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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Murder |
Sentence: |
Life Imprisonment |
Years Imprisoned: |
28 |
Year Crime: |
1987 |
Year Convicted: |
1989 |
Year Cleared: |
2018 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Texas |
County or Region of Crime: |
Dallas |
City of Crime: |
Dallas |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"Steven Mark Chaney was wrongly convicted in 1989 of the murder of John Sweek and Sally Sweek in their Dallas, Texas home in 1987. Stevem Chaney was convicted primarily based on the testimony of a dentist that there was a 1 in a million chance that someone other than Chaney made bite marks found on the body of John Sweek -- one of the victims. The prosecution also presented evidence that blood was found on the bottom of Chaney's tennis shoe. Chaney's alibi defense, supported by nine witnesses, was that Chaney spent time with each of them on the day of the murders and that he couldn't have been at John and Sally Sweek's home when they were killed. After the jury convicted Chaney he was sentenced to life in prison. In 2009, the National Academy of Sciences published a report that concluded there was insufficient scientific basis to conclusively match bite marks. The dentist who testified in Chaney's trial agreed to acknowledge that in light of the NAS report his trial testimony was erroneous. Chaney also discovered that the DA's Office failed to disclose that it was aware at the time of trial that there was no blood on the bottom of his shoe. Chaney filed a petition for a new trial based on the new evidence. On October 12, 2015 the petition to vacate Chaney's conviction that was unopposed by the Dallas County DA's Office was granted, and he was released later that day. The DA's Office declined to take the position that Chaney was innocent, just that he meet the legal standard to be granted a new trial. On December 19, 2018 the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the district court's ruling and declared Chaney was innocent." |
Conviction Caused By: |
"Erroneous expert "bite mark" evidence, and erroneous blood testimony." |
Innocence Proved By: |
"On October 12, 2015 the petition to vacate Chaney's conviction that was unopposed by the Dallas County DA's Office was granted, and he was released later that day. The DA's Office declined to take the position that Chaney was innocent, just that he meet the legal standard to be granted a new trial. On December 19, 2018 the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the district court's ruling and declared Chaney was innocent." |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
31 |
Age When Released: |
59 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
White |
Information Source 1: |
"“It’s the Best Day of My Life”: Texas Man Convicted on “Junk Science” Declared Innocent, By Michael Hall, Texas Monthly, December 19, 2018" |
Information Location 1: |
https://www.texasmonthly.com/news/steve-chaney-convicted-murder-texas-declared-innocent-junk-science/ |
Information Source 2: |
"Man Released After 28-Year-Old Murder Conviction Overturned, By The Associated Press (Dallas), ABC News, October 12, 2015" |
Information Location 2: |
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/man-released-28-year-murder-conviction-overturned-34432293 |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org