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Anthony Broadwater, who spent 16 years in jail after writer Alice Sebold accused him of raping her whereas she was a pupil at Syracuse College, has been totally exonerated, reviews the New York Times.
A state choose together with Broadwater’s authorized workforce, and the Onondaga County district lawyer agreed that the case levied in opposition to him was tremendously flawed.
In 1999, Sebold graphically detailed a rape that she accused Broadwater of committing in her e book titled Fortunate which garnered her worldwide acclaim.
“I’ve been crying tears of pleasure and aid the final couple of days,” Broadwater mentioned of the courtroom’s resolution. “I’m so elated, the chilly can’t even preserve me chilly.”
Broadwater, who has at all times maintained his innocence, described experiencing the stigma of being generally known as a intercourse offender whereas attempting to rebuild his life after being launched from jail in 1998.
“On my two arms, I can depend the folks that allowed me to grace their houses and dinners, and I don’t get previous 10,” he mentioned. “That’s very traumatic to me.”
Broadwater’s attorneys, David Hammond and Melissa Ok. Swartz argued that the case weighed closely on Sebold’s identification of Broadwater within the courtroom and a now-discredited method of microscopic hair analysis. Moreover, the attorneys claimed that “prosecutorial misconduct” was a significant factor in the course of the police lineup and the prosecutor lied to Sebold saying that Broadwater and the person subsequent to him have been buddies who deliberately appeared within the lineup collectively to mislead her. The police lineup would later affect Sebold’s later testimony.
William J. Fitzpatrick, Onondaga County District Legal professional who led the movement to vacate the conviction, mentioned that witness identifications of strangers, particularly throughout racial traces, are often unreliable.
“I’m not going to sully these proceedings by saying, ‘I’m sorry,’” Fitzpatrick said in court on Monday. “That doesn’t lower it. This could by no means have occurred.”
A film adaptation of Fortunate unknowingly raised doubts about Broadwater’s conviction.
Timothy Mucciante, an government producer of the movie, started to query Sebold’s story earlier this yr after he observed some evident discrepancies between the script and the memoir.
“I began having some doubts, not in regards to the story that Alice instructed about her assault, which was tragic, however the second a part of her e book in regards to the trial, which didn’t dangle collectively,” Mucciante mentioned in an interview.
Finally, Mucciante would depart the manufacturing in June due to how the case was being portrayed.
Mucciante employed Dan Myers, a non-public investigator who spent 20 years working for the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Workplace. Myers examined Broadwater’s case and was satisfied that he was harmless.
Myers urged {that a} lawyer ought to assessment the proof and advisable Hammond, who believed that they had a powerful case. Broadwater employed Hammond as his lawyer across the identical time.
Through the time of his arrest, Broadwater was dwelling on depart from the Marine Corps, visiting his household. He was simply 20 years previous.
“I simply hope and pray that possibly Ms. Sebold will come ahead and say, ‘Hey, I made a grave mistake,’ and provides me an apology,” Broadwater mentioned.
“I sympathize together with her,” he mentioned. “However she was fallacious.”
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