It only took 38 years! 38 years of wrongful incarceration!
The scariest part? The killer who actually raped, beat and strangled Craig Coley’s ex-girlfriend and smothered her 4-year-old son was (and likely is) STILL OUT THERE!
There were problems with the trial, but Coley was ultimately convicted primarily on the basis of eye witness testimony — a neighbor of the victims claimed that she had seen a man matching Coley’s description drive away the morning of the killings. However, exactly 39 years after the murders, at the same time of early morning, detectives returned to that neighbor’s apartment to peer out her window.
Shockingly, they concluded there was no way she could have seen whomever was inside a truck parked outside. There simply wasn’t enough light.
I can’t tell you how OFTEN this happens. Which leads us to wonder why? Why would a good, upstanding citizen, trying to be helpful, LIE and say they saw something they didn’t see?
- Shock! It’s shocking and unnerving to be party to a violent crime. Even living next door is terrifying, whether you saw something or not.
- Helpful. Most people want to be helpful, especially when it comes to closure on a violent crime. Having the criminal behind bars is the best for everybody.
- Notoriety. Some people get a kick out of knowing elusive things. Or, even out of pretending they know them.
You can read an interesting account from an actual eyewitness here.
Fortunately, in Craig Coley’s case there was something more. There was DNA found on the victim’s bedsheet and it did not belong to Coley. DNA the gold standard for innocence and guilt finally became the truth Craig Coley was looking for.
Craig Coley was released from custody 11 days after investigators revisited the crime scene. He’s been exonerated, but he lost more than half of his life. You can read more about his story here.
Righting the wrongs of our judicial system is an important mandate for me and it should be for everyone. It is also a story point in my most recent book: To Right The Wrongs (releasing Feb. 27, 2018.) You can read a sneak peek here.
