Georgia Criminal Defense Blog

Fingerprints are considered to be insurmountable evidence. However, in the case of a convicted Georgia man, a routine check of the supposed offender’s identification revealed the huge mismatch: his fingerprints were inaccurately identified as those of a criminal, and he had, consequently, been wrongly incarcerated for 17 months for a robbery that he didn’t commit. The question then is simple: Is $145,000 enough to compensate for a wrongful conviction? Many would believe it is, especially for a period of a mere 17 months. Perhaps it has brought the formerly-guilty-incarcerated-but-now-innocent-and-free man a little sense of justice.

The Georgia resident served 17 long months in Rikers Island, a sentence that still haunts him like a bad dream. According to an article, the man reportedly described it with a relatively jarring perspective. "It's just a nightmare knowing that someone that's innocent can be picked up off the street and held.”

These recent events undoubtedly raise many questions as to how such a false conviction could take place. According to the report, the falsely accused and incarcerated man was in Atlanta, a full 880 miles away from Howard Beach, where the robbery took place. He was arrested for the crime nearly a year after it was committed, when a partial index-fingerprint was supposedly deemed a match to the man’s own fingerprint that had previously been collected in Brooklyn during a traffic violation and arrest for driving with a suspended license.

Continue reading "Georgia Man Was Falsely Imprisoned for 17 Months Due to Mistaken Fingerprints" »

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Posted In: Criminal Defense , Law & Information , Theft Crimes , Wrongfully Accused

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The nydailynews.com website reported in an article on March 12th that New York City controller William Thompson released a report that the city paid out $35.2 million in settlements last year a 40 percent jump from just the previous year. Police procedures, such as false arrests and excessive force, are costing the taxpayers heavily in a time when all efforts and sacrifices must be made to use taxpayer money for critical services. It is also putting a great burden in defendants needing to seek experienced New York federal offense lawyers.

The payout number is only going to grow as a record number of lawsuits were filed last year against the NYPD for wrongful convictions involving drug crimes in New York and other criminal offenses.

Donna Lieberman, Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said, ‘These are remarkable increases. They raise serious questions as to whether the NYPD is out of control."

Complaints against the NYPD have climbed 22 percent in the last 10 years to a record 6,274 complaints last year.

Reports say that New York City paid out $536.9 in settlements, a 2 percent increase from the previous year.

Jeffrey Cofield said, “I wanted to be compensated because I served time in prison, but I feel like more should have been done to correct the officers' behavior." Cofield got $400,000 last year after doing eight months in jail on false drug possession charges.

Continue reading "New York Police Behaving Badly Cost City $35 Million" »

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Posted In: Criminal Defense , Wrongfully Accused

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An Augusta man, who shot and injured a suspected burglar, found out this week that the district attorney could file charges against him. According to a news report posted on WRDW-TV’s Web siteThurman is shocked that he could possibly face criminal charges for acting in self-defense when he protected himself against an intruder.

Thurman told reporters that he didn’t shoot Jeffrey Whitt because he saw him break into his truck, but because of the uncertainty of the situation. Thurman says at the time, he did not know if Whitt was armed and dangerous. He also did not know if this intruder had other people working with him. As a result, he shot Whitt to protect himself and his family from imminent danger.

As Georgia criminal defense attorneys who have successfully defended those accused of violent crimes, we at Conaway & Strickler know that most people are bound to react in certain ways in the heat of a situation. What would you do if your wife and children were in danger? What would you do if it were a question of life and death? Very often, in these situations, you don’t have the time to make a calm, calculated decision.

Continue reading "Augusta Man Could Face Charges For Shooting A Suspected Burglar" »

Posted by Conaway, Strickler & Margolis, P.C. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Wrongfully Accused

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It was a long wait for Robert Clark, who spent 24 years in Georgia prisons for a crime that he did not commit. Clark finally got his compensation last week, according to an article published in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue signed a resolution last week to pay Clark $1.2 million after he was cleared in 2005 by DNA evidence which showed he wasn’t involved in a violent 1982 Cobb County rape.

Aimee Maxwell of the Georgia Innocence Project told the newspapers, “Clark will be very satisfied with this result and with the succesful end to the process”. The soft-spoken Clark came to the Capitol a few times to watch the bill make its way through the General Assembly. Legislators were taken up by his humble attitude, his calmness in the face of his wrongful conviction and his patience despite spending a good deal of his life in prison. He received a hearty round of applause in the chambers and was even hugged by some of the lawmakers, the newspaper reported.

Georgia Innocence Project members have volunteered to help Clark manage the $1.2 million, which he will receive in installments over 15 years. Meanwhile Clark will continue to work in construction and will probably buy a house, Maxwell said. The money, she hopes, will help Maxwell rebuild a life that was left in shambles by a wrong conviction.

To date the Georgia Innocence Project has helped free 202 wrongfully convicted people using modern DNA technology. Every year hundreds, if not thousands, of people are wrongfully arrested and convicted for a variety of reasons – from mistaken identity to false testimony.

Don’t become a statistic. If you have been arrested or charged with a crime in Georgia, call us for a free consultation. Each day you delay may cost you dearly. Our aggressive and experienced Georgia criminal defense lawyers have the legal expertise it takes to get you the best possible result. We focus on getting your case dismissed!

Posted by Conaway, Strickler & Margolis, P.C. | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Wrongfully Accused

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