than jump ship. Can't beat the weather here.

You ignorant hillbilly. I am here from Illinois and I DO see it everyday. I see redneck cops who have a hard on for issuing speeding tickets to law abiding soccer moms while real crimes are being perpetrated right behind their backs. I see inbred DA's and judges who make back room deals to siphon fines and fees from those who will pay them while lowlife deadbeats like yourself walk out with a wink and nod.

I only count the days until I leave this godforsaken sh##hole and get back to a civilized and educated place to call home. What was I thinking? Oh, yeah, since UT and A&M can't produce an engineer that knows what they're doing, Texas has to import them from real schools....

All races brother, I got no issue with people coming here to work and be part of the solution and do it legally, but its the ones that are coming here to leech off of the system, those are the ones that can stay out. No race card here, bro...

Hey greg-2864748 I cant wait till you leave and go back to what ever Sh*tpile you crawled out from under. We wont miss you....

Hey Saky, your wife will miss me....

Not married dipsh*t, not even a good try you commie

Uh, saky...the whole point of the article is that he DIDN'T do a crime in Texas and, yet, got locked up for 30 years anyway. Oh...and don't worry...I wouldn't even come to Texas to VISIT, let alone live there.

saky reminds me of a joke I posted once before but it screams to be posted again.

If God had wanted Texans to ski, he/she would have made bullsh*t white.

"You Commie"' Really. You need to update your repitoir of comebacks and insults. I think "You Commie" went out in the 80s or so along with Pinko. I think you might try "You damn Lib." or "you conservative wingnut" depending on your political affiliations.

Do you realize how bigotted your statement about Texans is? This man was wronged and deserves compensation. It happens in every state, even yours.

Ps. I'm not from Texas.

I have yet to meet a Texan I liked. Sadly, every one I have met or talked to has been a Bigot to some extent or another. Im sure there must be some that arent, but I have yet to meet one..

Where on earth are you meeting these people?? I'm a proud Texan and have met many folks along my journey in life. I guess I'm just an easy going person and don't let other folks strong opinions affect my thought process. i can smile and keep pushing. Regardless of where a person is from, people just have their ways.

Why was he framed? The victim (30 years ago) pointed him out in a line up. Not so sure that would fall under being framed. It is incredibily sad he spent so much time in prison and I don't condone what happened but framed? Guess nobody here thinks what advances society has made in 30 years...it is all like it happened yesterday, right?

jammin,

framed or possibly a conviction swayed largely due to a little persuasion from the prosecutor and arresting officers. Regardless, this man was falsely accused, falsely picked from a lineup, and conveniently put in jail, so the great state of Texas could close a bogus case, and look like they are competent, when in fact they let the real perp walk.....pure laziness.

I think, to be honest no matter where your from, you have look at your government critically. I'm originally from NY and our saying about our politicians is, "Yeah, I know he's a crook, but he's our crook." I've also lived in many other states and I can emphatically state that each has its flaws, and benefits. I live in California now so I can tell you about flawed government. Our jails are stuffed full, but have revolving doors so there's good turnover. I confess that I'm not a liberal living in a very liberal state. I also think that California has a lot of great points and can recover to become the economic powerhouse it once was.