James Edwards

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Charge:	First Degree Murder and Robbery
Sentence:	Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole
Years Imprisoned:	16
Year Crime:	1994
Year Convicted:	1996
Year Cleared:	2012
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Illinois
County or Region of Crime:	Lake
City of Crime:	Waukegan
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"James Edwards was wrongly convicted in 1996 of the December 9, 1994 murder of 71-year-old Fred Reckling in Waukegan, Illinois. On January 4, 1996 Edwards was arrested for questioning related to the robbery of a motel in Waukegan, and during his 27 hour long interrogation the police said he confessed to that robbery as well as Reckling's murder --. which was videotaped. Edwards recanted his confession, but it was the basis of his murder conviction and sentence of life in prison without parole. In 2005 Edwards filed a motion for DNA testing of blood found in Reckling's car and in the store where his body was found. In March 2011 the Illinois Supreme Court ordered the testing. On June 27, 2011 it was disclosed that the DNA tests both excluded Edwards as Reckling's assailant, and identified it matched 42-year-old Hezekiah Whitfield, a convicted robber. Edwards' lawyer filed a motion for a new trial based on the exclusionary DNA test results and an Affidavit by Edwards that he falsely confessed to the murder because the police had physically abused him during his 27 hour interrogation. On May 15, 2012 Whitfield was arrested and charged with Reckling's murder. On May 29, 2012 Edwards' conviction of murdering Reckling was vacated and the charge was dismissed by the Lake County State's Attorney's Office. Edwards remained imprisoned in Illinois on a robbery conviction. On April 25, 2014 Whitfield was convicted by a jury of murdering Fred Reckling."
Conviction Caused By:	False confession obtained by physical abuse by the interrogating officers.
Innocence Proved By:	"On May 29, 2012 Edwards' conviction of murdering Fred Reckling was vacated and the charge was dismissed by the Lake County State's Attorney's Office. "
Defendant Aided By:
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Was Perpetrator Identified?	Yes
Age When Imprisoned:	45
Age When Released:	61
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Black
Information Source 1:	"Convict cleared in '94 Waukegan slaying, By Ruth Fuller and Dan Hinkel (Staff writers), Chicago Tribune, May 30, 2012"
Information Location 1:	http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-05-30/news/ct-met-edwards-charges-dropped-20120530_1_dna-evidence-murder-case-reckling-case
Information Source 2:	"Man guilty of all charges in '94 Waukegan murder, By Robert McCoppin (Tribune reporter), Chicago Tribune, April 25, 2014"
Information Location 2:	http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-04-25/news/chi-whitfield-guilty-in-waukegan-murder-20140425_1_dna-sample-hezekiah-whitfield-dna-evidence
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James Edwards

Charge:

First Degree Murder and Robbery

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole

Years Imprisoned:

16

Year Crime:

1994

Year Convicted:

1996

Year Cleared:

2012

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Illinois

County or Region of Crime:

Lake

City of Crime:

Waukegan

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

False confession obtained by physical abuse by the interrogating officers.

Innocence Proved By:

"On May 29, 2012 Edwards' conviction of murdering Fred Reckling was vacated and the charge was dismissed by the Lake County State's Attorney's Office. "

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Yes

Age When Imprisoned:

45

Age When Released:

61

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"Convict cleared in '94 Waukegan slaying, By Ruth Fuller and Dan Hinkel (Staff writers), Chicago Tribune, May 30, 2012"

Information Location 1:

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-05-30/news/ct-met-edwards-charges-dropped-20120530_1_dna-evidence-murder-case-reckling-case

Information Source 2:

"Man guilty of all charges in '94 Waukegan murder, By Robert McCoppin (Tribune reporter), Chicago Tribune, April 25, 2014"

Information Location 2:

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-04-25/news/chi-whitfield-guilty-in-waukegan-murder-20140425_1_dna-sample-hezekiah-whitfield-dna-evidence

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Book Information:

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