The Norfolk Four

The Norfolk Four are four of the five men convicted in the brutal rape and murder of Michelle Moore-Bosko in 1997 in Norfolk, Virginia in what has been called by many one of the greatest miscarriages of justice of all time.Fact|date=November 2007 Three of these four men, Derek Tice, Danial Williams, and Joseph J. Dick Jr., all either pleaded guilty to or were convicted of her murder, and were sentenced to one or more life sentences in prison without the possibility of parole. A fourth man, Eric C. Wilson, was convicted of rape and sentenced to 8½ years in prison. Three other men, Geoffrey A. Farris, John E. Danser and Richard D. Pauley, Jr. (not included in the count), were also initially charged with the crime, but their charges were later dropped. All of these men are largely believed to be innocent with no known involvement or connections to the incident. [ [http://www.justicedenied.org/derektice.htm Dereck Tice ] ]

The fifth man, Omar Ballard, was also convicted in the crime, and was sentenced to 100 years in prison, 59 of which were suspended. He is the only man whose DNA matches that found at the scene, and he has admitted the he committed the crime by himself, with none of the other men were involved. Forensic evidence that has been studied fully corroborates his story that there were no other participants.

The case

The case started on July 8, 1997, when William Bosko came home from a military assignment to find his wife Michelle, then 18, murdered. As the investigation started, detective Glen R. Ford questioned residents of Moore-Bosko's development. Ford has previously been described as tough and intimidating, and he was suspended from the force in 1990 for coercing a confession out of three teenagers.

The Norfolk Four have alleged that their confessions, which were either signed or taped, and were the sole basis for their convictions, were coerced out of them with threats that included that they would receive the death penalty if they did not plead guilty. As a result of their confessions and pleas, their convictions have been upheld in multiple appeals, regardless of the forensic evidence that has proven they could not have possibly been involved, and Ballard's admission that he alone committed the act.

Fighting the verdicts

On June 7, 2001, a documentary of the case aired on The Learning Channel's "Medical Detectives". [ [http://www.justicedenied.org/volume2issue8.htm Volume 1 Issue 8 ] ] The episode was repeated several times thereafter.

Eleven of the jurors who initially convicted the alleged murderers in the case have stated in affidavits that they now believe the convicts were innocent. [ [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/05/AR2006010502133.html Jurors Back Clemency for 'Norfolk 4' - washingtonpost.com ] ]

Releases

In September 2006, Wilson was released after serving his full sentence. However, he is still appealing to have his conviction reversed.

On November 27, 2006, a circuit court overturned the conviction of Tice on constitutional grounds. [ [http://www.thejusticeproject.org/press/releases/virginia-circuit-court-judge.html Press Room - Virginia Circuit Court Judge Overturns Derek Tice Conviction ] ] This verdict has raised doubts into the constitutionality of the other convictions.

ee also

*Innocence Project
*Richard Ofshe

References

External links

* [http://www.norfolk4.com/ Up to date information of the Norfolk 4 case]
* [http://www.innocenceproject.org/ The Innocence Project home page]
* [http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1564729,00.html Time Magazine, Thursday, November 30, 2006, "Throwing Out a Murder Confession — and Conviction — in Virginia"]
* [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/19/magazine/19Norfolk-t.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss The New York Times, Sunday, August 19, 2007, "What Happened In Norfolk"]