WebOn February 27, 2003, Hicks was sentenced to between 12 and 25 years in prison. He served 19 years for a wrongful conviction. He was exonerated after the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office conceded that lead police officers lied under oath to cover up shooting Mr. Hickswho was innocent of any crimein the back three times. Mr. Hicks was exonerated after the Philadelphia Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU), led by Patricia Cummings, joined the Innocence Projects motion to vacate his conviction. Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude. He said come sit, check it out. Hicks went to one session as a guest and was intrigued by the concept. I found what was already there. He created an organization called S.T.E.P.U.P., an acronym for Selfless Thinking Expresses Potential that Uplifts People, and began writing educational scripts that were later turned into films. Hicks exoneration hinged in part on forensic analysis that cast doubt on his testimony. She began taking medication to try to help. In the early morning hours of November 27, 2001, Mr. Hicks heard the screams of a woman being raped in an alley in South Philadelphia and went to her aid. But the surveillance footage was not provided to Hicks or his lawyers until after his trial had concluded. Then the pandemic hit. Hicks lawyers alleged that the cover-up went beyond the three officers. It was 2012 by the time Hicks withdrew his appellate rights, which meant he would have another 13 years to serve. We empower youth to use their voice to prevent bullying and violence, says Hicks about his presentations at schools. He wrote and directed 12 plays in prison. Hicks recruited other prisoners to act in the production. Along the way I found a hidden talent, he says. Slichter said to them, I dont know how you feel about having a woman for a mentor. Hicks says, In the judicial system, theres something called finality that is very hard to overcome.. He says EfM provided him with a firm foundation so that, like John the Baptist, he would not be a reed shaken by every wind. The latest Tweets from Termaine Hicks (@TermaineHicks). One was a 2015 lawsuit alleging that Vinson and another officer had dragged a taxi driver falsely accused of stealing a cell phone out of his cab and assaulted him. TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA A federal grand jury has returned a twenty-one count indictment against Andrew Demetric Gillum, 42, and Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, 53, both of Tallahassee, Florida. The indictment was announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. WebTermaine Hicks was exonerated on December 16, 2020 after 19 years of wrongful incarceration. Police arriving at the scene completely misread the situation, erroneously assuming Mr. Hicks was the assailant, and shot him three times in the back. During his arrest he was shot three times in the back and the arresting officers lied about the circumstances. Joseph Tremaine Hicks, his lawyer said, is going to be returned to something that he should have had when police encountered him the presumption of innocence.. Then a 26-year-old father of one, Mr. Hicks had been walking home when he heard a woman screaming. NBC10s Brian Sheehan has his story. Mr. But Hicks has always told a different story: He ran into the alley to help the woman when he heard her scream. Heres what that means. It was founded in 2012 in conjunction with the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University School of Law. The gun that was entered into evidence was registered to a Philadelphia police officer. Ellis arrived with his then-partner, Duane Watson who is currently facing perjury charges after his testimony in a narcotics arrest was contradicted by surveillance video. In prison, I had to coax some of those guys up there. Reynolds, a former inmate at Coleman, had hoped to go to trial and help spark prison reform. It was before dawn on Nov. 27, 2001, and Termaine Joseph Hicks was at the wrong place at precisely the wrong time. Hicks was in South Philadelphia on the early morning of November 27, 2001, when he heard a woman screaming. Police disciplinary records are currently kept confidential in nearly half of states, including Pennsylvania. Listen: Stories about Black men spending years and even decades behind bars for crimes they didnt. According to the Inquirer, Hollmans attorneys said he was targeted by police only because he was a Black man driving a white SUV that matched the description of the one seen fleeing the scene of a shooting that killed Penn student Tae-Jung Ho in August 1991. According to her filings, the process of constructing a cover-up began immediately. How Black and Latino people did in this last round of redistricting. Hicks tried to appeal his conviction, court records show, claiming that his former defense attorney had erred by not insisting that police show the enhanced surveillance footage. Obviously, the worst part of these false convictions is that Black people are having enormous chunks of their lives stolen from them all because America is racist and its justice system reflects that, but the convictions are also a burden on taxpayers who end up footing the bill for settlements because they live in cities where law enforcement cares more about forcing guilty verdicts than they do about actually solving crimes. I could have just disappeared, but I want to be on the front lines. Joe Rojas, the southeast regional vice president for the workers union, AFGE Council of Prisons, said the case was a black eye for an otherwise hardworking and upright staff. A spokesperson for the District Attorneys Office declined to comment on whether it would pursue action against the officers. Press "Enter" or click on the arrow to show results. There were weeks we never once left our cells. Gutirrez, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania, and other visitors from outside the prison to the performance. He said he was meeting with McGrody, who could answer any further questions. Officer Martin Vinson and Sgt. At the same time, my thoughts and prayers are with the countless others who are not coming home today or ever because of an impulsive, ill-prepared, and apprehensive cop. Returning & Becoming: Kanuga Christian Formation, Episcopal Parish Network 38th Annual Conference, African American Readings of St. Paul with Dr. Lisa Bowens, Life Together Fellow, Church of Our Saviour, Milton, MA, Graduate Resident Youth or Childrens Minister. Now, under the scrutiny of a new investigation, the case against Hicks has fallen apart. Hicks was not eligible for parole because he maintained his innocence and would not express remorse for a crime he did not commit. The basics of personal finance, like How to save for a house. Figure out your next step toward financial freedom. According to the National Registry of Exonerations, police misconduct, like this, has played a role in 35% of wrongful convictions resulting in exonerations since 1989. His payout is just $50,000 short of the record for settlements of its kind in the city a distinction held by the $9.85 million agreement the city struck in 2018 with Anthony Wright, a man who served nearly 25 years of a sentence for a 1991 rape and murder that DNA evidence proved decades later he did not commit. Dennis Zungolo. It was dark, and she suffered a head trauma during the assault. In 2001, a police officer shot the 26-year-old Popeyes manager, later telling a court that Hicks reached for a gun after the officer found him raping a woman in a Philadelphia alleyway. He was exonerated after the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office conceded that lead police Through all the years of trials and incarceration, Hicks never lost faith. We may earn a commission from links on this page. The Philadelphia District Attorneys Conviction Integrity Unit agreed with Hicks and his lawyers, civil-rights attorney Susan Lin, and the Innocence Project, that the case was built on lies possibly to cover up the unjustified shooting that were contradicted by newly analyzed and compelling forensic evidence. But no officers were prosecuted. Philadelphia officials said Wednesday that the city will be paying out $9.8 million in one of the largest wrongful-conviction settlements in the citys history to a Black man who spent 28 years in prison for a murder the district attorneys Conviction Integrity Unit now says it was near impossible that he committed. Medical records and damage to the clothes Hicks was wearing that night showed he had actually been shot in the back, contrary to what police claimed, the Inquirer reported. Mr. Hicks, an Innocence Project client, was wrongly convicted of a rape that took place in Philadelphia in 2001. Hicks was then charged with the rape and later exonerated after the Conviction Integrity Unit found that the case was built on liespossibly to cover up the unjustified shooting and that forensic evidence easily cleared Hicks who should never have been arrested let alone convicted of the rape. WebAfter doing time in prison for a crime he did not commit, Termaine Hicks wrote Step Up, a series of educational videos to teach conflict resolution and critical thinking, to help combat Philadelphias gun violence crisis. Theres plenty of us who would give him help. Hicks is the 16th person exonerated by the Conviction Integrity Unit since District Attorney Larry Krasner took office in 2018, and the first to be cleared of a rape. They have told me that the trauma of a retrial would be unbearable, she said. If seated, a Cherokee delegate could make a big difference in Congress, How the racial makeup of where you live has changed since 1990, Subscribe to About US to read the latest on race and identity, Examining systemic racism through the lens of his life, Understanding racism and inequality in America. In another, Ellis was one of a number of officers accused of beating a suspect and then arresting him for assault and resisting arrest. Philadelphia officials said Wednesday that the city will be paying out $9.8 million in one of the largest wrongful-conviction settlements in the citys history to a Black man who spent 28 years in prison for a murder the district attorneys Conviction Integrity Unit now says it was near impossible that he committed. Lauren Reynolds received $600,000 for her settlement - but she said it wasnt about the money. TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA A federal grand jury has returned a twenty-one count indictment against Andrew Demetric Gillum, 42, and Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, The men told me how much they loved Dennis.. Happy Holidays Termaine! Termaine Hicks speaks out after 19 years in prison for a crime he didnt commit (Part 1), At least 2 dead after exposure to unknown substance at N.Y. senior facility, Clark Atlanta University students mourn loss of athlete fatally shot near campus, Iranian government to investigate series of poisonings, Pennsylvania man accused of trying to bring explosive on plane, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle asked to leave Frogmore Cottage. She was badly beaten, so he reached for his cell phone to call 911. WebThe Innocence Project and Philadelphia DAs Conviction Integrity Unit found evidence police lied to cover up the shooting of Termaine Joseph Hicks, a bystander who rushed to help Until then, he just wants to spend time with his family as a free person. At the time of his arrest, Hicks was an assistant manager at a South Philadelphia Popeyes, raising a 5-year-old son. The footage then shows a delivery van arriving, the flash of its headlights flooding the alley. Hicks came from Maryland, Possibly with former slaveowner, White Brown. Philadelphia police shot a man and accused him of rape. The conviction was vacated, and the charge dismissed. A woman had been pistol-whipped, dragged into an alleyway behind what was then St. Agnes Hospital in South Philadelphia, and raped until the rapist was startled and fled the scene. She said Hicks had gone to the victim to render aid. As one of the men said, referencing the work of famed public interest lawyer and equal justice activist Bryan Stevenson, Would you want to be known for the worst thing you ever did, for the rest of your life?. According to the Inquirer, since 2018, 17 defendants have been exonerated in cases involving many of the same officers who led the investigations into Hollmans and Wrights cases. A Pennsylvania court has vacated the rape conviction of Termaine Joseph Hicks, freeing him from prison after almost 19 years. We must have had 150 people in the audience, both inmates and guests, remembers Slichter. Reynolds said she was raped by a correctional officer at Coleman for six months while serving time there. Three Philadelphia police officers have been reassigned pending an internal investigation into the arrest of Termaine Joseph Hicks, who was cleared of a 2001 rape last week after spending 19 years in prison. The presumption of innocence., Demographic changes: How the racial makeup of where you live has changed since 1990, Newsletter: Subscribe to About US to read the latest on race and identity, George Floyds America: Examining systemic racism through the lens of his life, Resources: Understanding racism and inequality in America. S.T.E.P.U.P. Vinson told the court he saw Hicks attacking the woman and saw him reach for a gun. A judge ordered him released last year at age 49, citing evidence that police and prosecutors built their case on fabricated statements from people they coerced as witnesses and later withheld evidence pointing to the likely true perpetrators of the crime. The cover up of shooting an innocent man required the false testimony of three officers and the acquiescence of a dozen more. They lied under oath to cover up for shooting an innocent man three times in the back, Innocence Project lawyer Vanessa Potkin said. Many will have a tale of transformation to share. During that time, in the fall of 2008, Hicks joined the EfM group. Now, he hopes to produce work for the wider community, including a play about his own life and performances inspired by the oldheads who shared their wisdom over decades in prison. Its a joyful day for me and my family, Mr. Hicks said after being released. READ MORE: Police shot a Philly man, then accused him of rape. The Innocence Project and Philadelphia DAs Conviction Integrity Unit found evidence police lied to cover up the shooting of Termaine Joseph Hicks, a bystander who rushed to help a rape victim. The Philadelphia District Attorneys Offices Conviction Integrity Unit sided with Hicks and his lawyers, and Common Pleas Court Judge Tracy Brandeis-Roman vacated his conviction on Wednesday. Termaine Hicks case marks the 16th exoneration since 2018 attributed to the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office Conviction Integrity Unit. He said Hicks had pulled a gun on police, but put it back in his pocket after being shot three times. Hicks says Vinson muttered something like, damn, and then began to cry. He also reached out to the Innocence Project. Hicks case is yet another example of the pervasive problem of police perjury in the criminal legal system. Most of these kids had made a single mistake, he says, often as the result of bullying, and their entire lives were disrupted. WebTermaine Hicks was exonerated in December after the Philadelphia District Attorneys Office conceded that lead police officers lied under oath to cover up shooting Mr. Hickswho was innocent of any crimein the back three times. He was arraigned while handcuffed to a hospital bed. Falsely claiming under oath that Mr. Hicks wore a gray hoodie like that a neighbor described the assailant as wearing. Deep-seated police misconduct and institutional protections are too often the source of wrongful convictions and injustice in the system. And the gun the officers alleged to have found in his pocket was actually the off-duty weapon of another Philadelphia police officer. For far too long the police have willfully lied with impunity; we need accountability, said Vanessa Potkin, director of post-conviction litigation at the Innocence Project, who represented Mr. Hicks. His attorney Amelia Green said the evidence supporting Hollmans innocence which garnered media attention first in the form of a 2017 report in The Inquirer and, in April, an episode of the Netflix series The Innocence Files put pressure on city officials to resolve the case swiftly, though neither they nor police admit any wrongdoing as part of the settlement deal. Termaine Hicks was released from SCI Phoenix Prison Tuesday, Dec.16, 2020 in Collegeville, Penn. She assumed those were police spotlights. Wow you are a hero.and a very blessed man. In fact, the gun was registered as the off-duty weapon of another uniformed Philadelphia police officer. 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