Susan Marie Mellen

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Charge:	Murder
Sentence:	Life Imprisonment
Years Imprisoned:	17.12
Year Crime:	1997
Year Convicted:	1998
Year Cleared:	2014
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	California
County or Region of Crime:	Los Angeles
City of Crime:	Lawndale
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Susan Marie Mellen was wrongly convicted of murder in 1998 in the death of a man in Lawdale, California in 1997. The prosecution's case was based on the testimony of an informant who testified Susan Mellon confessed to her. After Mellen's conviction by a jury she was sentenced to life in prison. In 2013 evidence was discovered that the prosecution's informant was a pathological liar. The Los Angeles County DA's Office participated in the reinvestigation of the case. On September 18, 2014 Susan Mellen filed a writ of habeas corpus based on the new evidence her conviction was based on unreliable witness evidence, which was granted on October 10, 2014 without opposition by the DA's Office. Mellen was released later that day after more than 17 years of incarceration. On April 23, 2015 Mellen filed a federal civil rights lawsuit that named the Los Angeles Police Department, a LAPD detective and his supervisor as defendants. On June 8, 2015 the California Legislature passed authorization for Mellen to be paid $597,200 under California's wrongful conviction compensation statute, and on June 17, 2015 Governor Jerry Brown signed the legislation."
Conviction Caused By:	Perjury by the prosecution's key witness.
Innocence Proved By:	"Susan Mellen filed a writ of habeas corpus based on the new evidence her conviction was based on unreliable witness evidence, which was granted on October 10, 2014 without opposition by the DA's Office. Mellen was released later that day after more than 17 years of incarceration."
Defendant Aided By:	"Innocence Matters and its director, attorney Deirdre O'Connor."
Compensation Awarded:	"$597,200 (State of Calif., June 2015)"
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	42
Age When Released:	59
Sex:	Female
Skin/Ethnicity:	White
Information Source 1:	"Woman behind bars 17 years walks free after judge says she's innocent, By Corina Knoll (Staff writer), Los Angeles Times, October 10, 2014"
Information Location 1:	http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-woman-behind-bars-walks-free-20141010-story.html#page=1
Information Source 2:	"IN RE Susan Marie Mellen, No. YA033982-02, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Petition For Writ Of Habeas Corpus, Sept. 18, 2014"
Information Location 2:	http://documents.latimes.com/susan-mellen-seeks-have-her-1998-murder-conviction-thrown-out/
Information Source 3:	"Wrongfully Convicted Woman, Now Free, Sues City of LA, The suit accuses LAPD detectives of knowingly using false evidence to convict her, NBCLA-TV (Los Angeles, CA), By City News Service, April 23, 2015"
Information Location 3:	http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Wrongfully-Convicted-Woman-Sues-City-LA-Susan-Mellen--301146931.html
Information Source 4:	"State lawmakers approve $968,700 in claims for wrongful convictions, By Phil Willon and Patrick McGreevy (Reporting from Sacramento), The Los Angeles Times, June 8, 2015"
Information Location 4:	http://www.latimes.com/local/political/la-me-ln-state-lawmakers-passed-968700-in-claims-for-wrongful-convictions-20150608-story.html
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Susan Marie Mellen

Charge:

Murder

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment

Years Imprisoned:

17.12

Year Crime:

1997

Year Convicted:

1998

Year Cleared:

2014

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

California

County or Region of Crime:

Los Angeles

City of Crime:

Lawndale

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Perjury by the prosecution's key witness.

Innocence Proved By:

"Susan Mellen filed a writ of habeas corpus based on the new evidence her conviction was based on unreliable witness evidence, which was granted on October 10, 2014 without opposition by the DA's Office. Mellen was released later that day after more than 17 years of incarceration."

Defendant Aided By:

"Innocence Matters and its director, attorney Deirdre O'Connor."

Compensation Awarded:

"$597,200 (State of Calif., June 2015)"

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

42

Age When Released:

59

Sex:

Female

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Woman behind bars 17 years walks free after judge says she's innocent, By Corina Knoll (Staff writer), Los Angeles Times, October 10, 2014"

Information Location 1:

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-woman-behind-bars-walks-free-20141010-story.html#page=1

Information Source 2:

"IN RE Susan Marie Mellen, No. YA033982-02, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Petition For Writ Of Habeas Corpus, Sept. 18, 2014"

Information Location 2:

http://documents.latimes.com/susan-mellen-seeks-have-her-1998-murder-conviction-thrown-out/

Information Source 3:

"Wrongfully Convicted Woman, Now Free, Sues City of LA, The suit accuses LAPD detectives of knowingly using false evidence to convict her, NBCLA-TV (Los Angeles, CA), By City News Service, April 23, 2015"

Information Location 3:

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Wrongfully-Convicted-Woman-Sues-City-LA-Susan-Mellen--301146931.html

Information Source 4:

"State lawmakers approve $968,700 in claims for wrongful convictions, By Phil Willon and Patrick McGreevy (Reporting from Sacramento), The Los Angeles Times, June 8, 2015"

Information Location 4:

http://www.latimes.com/local/political/la-me-ln-state-lawmakers-passed-968700-in-claims-for-wrongful-convictions-20150608-story.html

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

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