Man Imprisoned for Rape Is Finally Exonerated
Recently, a man who served 16 years in prison for rape, followed by being placed on the registry upon release in 1999, was exonerated. The accuser, Alice Sebold, went on to write a bestseller book, a fictional account of a teenage girl raped.
The producer who was working on a film adaptation of Ms. Sebold’s book, began raising questions about inconsistencies in her story. The producer hired a private investigator who broke the case, revealing the shaky evidence that was used to convict her so-called rapist.
This man who was falsely convicted has now been on the registry 22 years and having to deal with the continued punishment and collateral damages caused by being on the registry. Sixteen years in prison plus 22 years on the registry equals 38 years of his life that were needlessly destroyed.
About a third of all exonerations since 1989 involve sex crimes. In some cases, the bar is too low today for what it takes to convict a person of a sex crime.
It was a false allegation and convicted of a man I met in prison that spurred me to help other inmates with their appeals. It was the first legal work I had ever attempted, and it took another 9 years for him to be released, but it gave me great satisfaction.
https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=4052
Unfortunately, the Michigan law providing monetary compensation for wrong convictions was not passed until AFTER Jim had been released, which could have amounted to a half million dollars for those lost 9 years.
If you want some interesting amusement, Google that false accuser’s name, Sara Ylen, to see how truly sick she is. She even appeared on Montel Williams show to talk about the savage rape that never happened, exposing Jim to threats on the prison grounds.
His case resulted in a change in law by the state Supreme Court, a source of great pride for myself. It also opened my eyes to the likelihood that many people in prison are probably there because of false allegations or mistaken identity.
This story on the Reason site is a week or so old. So I don’t know if the person I was responding to will see my reply but .. someone mentioned their argument against the registry by noting how gay men were being put on it for doing the “do” in public restrooms and such.
The other commenter came back and said something to the effect of it being their fault for not getting a motel room or something.
To which I said the following to him;
Soooo… do you remember the old “Happy Days” era of ‘inspiration point’? It’s always been a thing to be adventurous and find somewhat public places to have sex. Especially among youngsters and the 20somethings. I’ve done it several times back in the early 90’s with girlfriends. Some of them were the initiators of WHERE to go. Usually dark parks at night. This was NOT the reason for the creation of the Sex Offense Registry. Such acts had NOTHING to do with it. Cops caught us many times and simply said; “Get dressed and get out of here.” Today, we’d both be on a registry and referred to as “threats to public safety”. And you’re ok with this? Imagine all the teenagers who are now adults having to register on the public registry for sending naked pics to each other through text messages. Oh the HORROR!!! Tell us all what these two examples have to do with the Megan Kanka issue that brought about the registry. We’ll wait.
And I REALLY WISH this argument would be brought up in the fight against the registry. Even though it’s not what most of us may have been convicted of and on the registry for, if it can be fought and won, it’s a HUGE step to fighting the rest of it.
This gentleman deserves to be generously reimbursed for this injustice…a pat on the back and a wish for good luck will not do.