Wrongful Conviction

After an evening out with friends in Holden, MO, high school sweethearts Bill and Patty Prewitt kissed their children goodnight and went to bed. Patty was soon awakened by a man trying to rape her. She ran to a neighbor’s house and called the police. When the police arrived,  Bill was found dead in his bedroom from 2 gunshots to the head.  The police quickly set their sights on Patty and neglected to lift a single fingerprint from the entire house. Nevertheless, after a trial riddled with sexism and questionable forensics, Patty was sentenced to life in prison where she has been for 36 years. 

Maggie speaks to Patty Prewitt at the Women’s Correctional Center in Missouri, Brian Reichart Esq., Patty’s attorney, and Jane Prewitt Watkins, Patty’s daughter.

To learn more and get involved, visit:

https://www.change.org/p/missouri-governor-mike-parson-free-patty-prewitt

https://pattyprewitt.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pattyprewitt/

https://twitter.com/justiceforpatty

Wrongful Conviction with Maggie Freleng is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On March 8th, 2008, the leader of a bat wielding group of high schoolers from a wealthy Connecticut town instigated a fight with Dieter Tejada. After Dieter wrestled the bat away, defended himself with it, and fled, the aggressor continued to instigate violence with some of Dieter’s friends. The following day, allegations of serious injuries led to assault charges. Despite acting in self defense, Dieter and the others avoided lengthy sentences by pleading guilty. In the United States, 95% of felony charges are resolved by plea bargain. This is one of those stories. 

To learn more and get involved, visit:

https://gofund.me/d306d52e

https://justiceimpactnetwork.org/

https://justiceimpactalliance.org/

https://guiltypleaproblem.org/

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1988, Chris Ochoa and his roommate Richard Danziger both worked at different Pizza Huts locations in Austin, Texas, when a robbery, rape, and murder occurred at another location on October 24th. With no sign of forced entry, police focused on other Pizza Hut employees. An aggressive interrogation complete with lies about evidence and polygraph results, as well as threats of prison rape and the death penalty made Chris Ochoa's acquiescence a foregone conclusion. He made false statements uncorroborated by the physical evidence, implicating Richard and himself. Eventually, modern DNA testing supported the confession of the actual killer, but not before both men spent 12 years in prison.

To learn more and get involved:

https://law.wisc.edu/fjr/clinicals/ip/support.html

Sign the petition at: https://innocenceproject.org/petitions/stop-execution-of-innocent-melissa-lucio-texas/

If you live in Texas, call Cameron County DA Saenz to ask that Melissa's execution date be withdrawn: 956-300-3881

OR Call Governor Abbott to tell him that you support clemency for Melissa Lucio: 956-446-2866

Social Media Toolkit: https://innocenceproject.org/social-media-toolkit-stop-execution-melissa-lucio-texas/

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time is running out for Melissa Lucio. We must act now!

Melissa Lucio had 12 children with twins on the way, when the family was moving to a new apartment at the behest of Child Protective Services. A set of rickety exit stairs was high on the list of reasons, and a history of inter-sibling violence was well documented. Melissa's youngest, 2 year old Mariah, fell down those rickety stairs during the move. There were no outward injuries; however, over the next 2 days, the fall caused a sequence of medical issues to unfold, including cerebral edema, brain bleed, a deficiency of blood clotting factors, and eventually the appearance of wide spread inexplicable bruising. On February 17th, 2007, paramedics were dispatched to an unresponsive Mariah who subsequently died. Injuries and bruises from her siblings, the tumble down the stairs,  and her depleted ability to stave off internal bleeding led first responders, physicians, and the police to believe that Mariah had experienced horrific child abuse at the hands of her primary caregiver. Melissa Lucio was convicted of child abuse, as well as capital murder, and sentenced to death. The DA on her case is himself serving 13 years  for accepting bribes in exchange for favorable outcomes in other trials. Shortly after Melissa's conviction, her defense attorney was hired by that DA at a higher than usual rate, as was his wife.  Meanwhile, Melissa's execution date is set for April 27th, 2022. 

To learn more and get involved, visit:

Sign the petition at: https://innocenceproject.org/petitions/stop-execution-of-innocent-melissa-lucio-texas/

If you live in Texas, call Cameron County DA Saenz to ask that Melissa's execution date be withdrawn: 956-300-3881 

OR Call Governor Abbott to tell him that you support clemency for Melissa Lucio: 956-446-2866

Social Media Toolkit: https://innocenceproject.org/social-media-toolkit-stop-execution-melissa-lucio-texas/

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On July 17, 1973, 40 year old father of two and local chef Ting Fong Chan was beaten and stabbed to death on his way home from his night shift in Manitoba, Winnipeg, CA. A witness saw silhouettes of 4 or 5 men with long hair. Under the assumption that the men were Native American, police began to canvas the local indigenous population. A man named Adam Woodhouse told investigators about a recent gathering at his home with a few other indigenous men. Even though this gathering did not take place on the night of the crime and nothing suspicious was described, police rounded up Clarence, Russell, and Allan Woodhouse, as well as  Brian Anderson.  Four false statements were extracted and written in a language that neither of the accused fully understood. Not surprisingly, none of the physical evidence matched the four young men. Despite this, their alibi witnesses, and accusations of police brutality, the jury chose to believe the false confessions.

For more information or to get involved, visit:

https://www.innocencecanada.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCS7uL2jLzU

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the fall of 1984 and spring of '85, a serial rapist struck at least 4 times with eerily similar details. Meanwhile, a new student, Tim Cole, arrived on campus for the spring semester after the rapes had already began. On March 24th, 1985, a 20 year old student reported what appeared to be the 5th attack. Investigators collected a rape kit, and the victim helped them put together a composite sketch. From a passing glance, a plainclothes detective decided that Tim resembled the composite sketch. Using a very suggestive photo array, investigators engineered the misidentification of Tim Cole, and he was soon convicted. Despite numerous confessions from another man whose DNA ended up matching the material in the rape kit, Tim sat in prison where he passed away in 1999.

To learn more and get involved, visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_QbivKABXk

https://innocencetexas.org/

https://innocenceproject.org/cases/timothy-cole/

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the early morning hours of April 27, 1982, 35 year old JoAnn Tate was stabbed in the chest and sexually assaulted while in her apartment in St. Louis, MO. Her 7 year old daughter, Melissa, was stabbed several times, and her 4 year old daughter, Renee, had her throat cut. The girls survived the attack, but their mother did not. For a while, Melissa had said that a man named Bill was the attacker, and she gave details of his car and house. Eventually, police showed Melissa a picture of Rodney Lincoln who had a previous murder conviction from a  decade's old bar fight and who also had dated her mother. Soon after, she was shown a highly suggestive four-person live lineup, resulting in Lincoln's arrest, charges, and conviction. She had maintained that identification through trial and nearly 4 decades until she saw photos of an admitted serial killer whose MO matched  the attack on her family.

To learn more and get involved, visit:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/9d49b-rodney-lincoln-free-after-36-years

https://www.gofundme.com/f/2nu2f-help-melissa-find-housing

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-real-killer/id1596167670

https://investigatinginnocence.org/bill-clutter

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In December of 1988, 18 year old Londoner Raphael Rowe was living with 5 other men in social housing, when four violent robberies shocked Southeast England, leaving eight victims in their wake. One was killed and another was severely injured. The assailants' MO was to steal the victims' cars, ditch them at the next crime scene, and repeat the process. Twelve people in the area of the first abandoned cars were arrested, including Raphael and his friend Michael Davis. Contrary to the victims' descriptions of two white men with fair hair and blue eyes and one black man, several of those arrested helped police to shape a false narrative that instead pinned the crimes on three black men, Raphael, Michael, and a 3rd man, named Randolph Egbert Johnson. Police also planted evidence and coerced Raphael's main alibi witness to win the conviction. From inside his cell, Raphael enlisted the help of journalists and attorneys to investigate his claims of innocence, finally winning his freedom. Now, Raphael is a successful actor and journalist, but is still fighting to fully clear his name.

To learn more and get involved, visit:

https://raphaelrowefoundation.org/

https://raphael-rowe.com/

https://raphael-rowe.com/book

https://raphael-rowe.com/second-chance

https://www.instagram.com/areporter/

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On February 12th, 1990, a tragic accident occurred in which it is believed that Kathy Middleton mishandled a gun in her left hand, accidentally shooting herself one time in the head. The state turned this tragedy into a homicide investigation, sending her husband Ken Middleton to prison for life plus 200 years. In 2004, Ken had an opportunity to present to his motion trial court evidence of ineffective assistance of his counsel, as well as ballistics evidence that proved that the state's theory was impossible. Before the judge ruled, the state offered Ken freedom through an Alford plea, and he refused. Eventually, the judge granted him a new trial, but the state simply challenged that ruling on jurisdictional grounds, leaving Ken in prison ever since. A 2021 law now specifically grants that motion trial court the necessary jurisdiction, yet Ken and his family still await justice from prosecutor Jean Peters Baker. 

The altered GSR test document is linked here: https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca4rRsDLWaC/

To learn more and get involved, visit:

http://www.free-kenmiddleton.com/

https://www.change.org/p/missouri-missouri-or-misery

https://silvercreekentertainment.net/

https://twitter.com/TheNewsBreaker

https://lavaforgood.com/with-jason-flom/

Wrongful Conviction  is a production of Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1.

​​We have worked hard to ensure that all facts reported in this show are accurate. The views and opinions expressed by the individuals featured in this show are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Lava for Good.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.