Marco Milla

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Charge:	Murder and Attempted Murder
Sentence:	Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole
Years Imprisoned:	12.8
Year Crime:	2001
Year Convicted:	2002
Year Cleared:	2015
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	California
County or Region of Crime:	Los Angeles
City of Crime:
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Marco Milla was wrongly convicted on December 23, 2002 of one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder related to shots fired on September 29, 2001 at a passing vehicle in Los Angeles County, California. Milla was reputed to be Latino gang member, and the victim, 19-year-old Robert Hightower, was black. After his conviction by a jury Milla was sentenced on February 27, 2003 to life in prison without parole. Milla's convictions were affirmed by the California Court of Appeals on December 20, 2004, and on March 16, 2005 the California Supreme Court denied review of his case. In 2010 the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sent a letter to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office that during its investigation into the criminal activities of several local gangs, a reliable confidential informant provided information about the the shooting for which Milla was convicted. The informant witnessed the shooting, named the gang member who was the shooter, and stated that Milla was not present at the scene. Milla filed a Writ of Habeas Corpus based on the new informant evidence. The LA County DA's Office opposed Milla's petition. An evidentiary hearing was held, during which the informant testified about the information he had previously provided to DHS, and testified that Milla was not present and named the actual shooter. Milla's habeas petition was granted on June 23, 2014, and his conviction were vacated and a new trial ordered. Milla was released from custody on bond on August 11, 2014. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to retry Milla, and it motion to dismiss all charges against Milla was granted on January 9, 2015. Milla filed a petition for a finding of his factual innocence under Calif. Penal Code § 1485.55(a), based on the new evidence of his actual innocence, which was granted on January 13, 2016. Milla filed a claim on February 1, 2016 under California's wrongful imprisonment compensation statute. Milla's claim was unique in that he requested compensation from the date of his arrest on October 24, 2001 -- and not the date of his conviction -- December 23, 2002, citing a change in the language of Calif. Pen. Code § 4904 when the compensation per day of incarceration was increased to $140 per day from the previous $100 per day: that the $140 per day in compensation “shall include any time spent in custody, including in a county jail, that is considered part of the term of incarceration.” The statute previously stated: "one hundred dollars ($100) per day of incarceration served subsequent to the claimant's conviction." The California Attorney General agreed that Milla was due compensation because he had been lawfully judged "factually innocent," but the AG's Office argued that § 4904's new language that a claimant shall be compensated for "any time spent in custody" didn't expand the time for which a claimant was due compensation. On March 21, 2016 the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board rejected the AG's interpretation, and voted to grant Milla compensation of $140 per day for the 4,675 days from his arrest on October 24, 2001 to his release on August 11, 2014 -- a total of $654,000."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:	"Milla's habeas petition was granted on June 23, 2014, and his conviction were vacated and a new trial ordered. Milla was released from custody on bond on August 11, 2014. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to retry Milla, and it motion to dismiss all charges against Milla was granted on January 9, 2015."
Defendant Aided By:
Compensation Awarded:	"$654,500 (State of California, March 21, 2016)"
Was Perpetrator Identified?	Yes
Age When Imprisoned:
Age When Released:
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Hispanic
Information Source 1:	"In the Matter of the Claim of Marco Milla, Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board of the State of California, Proposed Decision, March 21, 2016"
Information Location 1:	http://www.vcgcb.ca.gov/docs/pc4900/PC-4900-Approved-Milla.pdf
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Marco Milla

Charge:

Murder and Attempted Murder

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole

Years Imprisoned:

12.8

Year Crime:

2001

Year Convicted:

2002

Year Cleared:

2015

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

California

County or Region of Crime:

Los Angeles

City of Crime:

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

"$654,500 (State of California, March 21, 2016)"

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Yes

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Hispanic

Information Source 1:

"In the Matter of the Claim of Marco Milla, Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board of the State of California, Proposed Decision, March 21, 2016"

Information Location 1:

http://www.vcgcb.ca.gov/docs/pc4900/PC-4900-Approved-Milla.pdf

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