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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Murder |
Sentence: |
Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole |
Years Imprisoned: |
24 |
Year Crime: |
1990 |
Year Convicted: |
1994 |
Year Cleared: |
2017 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Pennsylvania |
County or Region of Crime: |
Philadelphia |
City of Crime: |
Philadelphia |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated Released |
Summary of Case: |
"Shaurn Thomas was co-defendant of Clayton Thomas Jr aka Mustafa. Both defendants were wrongly convicted in 1994 of second-degree murder for the November 1990 robbery and killing of Domingo Martinez in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1990. Both defendants were sentenced to life in prison without parole. Shaurn Thomas' conviction was overturned and the charges dismissed in 2017. Shaurn was released after 24 years in custody. Thomas' case was the first one that resulted in an exoneration following an investigation by the Philadelphia Conviction Integrity Unit. Clayton Thomas' conviction was overturned and the charges dismissed on May 31, 2019. He remained imprisoned for his conviction in an unrelated crime. Shaurn Thomas filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against he Philadelphia Police Department and several officers that in late December 2019 he agreed to settle for $4.15 million." |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On May 23, 2017 the motion by the Philadelpha District Attorney's Office to dismiss the charges against Shaurn Thomas in the interest of justice was granted." |
Defendant Aided By: |
"Law firm of Dechert LLP and lawyer Jim Figorski, Pennsylvania Innocence Project, and Philadelphia Conviction Integrity Unit" |
Compensation Awarded: |
"$4.15 million (City of Philadelphia, Dec 2019)" |
Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
19 |
Age When Released: |
43 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
Black |
Information Source 1: |
"Lost Police File Helps Exonerate Man of Murder After 24 Years in Prison, By Christopher Melemay, The New York Times, May 25, 2017" |
Information Location 1: |
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/25/us/shaurn-thomas-released-prison.html?_r=0 |
Information Source 2: |
"City pays $4.15 million to man wrongfully convicted of North Philadelphia murder: Shaurn Thomas was imprisoned for 24 years until a judge vacated his sentence in 2017, By Allie Miller, Philly Voice, January 7, 2020" |
Information Location 2: |
https://www.phillyvoice.com/wrongfully-convicted-murder-philadelphia-shaurn-thomas-lawsuit-settlement/ |
Information Source 3: |
"Philadelphia to pay $4.15M to man over wrongful conviction, The Citizens' Voice (Wilkes-Barre, NC), January 3, 2020" |
Information Location 3: |
https://hosted.ap.org/citizensvoice/article/d8b39573f559a7e0765953f720950717/philadelphia-pay-415m-man-over-wrongful-conviction |
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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org