Wrongly Convicted Database Record

 

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Allen H. Coco

 

Charge:

Rape and Burglary

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole

Years Imprisoned:

11

Year Crime:

1995

Year Convicted:

1997

Year Cleared:

2006

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Louisiana

County or Region of Crime:

Calcasieu

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

"Allen H. Coco was wrongly convicted of a 1995 rape and burglary based on the eyewitness testimony of the victim. It was a cross-racial identification because Coco is black and the victim was white. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In 2006 Allen Coco was excluded as the assailant by DNA testing unavailable at the time of his conviction. Released from prison in October 2006 after being wrongly imprisoned for 11 years from the time of his arrest, and 9 years after his conviction. Allen Coco was awarded $150,000 compensation by the State of Louisiana in 2008. Coco died of cancer on August 6, 2008."

Conviction Caused By:

Erroneous eyewitness identification by the victim.

Innocence Proved By:

Released in July 2006 based on exclusionary DNA test unavailable at the time of his conviction.

Defendant Aided By:

Innocence Project of New Orleans

Compensation Awarded:

"$150,000 (State of Louisiana, 2008)"

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

27

Age When Released:

38

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"Allen H. Coco, Innocence Project New Orleans, October 1, 2006"

Information Location 1:

http://www.ip-no.org/exonoree-profile/allen-h-coco

Information Source 2:

"DNA frees man 11 years after conviction, Crime & Punishment, MSNBC.com, October 15, 2006"

Information Location 2:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15264399/

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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org

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