Dallas County DNA exonerations evidence of broken system

Vic2, says:

Sorry, but DNA did not prove Waller's innocence as Craig Watkins claims, and your article states - it proved the guilt of his accomplice. As a victim of the crime, I can only surmise that Craig Watkins and the Dallas District Attorney's office might not be as innocent as it plays itself out to be, and the Innocence Project should be more careful and likewise held accountable to the victims of this crime.

When first reading about the exoneration last month, I noticed many inaccuracies about the case in various news articles. I was immediately concerned by the fact that I was never informed by the Dallas DA's office of the re-opening of the case, nor was I notified of the investigation. This concerned me because you would think that since I was at the scene of the crime, I could be a helpful source of information. Not only was their blunder a blatant disregard for my rights as a victim (Texas Constitution, Article 1, Bill of Rights, Section 30), it certainly did not reflect the actions of an investigation seeking the unmitigated truth.

Less than a week before Waller's exoneration I was called by the Dallas morning News, it was not until after that interview that I received a call from a panicked Mike Ware of the Conviction Integrity Unit of the Dallas DA's office. I asked Mr. Ware, a defense attorney, why DNA from a rape kit was being used to exonerate a man convicted of assault and kidnapping, and why wasn't I contacted about the re-opening of the case? His response was simply that he didn't have my phone number.

I then requested from Mr. Ware some jpegs, testimony of the confessions, or whatever evidence necessary to convince me that the person being exonerated is truly innocent. Ware agreed. Yet as days passed, I received nothing. During this idle time is when another victim in the case supplied me an interrogation tape, recorded in May 2008, of Byron Bell confessing to the crime (Bell is the first perpetrator for which the DNA was found to be a match - no DNA had ever been found for the second perpetrator, which Waller was convicted of being). On the tape, Bell, having had five months to ponder his interrogation (it was implied on the tape that Bell had known about his DNA match since January), confessed to the crime knowing that the statute of limitations had passed. Bell went on to say that Waller was not involved in the crime, but another man, Lemondo Green (aka Simmons), was his accomplice. Supposedly, Simmons was coerced into confessing to the crime as well (also knowing that he would not have to face charges because the statute of limitations had passed). These confessions resulted in Waller's "proved innocence" and subsequent release. Knowing that Waller had confessed to the crimes fifteen years earlier, my question was why was Waller's admission of guilt fifteen years ago all of a sudden trumped by the confession of a known criminal now? And the more obvious question was did these men know each other?

Waller stated in a recent interview that he did not know the two men that confessed to the crime. As it turns out, in fact, they did know each other. Waller and Bell worked together on kitchen duty while both were in the penitentiary, and Waller and Bell also attended the same high school, were the same age, and were both drug users within the same community prior to the crime.

For the first few days of this ordeal, I naively believed that the Dallas DA's office was on my side, wanting to protect the victims and be sure that we were properly informed. Yet, as the week quickly progressed up to Waller's exoneration date, it became apparent that I was being stalled and pacified with false promises until the hearing date could pass. I had no time to prepare for any action, and I wasn't receiving any plausible information about the case from the DA's office. I could only surmise that this behavior was because the DA's office didn't have enough evidence to be sure that Waller was actually innocent of the crime (certainly it wasn't because they were concerned about my rights as a victim).

I contemplated notifying the press, not just out of anger and resentment, but as a civil duty. But instead of notifying the press, I chose to do what I thought was the responsible thing, I called the State Attorney General's Office in Austin - they told me to call the Texas Board of Pardon and Paroles. Pardon and Paroles did not have the case on file, so they told me to call the Victim Services Division. I called Victim Services, got voicemail, left a message about my concerns, and have never heard back from them.

Then, the day before Waller's exoneration, I was called by Ware who told me that I could not get the transcripts that I requested because they were confidential, and I would need special permission from the judge for them to be released. I asked him what procedures were necessary to get the transcripts and Ware said that he would file a request for me. As I figured, I haven't heard back from him, and I suspect that he did not file any requests on my behalf. But what's done is done, and the hearing date has now passed, and Waller is a free man.

Every suspect in this case is free now, regardless of guilt or innocence, and I pray that they can all lead productive lives. While writing this commentary I intended to point out facts about the night of the crime and the trial that support my point of view. Instead, I will only point out two important things that are pertinent to issues raised from Waller's exoneration...

First, I've heard some people say that Waller's conviction was the result of racial injustice. It's important to note that the judge of Waller's trial was Larry Baraka, who is not only black, but ironically is also the judge that freed death row inmate Randall Dale Adams in 1989 (Adams was wrongly convicted and sentenced to death for murdering a Dallas Police officer in 1976 - the documentary "Thin Blue Line" was based on the Adams story).

Additionally it should be noted, that the unfortunate woman who was raped that night had to wait nearly an hour for the Dallas Police to arrive at the scene (which apparently was a necessary protocol before she could be taken to the hospital to have her rape kit analyzed). She was shivering, in shock, with only a blanket around her, as she waited in silence. I wonder if the Dallas DA's office notified her that the case was being re-opened in order to exonerate her perpetrator?

I can only assume that the Watkins' DA's office saw a loop-hole in one of their DNA case files, seized the opportunity to exploit it, and disregarded any desire to seek the whole truth. From further research the list of ineptness appears to go on and on - from missing evidence, to crime scene DNA that has not yet been tested. But Watkins, Ware, and the Dallas DA's office didn't seem to care since Waller was already scheduled to be released.

As a victim of the crime, from my perspective I can only conclude that the re-opening of the case, the resulting investigation, and the release of a convicted felon, were done as a political stepping stone to glorify the Dallas DA's office - at the expense of the victims of the crime. The Innocence Project should be more careful in future cases, and I think they, and the Dallas DA's office should be held accountable.

xdavidwattsx, says:

Too long. No paragraphs. No read.

xdavidwattsx, says:

Much better now. I can't read 100 lines of text with no breaks. Makes daddy crazy.

brie, says:

I was the victim along with "vic3" above in the Waller case. I concur with his statements and would like to stress the fact that I was intentionally omitted from the process despite the fact of bringing forth a major detail/snag in the Conviction Integrity Unit's case. Not only did I suffer from the attack and the emotional duress that followed, but I have been made to suffer again by the Dallas DA's suppression of my rights.

jtmbls, says:

It is clear, once again, that the Dallas District Attorney’s office cares nothing about the truth. Just one more political machine, like every other Dallas bureaucracy, manipulating the press, and sadly victimizing and re-victimizing its citizens. What does seem to be of the utmost importance to the DA’s office is sound bites and victory in the court room at any cost without the least regard for justice.

Clay213, says:

You sent an innocent man to prison for 16 years.. sounds like you had enough involvement already.

xdavidwattsx, says:

"It is clear, once again, that the Dallas District Attorney’s office cares nothing about the truth. "

That's a loaded statement. Care to back that up with substance? Are you implying all 19-odd men who have been exonerated have been lies and sound bites to grandstand?

jtmbls, says:

I am implying that the DA's grandstanding goes well beyond the 19 exonerations you are referring to. But I won't overwhelm you with facts as reading has already proven too much of a challenge for you today.

Vic2, says:

Sorry Clay213, but the man was not proven innocent. Which Craig Watkins failed to do, despite his claims.

Vic2, says:

Not only that, Watkins broke the law in order to make the exoneration take place.

jtmbls, says:

You will have to learn to ignore Clay like most everyone else here. Most of the time his comments are removed anyway.

xdavidwattsx, says:

You have facts that the DA is grandstanding and that these mean really are guilty of their crimes and the DNA is bogus and these 19 men ore nothing more than political points?

I'm gonna pop some popcorn. This should be good.

jtmbls, says:

No genius, that is not what I said. Take a reading comprehension course and then come back to me.

xdavidwattsx, says:

I think we know where the real grandstanding is.

Clay213, says:

jtmbls Anonymous

You will have to learn to ignore Clay like most everyone else here. Most of the time his comments are removed anyway.

Most of the time?

Maybe 1% of my comments have been removed.

As for being ignored-- the consistent emails I receive telling me how much my comments are appreciated.. certainly belies your statement.

As for Waller: DNA proved he wasn't the rapist. The man that the DNA matched-- admitted to being the perpetrator. And he named his accomplice. Who wasn't Waller.

What more do you need?

Vic2, says:

The woman was raped by more than one man, yet there was only one DNA sample from the rape kit which was not Waller's - that does not prove Waller was not the other rapist. And the man fingered as the accomplice does not match the stature, visage, or age of the true perpetrator.

Vic2, says:

By the way, Waller's guilt or innocence is not the main issue of this discussion - it's the fact that the Dallas DA's office, including Mike Ware and Craig Watkin's, broke the law... apparently for political gain and notoriety.

Vic2, says:

The DA's office is responsible for upholding the law, not breaking it. And they should, and will be, held accountable.

Clay213, says:

What law did they break? Besides trying an a man with insufficient evidence?

Vic2, says:

To begin with, Texas Constitution, Article 1, Bill of Rights, Section 30. Had they followed these laws, among others, their contradictions and inconsistencies in re-opening the case could have been avoided.

And, as far as "trying a man with insufficient evidence," you're just exposing your ignorance about the case.

brie, says:

An important element that the DA's office has exploited is the use of the media. ONE erroneous press release was issued by the DA's office. There were many factual errors that naturally went unchallenged. This press release became the basis for the public's knowledge. Had any journalist taken the time to do a little research they would have easily unearthed what I did.

Clay 213, I don't fault your ignorance. Your response is exactly what the DA's office is banking on in order to garner unilateral favor of their program.

What is curious is the fact that there is so much missing evidence that cannot be tested, missing police files and a lack of knowledge about the facts by the new "investigators" in the Conviction Integrity Unit. A few men are responsible for reviewing information and they can manipulate the courts without any mechanism to challenge or even verify if their information is correct.

I believe the Waller case is an anomaly and that innocent people have been released from jail. However, we cannot permit laws to be broken, and true justice to be thrown out so that an agency can ride the momentum of its own success.

BobS, says:

Clay - it's 3% if you're wondering.

Exactly half the percentage of your posts in which you directly attack jtmbls (an uncoupled variant btw). There are other interesting correlations if you're that interested in stats.

Clay213, says:

I guess what they say about statistics is true..

How'd you get 3%? 2/331 = .006 which is almost half of what I guessed.

Clay213, says:

hmmm.

xdavidwattsx, says:

In all fairness, jtmbls did jump here in spouting all kinds of nonsense about the DA grandstanding on a bunch of lies who victimizing its citizens without offering a shred of evidence.

Further, I have yet to see a sliver of evidence from anyone posted in this thread that actually says Waller is guilty except for circumstantial evidence and hearsay.

Far as I can tell, DNA says he didn't do it and him going to the same high school as the perp, being the same age and doing drugs is hardly compelling evidence to the contrary.

I'm sad the real perp will never go to jail, and in that regard justice isn't being served, but that isn't the fault of the current DA.

DC, says:

I wonder about the technical aspects of these stories like the storage of these samples and integrity of nucleic acids during that much time frozen (?).

brie, says:

Mr. Watts, Patrick Waller has been released. Can't change that now. Another man, who was not present the night I got attacked has stepped forward and said he is my attacker. That is a fact. Question, If a man can't maintain an erection and ejaculate, what is the chance of him leaving behind DNA in the rape victim? Fact: the Tech-9 from the trial is no longer in evidence. Why is it more important to keep DNA evidence than physical evidence? Fact: the original police records are gone. And Fact: the DA's office issued a press release full of factual errors and misrepresentations.

The best solution is to prevent these sorts of crimes from happening. I moved to Dallas from New York. I did not know fear, and I did not know the kind of racism that exists in DFW was still going on in America. Try integrating, and making sure all citizens get the same opportunities. Check out graduation rates by school district. See what happens when you are the victim of a violent crime and it happens in Oak Cliff. See what happens when you wait, covered in blood and half naked for one hour right off the highway. Would this have happened in North Dallas? I got to see two sides of racism that night. I lived on the East Side. When gang kids had their drive bys a little too close, we hit the floor. When our house got broken into we knew to drive to the Stop n Go to get a squad car to come out. That's the reality. Fix that.

Ask yourself why you react to this story.

DC, says:

This is all horrible. However, as far as the DNA evidence goes, some information on the techniques would help some people comment on what's going on.

Was Thomas Jefferson Eston's dad?

Vic2, says:

DC,

The unique circumstance of this discussion is that a violent criminal has been presumed innocent based on his accomplices DNA sample - not his own. More importantly, there is much more to this case than just the DNA samples - but it is complex, convoluted, and more than can be explained in this post.

It is extremely important to know, that the inaccuracies in the re-opening of this case and resulting investigation overwhelmingly point to the corruption within the Dallas Law Enforcement system... a system that feigns the pursuit of justice. And from my viewpoint, and as a victim of this crime, political agendas and egocentric behavior obviously exist within Craig Watkin's Dallas District Attorney's office, and it's imperative that this behavior be brought to the attention of the citizens of Dallas. Dallas is already a city that ranks amongst the highest in violent crime in the U.S., and letting violent criminals back in the streets for political glorification is a grave mistake.

jtmbls, says:

Thank you brie and Vic for coming forward to share your story. It must be a repeatedly painful process for you both.