Conviction review
Convictions that were overturned, and innocence claims courts are ruling on this week. Read what the evidence was and where it broke.
Murder of Jodi Parrack
Jodi Christine Parrack (September 2, 1996 – November 8, 2007) was an 11-year-old girl from Constantine, Michigan who was kidnapped while riding her bicycle on a local street, then sexually assaulted and murdered. Her case drew considerable media attention not only due to the heinous nature of the crime but also due to the wrongful conviction and incarceration of an innocent man, Ray McCann.
Year unknown · MichiganOverturnedKen Wyniemko
Ken Wyniemko is one of two former prisoners in Michigan released on DNA evidence with help from the Innocence Project. Wyniemko was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual misconduct on circumstantial evidence and the testimony of a prisoner informant, Glen McCormick, who now admits he lied in order to avoid life in prison. DNA testing was not regularly performed at the time, but even the primitive blood tests of…
2002 · MichiganExonerated 2002Eddie Joe Lloyd
In 2002, Eddie Joe Lloyd was exonerated after serving 17 years in prison for a 1984 murder and rape he didn't commit.
2008 · MichiganExonerated 2008Walter Swift
Walter Swift served 26 years in Michigan prisons for rape before evidence of his innocence led to his exoneration and release in 2008.
2019 · MichiganExonerated 2019Kevin Lackey
In 2019, Kevin Lackey was exonerated of a 1992 sexual assault he did not commit in Detroit. He had served more than 20 years in prison.
2020 · MichiganExonerated 2020Gerry Thomas
In January 2020, Gerry Thomas was exonerated of an attempted murder conviction in Michigan. He had spent nearly 30 years in prison.