|
Wrongly
Convicted Database
Record
|
Years
Imprisoned:
|
18 |
Charge: |
Murder and Rape |
Sentence: |
Death and later resentenced or commuted to Life |
Year Convicted: |
1984 |
Year
Cleared:
|
2000 |
Location
of Trial:
|
Virginia |
Result:
|
Pardoned |
Summary
of Case:
|
Falsely confessed to rape and murder and spent 9-1/2 years on death row before his death sentence was commutted to life in prison when DNA evidence strongly indicated his innocence. Pardoned in October 2000 after new DNA tests conclusively excluded him as the rapist and murderer. Released from prison on February 12, 2001. Awarded $2.25 million by a federal court jury in May 2006, after Washington sued the estate of Virginia State Police investigator Curtis Reese Wilmore, for fabricating Washington's alleged murder confession that resulted in his conviction and sentence of death. Wilmore Estate appealed, and in March 2007 a settlement was reached for $1.9 million, ending the case. Washington's legal fees and expenses will come out of the settlement, with the balance being put in a trust fund for Washington. |
Conviction
Caused By:
|
False confession fabricated by VA State Police Special Agent. |
Innocence
Proved By:
|
DNA tests unavailable at the time of Washington's conviction excluded him.
|
Defendant
Aided By:
|
|
Compensation Awarded: |
$1,900,000 |
Was Perpetrator Found? |
|
Age
When Imprisoned:
|
21 |
Age
When Released:
|
39 |
Information Source 1: |
Wrongfully Jailed Man Wins Suit -- Va. Officer Falsified Confession, Jury Rules, by Jerry Markon (staff), Washington Post, May 6, 2006, p B01 |
Information
Location 1:
|
file:///C:/hans/justice%20denied/washington,%20earl/wrongfully%20jailed%20man%20wins%20suit%20-%20washington%20post%20-%2005-06-2006.htm |
Information
Source 2:
|
Tentative deal gives wrongly convicted man $2 million, By Michelle Washington, The Virginian-Pilot, March 28, 2007 |
Information
Location 2:
|
http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?story=121888&ran=205916 |
Information
Source 3:
|
Death Penalty Information Center |
Information
Location 3:
|
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/Innocentlist.html |
Information
Source 4:
|
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Information
Location 4:
|
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Information
Source 5:
|
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Information
Location 5:
|
An Expendable Man: The Near-Execution of Earl Washington, Jr., by Margaret Edds, New York University Press, 2006, paperback. |
Ethnicity/Skin:
|
Black |
Book
About
Case:
|
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Book
Information:
|
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Book About Case (2): |
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Book Information (2): |
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Movie About Case: |
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Comments About Case: |
Falsely confessed |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org