Leo Catcheway

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Charge:	Child/Minor Sex Abuse (incl. molestation)
Sentence:	16 years
Years Imprisoned:	5
Year Crime:	1995
Year Convicted:	1995
Year Cleared:	2000
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Washington
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City of Crime:
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Leo Catcheway was one of the Wenatchee 43. Wrongly pled guilty in 1995 to having sex with children and videotaping the acts, under the threat of life in prison if was convicted after a trial. Leo Catcheway was sentenced to 16 years in prison. With the aid of the Innocence Project Northwest, his conviction was overturned in 2000 after he had served about five years in prison. The prosecution agreed to his immediate release if he would take an Alford plea to an unrelated misdemeanor. Catcheway was sentenced to 30-days in jail and immediately released for time served."
Conviction Caused By:	Erroneous child abuse accusations by the children involved under the influence of a Wenatchee detective and Washington State Child Protective Services workers.
Innocence Proved By:	Conviction overturned on appeal and he was released after taking an Alford plea to a misdemeanor.
Defendant Aided By:	"The Innocence Project Northwest,"
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	48
Age When Released:	53
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"Two wenatchee sex abuse defendants released, By John K. Wiley (staff), Seattle Post-Intelligencer, June 6, 2008"
Information Location 1:	http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/wenaww.shtml
Information Source 2:	""The Wenatchee "Sex Rings": Part 2""
Information Location 2:	http://www.religioustolerance.org/wenatche2.htm
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Book About Case:	"“Witch Hunt: a true story of social hysteria and abused justice,” Kathryn Lyon, Avon Books, NY, 1998"
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Book About Case (2):
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Leo Catcheway

Charge:

Child/Minor Sex Abuse (incl. molestation)

Sentence:

16 years

Years Imprisoned:

5

Year Crime:

1995

Year Convicted:

1995

Year Cleared:

2000

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Washington

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Erroneous child abuse accusations by the children involved under the influence of a Wenatchee detective and Washington State Child Protective Services workers.

Innocence Proved By:

Conviction overturned on appeal and he was released after taking an Alford plea to a misdemeanor.

Defendant Aided By:

"The Innocence Project Northwest,"

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

48

Age When Released:

53

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Two wenatchee sex abuse defendants released, By John K. Wiley (staff), Seattle Post-Intelligencer, June 6, 2008"

Information Location 1:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/wenaww.shtml

Information Source 2:

""The Wenatchee "Sex Rings": Part 2""

Information Location 2:

http://www.religioustolerance.org/wenatche2.htm

Information Source 3:

Information Location 3:

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

"“Witch Hunt: a true story of social hysteria and abused justice,” Kathryn Lyon, Avon Books, NY, 1998"

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: