Rev. But on December 16, 2020, all the news was good. Hicks was convicted of rape and weapons offenses, with 20 officers testifying against him. They shot him three times in the back. Hicks fought for years to get the forensic evidence in his case reviewed. Mr. Hicks, an Innocence Project client, was wrongly convicted of a rape that took place in Philadelphia in 2001. WebOn February 27, 2003, Hicks was sentenced to between 12 and 25 years in prison. Determined to make my dreams come true Within 30 days of surrendering his appellate rights, Hicks was contacted by the Innocence Project. It was dark, and she suffered a head trauma during the assault. We welcome new information from any source about exonerations already on our list and about cases not in the Registry that might be exonerations. Seeing so many inmates broken by the prison system, Hicks determined he would find his strength in God. In fact, the gun was registered as the off-duty weapon of another uniformed Philadelphia police officer. Abram Depp Settlement The farm of Abram and Lucy Depp was the first of this settlement of African Americans. Only Jesus can do this.you are blessed. And I believe its impossible to say that did not contribute to the conviction.. According to her filings, the process of constructing a cover-up began immediately. Hicks says Vinson muttered something like, damn, and then began to cry. He was exonerated after 19 years. On Wednesday, Termaine Hicks received the the best Ive heard in all my life. After 19 years in prison for a crime he didnt commit, Mr. Hicks was going home. During his time in prison he joined the Education for Ministry (EfM) program, wrote plays, and later formed S.T.E.P.U.P. The footage then shows a delivery van arriving, the flash of its headlights flooding the alley. Termaine Hicks was released from SCI Phoenix Prison Tuesday, Dec.16, 2020 in Collegeville, Penn. Slichter said to them, I dont know how you feel about having a woman for a mentor. A Maryland Dumping Site Was Actually A Black Cemetery. Lettman-Hicks filed to run for the District 8 seat on June 1, just days before a federal grand jury indicted on charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud. The police froze the crime scene and catalogued whatever was there. When you look more broadly at the other officers involved in this case, there is a larger pattern of official misconduct, Potkin said. He was arraigned while handcuffed to a hospital bed. He was exonerated after the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office conceded that lead police Tell
She tried to get gas. WebTermaine Hicks was exonerated on December 16, 2020 after 19 years of wrongful incarceration. Vinson and Zungolo still work for the Philadelphia police, the Inquirer reported. Vinson and then-partner Sgt. We may earn a commission from links on this page. You may be trying to access this site from a secured browser on the server. Many will have a tale of transformation to share. 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. The gun that was entered into evidence was registered to a Philadelphia police officer. Termaine Hicks, 47, on West Girard Avenue in West Philadelphia on Dec. 2, 2022. In fact, it would be eight years before they could look at it. There were weeks we never once left our cells. 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.. He served 19 years for a wrongful conviction. Zungolo, of South Detectives Division, declined an interview and referred questions to John McGrody, vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5. She was badly beaten, so he reached for his cell phone to call 911. I do feel that, one case at a time, this system is being improved.. Termaine Hicks, Shot in the Back by Philadelphia Police, Is Most of those officers have since retiredas opposed to firing, charges or any semblance of actual accountabilitybut some, like those involved in Hicks case, remain on the force and have even been promoted. The things that are promised to citizens should be delivered: a fair trial, and a fair look at whats being presented.. In 2016, the city paid $15,000 to settle a civil-rights lawsuit naming Vinson as one of two officers who dragged a taxi driver falsely accused of stealing a cell phone out of his cab, assaulted him, and told him if he did not like it, he could go back to his country., The Police Advisory Commissions executive director, Anthony Erace, said he was not familiar with Hicks case but would seek a review. 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. But Hicks has always told a different story: He ran into the alley to help the woman when he heard her scream. After shooting Hicks, Vinson approached and patted him down in search of his weapon. First, they had to show new evidence in order to ask for a new trial. After they covered it up, he was wrongly convicted of attacking her. Video footage showing the actual assailant dragging the woman into seclusion was never shown to jurors and soon disappeared from evidence. IE 11 is not supported. So, I could see the sun, or take a shower, or have a phone callbut only one. One witness was threatened with arrest and the other was promised help on his own pending criminal case in exchange for falsely implicating Hollman. As one of the men said, referencing the work of famed public interest lawyer and equal justice activist Bryan Stevenson, Would you want to be known for the worst thing you ever did, for the rest of your life?. 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. Hicks case is yet another example of the pervasive problem of police perjury in the criminal legal system. Then a 26-year-old father of one, Mr. Hicks had been walking home when he heard a woman screaming. Mr. Hicks was exonerated after the Philadelphia Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU), led by Patricia Cummings, joined the Innocence Projects motion to vacate his conviction. He wrote and directed 12 plays in prison. He purchased land and other AA's settled near him. The basics of personal finance, like How to save for a house. Figure out your next step toward financial freedom. He was exonerated He also reached out to the Innocence Project. Im excited for younow go live your life manyou deserve a good one. Why dont they? Three of the women received $1.26 million between them, said their lawyer, James DeMiles. Mr. Reynolds said she was raped by a correctional officer at Coleman for six months while serving time there. During his arrest he was shot three times in the back and the arresting officers lied about the circumstances. Vinson and Zungolo remain employed by the department. (Philadelphia, PA December 17, 2020) Termaine Hicks walked out of Pennsylvania prison SCI Phoenix yesterday. A police spokesperson said the DA provided details on the allegations only after Hicks case was resolved. He was convicted and served 19 years in State Correctional Institution Phoenix, about an hour northwest of Philadelphia. Deep-seated police misconduct and institutional protections are too often the source of wrongful convictions and injustice in the system. According to the Inquirer, Hollmans attorneys said he was targeted by police only because he was a Black man driving a white SUV that matched the description of the one seen fleeing the scene of a shooting that killed Penn student Tae-Jung Ho in August 1991. WebHicks Settlement Settled by Tobias Hicks and sons about 1800. 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. after a wrongful incarceration for 19 years. But, seconds later, police officers arrived, took him for the rapist and shot him three times. Today Hicks serves alongside Slichter on the board for the Dennis H. Warner Memorial Foundation, which provides EfM scholarships for inmates and assists family members of the incarcerated. Dennis Zungolo, who was with him at the scene, did not return phone and email messages Wednesday. Vinson told the court he saw Hicks attacking the woman and saw him reach for a gun. The U.S. Supreme Court hears fewer than 1% of criminal cases that it is asked to review. The officers involved in this case had extensive internal affairs files with numerous allegations of lying, planting evidence, excessive force, and substantiated complaints filed by civilians. As he was reaching for his cellphone to dial 911, the police suddenly arrived, shot him in the back and charged him unjustly. The tape showed a man in a gray hoodie dragging the victim into the alley. In his 19 years behind bars, Hicks always maintained his innocence. WebAfter doing time in prison for a crime he did not commit, Termaine Hicks wrote Step Up, a series of educational videos to teach conflict resolution and critical thinking, to help combat Philadelphias gun violence crisis. Press "Enter" or click on the arrow to show results. For far too long the police have willfully lied with impunity; we need accountability, said Vanessa Potkin, director of post-conviction litigation at the Innocence Project, who represented Mr. Hicks. He said come sit, check it out. Hicks went to one session as a guest and was intrigued by the concept. Then they began to let us out againbut only for 15 minutes a day. The training also emphasizes the importance of physical fitness and a healthy lifestyle. Yale honors Black girl who was reported to police as she sprayed lanternfli Tyre Nichols videos join patchwork of violent police footage. He said he was meeting with McGrody, who could answer any further questions. Hickss case began in the early-morning hours of Nov. 27, 2001, according to a memorandum summarizing the case, as a woman walked to an early shift at Dunkin Donuts. Hicks was then charged with the rape and later exonerated after the Conviction Integrity Unit found that the case was built on liespossibly to cover up the unjustified shooting and that forensic evidence easily cleared Hicks who should never have been arrested let alone convicted of the rape. 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. On Wednesday, after 19 years incarceration, Hicks, 45, was, at last, exonerated. Falsely claiming under oath that they recovered a gun from Mr. Hicks right jacket pocket, which they asserted he placed back in his pocket after he was shot. As he reached for his cell phone to call 911, two police officers ran to the scene. 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