Wrongly Convicted Database Record

 

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Clarence R. Dexter Jr.

 

Charge:

Murder

Sentence:

Death

Years Imprisoned:

9

Year Crime:

1990

Year Convicted:

1991

Year Cleared:

1999

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Missouri

County or Region of Crime:

Clay

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

"Clarence Dexter Jr. was accused in 1990 of murdering his wife of 22 years. Police overlooked significant evidence that the murder occurred in the course of a botched robbery and quickly decided that Dexter must have committed the crime. Dexter's trial lawyer was in poor health and under federal investigation for tax fraud and failed to challenge blood evidence presented at trial. The conviction was overturned in 1997 because of prosecutorial misconduct. (Missouri v. Dexter, 954 S.W.2d 332 (1997)) The defense then had the blood evidence carefully examined and showed that the conclusions presented at trial were completely wrong. The state's blood expert admitted that his previous findings overstated the case against Dexter. On the eve of Dexter's retrial in June, 1999, the prosecution dismissed the charges and Dexter was freed. (Missouri State Public Defender System Memo, 6/7/99 and Kansas City Star, 6/9/99) (Source, Death Penalty Information Center.)"

Conviction Caused By:

Erroneous expert testimony about blood evidence that in fact exonerated Dexter.

Innocence Proved By:

"On the eve of Dexter's retrial in June, 1999, the prosecution dismissed the charges and Dexter was freed."

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

49

Age When Released:

59

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Innocence: List of Those Freed From Death Row, Death Penalty Information Center"

Information Location 1:

http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/innocence-list-those-freed-death-row

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

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