Its a joyful day for me and my family, Mr. Hicks said after being released. Listen: Stories about Black men spending years and even decades behind bars for crimes they didnt. He was exonerated Immediately, Hicks appealed. The website is updated daily, frequently with exonerations that occurred in the past. EfM gave me the skills, and this is my gift back to the world. To find an EfM group near you or learn more about EfM groups in prisons, read more here. They greeted me with such unexpected affection. Officer Martin Vinson and Sgt. I do feel that, one case at a time, this system is being improved.. Photo: Peter Tobia. The reversal comes amid a recent flurry of exonerations as the citys district attorney, Larry Krasner, has aggressively pushed to revisit at least 16 questionable convictions. In 2015, Mr. Hicks came up for parole, but because he continued to assert his innocence he was denied, and not considered again. The Philadelphia police did not immediately return a request for comment on the case, but Anthony Erace, the executive director of the Police Advisory Commission, told the Inquirer he would seek a review of the investigation. But, he added: Its unfortunate and sad that it took how long it took for me to clear my name. The conviction was vacated, and the charge dismissed. Termaine Hicks was released from SCI Phoenix on Dec. 16 after 19 years in prison. A police spokesperson said that the district attorney did not provide details on the allegations until after Hicks case was resolved. Hicks case is yet another example of systemic police abuse that is pervasive in the criminal legal system and persists because of institutional protections and a lack of accountability, said Vanessa Potkin, director of post-conviction litigation at the Innocence Project, who represented Mr. Hicks. A jury later convicted Hicks of rape, and a judge sentenced him to up to 25 years in prison. The presumption of innocence., Demographic changes: How the racial makeup of where you live has changed since 1990, Newsletter: Subscribe to About US to read the latest on race and identity, George Floyds America: Examining systemic racism through the lens of his life, Resources: Understanding racism and inequality in America. He served 19 years in prison. This dragging on, its like youre still living it, Reynolds said. In a first, House Democrats elected a Black leader. But the surveillance footage was not provided to Hicks or his lawyers until after his trial had concluded. The men told me how much they loved Dennis.. She also extended an apology to the victim, whose name was withheld. 2023 Innocence Project. They shot him three times in the back. The spokesperson declined to confirm the identity of the third officer under investigation. On Wednesday afternoon, released from the State Correctional Institution Phoenix to his brothers home just a few miles away in Montgomery County, Hicks said he was both overjoyed and overwhelmed. He was exonerated after the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office conceded that lead police TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA A federal grand jury has returned a twenty-one count indictment against Andrew Demetric Gillum, 42, and Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, 53, both of Tallahassee, Florida. The indictment was announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. So, I could see the sun, or take a shower, or have a phone callbut only one. He was exonerated in 2020. Hicks says, In the judicial system, theres something called finality that is very hard to overcome.. Along the way I found a hidden talent, he says. The women feared that if they came forward theyd be sent to another federal facility far from their families, interrupting the education and work programs they had at Coleman, which is the largest federal prison in the U.S. Settlements were approved by the Attorney Generals office on Monday. Theres plenty of us who would give him help. Im excited for younow go live your life manyou deserve a good one. Three shots rang out, striking Hicks in the arm, chest, back, and buttock. Gutirrez, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, and other visitors from outside the prison to the performance. Tell The Philadelphia District Attorneys Office recently concluded much of the testimony against Hicks was false.Dec. When Black Marxist Angela Davis found out her ancestors owned slaves. Daniel G.P. Vaccines dont work, masks dont work: Everything government told us about COVID-19 was wrong. The Best News Ive Heard in All My Li After realizing theyd shot an unarmed man who did not match the description of the attacker, the officers conspired to cover it up. There was irrefutable evidence that Chester was innocent, is innocent and has always been innocent and would never have been wrongfully convicted aside from extraordinary police misconduct, Green said. There were weeks we never once left our cells. I was already a devoted Christian, reading my Bible daily. However, the court filings detail the role of Officer Robert Ellis, who testified at trial that he had recovered a .38-caliber Taurus from Hicks right jacket pocket. the $9.85 million agreement the city struck in 2018 with Anthony Wright. He saw two men running away from a figure on the ground near a dumpster. Termaine Hicks, Shot in the Back by Philad Falsely claiming under oath that Mr. Hicks pulled a gun from his pocket, pointed it and lunged at officers before they shot him. Based on these lies, Mr. Hicks was convicted of rape, aggravated assault, possessing an instrument of crime, and terroristic threats in 2002 and sentenced to up to 25 years in prison. The Innocence Project recruited high-profile forensic pathologist Michael Baden to determine the direction from which the bullets were fired at Hicks. His payout is just $50,000 short of the record for settlements of its kind in the city a distinction held by the $9.85 million agreement the city struck in 2018 with Anthony Wright, a man who served nearly 25 years of a sentence for a 1991 rape and murder that DNA evidence proved decades later he did not commit. After the 5th Circuits ruling, does DACA have a future? The Innocence Project is affiliated with Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University. A reporter at the Inquirer since 2013, I cover issues of identity, race, social justice, as well as prisons and the legal system. Joe Rojas, the southeast regional vice president for the workers union, AFGE Council of Prisons, said the case was a black eye for an otherwise hardworking and upright staff. As a result of receiving this information, we have opened an Internal Affairs investigation into the allegations of police misconduct, the spokesperson said in an email. Sometimes it comes out in the spiritual autobiography, but we dont ask. Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from the Innocence Project: Police Perjury Led To Wrongful Conviction. He was convicted and served 19 years in State Correctional Institution Phoenix, about an hour northwest of Philadelphia. You can learn more about how we consider cases here. However, the recent assessments by both the chief medical examiner for the City of Philadelphia and an independent medical examiner concluded that Mr. Hicks was shot from behind meaning he wasnt coming toward the officers when he was shot. We must have had 150 people in the audience, both inmates and guests, remembers Slichter. In 2001, Mr. Hicks came to the aid of a woman screaming in an alley. Hicks recruited other prisoners to act in the production. But in recent years, evidence has piled up to suggest that the case presented by police and prosecutors was riddled with errors, the Inquirer reported. Hicks was not eligible for parole because he maintained his innocence and would not express remorse for a crime he did not commit. Deep-seated police misconduct and institutional protections are too often the source of wrongful convictions and injustice in the system. It was in such a group at the State Correctional InstitutionGraterford, a maximum-security prison in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, that EfM group leader Ginny Slichter met Termaine Hicks for the first time. He was sentenced to 12 and to 25 years in prison. Now theyve reached a settlement, Pinellas lawyer arrested after stealing more than $840,000 from clients, deputies say, Christopher Sabella elected as Hillsborough Countys next chief judge, Steven Lorenzo sentenced to death for 2 Tampa murders, How about spending more on preventing crime? Three Philadelphia police officers have been reassigned pending an internal investigation into the arrest of Termaine Joseph Hicks, who was cleared of a 2001 rape last week after spending 19 years in prison. For 19 years, Termaine Joseph Hicks maintained his innocence. Termaine Hicks was convicted on rape and other charges, largely on the testimony of police officers. Report an error or add more information about this case. WebTermaine Hicks was exonerated on December 16, 2020 after 19 years of wrongful incarceration. How Education for Ministry changed Termaine Hicks life Trinity Episcopal Church Call: 304-263-0994 Address: 200 West King St, Martinsburg, WV Online Digital Services Donate Home About Trinity Worship Parish Life News & Events Contact Us Trinity Episcopal Church > Church > How Education for Ministry changed Termaine Hicks life We may earn a commission from links on this page. The things that are promised to citizens should be delivered: a fair trial, and a fair look at whats being presented.. The way that cops approach Black and brown men and women stems from years of systemic racism. I was replacing my beloved EfM predecessor, Dennis Warner, who had died recently of a brain tumor in the prime of his life. Then a 26-year-old father of one, Mr. Hicks had been As he was reaching for his cellphone to dial 911, the police suddenly arrived, shot him in the back and charged him unjustly. Police disciplinary records are currently kept confidential in. One was a 2015 lawsuit alleging that Vinson and another officer had dragged a taxi driver falsely accused of stealing a cell phone out of his cab and assaulted him. One of those plays, Soldiers in the Army of the Lord, was performed at Graterford in 2012 in honor of Hickss EfM graduation. Hearing a scream pierce the darkness, he ran toward Dunkin Donuts and Saint Agnes Hospital. Going back to the morning of the crime, the victim was not able to identify her assailant. California residents do not sell my data request. A spokesperson for the District Attorneys Office declined to comment if it would pursue action against the officers. They had stage fright. Then, Hicks lawyers say, Vinson used his police radio to contact dispatch. Twenty-seven judges had looked at my case by then, explains Hicks. I survived, he says, and I understood the gravity of the situation right away. Officer Martin Vinson claimed to have witnessed Hicks raping the victim. EfM taught me how to open the box, and also how to be diplomatic., He says, EfM was a vessel. The National Registry of Exonerations is a project of the Newkirk Center for Science & Society at University of California Irvine, the University of Michigan Law School and Michigan State University College of Law. But unlike in Wrights case, which was settled on the eve of a civil trial, the agreement in Hollmans case came before he had even filed suit. Shop sales in every category.Uh-oh, overstock: Wayfair put their surplus on sale for up to 50% off. S.T.E.P.U.P. One of the bullets barely missed my spine, but youre talking to a guy who ran a couple of marathons while he was incarcerated., A post shared by Tyron McClendon (@mrgrinch215). Termaine Hicks speaks out after 19 years in prison for a crime he didnt commit (Part 1), At least 2 dead after exposure to unknown substance at N.Y. senior facility, Clark Atlanta University students mourn loss of athlete fatally shot near campus, Iranian government to investigate series of poisonings, Pennsylvania man accused of trying to bring explosive on plane, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle asked to leave Frogmore Cottage. A neighbor who witnessed the woman being dragged by the assailant from the sidewalk to the alley and called police in real-time, reported that the attacker was wearing a gray hoodie covering his head. Philadelphia officials said Wednesday that the city will be paying out $9.8 million in one of the largest wrongful-conviction settlements in the citys history to a Black man who spent 28 years in prison for a murder the district attorneys Conviction Integrity Unit now says it was near impossible that he committed. But, she added, I do feel that, one case at a time, this system is being improved.. Police shot a Philly man, then accused him of rape. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Philadelphia officials said Wednesday that the city will be paying out $9.8 million in one of the largest wrongful-conviction settlements in the citys history to a Black man who spent 28 years in prison for a murder the district attorneys Conviction Integrity Unit now says it was near impossible that he committed. During his arrest he was shot three times in the back and the arresting officers lied about the circumstances. (Selfless Thinking Expresses Potential that Uplifts People). It was dark, and she suffered a head trauma during the assault. He had his hand in his pocket because he was going to attempt to call the police when they arrived and shot him in the back. He served 19 years for a wrongful conviction. A jury believed the polices version of events over Hickss story. Latino leaders could collaborate with Black communities. Read Mr Hicks Motion to Vacate, the Commonwealths response and the Joint Stipulation of Mr. Hicks and the Commonwealth. The footage then shows a delivery van arriving, the flash of its headlights flooding the alley. Although most of the evidence analyzed in the recent review of the case was available at the time of Hickss original trial, the jury never saw an enhanced security tape that corroborated parts of Hickss story. She said Hicks had gone to the victim to render aid. Help us advocate for the innocent by sharing the latest news from the Innocence Project. His attorney Amelia Green said the evidence supporting Hollmans innocence which garnered media attention first in the form of a 2017 report in The Inquirer and, in April, an episode of the Netflix series The Innocence Files put pressure on city officials to resolve the case swiftly, though neither they nor police admit any wrongdoing as part of the settlement deal. Philadelphia police shot a man and accused him of rape. Then, he said he shot Hicks in the chest or stomach. Witnesses also testified that they had seen a man in a gray hoodie attack the woman, according to court records. The victim had told police the attack stopped when bright lights shined on her assailant, spooking him. Heres what that means. Hicks case is yet another example of the pervasive problem of police perjury in the criminal legal system. Hicks has a powerful testimony against corruption in policing and the judicial system, but his heart is formed by mercy as much as the call to justice. Hicks case is yet another example of the pervasive problem of police perjury in the criminal legal system. He often speaks for the Innocence Project. Termaine Hicks case marks the 16th exoneration since 2018 attributed to the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office Conviction Integrity Unit. The Inquirer reported that Hickss lawyer, Vanessa Potkin, said the gun was covered with blood, but the coat pocket, where Vinson claimed Hicks had been keeping the gun, was clean. This is my ministry, he says. He said: I tried to get the male to, uh, you know, put his hands where I could see them, and he was reaching for something and I couldnt see it.. You may be trying to access this site from a secured browser on the server. But that defendant was acquitted at a re-trial when the defense presented evidence that Officer Ellis planted ballistics and falsely attributed guns to the accused that he did not in fact possess.. One witness was threatened with arrest and the other was promised help on his own pending criminal case in exchange for falsely implicating Hollman. But the prosecutors who reworked the case now say at least some of the testimony against Hicks was not true. A judge ordered him released last year at age 49, citing evidence that police and prosecutors built their case on fabricated statements from people they coerced as witnesses and later withheld evidence pointing to the likely true perpetrators of the crime. Until then, he just wants to spend time with his family as a free person. As the case slowly made its way through the courts, she said she couldnt sleep through the night. The United States has settled a lawsuit with 15 women who said correctional officers at a federal prison in Florida repeatedly sexually abused them. The new analysis outlined a case in which ample physical evidence available 19 years ago ought to have been enough to clear Hicks, who was known in court records as Jermaine Weeks. The officers falsely testified at trial that Mr. Hicks had lunged at them while armed with a gun that he pulled from his pocket. Hicks calls the Innocence Project team relentless, God-sent, true advocates. Still, it would take nearly another decade to set Hicks free. Hicks says Vinson muttered something like, damn, and then began to cry. Website by MADEO. We were all mourning. Dr. Mark Bozzuti-Jones, Two-Year Spiritual Direction Training Course, Spring Music Season at Trinity Church Wall Street, Parables, Spirituals, and Our Own Stories with the Rev. That matched other witness statements that the attacker wore a gray hoodie, while Hicks coat had no hood. He was arraigned while handcuffed to a hospital bed. It was 2012 by the time Hicks withdrew his appellate rights, which meant he would have another 13 years to serve. WebTermaine Hicks was exonerated in December after the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office conceded that lead police officers lied under oath to cover up shooting Mr. Hickswho was innocent of any crimein the back three times. Vinson and Zungolo still work for the Philadelphia police, the Inquirer reported. The city has settled civil-rights complaints naming Vinson and Ellis as defendants. We need a whole new system.. CIU chief Patricia Cummings said her office would not retry the case, as it was tainted beyond repair. Termaine Hicks was released from SCI Phoenix Prison on Dec. 16, 2020, in Collegeville, Penn. us about an exoneration that we may have missed, Correct an error or add information about an exoneration I was writing Christian plays, engaged in independent study, and searching Scripture. For 19 years, Termaine Joseph Hicks maintained his innocence. As a result of receiving this information, we have opened an Internal Affairs investigation into the allegations of police misconduct, the spokesperson said in an email. All Rights Reserved. His brothers Tone Hicks and Tyron McClendon greeted him upon release. Im a playwright, Hicks says. Terms of Use / Privacy Policy / Manage Newsletters, By Associated Press - Mr. Hicks, an Innocence Project client, was wrongly convicted of a rape that took place in Philadelphia in 2001. Copyright 2023 The Washington Times, LLC. The 45-year-old was exonerated on Wednesday, the Philadelphia Inquirer first reported, after a new analysis suggested the conviction was based on false testimony and questionable evidence possibly in an attempt to justify a botched police shooting. scripts he had written while incarcerated. She was badly beaten, so he reached for his cell phone to call 911. The vision is to have these videos in every classroom. He turned S.T.E.P.U.P. In the early morning hours of November 27, 2001, Mr. Hicks heard the screams of a woman being raped in an alley in South Philadelphia and went to her aid. District of Florida on her assailant, this system is being improved.. Photo: Peter Tobia his. Mcclendon greeted him upon release for his cell phone to call 911 it, said. 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