Horace Roberts

Go to Database Search Page

Go to Database Index Page

Charge:	Murder
Sentence:	15 to life
Years Imprisoned:	20
Year Crime:	1998
Year Convicted:	1999
Year Cleared:	2018
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	California
County or Region of Crime:	Riverside
City of Crime:	Riverside
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Horace Roberts was wrongly convicted in 1999 of murder in the strangulation death of his lover Terry Cheek in Riverside County, California in 1998. George Harris was Cheek's estranged husband, and the rope used to stangle her was used on a dog run at his property. A watch was also found at the crime scene. However, Harris was only questioned by Riverside County Sheriff's investigators once for a short period of time. Roberts was questioned five times for extended periods of time. Roberts did not confess and no physical or forensic evidence linked him to the crime. Nevertheless Roberts was charged with Cheek's murder. After his conviction by a jury Roberts was sentenced to 15 to life in prison. In 2017 the crime scene evidence was sent for testing to the California Department of Justice laboratory in Riverside. DNA on the watch was matched to Joaquin Leal, who was a friend of Harris'. A reinvestigation of the case by Riverside County resulted in Harris and Leal being charged in 2018 with Cheek's murder. Roberts' conviction was vacated and the charges dismissed in 2018. On October 1, 2019 Roberts filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Riverside County and Sheriff's Department officers involved in his case. His lawsuit alleges the officers manufactured the case against him by failing to turn over key evidence to his trial lawyer (including the watch and rope), fabriacated police reports, and influenced the testimony of witnesses."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:
Defendant Aided By:	California Innocence Project (CIP) at California Western School of Law
Compensation Awarded:	"$1,044,820 (State of California, 2019("
Was Perpetrator Identified?	Yes
Age When Imprisoned:	40
Age When Released:	60
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Black
Information Source 1:	"Man exonerated in 1998 California murder case files lawsuit, By Associated Press, New York Post, October 1, 2019"
Information Location 1:	https://nypost.com/2019/10/01/man-exonerated-in-1998-california-murder-case-files-lawsuit/
Information Source 2:
Information Location 2:
Information Source 3:
Information Location 3:
Information Source 4:
Information Location 4:
Information Source 5:
Information Location 5:
Book About Case:
Book Information:
Book About Case (2):
Book Information (2):
Movie About Case:
Comments About Case:

Go to Database Search Page

Go to Database Index Page

Horace Roberts

Charge:

Murder

Sentence:

15 to life

Years Imprisoned:

20

Year Crime:

1998

Year Convicted:

1999

Year Cleared:

2018

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

California

County or Region of Crime:

Riverside

City of Crime:

Riverside

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

Defendant Aided By:

California Innocence Project (CIP) at California Western School of Law

Compensation Awarded:

"$1,044,820 (State of California, 2019("

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Yes

Age When Imprisoned:

40

Age When Released:

60

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"Man exonerated in 1998 California murder case files lawsuit, By Associated Press, New York Post, October 1, 2019"

Information Location 1:

https://nypost.com/2019/10/01/man-exonerated-in-1998-california-murder-case-files-lawsuit/

Information Source 2:

Information Location 2:

Information Source 3:

Information Location 3:

Information Source 4:

Information Location 4:

Information Source 5:

Information Location 5:

Book About Case:

Book Information:

Book About Case (2):

Book Information (2):

Movie About Case:

Comments About Case: