Dana Holland (sexual assault)

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Charge:	Sexual Assault (includes aggravated)
Sentence:	118 yrs
Years Imprisoned:	10
Year Crime:	1993
Year Convicted:	1997
Year Cleared:	2003
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Illinois
County or Region of Crime:	Cook
City of Crime:	Chicago
Result:	Judicially Exonerated and Later Pardoned
Summary of Case:	"Dana Holland was wrongly convicted in 1993 of aggravated sexual assaulting a 22-year-old woman based on her identification of him. He was also convicted in 1993 of attempted murder and armed robbery. He was identified as the perpetrator of those crimes after being arrested several weeks earlier for a rape. Combined with his conviction of a rape that occurred several weeks before the attempted murder, Dana Holland was sentenced to a total of 118 years. In 2003 DNA evidence excluded him as the rapist, and shorter afterwards several witnesses came forward who cleared him of the attempted murder. Holland was released in June 2003 after DNA testing excluded him as the assailant. The motion by the Cook County State's Attorney's Office to dismiss the charges was granted. Holland was pardoned by Illinois' governor Rod Blagojevich on January 5, 2005, which enabled him to file a claim for compensation from the State of Illinois. Awarded $138,000 in compensation by the State of Illinois."
Conviction Caused By:	Eyewitness error
Innocence Proved By:	"DNA test excluded him as the assailant. Pardoned by Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich on January 5, 2005."
Defendant Aided By:	Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University
Compensation Awarded:	"$138,000 (State of Illinois)"
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Black
Information Source 1:	"After two wrongful convictions exonerated Chicagoan helps others seek justice, The Windy Citizen (Chicago, IL), May 21, 2008"
Information Location 1:
Information Source 2:	"Four Who Were Wrongly Convicted Pardoned, AP, Chicago Sun-Times, January 6, 2004"
Information Location 2:	http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/pardon06.html
Information Source 3:	Innocence Project Database
Information Location 3:	http://www.innocenceproject.org/case/display_profile.php?id=131
Information Source 4:
Information Location 4:
Information Source 5:
Information Location 5:
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Dana Holland (sexual assault)

Charge:

Sexual Assault (includes aggravated)

Sentence:

118 yrs

Years Imprisoned:

10

Year Crime:

1993

Year Convicted:

1997

Year Cleared:

2003

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Illinois

County or Region of Crime:

Cook

City of Crime:

Chicago

Result:

Judicially Exonerated and Later Pardoned

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Eyewitness error

Innocence Proved By:

"DNA test excluded him as the assailant. Pardoned by Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich on January 5, 2005."

Defendant Aided By:

Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University

Compensation Awarded:

"$138,000 (State of Illinois)"

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"After two wrongful convictions exonerated Chicagoan helps others seek justice, The Windy Citizen (Chicago, IL), May 21, 2008"

Information Location 1:

Information Source 2:

"Four Who Were Wrongly Convicted Pardoned, AP, Chicago Sun-Times, January 6, 2004"

Information Location 2:

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/pardon06.html

Information Source 3:

Innocence Project Database

Information Location 3:

http://www.innocenceproject.org/case/display_profile.php?id=131

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: