Christian Amado

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Charge:	First Degree Murder
Sentence:	Life Imprisonment
Years Imprisoned:	2
Year Crime:	1980
Year Convicted:	1980
Year Cleared:	1982
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Massachusetts
County or Region of Crime:	Suffolk
City of Crime:	Boston
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Christian Amado was wrongly convicted in 1980 of first-degree murder in the death of a man outside an apartment building in Boston, Massachusetts. Amado's prosecution was based on an eyewitness identifiication from a photo. Amado was convicted even though the witness recanted his identification when he saw him in person in the courtroom. On August 20, 1982 Amado's conviction was reversed on direct appeal by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. The court ruled the trial judge erred by denying the defense motion for a finding of not guilty at the close of the trial, because the evidence was insufficient to sustain a guilty verdict. Amado was released after 2 years of wrongful imprisonment."
Conviction Caused By:	"Eyewitness erroneously identified Christian Amado from a photo. The witness recanted his identification when he saw Amado in person in the courtroom, but the jury still convicted Amado."
Innocence Proved By:	"On August 20, 1982 Amado's conviction was reversed on direct appeal by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. The court ruled the trial judge erred by denying the defense motion for a finding of not guilty at the close of the trial, because the evidence was insufficient to sustain a guilty verdict."
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Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	21
Age When Released:	23
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Black
Information Source 1:	"Commonwealth v. Christian Amado, 387 Mass. 179 (Mass. Sup. Judicial Ct., August 20, 1982)"
Information Location 1:	http://masscases.com/cases/sjc/387/387mass179.html
Information Source 2:	"“Miscarriages of Justice in Potentially Capital Cases,” Hugo Adam Bedau & Michael L. Radelet, Stanford Law Review, November, 1987, Vol. 40, p. 91"
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Christian Amado

Charge:

First Degree Murder

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment

Years Imprisoned:

2

Year Crime:

1980

Year Convicted:

1980

Year Cleared:

1982

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Massachusetts

County or Region of Crime:

Suffolk

City of Crime:

Boston

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

"Eyewitness erroneously identified Christian Amado from a photo. The witness recanted his identification when he saw Amado in person in the courtroom, but the jury still convicted Amado."

Innocence Proved By:

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

21

Age When Released:

23

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"Commonwealth v. Christian Amado, 387 Mass. 179 (Mass. Sup. Judicial Ct., August 20, 1982)"

Information Location 1:

http://masscases.com/cases/sjc/387/387mass179.html

Information Source 2:

"“Miscarriages of Justice in Potentially Capital Cases,” Hugo Adam Bedau & Michael L. Radelet, Stanford Law Review, November, 1987, Vol. 40, p. 91"

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Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: