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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Robbery (includes armed robbery) |
Sentence: |
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Years Imprisoned: |
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Year Crime: |
1992 |
Year Convicted: |
1992 |
Year Cleared: |
2017 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Louisiana |
County or Region of Crime: |
Orleans |
City of Crime: |
New Orleans |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"Robert Jones was wrongly convicted in 1996 of different charges related to four separate criminal incidents that occurred within weeks of each other in 1992 in New Orleans, Louisiana. On February 23, 1992 a man was robbed at gunpoint. On April 6, 1992 three people were abducted and robbed, and one of the women was raped. On April 14, 1992 a man and woman were robbed at gunpoint. Also on April 14, 1992 a man and woman were accosted at gunpoint and ordered to lie down, with the woman being shot and killed and the man being shot at but not wounded. Based on a tip to crimestoppers the 19-year-old Jones was arrested on April 18, 1992. Jones was convicted of the April 6, 1992 rape and robbery on March 12, 1996. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Several weeks later he pled guilty to charges related to the three other criminal incidents. He pled guilty to manslaughter in the shooting death of the woman and was sentenced to 25 years in prison to be sered concurrently with his life without parole sentence. He pled guilty to armed robbery in the other two criminal incidents and was sentenced to jail terms to also be served concurrently with his LIWOP sentence. Over a period of years from 2006 to 2015 a wide variety of new evidence was discovered exculpating Jones from any of the crimes, including police reports that the prosecution had never disclosed. In the summer of 2015 Jones was granted a new trial. After more than 23 years in custody he was released on $36,000 bail on November 20, 2015, A motion by the Orleans Parish District Attorney to dismiss the charges against Jones was granted on January 25, 2017. " |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"A motion by the Orleans Parish District Attorney to dismiss the charges against Jones was granted on January 25, 2017. " |
Defendant Aided By: |
Innocence Project New Orleans |
Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
19 |
Age When Released: |
42 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Black |
Information Source 1: |
"After 23 years behind bars, Robert Jones' charges in 1992 crime spree dropped by DA, By Emily Lane, The Times-Picayune, January 26, 2017" |
Information Location 1: |
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2017/01/robert_jones_freed_new_orleans.html |
Information Source 2: |
"Robert Jones released on bail after 23 years at Angola, By Emily Lane, The Times-Picayune, November 20, 2015" |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.nola.com/traffic/index.ssf/2015/11/robert_jones_released_on_bail.html |
Information Source 3: |
"Innocent man jailed for 24 years after being framed over a British tourist's murder in New Orleans is freed by two lawyers who exposed a jaw-dropping fit-up that shames the US legal system, By David Rose, Daily Mail on Sunday, February 18, 2017" |
Information Location 3: |
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4238050/Innocent-man-jailed-24-years-framed.html |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org