|
Wrongly Convicted Database Record
|
Charge: |
First Degree Murder |
Sentence: |
Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole |
Years Imprisoned: |
25.5 |
Year Crime: |
1977 |
Year Convicted: |
1978 |
Year Cleared: |
2003 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Iowa |
County or Region of Crime: |
Pottawattamie |
City of Crime: |
Council Bluffs |
Result: |
Pardoned |
Summary of Case: |
"Terry Harrington was co-defendant of Curtis W. McGhee Jr. Both men were wrongly convicted in 1978 in separate trials of first-degree murder in the death of a car dealership security guard in Council Bluffs, Iowa in 1977. Harrington and McGhee were both sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The jury rejected Harrington's alibi defense of being in Omaha, Nebraska at an outdoor concert at the time of the murder. Harrington told the judge during his sentencing hearing: "I just want you to know that no matter what happens, I know I'm innocent, and as long as I feel that inside, then I'm going to keep on fighting because I know I can't see myself locked up for the rest of my life for something I didn't do. ... I feel I was judged by the color of my skin and not the content of my character." In overturning Harrington’s conviction in February 2003, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled that several police reports pointing to another suspect were not turned over and noted that a witness testified at a post-conviction hearing that he lied at Harrington’s trial because police and prosecutors pressured him. The court also relied on Brain Fingerprinting technology that tended to corroborate Harrington's innocence. In an earlier appeal, the court dismissed Harrington’s claims that prosecutor Joseph Hrvol intimidated a defense witness, suborned the perjury of a state witness and committed improprieties in his dealings with other witnesses. Harrington was released from prison on April 18, 2003 when Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack signed a reprieve. The prosecutor refused to dismiss the charges against McGhee, although he was convicted on the same discredited evidence as Harrington. McGhee had a pending motion for a new trial, but in exchange for his immediate release in September 2003 he agreed to plead no contest to second-degree murder. McGhee's Alford ("no contest") plea allowed him to continue to assert his innocence of the crime. Harrington and McGhee filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Pottawattamie County and their prosecutors for their actions as investigators in the case. The prosecutor's defense against the lawsuit was they had prosecutorial immunity, and after the US Court of Appeals ruled the prosecutors were not immune from the allegations in the complaint, the U.S. Supreme Court accepted the case and heard arguments on November 4, 2009. On December 31, 2009, it was announced that the two men and the County had reached a settlement. Terry Harrington was to receive $7.03 million, and McGhee Jr. was to receive $4.97 million. The case was dismissed and the U.S. Supreme Court removed the case from its docket. A motion to vacate McGhee’s Alford plea on the ground of prosecutorial misconduct was granted on January 7, 2011 and the charges against him were dismissed. Harrington and McGhee's lawsuit against the City of Council Bluffs and its police officers was settled in October 2013 for $6.2 million to be evenly split between the two of them. Harrington settled the lawsuits for a total of $10.13 million and McGhee for a total of $8.07 million." |
Conviction Caused By: |
Perjured prosecution testimony suborned by the prosecutor. |
Innocence Proved By: |
"Iowa Supreme Court reversed Terry Harrington's conviction in February 2003. Harrington was released from prison on April 18, 2003 when Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack signed a reprieve. " |
Defendant Aided By: |
"Anne Danaher, who met Terry Harrington when she was the prison barber. She spent the next 10 years interviewing witnesses, discovering new evidence, and obtaining statements from witness who recanted their testimony. She logged over 500,000 miles on her car during those 10 years." |
Compensation Awarded: |
"$10.13 million ($7.03 million (Pottawattamie County, January 2010) and $3.1 million (City of Council Bluffs , October 2013)" |
Was Perpetrator Identified? |
|
Age When Imprisoned: |
17 |
Age When Released: |
43 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Black |
Information Source 1: |
"Harrington v. State, 659 N.W.2d 509 (Iowa 02/26/2003)" |
Information Location 1: |
|
Information Source 2: |
Actual Innocence - Exonerated Individuals whose cases involved prosecutorial misconduct |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.publicintegrity.org/pm/default.aspx?sid=sidebarsb&aid=38 |
Information Source 3: |
659 N.W.2d 509 |
Information Location 3: |
|
Information Source 4: |
"12 million wrongful conviction settlement is hailed, By Lee Rood, Des Moines Register, January 5, 2010" |
Information Location 4: |
|
Information Source 5: |
"Prison Barber Helps Free Man Wrongly Convicted of Murder, WDAF-TV Channel 4 (Kansas City, MO), December 21, 2010" |
Information Location 5: |
"http://www.fox4kc.com/news/wdaf-danaher-harrington-prison-barber-frees-convict-122010,0,2854941.story" |
Book About Case: |
|
Book Information: |
|
Book About Case (2): |
|
Book Information (2): |
|
Movie About Case: |
|
Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org