AN OVERDUE MOVE

North Carolina convicts adamant about their innocence may get a new venue where they can plead their cases. Lawmakers gave final approval Wednesday to a measure that would establish a commission with the sole purpose of investigating and uncovering cases of wrongful conviction. No other state has a similar commission and it needs only the signature of Gov. Mike Easley to become law. "This is one thing that we can do to renew public confidence in our judicial system," said Rep. Rick Glazier, D-Cumberland, the bill's author. "When we make mistakes, we'll have a fail-safe mechanism to get it right."

For nine years, Glazier, a Fayetteville attorney, represented a former Camp Lejeune Marine who was convicted of rape in 1982 despite four witnesses who testified in his defense. Lesly Jean was exonerated in 2001 only after DNA evidence cleared him of the crime. "We have to recognize that, sometimes, our system can make a mistake," Glazier said.

A coalition formed by then state Supreme Court Chief Justice I. Beverly Lake Jr. formed in 2002 study the state's criminal justice system and recommended that the state establish a legal authority to investigate cases of declared factual innocence. But some lawmakers, including Rep. Joe Kiser object to the commission as an unnecessary layer of judicial oversight. "The court system that we have works very well," said Kiser, R-Lincoln. "I don't believe this system will work one bit better than it does now."

Under the latest proposal, an eight-member committee would determine if claims were credible based only on new evidence not considered in trial. If five of the eight panel members agree, the Chief Justice would appoint three judges who must unanimously determine that there was "clear and convincing evidence" of the prisoner's innocence.

For the first two years of the commission, prisoners who have pleaded guilty will not be able to present their cases. For the next two years, such prisoners could come before the commission, but would have to receive an unanimous endorsement from the panel before the case could go before the judges' panel.

The North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys objected to that proposal. "It's kind of making a mockery of the system," said Garry Frank, president of the DA's coalition. "After someone pleads guilty, it's turning the system on its head to have a commission at the end of the road (that would) allow a person to then pursue innocence."

Glazier contends some innocent prisoners have pleaded guilty. The commission is modeled after a system already in place in the United Kingdom. Since its inception in 1997, the U.K.'s Criminal Cases Review Commission has scrutinized more than 8,500 cases. The body has sent about 4 percent of appeals back to court and 220 cases have resulted in overturned convictions.

As in many other states, winning a post-conviction reversal can be difficult in North Carolina. Defense attorneys have long argued that the innocent stand little chance of being freed once they are sent to prison. "When judges have hundreds of motions for relief come over their desks, it's difficult," said Chris Mumma, executive director of the N.C. Center on Actual Innocence, a nonprofit created to advance credible innocence claims. "As it is right now, they're just looking for needles in haystacks."

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Background on the Lesly Jean case

A former Marine falsely imprisoned for rape was pardoned yesterday by Gov. Mike Easley after a second round of DNA testing showed he was innocent. Lesly Jean, 41, of New York City served nine years in state prison after he was convicted of the 1982 rape of a Jacksonville woman. Jean was released from prison in 1991 after a federal appeals court overturned his conviction.

Jean's reaction was "tears of joy," said one of his attorneys, Richard Glazier, of Fayetteville. Jean was in New York when he heard the news. "He was completely overcome," Glazier said. "Having fought this battle for 18 years and now having everyone understand and having the governor say he was innocent makes him the happiest man I know."

The pardon means Jean could be eligible for a maximum of $150,000 in compensation from the state for wrongful imprisonment. Glazier said the full amount would be sought in filings next week with the N.C. Industrial Commission.

"Lesly Jean was forced to pay a debt to society he did not owe," Easley said. "While the state can never give him back the years of freedom he lost while behind bars, this pardon of innocence fully exonerates Mr. Jean for the crime and makes him eligible for financial compensation."

Jean's attorneys asked Easley last month for the pardon after one DNA test showed he wasn't the rapist. The governor's pardon came after a second DNA test was performed this week at the request of the district attorney for Onslow County. The pardon was the first of Easley's administration. Before he left office Jan. 6, former Gov. Jim Hunt granted 39 pardons, ranging from people who were convicted of tax evasion and violating the state bingo law to drug violations and kidnapping. Easley asked the state attorney general to check DNA databases to determine if evidence left by the attacker could be linked to another person.

At his trial, it was revealed that hypnosis was used to help the victim and a police officer identify Jean. Jean was arrested after the Jacksonville police chief saw him in a doughnut shop and thought he matched the rape victim's description of her attacker.

Jean was convicted despite testimony from four witnesses who said that he was on base at the time of the rape. He was released from prison in 1991 after a federal appeals court said prosecutors wrongfully concealed the hypnosis.

Since his release, Jean has tried to establish his innocence and lives in the Bronx with his wife and family. A native of Haiti, Jean said earlier this year that the Marine Corps was his dream come true and that he hasn't been able to find lasting work since his release. Jean's dishonorable discharge from the Marines has been changed to honorable, allowing him to get Veterans Administration benefits for post-traumatic stress syndrome.

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