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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Murder and Robbery |
Sentence: |
25 years to Life imprisonment |
Years Imprisoned: |
23.33 |
Year Crime: |
1989 |
Year Convicted: |
1990 |
Year Cleared: |
2014 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
New York |
County or Region of Crime: |
Kings |
City of Crime: |
New York City |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"William Lopez was wrongly convicted on October 19, 1990 of possession of a firearm, robbery, and second-degree murder in the shotgun death of Elvirn Surria on in 1989 in the Brighton Beach area of Brooklyn in New York City. The key prosecution evidence during Lopez' trial was Janet Chapman's eyewitness testimony that she recognized Lopez was one of the two men who came into the crack house where Surria was murdered, that Lopez was carrying a shotgun, and moments later she heard shots. Lopez' lawyer did not present Lopez' mother and common-law-wife as alibi witnesses he was with them at the time of the crime. After Lopez' conviction by a jury, the prosecution gave his lawyer a letter that had been written by a woman who had been a prisoner with Chapman at Rikers Island Correctional Facility, in which the woman claimed that Chapman told her that she lied about seeing Lopez in exchange for being released from jail early. Lopez' trial lawyer had a heart attack prior to Lopez' sentencing, and the lawyer who replaced him didn't know about the inmate's letter. Lopez was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. Chapman personally recanted her testimony in 1991 by giving a statement to Lopez' brother Eugene. Lopez appeal was based on two primary issues: 1) the prosecution introduced insufficient evidence to prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt because Chapman wasn't a credible witness, and 2) that he had been provided with ineffective assistance of counsel during his sentencing. Lopez' appeal was denied on October 12, 1993 by the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Second Department (People v. Lopez, 197 A.D.2d 594, 602 N.Y.S.2d 642 (2d Dep't 1993). In 2001 Lopez' filed a petition for writ of coram nobis with the Appellate Division that asserted his appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to seek leave to appeal to the Court of Appeals. Lopez' petition was denied on December 24, 2001, On July 5, 2002 Lopez filed a pro se habeas corpus petition that included affidavits from his mother and former common-law wife that his trial lawyer had never interviewed them. On April 24, 2004 U.S. District Court Judge Nicholas Garaufis denied his petition as procedurally (time) barred because it was filed more than one year after his conviction became final in 1993, and a one year deadline is imposed by the federal Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act that governs federal habeas petitions by state prisoners. Lopez filed a motion for reconsideration based on the "Schlup" exception that allows a petition to be considered after being filed late if there is credible evidence of the prisoner's "actual innocence." On September 13, 2005 Judge Garaufis granted the reconsideration motion in ruling that Chapman’s recantation provided “substantial support” for Lopez' actual innocence claim. Garaufis appointed counsel for Lopez, and Garaufis granted their request for appointment of an investigator to locate Chapman and other witnesses. Chapman couldn't be located, but other wintesses were interviewed and provided evidence. After almost eight years of legal maneuvering in both state and federal court, Garaufis granted Lopez' petition on January 16, 2013 in a 54-page ruling that began: "The case of William Lopez began twenty-three years ago. It was rotten from day one." The ruling also stated about the case: "...in the court's view[,] Lopez has been wronged by the State of New York. This wrongdoing has ranged from an overzealous and deceitful trial prosecutor; to a series of indolent and ill-prepared defense attorneys; to a bewildering jury verdict; and to the incomprehensible Justice Demarest, who so regrettably failed time and time again to give meaningful consideration to the host of powerful arguments Lopez presented to her." (Lopez v. Miller, 915 F. Supp. 2d 373 - Dist. Court, ED New York 2013) On January 23, 2013 Lopez was released on bond pending the outcome of his case. On March 20, 2013 Garaufis issued his order: "(1) Lopez is immediately and unconditionally RELEASED from New York State ("the State") custody; (2) the indictment pending against him in New York Supreme Court, Kings County is DISMISSED; (3) the State is BARRED from retrying him for the August 31, 1989, murder of Elvirn Surria; and (4) the State shall EXPUNGE Lopez's conviction from its records and all references to him in the public record." (Lopez v. Miller, No. No. 02-CV-3988 (NGG) (LB), Dist. Court, ED New York 2013) Kings County DA Charles J. Hynes, who had opposed Lopez' efforts every step of the way, appealed the ruling. Hynes was defeated in November 2013 for relection, and Ken Thompson took office in January 2014. Thompson had run on a platform of reforming the DA's Office, and review cases where a prisoner asserted a claim of actual innocence. On March 27, 2014 the Kings County DA's Office filed a motion to dismiss its appeal of Judge Garaufis' ruling, which was granted a day later. Lopez' indictment was subsequently dismissed in state court. Lopez filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in June 2014 that demanded $124 million from New York City and officers involved in his prosecution. A severe asthma attack caused Lopez' death on September 20, 2014. The defendants effort to dismiss the lawsuit due to Lopez' death were denied, and it continued with his wife and daughter as representatives of his estate. As representative of his estate, Lopez' widow Alice filed an Unjust Conviction Act compensation claim with the New York State of Claims, on October 22, 2014. On January 20, 2016 it was announced that New York State settled with Lopez' wife and daughter for $4.2 million. On September 23, 2016 the federal civil rights lawsuit against the City of New York was dismissed based on the settlement between the city and Lopez' estate for $8.25 million. (Lopez v. City of New York, 14-cv-3743,)" |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On January 16, 2013 U.S. District Court Judge Garaufis granted Lopez' habeas corpus petition, and on January 23, 2013 he was released on bond pending the outcome of his case. Kings County DA Charles J. Hynes appealed Judge Garaufis' order dated March 20, 2013 that Lopez be immediately released, that his indictment be dismissed, that the State was barred from retrying him, and expungement of the record of his conviction. After Hynes was defeated in November 2013 for relection, his sucessor, Ken Thompson, ordered that the DA's Office file a motion to dismiss its appeal of Judge Garaufis' ruling, which was granted a day later. Lopez' indictment was subsequently dismissed in state court." |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
"$12.45 million total. $4.2 million (New York State, Jan. 2016) and $8.25 million (New York City, Sept. 2016)" |
Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
31 |
Age When Released: |
54 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Hispanic |
Information Source 1: |
"His Conviction Overturned, Man Is Let Out Of Prison After 23 Years, By Mosi Secret (staff writer), The New York Times, January 22,2013" |
Information Location 1: |
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/24/nyregion/his-conviction-overturned-man-is-let-out-of-prison-after-23-years.html |
Information Source 2: |
"William Lopez, Prisoner Exonerated After 23 Years, Dies at 55, By Daniel E. Slotniksept (Staff writer), The New York Times, September 30, 2014" |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/01/nyregion/william-lopez-wrongfully-imprisoned-for-23-years-is-dead-at-55.html |
Information Source 3: |
"New Brooklyn DA drops appeal of wrongful conviction in 1989 murder, BY Oren Yaniv (Staff writer), New York Daily News, March 28, 2014" |
Information Location 3: |
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/exclusive-da-drops-appeal-wrongful-murder-conviction-article-1.1737519 |
Information Source 4: |
"Wrongfully jailed man doesn’t live long enough to get $4.2M settlement, By Shawn Cohen and Daniel Prendergast, New York Post, January 20, 2016" |
Information Location 4: |
http://nypost.com/2016/01/20/wrongfully-jailed-man-doesnt-live-long-enough-to-get-4-2-million-settlement/ |
Information Source 5: |
"NYC to Pay Estate $8.25M for Wrongful Conviction, By Rebecca Baker, New York Law Journal, September 23, 2016" |
Information Location 5: |
http://www.newyorklawjournal.com/home/id=1202768430154/NYC-to-Pay-Estate-825M-for-Wrongful-Conviction?mcode=1202617075062&curindex=0&slreturn=20160824143057 |
Book About Case: |
"https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=3651078181269899398&q=william+lopez+1989&hl=en&as_sdt=4,33,107,122,349,350,351,352" |
Book Information: |
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Movie About Case: |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org