DNA test frees man convicted of 2 child slayings (sex)

[wakeme2008]

Source: MSNBC

DNA test frees man convicted of 2 child slayings
New Jerseyan exonerated after 22 years behind bars


Updated: 2 hours, 4 minutes ago

ELIZABETH, N.J. - A judge threw out convictions Tuesday against a man who served more than two decades in prison for the rape and murder of two children after a DNA test showed a neighbor may have committed the crimes.

The new DNA evidence would probably have changed the verdict against Byron Halsey, said Superior Court Judge Stuart L. Peim, who vacated the verdict and granted a new trial. Peim set bail at $55,000 and attorneys said Halsey, 46, could be freed later Tuesday.


Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18682370/

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False conviction of having sex and killing two children, shit this guy is very lucky to be alive after 22 years...

[Fridays Child]

1. I don't get it. He's innocent. Why is bail being set and why is he ordered to wear...

...an ankle bracelet?

[mrcheerful]

2. He was accused of a sex crime, guilt or inncence doesn't matter when your protecting kids

after all after 22 years he might not have learned a lesson and end up committing a sex crime. After all statistics show the sex offenders have a high rate of returning to prison, even if they never actually committed a sex crime. Hope that clears it up for you. But then he wasn't found innocent as this from the article shows "The new DNA evidence would probably have changed the verdict against Byron Halsey, said Superior Court Judge Stuart L. Peim, who vacated the verdict and granted a new trial. Peim set bail at $55,000 and attorneys said Halsey, 46, could be freed later Tuesday".

"May seek new charges
Prosecutors were expected to announce at a July 9 hearing whether they would pursue a new trial or drop the charges". So much for the innocent until proven guilty myth, in this guys cae it was guilty until proven innocent, but he must be guilty of something so we will investagate. After all america doesn't jail innocent people.

[RC]

5. Yeah, he spent all that time in prison so he must be guilty of something.

[ProudDad]

6. What statistics???

"After all statistics show the sex offenders have a high rate of returning to prison, even if they never actually committed a sex crime."

This is a lie. It's not supported by any ACTUAL statistics. Do you have any information to backup this constantly repeated falsehood?


"After all america doesn't jail innocent people." Oh PLEASE!!! Where's your :sarcasm: thingie?


On Edit: That "judge" is a pretty fucked up asshole too!!!

[mrcheerful]

9. The last one I saw was done in 1999 and what it showed was criminal sexual conduct cases for the

state of michigan was doctored so it showed that up wards of 6% of sex offenders were returned to prison. What seems to be over looked was the fact that 0% of those returned were returned for sex crimes, they were returned for new crimes other then sex and parole violations. But they used that to show that sex criminals were statistically returning to prison in higher numbers then parolees of other crimes, even though there were more of those released on parole, 3.9% of those returned to prison, then there were sex offenders so sex offenders had a higher return rate then non sex offenders. But america needs its boogie men to keep people in a state of fear.

[ProudDad]

15. Yep, they need to demonize someone

so anyone who is accused of committing a "sex crime" is the latest group.

So, even though sex offenders have the 2nd LOWEST recidivism rate (behind murderers, a group I suspect hardly ever gets out anymore), the myth that they're more dangerous than folks who commit other types of crimes is perpetuated.

[nitestar41]

22. Statistics...

I got these statistics from the Bureau of Justice Statistics Criminal Offenders Statistics website: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/crimoff.htm#sex


Recidivism

* Of the 272,111 persons released from prisons in 15 States in 1994, an estimated 67.5% were
rearrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within 3 years, 46.9% were reconvicted, and 25.4%
resentenced to prison for a new crime.
* Within 3 years of release, 2.5% of released rapists were rearrested for another rape, and 1.2%
of those who had served time for homicide were arrested for a new homicide.
* Sex offenders were less likely than non-sex offenders to be rearrested for any offense –– 43
percent of sex offenders versus 68 percent of non-sex offenders.
* Sex offenders were about four times more likely than non-sex offenders to be arrested for
another sex crime after their discharge from prison –– 5.3 percent of sex offenders versus 1.3
percent of non-sex offenders.


Sex offenders

* On a given day in 1994 there were approximately 234,000 offenders convicted of rape or sexual
assault under the care, custody, or control of corrections agencies; nearly 60% of these sex
offenders are under conditional supervision in the community.
* An estimated 24% of those serving time for rape and 19% of those serving time for sexual assault
had been on probation or parole at the time of the offense for which they were in State prison
in 1991.
* Of the 9,691 male sex offenders released from prisons in 15 States in 1994, 5.3% were rearrested
for a new sex crime within 3 years of release.
* Of released sex offenders who allegedly committed another sex crime, 40% perpetrated the new
offense within a year or less from their prison discharge.


Child victimizers

* Approximately 4,300 child molesters were released from prisons in 15 States in 1994. An
estimated 3.3% of these 4,300 were rearrested for another sex crime against a child within 3
years of release from prison.

[tabasco]

8. It boggles my mind when I read about prosecutors who fight against using DNA

post-conviction. Simply astounding that they value their conviction rate over justice. :mad:

[mrcheerful]

10. America needs boogie men, no longer can they use race or religion to demonize a group of people so

what they did was use america's most hated criminals, sex offenders. Have you ever seen the list? Instead of telling people what the offender done, they use criminal code that the person was charged under as a description of what the persons crime was. What most people don't know is that criminal codes can mean a number of crimes and in no way desribe the crime the person was charged with. IE CSC 2nd degree can be anything from exposer to touching, thats michigans CSC degrees, 1st and 3rd are actual sex crimes such as rape or penertration, 2nd and 4th involve everyone else. It was done that way to confuse, remember murder is in degrees too 1st,2nd,3rd, So people think its the same with CSC.

[LisaL]

11. It's like a dog with a bone. They just can't let go.

[legally blonde]

13. because he has to prove his innocence

It's a miracle he's getting out at all, even with DNA evidence pointing to another person. Judges and prosecutors don't like to admit they put the wrong man in prison for two decades.

[Bitwit1234]

3. I think mandatory testing should be done

of all offenders if there is DNA available to prove guilt or innocent, no matter what the cost or what the state may say.

Do you think that there have been a lot of men and women who have maybe been executed who were innocent, and DNA testing was not available.

[NorCalDem]

4. In short....

"Do you think that there have been a lot of men and women who have maybe been executed who were innocent, and DNA testing was not available."

In short, YES!!! which is why the death penalty should go the way of the dinosaurs!

[Joanne98]

7. I love the Innocence Project.

[truthisfreedom]

12. Once again, coerced confessions turn out to be useless.

When will they learn?

Confession raised questions
Halsey gave a confession after he was interrogated for 30 hours during a 40-hour period, Innocence Project co-director Barry Scheck said.

“It would be a stretch to say that Byron Halsey even confessed to this crime given the state of mind he was in, the length of the interrogation, the tactics police used, and the words he actually said,” Scheck said.

[kath]

14. Wow, this man is BLACK! What a surprise!

Not.
He's probably poor, too.
http://www.1010wins.com/pages/459893.php?contentType=4&contentId=502738

[wakeme2008]

16. He did not get the Death Penalty so I am guessing his girl friend and the

children were black too. :grr:

[kath]

19. Ah. Very good point.

[shanti]

20. not again....

:(

[semillama]

17. DNA evidence might exonerate the West Memphis Three, too

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/176745/dna_test_results_could_mean_new_trial.html

If you don't fit society's norms, we'll find SOME way of putting you away!

[Jersey Ginny]

18. What a nightmare this poor man has lived

I wish him peace and healing for the rest of his life.

[Tyler Durden]

21. I wish him a WHOPPING huge settlement from the state.

Time we started reimbursing people who get tortured and railroaded into jail. AND punishing the authorities that perpetrate this abomination.

[militaryspouse]

23. ..

This man should be compensated financially! He should never have to work a day in his life. He should have complete medical and dental insurace. It' the LEAST they could do for destroying this poor mans life. SAD!

[entanglement]

24. This picture says it all...

Another victim of our 'justice' system