Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner announced charges on Friday against three former homicide detectives who made false statements that contributed to the wrongful conviction of a man who spent 25 years in prison for a rape and murder he did not commit.
The former detectives — Manuel Santiago, Martin Devlin and Frank Jastrzembski — played significant roles in the 1993 conviction of Anthony Wright, who has since been exonerated by DNA evidence. They repeated their false claims decades later during a retrial that could have kept the innocent man in prison. The former detectives were charged with perjury and false swearing in official matters after a grand jury presentment recommending the charges was unsealed on Friday.
“After hearing testimony from key witnesses and reviewing evidence, the Grand Jury recommended that Santiago, Devlin, and Jastrzembski be held accountable for lying under oath to condemn an innocent man and cover up their wrongdoing, and for perverting the integrity of law,” Krasner said Friday.
It is exceedingly rare for law enforcement officials to face criminal prosecution in relation to their roles in wrongful convictions. But reviewing wrongful convictions has been a key agenda item for Krasner, one of the leaders of the progressive prosecutor movement. In 2018, his office created the Conviction Integrity Unit, which has helped secure exonerations for 22 people. At least 18 of the exonerated were Black men. The detectives charged on Friday worked on at least four of the cases that the Conviction Integrity Unit has helped overturn.
The jury acquitted Wright of all charges after less than an hour of deliberations. Wright was freed after spending 25 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.
What should be the punishment for these cops?
This is a prime example of the US Justice System, if not for this DA this man would probably be back in jail. That is where the old DA wanted for him.
What is the price on 25yrs of this man's life that was taken?
The former detectives — Manuel Santiago, Martin Devlin and Frank Jastrzembski — played significant roles in the 1993 conviction of Anthony Wright, who has since been exonerated by DNA evidence. They repeated their false claims decades later during a retrial that could have kept the innocent man in prison. The former detectives were charged with perjury and false swearing in official matters after a grand jury presentment recommending the charges was unsealed on Friday.
“After hearing testimony from key witnesses and reviewing evidence, the Grand Jury recommended that Santiago, Devlin, and Jastrzembski be held accountable for lying under oath to condemn an innocent man and cover up their wrongdoing, and for perverting the integrity of law,” Krasner said Friday.
It is exceedingly rare for law enforcement officials to face criminal prosecution in relation to their roles in wrongful convictions. But reviewing wrongful convictions has been a key agenda item for Krasner, one of the leaders of the progressive prosecutor movement. In 2018, his office created the Conviction Integrity Unit, which has helped secure exonerations for 22 people. At least 18 of the exonerated were Black men. The detectives charged on Friday worked on at least four of the cases that the Conviction Integrity Unit has helped overturn.
The jury acquitted Wright of all charges after less than an hour of deliberations. Wright was freed after spending 25 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.
What should be the punishment for these cops?
This is a prime example of the US Justice System, if not for this DA this man would probably be back in jail. That is where the old DA wanted for him.
What is the price on 25yrs of this man's life that was taken?
