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Appeals Court Overturns Rape Verdict, Frees Man After 12 Years in Prison

By Steven Rodriguez

As we have previously discussed (see our Nov. 3 and Nov. 5 posts), the appellate process exists to correct judicial errors and ensure that criminal defendants receive justice. An excellent example of how an appeal can right a wrong is the recent case reported in the Dallas Morning News. In 1996, when he was a 17-year-old high school student, Antone Lynelle Johnson was convicted of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl while on probation for a previous assault. He received a life sentence for what prosecutors painted during his trial as two brutal rapes. Now 31, Lynelle was recently freed when it was discovered that prosecutors withheld evidence that might have cleared him 12 years ago. Evidence withheld by prosecutors during Johnson’s 1996 trial would have raised doubts about his guilt, Johnson’s criminal appeals attorney told the Texas Court of Appeals...continue to full post

Full post as published by LA Criminal Defense Blog on November 19, 2008 (boomark / email).