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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Murder |
Sentence: |
20 years to life in prison |
Years Imprisoned: |
29 |
Year Crime: |
1974 |
Year Convicted: |
1976 |
Year Cleared: |
2005 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
District of Columbia - Federal Case |
County or Region of Crime: |
District of Columbia |
City of Crime: |
District of Columbia |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"Joseph Eastridge was co-defendant of Joseph Sousa and Michael Diamen. Joseph Eastridge wrongly convicted in January 1976 of being a group of white men who stabbed a black man to death after he was chased and captured. Sousa was paroled in 1995 after 19 years of imprisonment and Damien died in 2002 after 26 years of imprisonment. Sousa and Eastridge filed a writ of habeas corpus to overturn their convictions based on new evidence of their innocence. During a 2004 hearing a fourth defendant, Stephen Jones, testified his three co-defendants were not present at the crime scene and had nothing to do with the murder. In 2005 the writ of habeas corpus was granted overturning Sousa and Eastbridge's conviction on the basis of their actual innocence. The judge also found that Damien had played no role in the murder. Eastridge was released after 29 years of imprisonment. Sousa, Eastbridge and the estate of Damien then filed a claim for federal compensation under the Unjust Conviction Act. The federal government challenged their eligibility. On March 12, 2009 U.S. District Court Judge Rosemary M. Collyer ruled that Eastbridge and Sousa meet the requirements to file a compensation claim under the Unjust Conviction Act that entitled them to be paid $50,000 per year of incarceration. However, she also ruled that Damien was not eligible because he had died prior to the granting of the writ of habeas corpus in 2005. In April 2011 Eastridge was awarded $1.14 million and Sousa was awarded $750,000 in compensation under the federal wrongful conviction compensation statute." |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
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Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
White |
Information Source 1: |
"Eastridge v. United States, 372 F. Supp. 2d 26" |
Information Location 1: |
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Information Source 2: |
"Eastridge v US, No 00-3045 (USDC DOC 3-12-2009)" |
Information Location 2: |
https://ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2000cv3045-76 |
Information Source 3: |
"Two Men Wrongfully Convicted in D.C. Murder Settle Suit, Legal Times, April 6, 2011" |
Information Location 3: |
http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2011/04/two-men-wrongfully-convicted-in-dc-murder-settle-suit.html |
Information Source 4: |
"Cleared of Murder, Two Men Sue in D.C. for Unjust Imprisonment, Legal Times, January 27, 2010" |
Information Location 4: |
http://www.zwerling.com/news_60_3417094806.html |
Information Source 5: |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org