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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Murder and Sexual Assault |
Sentence: |
40 years to life in prison |
Years Imprisoned: |
22 |
Year Crime: |
1985 |
Year Convicted: |
1988 |
Year Cleared: |
2007 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
New Jersey |
County or Region of Crime: |
Union |
City of Crime: |
Plainfield |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated Released |
Summary of Case: |
"Byron Halsey was wrongly convicted in 1988 of the 1985 murders of his girlfriend's young son and daughter, and one count of sexually assaulting the girl in Plainfield, New Jersey. Byron Halsey's convictions were based on his confession after being interrogated for 30 hours in a 40 hour period of time. He was sentenced to two life terms plus 20 years in prison. In 2007 DNA tests unavailable at the time of his trial excluded him as the assailant. The tests indicated that the murderer was a man who was imprisoned for raping two young women in Plainfield. Halsey was released on May 15, 2007 on $55,000 bail. The charges were subsequently dismissed. Halsey was wrongly jailed for 22 years, 3 years prior to his trial, and 19 years after. In May 2009 Byron Halsey filed a federal civil rights lawsuit that named as defendants -- nine former or current members of the Plainfield Police Division and Union County Prosecutor's Office in addition to 20 John Does and the city and county. On July 15, 2015 -- more than eight years after his release from prison -- Halsey settled his lawsuit for a total of $12.52 million. The City of Plainfield will pay a total of $6.27 million ($4.9 mil. plus $1.37 mil. on behalf of former Plainfield Police Officer Frank Pfeiffer.), and the State of New Jersey will pay $6.25 million (that includes $500,00 on behalf of former Union County Prosecutor's Office Lt. Raymond Lynch.) Pfeiffer retired in 1995 and gets an annual $47,500 state pension, while Lynch retired in 1996 and collects an annual $71,700 state pension. Halsey was to receive $8.27 million with $4.25 million going to his lawyers that included the New York City lawfirm of Neufeld Scheck & Brustin, LLP. Two of the partners in NS&B are Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld, co-founders of the non-profit Innocence Project in New York." |
Conviction Caused By: |
False confession. |
Innocence Proved By: |
"In 2007 DNA tests unavailable at the time of his trial excluded him as the assailant. Released on May 15, 2007." |
Defendant Aided By: |
"Innocence Project at Cardozo University (criminal case). Byron Halsey was represented in his civil rights lawsuit by the New York City law firm of Peter Neufeld, Barry Scheck, & Nick Brustin (NS&B)." |
Compensation Awarded: |
"$12.52 million total. $6.27 million (City of Plainfield, July 15, 2015) and $6.25 million (State of New Jersey, July 15, 2015)" |
Was Perpetrator Identified? |
Yes |
Age When Imprisoned: |
24 |
Age When Released: |
46 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Black |
Information Source 1: |
"DNA in Murders Frees Inmate After 19 Years, By Tina Kelly, New York Times, May 16, 2007" |
Information Location 1: |
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/16/nyregion/16dna.html?ref=nyregion |
Information Source 2: |
"Updated DNA test frees N.J. prisoner, By Jeffrey Gold, The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 16, 2007" |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local/nj/20070516_Updated_DNA_test_frees_N_J__prisoner.html |
Information Source 3: |
"Man wrongly convicted, jailed in 1985 Plainfield slayings files lawsuit, By Mark Spivey, Courier News (Somerville, NJ), May 11, 2009" |
Information Location 3: |
http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20090511/NEWS/905110354/1017/newsfront/Man+wrongly+convicted++jailed+in+1985+Plainfield+slayings+files+lawsuit |
Information Source 4: |
"$12.5M for Plainfield man imprisoned 22 years for murders he didn't commit, By Sergio Bichao, MyCentralJersey.com (USA Today Network), July 14, 2015" |
Information Location 4: |
http://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/news/local/union-county/2015/07/14/byron-halsey-million-settlement-plainfield-wrongful-conviction/30148469/ |
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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org