A Texas man who spent more than 15 years in prison after being wrongly convicted of kidnapping and robbery raised both arms skyward and collapsed in his mother’s embrace after being told he was a free man.
Patrick Waller’s sobs were the only sound at a crowded hearing attended by four other inmates also exonerated by DNA testing. “It’s all right, honey,” Patricia Cunningham told her son. “It’s over. You’re out of here. You’re going home.”
Waller had been behind bars since 1992 for aggravated robbery and aggravated kidnapping stemming from the abduction of a Dallas couple. He was proved innocent by DNA testing late last year.
Waller is the 19th man in Dallas County since 2001 shown by DNA evidence to be innocent of the crime for which he was convicted. That’s more than any county in the nation, according to The Innocence Project in New York, a legal center specializing in wrongful-conviction cases.
So, how strongly do the voters of Texas care about justice? Do these district attorneys get re-elected?
more like who’s the da that is gona get sued for incompetence…
no one cares about justice, they just need to look good long enough to get re-elected….. getting someone, anyone convicted makes it look like you are doing your job.. unfortunately that pesky DNA testing came along… we will now get to see how competent the offices of da’s around the country really are…..
Although he is innocent, that suit is a crime against good taste.
I can’t help but wonder how many people are on death row from Dallas county and Texas who would also be exonerated by DNA.
Worse yet, how many innocent did they kill? It does seem that it is mostly knee grows.
#4, It makes me feel sick just to think about that.
It’s sad what people will give up in the way of liberties for the appearance of justice.
So is it me who notices most of them (all?) are black?
I believe it is number 1 because the current district attorney is handing over records from the Wade years.
Texas is just fucked up… No wonder they let people like Bush get into power.
Here’s another story… The story of Tyrone Brown and Alex Wood, who were both sentenced by Judge Keith Dean… but the outcome was rather different. More here: http://tinyurl.com/n2pyv
Wade had a record for convictions that may have been based on framing people. In fact you can most likely remove the may.
The current DA is trying to sort out the mess when he can.
Meanwhile, Dallas has Terrell Ownes. Figure that out.
Just another scandal from a “law and order” county. In 2002, there were 20+ cocaine drug busts of latin auto repair/detailing shops in Dallas that involved the same police unit and a confidential informant. By accident, some defense lawers compared notes and were astounded by the simularities. Then, rather than plea bargain, a defendant pleaded innocent and was headed for trail. The police then did lab tests on the “cocaine” and found it was gypsum dust (the main component of sheetrock/drywall). They then tested the evedience in the other cases and found the same thing. It was no coincedence that one of the police officers involved had a relationship with an auto repair shop and these “drug dealers” were competition to that shop.
BUSH LIVES WHERE???
BUSH ran what State??
OMG, and he has been in control of the nation for HOW LONG??
Well, we here in Illinois have removed several people off of Death Row because their convictions were reversed by DNA evidence.
You know it has to have happened somewhere that an innocent person has been executed. It’s just a matter of time until they find the case that proves it.
That will be the end of capital punishment at the state level. I have never really been comfortable with the state courts having this power anyways. There are just too many different jurisdictions to ensure the consistent application of this type of punishment.
It should stay around for some federal crimes like Treason during wartime. Real wars, not this bullshit “War On Terror” we have been subjected to the last 7 years.
Don
“So, how strongly do the voters of Texas care about justice? Do these district attorneys get re-elected?”
Going by the voting record it appears the concern is mostly with maintaining order (meaning keeping the poor in their place). Not only do they keep getting elected, then they run for state Attorney General and sometimes win there as well.
#14 Don said:
“You know it has to have happened somewhere that an innocent person has been executed. It’s just a matter of time until they find the case that proves it.
That will be the end of capital punishment at the state level.”
Certainly not in Texas. Texas prosecutors are famous for adamantly opposing release of prisoners who have been cleared by forensic evidence. The most common line is “(That person) was duly convicted by a court and jury and belongs behind bars right where he is.” On occasion it has required court orders to force the release of cleared prisoners.
I lived in Texas off and on for more than 25 years; it can be a great place to live (if you can stand the heat) and by far the vast majority of people I knew there were wonderful human beings, but Texas officialdom often puts the Spanish Inquisition to shame.
The problem is a REALLY bad public defender program in county. That simple.
This alone proves why there should be no death penalty, and, anyone wrongly convicted should receive a million bucks per year served.
Let me see, Dallas DA convicts people on false evidence, the DA in the Duke inversity case goes to prison in Lacross false rape case, the DA in Louisiana in the Jena 6 case. And the less well known, Bronx DA locks up immigrant for 5 years without cause, Bronx DA locks up man for 7 years on false sex abuse charges, Harris County DA multiple cases of false evidence, Travis County DA Ronnie Earle going after political rivals such as Tom Delay (yes the first charge has been thrown out)… What’s the common theme here?
Agreed. The death penalty must be made illegal nationwide, because the price paid is too high when one executes the innocent.
Anyway, if a guilty person dies in prison of old age, there’s nothing bad about that, because that is what the state promised.
We will continue to have corrupt prosecutors forging evidence, we will still have wrongful convictions, and we will still have people exonerated of crimes on appeal.
The death penalty short-circuits this and denies equal justice.
How is it that Texan politicians and Texas-style politics have taken over America?
Those goofballs are the worst.
This is an outgrowth of the bullshit ‘tough on crime’ crowd. It’s never about more/better justice, it’s about LOOKING tough. Like Bush and his phony military ‘career’, all image, no substance. Reminds me of the war on drugs, totally bullshit, 100% ineffective, it’s just about LOOKING like you’re doing something. To move up in the justice world you have to have a good # of prosecution wins. So what if you have to frame a few innocent folks…at least you’ll get that promotion and a slightly better car and a house with an extra bedroom or media room. That’s worth the lives of a few people.
i NEED TO ADD….
If a person is 100% guilty, and there is a witness. THAT the witless, must be 110% SURE.
If the person is NOT guilty…then the WITLESS takes his place, for the FULL TERM. including death.
If a prosecutor Brings about the arrest and conviction, with NO PROOF…he should also go to jail.
A person that DEFENDS a guilty person and wins his freedom, KNOWING his guilt…BACk to jail.
YES a attorney can deny/quit a defendant…