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Brief Summary Of The Case Of Andrew Wilson

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20. Wilson, Andrew
• Date of Conviction: 1986
• Date of Exoneration: 2017
• Summary of the Case: Shortly after 9 p.m. on 10/23/1984, 21-year-old Christopher Hanson and his 17-year-old girlfriend, Saladena Bishop, were sleeping in Hanson’s truck on Hobart Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, when a man leaning through the open passenger window awakened Bishop. A second man approached the driver’s window and demanded Hanson’s wallet, threatening death. The man then took Hanson’s wallet and stabbed him 10 times. Both men then walked away. Hanson, who had a disorder that prevented his blood from clotting, died at the scene. Police recovered several pieces of a broken knife, a hat and some palm prints. Christopher Hanson’s father, Arthur, who had …show more content…

When they reached Pace and his companions, one ran on the right side and the other ran on the left side. Pace said the pair jogged to 23rd Street and then broke into a dead run. Pace said that one of the men resembled a man he knew as “A.D.” who hung out with a man named Frederick Terrell. Pace looked at police mug shot books and said he was 80 percent sure Andrew Wilson was “A.D.” Pace said Wilson was wearing a leather jacket. Pace’s companions were unable to identify anyone. Marks was familiar with Andrew Wilson because Marks often ran into Wilson on the street along with Terrell. Wilson had been arrested several times in the past on suspicion of committing burglaries, but had been released. Detective Marks prepared an arrest warrant for Wilson and stated in his sworn affidavit that he had directed Bishop to Wilson’s photograph in the photo lineup. Despite this admission, the warrant was issued. On December 3, Wilson learned he was being sought for questioning and came to Marks, saying, “You know I don’t do stuff like that.” Marks then arranged for live lineup for Andrew Wilson and Bishop identified him as the man who stabbed Hanson. She also viewed a lineup containing Terrell and when asked if she saw the man on the …show more content…

Based on the identifications, Wilson and Terrell were charged with first-degree murder and robbery with a weapon. On 10/21/1986, Wilson went to trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court. The prosecution’s theory was that Wilson and Terrell committed the crime together, even though the prosecution had dismissed the charges against Terrell. No physical or forensic evidence linked Wilson to the crime and Marks’s affidavit for the arrest warrant in which he admitted directing Bishop’s attention to Wilson’s photograph was not included in the reports and documents disclosed to Wilson’s defense lawyer. Marks, however, did admit under cross-examination that “at some point” he had pointed to Wilson’s photograph. The jury deliberated for three days before convicting Wilson of first-degree murder

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