Judge rejects convictions for murder, releases men jailed for 24 years

Judge rejects convictions for murder, releases men jailed for 24 years

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A New York state judge on Friday rejected convictions for the murder of three men who had been in prison for 24 years.

Judge Joseph A. Zayas rebuked prosecutors for withholding evidence in the 1996 case that could have cast doubt on the guilt of George Bell, 44, Gary JohnsonGary Earl JohnsonNo The Trail: Making Sense of the Super Poll Sunday’s polarized campaign leaves little room for would-be third parties The Memorandum: Trump keeps a narrow path to victory MORE, 46, and Rohan Bolt 59, who were found guilty of the murders of an out-of-service NYPD officer Charles Davis and Ira “Mike” Epstein.

According to several reports, prosecutors in the case did not file police reports linking the murders to other men who were part of a local robbery ring.

“The Public Prosecutor’s Office deliberately withheld from the defense credible information about the guilt of third parties, which is evidence that others may have committed these crimes. That defense information was in the possession of the prosecutor and was in fact investigated and documented by the prosecutor lead in The Bell Trial, “said Zayas, according to CNN.

He also said that the prosecution “has completely abdicated its role of seeking the truth in these cases,” according to the reports.

Five witnesses reportedly reported on the crime in 1996 that directly contradicted the men’s confessions.

Lawyers said they believed Johnson, Bell and Bolt’s confessions were coerced, according to several reports.

Queens’ current district attorney, Melinda Katz, also agreed with Zayas to reject the convictions, but said further investigations would be carried out to determine guilt or innocence.

“I cannot support these beliefs,” said Katz in a statement on Friday, according to The New York Times. “However, at this point, there is not enough evidence of real innocence, and therefore we are taking this opportunity to reevaluate and examine the evidence.”

Bell, Bolt and Johnson were all released on bail on Friday and will return to court in June to determine whether or not they will be fully acquitted. Prosecutors have asked that the case continue to be investigated, according to CNN.

“Today is the day I found the key. Today is the day, today is the day, today is the day, I am going home,” Bell said in a videoconference on Friday.

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