Jimmy Bass

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Charge:	Robbery and Assault
Sentence:	50 years
Years Imprisoned:	18
Year Crime:	1988
Year Convicted:	1988
Year Cleared:	2010
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Mississippi
County or Region of Crime:	Bolivar
City of Crime:	Cleveland
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Jimmy Bass (also known as Jimmie Bass) was wrongfully convicted in Cleveland, Mississippi in 1988 for aggravated assault and armed robbery. The victim was presented with three different lineups that included the 18-year-old Bass, but she didn't identify him. During his trial a single eyewitness testified he saw Bass running from the crime scene. Bass’s court appointed lawyer did no investigation and thus did not discover 10 alibi witnesses who could have testified Bass was not at the crime scene. After Bass' conviction he was sentenced to 50 years in prison. A post-conviction begun in 2004 by the Innocence Project New Orleans discovered the witness who identified Bass -- who was 14 when the crime occurred -- was a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic suffering from auditory, visual and command hallucinations. It was also discovered the witness had violated his juvenile parole, he was a prior informant for the police and he was paid for his testimony against Bass. Based on the new evidence Bass filed a post-conviction petition seeking a new trial. During an evidentiary hearing the prosecution's witness admitted he lied during Bass’ trial. Bass’ conviction was reversed by the Bolivar County Circuit Court in June 2006. The 36-year-old Bass was released on bail after 18 years of imprisonment. The State appealed the judge's ruling which was affirmed by Mississippi's appeals courts. Bass was exonerated in March 2010 when the State dismissed the charges against him."
Conviction Caused By:	Perjurious testimony by the State's lone eyewitness.
Innocence Proved By:	Bass was released in bail after his conviction was reversed in June 2006 and he was granted a new trial. Bass was exonerated in March 2010 when the State dismissed the charges against him.
Defendant Aided By:	Mérrida Coxwell and the Innocence Project New Orleans
Compensation Awarded:	"$500,000 (State of Mississippi, 2015, $50,000 annually)"
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	18
Age When Released:	36
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Black
Information Source 1:	"Jimmie Bass, Innocence Project New Orleans, March 1, 2010"
Information Location 1:	http://www.ip-no.org/exonoree-profile/jimmie-bass
Information Source 2:	"State of Mississippi v. Jimmy Bass, No. 2006-CA-01058-COA (Miss. Ct. of Appeals, 2-5-2008)"
Information Location 2:	http://caselaw.findlaw.com/ms-court-of-appeals/1350742.html
Information Source 3:	"State to pay thousands to wrongfully convicted, By Jack Elliot Jr. (Associated Press reporter), The Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, MS), April 19, 2015"
Information Location 3:	http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2015/04/19/state-pay-thousands-wrongfully-convicted/26040949/
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Jimmy Bass

Charge:

Robbery and Assault

Sentence:

50 years

Years Imprisoned:

18

Year Crime:

1988

Year Convicted:

1988

Year Cleared:

2010

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Mississippi

County or Region of Crime:

Bolivar

City of Crime:

Cleveland

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Perjurious testimony by the State's lone eyewitness.

Innocence Proved By:

Bass was released in bail after his conviction was reversed in June 2006 and he was granted a new trial. Bass was exonerated in March 2010 when the State dismissed the charges against him.

Defendant Aided By:

Mérrida Coxwell and the Innocence Project New Orleans

Compensation Awarded:

"$500,000 (State of Mississippi, 2015, $50,000 annually)"

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

18

Age When Released:

36

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"Jimmie Bass, Innocence Project New Orleans, March 1, 2010"

Information Location 1:

http://www.ip-no.org/exonoree-profile/jimmie-bass

Information Source 2:

"State of Mississippi v. Jimmy Bass, No. 2006-CA-01058-COA (Miss. Ct. of Appeals, 2-5-2008)"

Information Location 2:

http://caselaw.findlaw.com/ms-court-of-appeals/1350742.html

Information Source 3:

"State to pay thousands to wrongfully convicted, By Jack Elliot Jr. (Associated Press reporter), The Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, MS), April 19, 2015"

Information Location 3:

http://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2015/04/19/state-pay-thousands-wrongfully-convicted/26040949/

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

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