U.S. & World

DALLAS (CBS) ― 17 men convicted in Dallas County have been cleared and freed from jail based on DNA testing. 


That's more than any other jurisdiction in the country. 


Part of the reason for Dallas' high number of clearances is that the crime lab which tests DNA for the county saves DNA samples.  That means DNA evidence is available for many old Dallas County cases.  The labs that serve most jurisdictions do not save evidence.

Background information on 16 of the 17 reversed convictions, from the Dallas County District Attorney's office, the Texas Innocence Project and the Innocence Project (information on the 17th conviction was not available):

James Lee Woodard, released April 29, 2008.  "James Woodard was convicted on circumstantial evidence of a murder that occurred at the end of 1980.  Woodard, who had been involved in a relationship with the victim, Beverly Jones, who was 18-years-old at the time, was convicted primarily on the testimony of two witnesses, both of whom testified that they knew both Woodard and Jones. Woodard has adamantly maintained his innocence from the first time he was interviewed by the police.  Jones was strangled and her body was found near the banks of the Trinity River on December 31, 1980.  Evidence collected in a rape kit revealed the presence of sperm and anal trauma, possibly the result of a sexual assault.  DNA evidence excludes Woodard as the donor of the sperm found on the victim's body."  The Dallas County DA's office says Woodard requested DNA tests but previous District Attorneys denied the testing.

Thomas McGowan, released April 16, 2008.  "In two separate trials in 1985 and 1986, McGowan was convicted of aggravated sexual assault and burglary and sentenced to two consecutive life terms in prison. DNA testing on a rape kit collected from the victim proves that he was not the man who broke into her home in May 1985, stole several items and raped her.  The victim in McGowan's case initially viewed a live lineup with three men who police thought might be suspects in the crime and three "fillers." She did not identify any of the men as her attacker. Later, she was shown a photo array with seven photos – but there were effectively only three photos in the array, since two of them were photocopies of photographs, one was a black-and-white photo (all the others were in color), and one was marked "Garland Police Department" (while the remaining three were marked "Richardson Police Department," which is where the crime took place). The victim said she "thought" the man in one of the three photos was her assailant, and the police officer administering the lineup told her "You have to be sure, yes or no." When she testified in court, the victim recounted the officer's instructions: "He said if I was going to say it was somebody, if I was going to say it was that picture, I had to be sure. He said I couldn't think it was him. He said I had to make a positive ID. I had to say yes or no." After hearing the officer's instructions, the victim said the man in the photo – Thomas McGowan – was "definitely" the man who attacked her. The victim's identification of McGowan was the central evidence against him.  Decades of scientific research show that instructions or feedback from an officer administering a live or photo lineup can significantly impact whether a witness identifies the wrong person."

Charles Chatman, released January 3, 2008.  "Chatman was convicted of a 1981 rape after he was misidentified in a photo lineup. His attorney, Michelle Moore (who was co-counsel with the Innocence Project of Texas on the case), credited Texas judge John Creuzot with pushing for DNA testing in the case. Creuzot said he became convinced of Chatman's innocence after presiding over two previous hearings in the case. After earlier tests proved inconclusive, Chatman recently agreed to Y-STR testing, an advanced form of DNA testing that can determine a profile from a small sample. The risk was that this final test could have consumed the last of the biological evidence in the case. It proved to be the right decision, however, as the profile proved that another man committed the rape for which Chatman was serving a 99-year sentence.  Chatman said he was denied parole three times during his 27 years in prison because he refused to admit guilt in a crime he didn't commit."

Steven Phillips, released September 17, 2007.  "Phillips was tried and convicted of aggravated sexual assault and burglary in separate trials where juries found him guilty and sentenced him to 30 years in each case.  Prior to his release he spent most of the previous 25 years in prison.  Mr. Phillips also pled guilty to other charges after he was convicted of the two above-mentioned felony offenses."

James Curtis Giles, released June 21, 2007.  "James Curtis Giles was convicted of aggravated rape in 1983 and sentenced to 30 years in prison.  The female victim identified a photo of Stanley Bryant, the perpetrator who was an acquaintance of the couple, on the day after the attack. A month after the crime, a CrimeStoppers tip led police to include James Curtis Giles in a lineup, and the victim identified him as one of the three rapists. Neither the male victim nor another eyewitness identified James Curtis Giles in a lineup or at trial. James Curtis Giles, at 29, was a decade older than the description of the perpetrators, and he has two prominent gold teeth which the victim also didn't mention. Based on the victim's identification, he was arrested in January 1983 and charged with aggravated rape."

Andrew Gossett, released January 2, 2007.  Gossett "was convicted on February 10, 2000 and sentenced to 50 years in prison.  At the hospital, the victim described the perpetrator as having blue jeans, a plaid or dark shirt over a black T-shirt, a brown sports jacket, and a scar on his face. A surveillance videotape from a convenience store, a seven-minute walk from where the victim dropped off the perpetrator, showed a customer in the store wearing glasses, camouflage pants, and a light colored T-shirt under a blue plaid shirt.  Four hours after the assault, an officer was patrolling the area and saw Andrew Gossett rummaging through a parked pickup truck. The officer thought Gossett looked suspicious, but did not arrest him at the time. Gossett was wearing a plaid long-sleeved shirt, dark blue jeans, and was carrying a brown jacket. The officer later heard of this crime and an indecent exposure report on the radio, and went back to find Gossett the next day.  The victim identified Andrew Gossett from a photo lineup. Gossett did have a scar, though he was smaller in body size than she had described."

James Waller, exonerated March 9, 2007.  "After James Waller was released on parole, he still wanted to prove his innocence. He and his family saved up money for DNA testing, and pursued DNA testing on three separate occasions before results were finally obtained and he was proven innocent.  At around 6 a.m. on November 2, 1982, the 12-year-old male victim and his 7-year-old brother were alone in their house after their mother and older brother had left for work. They woke to find a male in their house, who instructed the victim to put his face down on the pillow. The victim said he got a quick look at him, even though it was dark outside and he had a cowboy hat on and a bandanna over the lower part of his face. The man tied the victim's hands behind his back, forced the victim to orally copulate him, and anally raped him. The man then told the victim that he was going to get a "friend" and that the friend would hurt him if the victim told anyone about the incident.  The evening after the assault, the victim was in a corner store near his apartment building when he thought he heard the voice of the man who attacked him. He turned around and saw James Waller, who he believed was the man. He ran home and told the apartment manager. At that time, Waller walked through the apartment door, as he also lived in the apartment building.  The apartment manager also told police that she had seen a man with a bandanna and a cowboy hat around 6 a.m. on the morning of the crime, but that she did not recognize him. After the victim identified Waller, she told police that Waller was the man she had seen. The manager also testified that she had found an address book outside of the victim's apartment ten weeks after the crime. The book belonged to James Waller.  A rape kit was collected at the hospital, as was the sheet on the victim's bed. Sperm was found in the victim's rape kit, and no analysis was done on the sheets.  Three African American hair fragments were found on the sheet and collected. The victim and his family were white, so the fragments were initially thought to be the attacker's. However, the Dallas County Institute of Forensic Sciences microscopically determined that the hairs did not come from Waller. The state then determined that the hairs may have came in contact with the sheets in some other manner.   Waller stated that he was at home sleeping with his girlfriend at the time of the crime, a claim that his roommate (his cousin) and girlfriend both supported.  Waller explained at trial that his family was told to move out of the apartment two weeks after he was arrested. Since the address book was high in a closet, they did not remove it. He guessed that the new tenants may have thrown it in the garbage.  Waller was released on parole in 1993. After saving up money for DNA testing, he asked for DNA testing on the rape kit slides in 2001. The Department of Public Safety attempted DNA testing, but could not get a result and consumed the sample. Waller then asked for DNA testing on the hairs. He was excluded from the hairs in 2002, but this wasn't enough to overturn his conviction.  Later that year, the Innocence Project took on Waller's case and found that the DPS laboratory had consumed the sample but still had "extracts" at the lab that could be tested. Orchid Cellmark then performed Y-DNA testing on the extracts in 2006 and both Waller the victim were excluded as the source of the semen.   On December 19, 2006, 23 years after his conviction, Waller's conviction was finally vacated. He was officially pardoned by Governor Rick Perry on March 9, 2007."

Larry Fuller, exonerated January 1, 2007.  "After spending nearly 20 years in prison for a crime that he did not commit, Larry Fuller was finally released from prison on October 31, 2006, and was officially pardoned in January 2007.  In April 1981, the victim woke up before dawn with her attacker on top of her, threatening her with a butcher knife. The attacker then cut her on the hand, neck and back.  The victim initially told police that she could not provide a description of the man because the attack occurred an hour before sunrise and the room was barely lit. A week after the crime, however, the police still asked her to try and identify her attacker. She looked at a photo lineup and stated that Larry Fuller "looks a lot like the guy" but that she was not positive. In a second photo lineup, she said she was sure it was Fuller.  Semen from the victim's rape kit was collected and serologically tested. Fuller was serologically included in that he was a nonsecretor, and the blood type of the rape kit fluid matched the victim's own blood type. Therefore, serological testing did not exclude Fuller, but it also did not identify him as the perpetrator.  Y-DNA testing was conducted on the victim's rape kit, and Fuller was excluded. Since the victim said she had consensual sex with two separate partners in the days before the rape, DNA reference samples from both consensual partners were obtained and submitted to Cellmark for further testing. The consensual partners were excluded as well, meaning that the semen must have come from the perpetrator. In 1999, Fuller was released on parole after 18 years in prison. Fuller's parole was revoked in 2005 for a violation of his release conditions, and he was sent back to prison to serve the remainder of his sentence.  Larry Fuller's conviction was vacated on October 31, 2006 and he was released from prison. He was pardoned by Texas Governor Rick Perry on January 11, 2007."

Gregory Wallis, exonerated January 10, 2007.  "Gregory Wallis served 17 years in Texas prisons for a crime that he did not commit. Multiple rounds of DNA testing proved that Wallis had been misidentified and wrongly convicted, and he was officially exonerated in January 2007.   On January 6, 1988, a man entered the victim's condominium in Irving, Texas, after speaking with her for a few minutes. He then raped her repeatedly for two hours in her home.   The victim gave a description to police, but without any leads, the investigation went unsolved. After four months, police circulated a flier about the attack in a local jail. An inmate told the Irving police that Gregory Wallis had a tattoo similar to the description given by the victim. The victim subsequently chose Wallis out of a photo array.  A rape kit was collected from the victim, as well as cigarette butts from her house that the perpetrator had smoked during the attack.  Wallis testified that he was with his wife at the time of the attack. His wife testified to the same.  Michelle Moore of the Dallas County Public Defender's Office represented Wallis in his request for DNA testing. An initial round of testing on the rape kit at the Southwestern Institute of Forensic Science in December 2005 showed that 1 in 452 people had the same portion of the DNA profile that both Wallis and the perpetrator shared. At that point, Wallis was offered a deal: he could be released if he would agree to register as a sex offender for life. He declined, wanting to prove his innocence once and for all.  Moore sought further testing in Wallis' case, sending rape kit and cigarette butts to Orchid Cellmark for more conclusive testing. Cellmark found one consistent profile on the cigarette butts and on the rape kit, and this profile did not belong to Wallis.  Wallis was released from prison in March 2006, and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted his Writ of Habeas Corpus on January 10, 2007."

Billy Wayne Miller, exonerated December 20, 2006.  "In May 2006, Billy Wayne Miller was released from prison after DNA testing proved he had been convicted in 1984 of a rape he didn't commit. He was officially exonerated on December 20, 2006 when Texas Gov. Rick Perry issued a pardon based on his innocence.  On the night of September 26, 1983, the victim left a friend's house in Dallas County to walk to a bus stop. A man in a Chevy Impala or Chevy Caprice drove up to her and offered to drive her home. She gave the man directions to her house, but he pulled out a gun as he drove past the correct exit on the highway. He then pulled off into a vacant lot and raped the victim on the hood of his car. He raped her again in the backseat of the car, and a third time after he drove further down a dark road.   The man then drove her to a house where he unlocked the door and forced her inside. While in the car on the way, she committed two street names to memory. He then raped her again. She continued talking to him, agreeing not to tell the police and convincing him to drive her to a friend's house. She was able to run inside the house before the perpetrator got to the door. The man stayed at the front door while the friend called the police, but ran away after the friend made noise.  The victim gave the police numbers from the attacker's license plate. She then drove with the police to the house she remembered as the location of the attack. Police found a Chevy Impala parked in front of the house with a license plate only one digit different from the victim's memory. The car was registered to Billy Wayne Miller's father. When police knocked on the door of the house, a woman let them in. Miller was in the house and was arrested immediately.  The victim was taken to the hospital where a doctor performed a rape examination. Samples collected from the victim's body revealed the presence of spermatozoa.  In 2001, Miller attempted to secure post-conviction DNA testing, and eventually was granted testing in 2005. The Texas Department of Public Safety conducted DNA testing on a vaginal swab from the rape kit in 2006, determining that the DNA profile from the sperm fraction of the vaginal swab was not consistent with Miller. The victim was asked by the district attorney's office if anyone other than her rapist could have been a source of the male DNA found on her vaginal swab, and she responded that only her rapist could be the source. Subsequently, Miller was released from prison. He had served 22 years for a rape he didn't commit."

Billy James Smith, exonerated December 13, 2006.  "After attempting to secure DNA testing for four years, Billy James Smith was finally granted DNA testing in 2005. The tests proved that he he had served nearly 20 years for a rape he did not commit.  While in the laundry room of the apartment building managed by her boyfriend, the victim was approached by a man with a knife. He asked her for money, then dragged her into a grassy field near the complex. He then put his hat over her face, forced her to remove her shorts and raped her. Afterwards, the man told her that he lived in the area and ran away toward the apartment complex.   The victim told her boyfriend immediately about the rape, describing the man as someone she thought she saw at the complex earlier that morning. The boyfriend thought it was Billy James Smith, and went down to Smith's apartment. When Smith stepped onto the balcony, the victim identified him as her attacker and they called the police.  Semen was found in the victim's rape kit. At trial, the state claimed that there was no evidence that the victim had sex with anyone in the 24 hours previous to the rape, so the semen must belong to the perpetrator.  Smith's sister testified that she was at home with Smith the entire duration of the rape. She said that she went to her bedroom to sleep, but did not fall asleep and would have heard if he left. Smith also testified on his own behalf, stating that he knew the victim's boyfriend, but that he had not raped the victim. Smith said he had been sleeping at the time of the crime.  Smith sought DNA testing in 2001. He was denied because the victim had a long-term boyfriend that the state argued may have contributed to the rape kit despite previous statements that the victim did not have sex prior to the crime. After numerous appeals, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals finally granted Smith DNA testing, which proved that the semen did not belong to Smith. He was released in July 2006, and a writ of habeas corpus exonerating Smith was granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on December 13, 2006. "

Eugene Henton, exonerated February 15, 2006.  "After serving 18 months in Texas prison in the 1980s for a sexual assault he didn't commit, Eugene Ivory Henton pursued DNA testing to prove his innocence of a 1984 sexual assault in Dallas County. He was officially exonerated in 2006.  On February 18, 1984, a woman awoke in her Dallas County, TX home to find an intruder in the house. The man sexually assaulted her, locked her in a closet and left. The victim told police that she did not know the man and had never seen him before.   In exchange for a guilty plea, Henton was sentenced in 1984 to four years in prison. He was paroled 18 months after he entered prison, but continued his pursuit for DNA testing in order to prove his innocence.  He returned to prison in 1995 after he was convicted of an unrelated drug and assault charge and sentenced to more than 40 years, the harsh sentence based on the fact that he was still considered a sex offender on parole. He continued to fight the 1984 wrongful conviction from prison.  Michelle Moore of the Dallas County Public Defender's Office assisted Henton in applying for DNA testing on evidence from the crime scene in the 1984 case. DNA tests on semen found in the victim's rape kit proved that another man had committed the crime and Henton's conviction was overturned on September 1, 2005. Represented by Robert Udashen, Henton filed for a Writ of Habeas Corpus to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. It was granted on February 15, 2006, finally proving that Henton had served time in prison and on parole for a crime he didn't commit. He remained incarcerated, however, on the unrelated charges.  In June 2007, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals threw out Henton's sentences for the drug and assault cases because the punishment was based on his wrongful conviction. He was released from prison on October 26, 2007, after a Dallas judge resentenced him to time already served. "

Keith E. Turner, exonerated December 22, 2005.  "On December 22, 2005, Keith E. Turner was officially pardoned by Texas Governor Rick Perry on the basis of actual innocence. Post-conviction DNA testing proved that Turner was not the perpetrator of a 1982 rape of a Dallas, Texas, woman. Turner had been mistakenly identified both visually and by his voice. He and the victim worked for different branches of the same company and came into contact when Turner was transferred. Turner maintained his innocence and provided an alibi, but was convicted in 1983.  In his statement, Governor Perry said, "I believe that a full pardon for innocence must be supported by strong evidence, such as forensic DNA tests. In both of these cases [referring to Entre Nax Karage and Keith E. Turner], new DNA evidence proves that these men are innocent. The recommendations of the district attorney, judges, the Dallas County Sherriff, the Dallas Chief of Police and the Board of Pardons and Paroles also were very important factors in my decision." "

Donald Wayne Good, exonerated November 17, 2004.  "Donald Wayne Good served 9 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. DNA testing in 2004 proved that he could not have been the man that committed a 1983 rape and burglary in Dallas County, Texas.  On June 9, 1983, the victim was working in the yard of her Dallas County, Texas, home while her 8-year-old daughter played in the living room of their home. An intruder entered the house through the garage door, held a knife to the girl's throat, and ordered the victim to come inside. The assailant tied the hands of both mother and daughter and locked the doors to the home. He then hogtied the girl and left her on the living room floor. He placed a pillow case over the mother's head. He then took her into the bedroom, raped her vaginally and anally, and forced her to perform oral sex. Before leaving, the assailant hogtied the victim next to her daughter and stole money from her purse.  The victim was taken to a hospital for a rape examination and her clothing and bedspread were collected as evidence.  Good was arrested on unrelated charges. While in custody, a police officer came to believe that Good resembled the composite sketch of the assailant and Good's photograph was placed in a photographic lineup. Both the victim and her daughter identified Good as the man who broke into their home. The victim was certain of her identification.  Good was tried three times, charged with rape, burglary of a habitation with intent to commit theft, and sexual abuse. The first trial ended in a hung jury. In 1984, Good was tried again, convicted, and sentenced to life in prison. Following Good's conviction, an inmate named Daniel Clark wrote a successful appeal for Good. A third trial was granted. At this trial, Good represented himself but repeatedly asked for Clark to be allowed to assist him. The court gagged and handcuffed Good after repeated disruptions in the courtroom. In 1987, Good was convicted again and sentenced to life.  The evidence presented at Good's trials included the eyewitness testimony of the victim and her daughter. The rape kit was examined by the Southwestern Institute of Forensic Sciences (SWIFS). The laboratory found spermatozoa on a vaginal and anal smear, on the crotch area of the victim's jumpsuit, and on a blanket. Serological testing could not exclude Good or 30 percent of the white male population.  Good was paroled in 1993 and supervised as a registered sex offender. In 2002, he was arrested for a minor property crime and had his parole revoked. His life sentence was reinstated. He pled to the property crime and received a five year sentence.  In January of 2002, Good filed a handwritten motion requesting DNA testing of the evidence in the rape case. The Dallas Public Defender's Office was appointed to represent Good on this motion. In March 2003, the Public Defender's Office submitted their motion and the prosecution did not oppose. In August 2003, the court ordered testing of the vaginal swabs from the rape kit.  The evidence was sent to the Texas Department of Public Safety laboratory in Garland, Texas, along with reference samples from Good, the victim, and the victim's husband. In April 2004, test results excluded Good as a contributor to the spermatozoa on the vaginal swab. The victim's husband was also excluded. The non-sperm fraction matched the victim's profile, verifying that the samples tested came from the victim. In an April 2004 report, the court officially found the results favorable to the defendant, Donald Wayne Good.  Good retained the services of Modjarrad & Abusaad, PC, to file a habeas corpus petition, with support from the Dallas County District Attorney's Office. On November 17, 2004, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals vacated the conviction for which Good was serving life. A month later, the Dallas County District Attorney's Office and District Criminal Court 3 dropped the indictment against Good, who remained in prison for the minor property crime charge. He was released in April 2007. "

Wiley Fountain, exonerated March 18, 2003.  "On March 18, 2003, Governor Rick Perry granted Wiley Fountain a full pardon based on innocence of the crime of aggravated sexual assault. Fountain had been convicted in 1986 and had served 15 years for an aggravated sexual assault that he did not commit.  On January 15, 1986, the victim, pregnant at the time, was walking from her apartment to a nearby bus stop in Dallas, Texas. She heard footsteps approaching and saw a man walking a few feet behind her. She had seen the man before around her apartment complex, so she continued walking. The man then grabbed her around the neck, displayed a knife, and dragged her to a nearby driveway. He vaginally raped her, took money out of her pocket, and ran off.  The victim called the police from her apartment. After police interviewed the victim, they stopped Wiley Fountain later that night only one block from her apartment. Fountain matched her description, as he was wearing a white and gray warmup suit with dark stripes and a baseball cap with a shower cap underneath. Fountain asserted that he was at home in bed when the victim was assaulted.  The Southwestern Institute of Forensic Sciences (SWIFS) analyzed the biological evidence from the rape kit collected from the victim. They found seminal fluid on her vaginal swab and panties. There was too little material on her panties of support further testing, and further testing on the swab was inconclusive.  Michelle Moore, of the Dallas County Public Defender's Office, took on Fountain's case and filed for post-conviction DNA testing. On March 26, 2002, the Dallas County District Court granted DNA testing of the vaginal swab and it was sent to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Laboratory in Garland, Texas. DPS found that the male profile from the vaginal swab did not match the profile of Wiley Fountain, nor of the victim's husband.  On September 27, 2002, Wiley Fountain was released from prison on a no-cash bond so that he could be free while prosecutors requested another round of DNA testing to be absolutely sure of his innocence. He had been paroled the previous year, but his parole was revoked when he could not find a job or pay fees as a registered sex offender. Based on the new DNA test results, Governor Perry granted a full pardon based on innocence on March 18, 2003."

David Shawn Pope, exonerated 2001.  "David Shawn Pope was exonerated and freed in 2001 after DNA testing proved his innocence of a 1985 sexual assault. Pope had been convicted in 1986 of breaking into the victim's apartment and raping her.  At trial, the prosecution relied heavily on the victim's identification of Pope. Additionally, a knife found in his car was similar to the knife that had been stolen from the victim's kitchen and used to threaten her during the attack. Messages left on the victim's answering machine after the crime were also said to match Pope's voice print, a method no longer used in courts.  Pope's appeals failed. It was an anonymous call that first alerted prosecutors to the wrongful conviction of Pope. DNA testing on the rape kit revealed the profile of another man who was in another Texas prison for another crime. Pope was pardoned by the governor and walked out of jail after spending fifteen years incarcerated for a crime he did not commit."

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