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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Rape and Robbery (including burglary) |
Sentence: |
20 years |
Years Imprisoned: |
10 |
Year Crime: |
1992 |
Year Convicted: |
1996 |
Year Cleared: |
2006 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Illinois |
County or Region of Crime: |
Cook |
City of Crime: |
Chicago |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated and Later Pardoned |
Summary of Case: |
"Marlon Pendleton was wrongly convicted in 1992 of raping and robbing a woman based on her eyewitness identification. Marlon Pendleton was sentenced to 20 years in prison. In 2006 DNA testing unavailable at the time of Pendleton's conviction excluded him as the woman's assailant. After Pendleton's release on bond on November 30, 2006, the charges were dismissed by a Cook County Circuit Court judge on December 8, 2006. On October 30, 2008 Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich pardoned Marlon Pendleton on the basis of his actual innocence.In December 2008 Pendleton was arrested and charged with the murder of his girlfriend whose body was discovered in the home of Pendleton's sister in Hammond, Illinois." |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"Released from prison on November 30, 2006, and charges dismissed on December 8, 2006, based on DNA tests unavailable at the time of Pendleton's trial that excluded him as the assailant." |
Defendant Aided By: |
Northwestern University’s Center on Wrongful Convictions |
Compensation Awarded: |
"$795,000 total. $170,000 (State of Illinois, 2007), $625,000 (City of Chicago, 2016)" |
Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
37 |
Age When Released: |
48 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Black |
Information Source 1: |
"Judge vacates man's wrongful rape conviction, By Carla K. Johnson (AP), Chicago Sun-Times, December 8, 2006" |
Information Location 1: |
"http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/165710,rape120806.article" |
Information Source 2: |
"Judge to release wrongfully convicted man, By Sophia Tareen, (AP), Chicago Sun-Times, November 30, 2006" |
Information Location 2: |
"http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/155596,judge113006.article" |
Information Source 3: |
"DNA finding leads to bail in rape case, Chicago Tribune, November 25, 2006" |
Information Location 3: |
"http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/northshore/chi-0611250210nov25,1,6412227.story?coll=chi-newslocalnorthshore-hed" |
Information Source 4: |
"Man cleared in rape case by DNA evidence now charged in girlfriend's slaying, By Azam Ahmed, The Chicago Tribune, December 28, 2008" |
Information Location 4: |
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Information Source 5: |
"Blagojevich pardons 26, including several wrongfully convicted of rape, murder, The Chicago Tribune, October 31, 2009" |
Information Location 5: |
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2008/oct/31/local/chi-blago-pardonoct31 |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org