Paul Kern Imbler

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Charge:	First Degree Murder
Sentence:	Death
Years Imprisoned:	10
Year Crime:
Year Convicted:	1961
Year Cleared:	1971
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	California
County or Region of Crime:	Los Angeles
City of Crime:	Los Angeles
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Paul Imbler was wrongly convicted in 1961 of first-degree murder in Los Angeles, California. Imbler was convicted of murder largely based a prosecution fingerprint expert's false testimony that Imbler's fingerprint matched a latent crime scene print. Imbler was sentenced to death. He was granted stay 7 days before his scheduled execution. His conviction was overturned based on prosecutorial misconduct of concealing exculpatory evidence, police manufacturing of evidence, and the fingerprint examiner's false testimony that deprived him of his constitutional right to a fair trial. After his exoneration he sued the prosecutor, Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Richard Pachtman for damages, but the US Supreme Court dismissed the suit on the grounds of prosecutorial immunity. (See, Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409 (1976))"
Conviction Caused By:	Prosecutorial misconduct of concealing exculpatory evidence and police manufacturing of evidence. A prosecution fingerprint expert falsely testified that Imbler's fingerprint matched latent crime scene prints.
Innocence Proved By:	"Conviction overturned based on prosecutorial misconduct of concealing exculpatory evidence, police manufacturing of evidence, and the fingerprint examiner's false testimony that affected the jury's verdict."
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"“Miscarriages of Justice in Potentially Capital Cases,” Hugo Adam Bedau & Michael L. Radelet, Stanford Law Review, November, 1987, Vol. 40, p. 128."
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Information Source 2:	"Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409 (1976)"
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Paul Kern Imbler

Charge:

First Degree Murder

Sentence:

Death

Years Imprisoned:

10

Year Crime:

Year Convicted:

1961

Year Cleared:

1971

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

California

County or Region of Crime:

Los Angeles

City of Crime:

Los Angeles

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Prosecutorial misconduct of concealing exculpatory evidence and police manufacturing of evidence. A prosecution fingerprint expert falsely testified that Imbler's fingerprint matched latent crime scene prints.

Innocence Proved By:

"Conviction overturned based on prosecutorial misconduct of concealing exculpatory evidence, police manufacturing of evidence, and the fingerprint examiner's false testimony that affected the jury's verdict."

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"“Miscarriages of Justice in Potentially Capital Cases,” Hugo Adam Bedau & Michael L. Radelet, Stanford Law Review, November, 1987, Vol. 40, p. 128."

Information Location 1:

Information Source 2:

"Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409 (1976)"

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Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: