Inmate exonerated in '81 rape case
By PAUL J. WEBER
The Associated Press
DALLAS -- A defendant sentenced to life in prison in 1981 in a rape case learned Wednesday that DNA evidence has exonerated him, according to attorneys who have helped free 14 other wrongfully convicted inmates in Dallas County.
After a court hearing today, Charles Chatman, 47, likely will be released from custody, said Natalie Roetzel of the Innocence Project of Texas. Chatman would become the 15th Dallas County inmate since 2001 to be freed by DNA testing, which the Innocence Project says is more than any other prosecuting office in the nation.
With almost 27 years behind bars, Chatman is the longest-serving inmate in Texas to be freed by DNA evidence, Roetzel said.
"Charles has always maintained his innocence," said Michelle Moore, a Dallas County public defender.
Jamille Bradfield, a spokeswoman for Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins, confirmed that a court hearing is set for this morning in Chatman's case.
Since 2001, DNA tests have exonerated at least 30 wrongfully convicted inmates in Texas, the most of any state, according to the Innocence Project, a New York-based legal clinic that seeks to uncover wrongful convictions.
Chatman was 20 when a woman in her 20s, who had reported being raped, picked him from a photo lineup, Moore said. He was convicted of aggravated sexual assault.
Mike Ware, who heads the Conviction Integrity Unit in the district attorney's office, said the rape occurred during a break-in at the woman's house.
"I'm not sure why he ended up on that photo spread to begin with," Ware said.
Chatman likely will be released on a personal recognizance bond until the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals makes an official ruling on his case, Ware said.
Moore said Chatman had applied for DNA testing in 2004 but was told the process could be risky. The only evidence containing DNA was from a vaginal swab of the victim, Moore said, and a single test would consume the entire sample. An inconclusive test would exhaust all evidence.
Chatman was warned again of the gamble when he reapplied for testing early last year.
"This is a guy who's had to face horrible decisions," Moore said.
Under Watkins, law students, supervised by the Innocence Project of Texas, are reviewing about 450 cases in which convicts have requested DNA testing to prove their innocence.
http://www.star-telegram.com/dallas_new ... 87489.html
Pretty surprising how often this happens. Man would I be pissed.
These things just make me rethink the death penalty when we keep getting all these cases where people are being exonerated. Would be interesting if we would go through and reexamine some of these cases where the person has been executed. I am sure most deserve it, but getting it wrong makes US murderers