Rodney Horstman

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Charge:	Second Degree Murder
Sentence:	17 years
Years Imprisoned:	3
Year Crime:	1985
Year Convicted:	1985
Year Cleared:	1988
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Florida
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City of Crime:
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Rodney Horstman was wrongly convicted of second-degree murder in the May 1985 rape and murder in Florida based on an FBI crime lab technician's testimony that there was "almost non-existent” probability that a pubic hair found on the victim did not originate from Horstman. He was sentenced to 17 years in prison. In 1988 the Florida Court of Appeal overturned his conviction based on insufficiency of the evidence, because a conviction cannot be based on expert hair analysis testimony, since "it is not 100% reliable." The Court ruled the state failed to present substantial, competent evidence sufficient to enable jury to exclude every reasonable hypothesis of Horstman's innocence."
Conviction Caused By:	"FBI crime lab technician's testimony that there was "almost non-existent” probability that a pubic hair found on the victim did not originate from Rodney Horstman."
Innocence Proved By:	In 1988 the Florida Court of Appeal overturned his conviction based on insufficient evidence of Rodney Horstman's guilt.
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Was Perpetrator Identified?
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Sex:	Male
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Information Source 1:	"Horstman v. Florida, 530 So.2d 368 (Fla.App.2 Dist 1988)"
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Rodney Horstman

Charge:

Second Degree Murder

Sentence:

17 years

Years Imprisoned:

3

Year Crime:

1985

Year Convicted:

1985

Year Cleared:

1988

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Florida

County or Region of Crime:

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

"FBI crime lab technician's testimony that there was "almost non-existent” probability that a pubic hair found on the victim did not originate from Rodney Horstman."

Innocence Proved By:

In 1988 the Florida Court of Appeal overturned his conviction based on insufficient evidence of Rodney Horstman's guilt.

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Information Source 1:

"Horstman v. Florida, 530 So.2d 368 (Fla.App.2 Dist 1988)"

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