DNA clears Texas man who spent 30 years in prison

[NoGOPZone]

Source: Associated Press

A Texas man who spent more time in prison than any other DNA exoneree in the state is expected to have a court overturn his conviction at an exoneration hearing Tuesday.

Cornelius Dupree Jr., 51, was paroled out of prison in July after 30 years behind bars for aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. DNA test results that came back 10 days after his release excluded him as the person who raped and robbed a Dallas woman in 1979.

The Dallas County District Attorney's Office said Monday it supports Dupree's innocence claim.

Dupree has spent more time wrongly imprisoned than any other DNA exoneree in Texas, which has freed 41 wrongly convicted inmates through DNA since 2001, more than any other state. His 30 years would surpass James Woodard, who spent more than 27 years imprisoned for a murder that he was cleared of in 2008.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110103/ap_on_re_us/us_dna_exoneration

[Maat]

1. Oh, what a tragedy.

I hope that he has a good life from here on out.

[Horse with no Name]

2. A 21-year old man whose life had barely begun entered prison 30 years

A middle-aged man who lost the best years of his life.

I don't offhand know the number of people who have been cleared in the last few years in Texas...but I say that it is ENOUGH to
do away with the death penalty.

Especially considering that it DID knowingly put an innocent man to death
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/09/07/090907fa_fact_grann

and it currently has an innocent woman on death row
http://www.fordarlieroutier.org/
>>>snip
After Greg Davis prosecuted Darlie Routier and sent her to death row, his career made many gains which included many hours on National TV. He was also quoted for saying, "If Darlie is really innocent, that only proves that I am a great lawyer". During that interview, he had a picture of a needle on display in his office. However, during the appeal in the years to follow, much of the States evidence was debunked and many of their witnesses changed their testimony. For example, the nurses admitted being coached by prosecutors to change their original opinions, and the State conveniently loses key evidence associated with the rape exam. The State spent lots of money blocking Routier from testing other evidence. The bloody fingerprint, which Davis calls a smudge, has 8 identifiable points and yet it has never been run through AFIS. Now it comes out that he is indicted for falsifying government records. Gee, could this kind of activity be the reason the evidence and testimoney in the Routier case is tainted and controversial? Could it be true that Davis cheated to get a conviction? Is this why they fight any honest review of the evidence that would cost the State nothing?

This barbaric practice MUST stop.

[alp227]

8. this isn't a capital case but rather an armed robbery case

regardless it's sad that so many Texans have been wrongly imprisoned or executed.

I remember a story last year about , a Florida man who served 35 years in prison over a false child molestation conviction.

[Horse with no Name]

9. I understand that

but the system is full of ROT and innocent people ARE being executed.

[Ernesto]

11. So glad to be in California... nt

[guruoo]

16. In this case, appears the procecutor was the real sociopath. nt

[truebrit71]

3. Lucky for him he wasn't on death row....

..I can't imagine losing 30 years of my life...I hope he enjoys his new found freedom and spends his money wisely..

[fascisthunter]

4. ooops... sorry

how the hell can anyone make up for this shit? The guy lost 30 years of his life and god knows what happened to him while he was in prison that long.

[jberryhill]

5. Did the state bill him the expenses owed for his improper residence in their jail?

This guy lived on the taxpayer's dime, when he knew he shouldn't have been there.

I'm surprised the article doesn't mention whether Texas billed him for the stay.

[soryang]

6. Comprehensive surveys of actual juries in Florida showed...

...that the typical Florida juror didn't understand the most basic jury instructions given concerning the presumption of innocence and the burden of proof. Florida law still forbids expert testimony on the unreliability of eyewitness testimony.

Jurors and prosecutors engage in misconduct all the time.

[nyy1998]

7. I smell a lawsuit and a settlement in the near future nt

[sofa king]

10. It's going to be like traveling 3 decades into the future for him.

I'm sure he'll be just as disappointed as I am to discover there are still no flying cars.

[Hama]

12. IMHO

Any prosecutor that knowingly falsifies evidence in a capital case should be charged with attempted murder. In a case like this with no death penalty they should be charged with kidnapping and false imprisonment. Maybe that could cut down on this crap. Of course you would still have to be able to prove it.

[Lions_fan]

13. DA's use their position for political gain

The position of DA shouldn't be used as a stepping stone to a higher political office. DA's use their conviction rate to show they're tough on crime. I want a DA that's smart on crime, one that's working with police departments to reduce crime not send as many people to prison as possible.

[littlewolf]

19. indeed ... DA's use the position for that .... happened here in NC

a couple of times .... we got a criminal governor out of it once ....
and one DA got a state sponsored slap down in the Duke case ...

[dballance]

14. I Bet He's African-American

Texas seems to have a horrible record for real justice. Especially when it comes to people of color. I hope he sues their ass off.

[guruoo]

17. I just had to look...

(AP) DALLAS - A Texas man who spent more time in prison than any other DNA exoneree in the state is expected to have a court overturn his conviction at an exoneration hearing Tuesday.

Cornelius Dupree Jr., 51, was paroled out of prison in July after 30 years behind bars for aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. DNA test results that came back 10 days after his release excluded him as the person who raped and robbed a Dallas woman in 1979.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/01/03/national/main7209138.shtml

[Tempest]

22. My first thought too

And tragically we were right.

[Kingofalldems]

15. A jury convicted him, he must be guilty.

:sarcasm: Read that in regards to Governor Siegelman right here on DU.

[defendandprotect]

18. k/r --

[Scottybeamer70]

20. After being a juror once.........

nothing would surprise me. Four of us voted for "not guilty", and we thought
the judge was going to throw us in jail. Guess he wanted a guilty verdict.'We
voted "not guilty" mainly because the two police officers who testified, could
not seem to get their stories straight. We wondered if they were both present
at the same scene. It was just a "resisting arrest" case.........can't imagine
being a juror on a really bad case. It must get ugly sometimes.

[Odin2005]

21. I bet $100 he's black.

[Tempest]

23. Sucker bet

See post #17

[Odin2005]

24. DOH, should have read the read!

:dunce: