Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Robbery (includes armed robbery) |
Sentence: |
2 years 6 months |
Years Imprisoned: |
1 |
Year Crime: |
2015 |
Year Convicted: |
2016 |
Year Cleared: |
2016 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
United Kingdom |
County or Region of Crime: |
England |
City of Crime: |
Kempston |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated Released |
Summary of Case: |
"Daniel Philip Thompson was wrongly convicted in January 2016 of robbery in the theft of £5,800 from a shop worker near the Springfield Centre in Kempston, England in March 2015. Thompson's prosecution was based on his resemblance to the robber shown in a security camera video. The woman did not identify Thompson as the robber in describing that the money was in a bag that was snatched from her as she was walking after leaving the store. Thompson's alibi defense was he was home at the time of the robbery, and his whereabout was proved by the electronic tag on his ankle that was a requirement of him serving a sentence for a misdemeanor conviction. He contended that the authorities knew from the tag whenever he was outside his house. Taking into consideration his criminal history and the testimony of three officers that Thompson resembled the man in the video, a 10-2 majority of the jury in the Luton Crown Court voted to convict Thompson. Daniel Thompson was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison. After Thompson was imprisoned a 13-year-old boy came forward and informed the police that he saw the robber and he was not Thompson, who he knew by sight. Thompson appealed based on the new evidence. On December 16, 2016 the Court of Appeal quashed Thompson's conviction based on the new credible eyewitness evidence. Lord Justice Hamblen stated for the three judge panel: "This was a case where the evidence at the trial could be said to be finely balanced. In such a case, credible witness evidence relating to the robbery itself could well have been of considerable importance to the outcome of the trial. The importance of this evidence is because he saw the person who committed that robbery and that person ran very closely to him. He came forward as someone who had seen the robbery at the time, made a note of what he had seen and gave a full description in the statement he provided." The Crown Prosecution Service did not seek a retrial." |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On December 16, 2016 the Court of Appeal quashed Thompson's conviction based on the new credible eyewitness evidence. The Crown Prosecution Service did not seek a retrial." |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
31 |
Age When Released: |
32 |
Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
White |
Information Source 1: |
"Kempston man has robbery conviction overturned after being wrongly imprisoned for a year, By Staff, Bedfordshire On Sunday, January 16, 2017" |
Information Location 1: |
http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/bedford-man-has-robbery-conviction-overturned-after-being-wrongly-imprisoned-for-a-year/story-30061166-detail/story.html |
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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org