TOO MANY WRONGFULLY CONVICTED - The Innocence Project

RICHARD DANZIGER200211 YEARSTEXASRichard Danziger’sroommate, Chris Ochoa,implicated Danziger inhis confession to therape and murder of anAustin Pizza Hutemployee. They bothreceived life sentences.Years later, anotherprisoner confessed tothe crime. The casewas reopened, andDNA tests excludedOchoa and Danzigerand incriminated theother man. Tragically,Danziger sustainedbrain damage fromattacks he sufferedwhile in prison.CHRIS OCHOA • 200211.5 YEARSTEXASIn a desperate attemptto avoid the deathpenalty, Chris Ochoaconfessed to a rapeand murder and alsoimplicated hisroommate, RichardDanziger. DNA testingexcluded Ochoa whilehe was serving a lifesentence. Since hisexoneration, OchoaBRUCE GODSCHALK200214.5 YEARSPENNSYLVANIAARVIN MCGEE • 200212.5 YEARSOKLAHOMAVICTOR LARUE THOMAS200215 YEARSTEXASTOO MANY WRONGFULLY CONVICTEhe was convicted, sentence was later misidentification.earned a law degreeat the University ofWisconsin and hasworked with theWisconsin InnocenceProject.Two women in thesame apartmentcomplex were rapedin 1986. One ofthem identified BruceGodschalk as theperpetrator. Hisconviction was fraughtwith misconduct,including a coercedconfession, and afterprosecutors and policemishandled evidenceand claimed it wasdestroyed. After almost15 years in prison,and seven yearsfighting for DNAtesting, Godschalkwas exonerated.Arvin McGee wasconvicted of committinga 1987 rape in Tulsa.McGee’s first trialended in a mistrial,and the second endedin a hung jury.After the third trial,he was convicted andsentenced to 365years in prison. Hisreduced to 298 years.Finally, DNA provedhis innocence andidentified the trueperpetrator.In June 2001, VictorLarue Thomas wasfreed from prison afterDNA testing provedthat he did not commita 1986 robbery,kidnapping and rape ofa convenience storeclerk. His convictionwas based largelyon the victim’s65% were convicted based at least in part22 | Innocence Project