Today's Houston Chronicle reports, "State rejects compensation for wrongly convicted man." It's written by Harvey Rice
The Texas Comptroller’s Office has denied compensation to Anthony Graves, who spent 18 years on death row before a special prosecutor determined he was innocent and authorities dropped capital murder charges against him.
The state determined that Graves, 45, who could have received as much as $1.4 million had he been deemed eligible, should receive nothing because the words "actual innocence" didn’t appear in the document ordering his release, according to a letter the office sent to Graves’ attorney, Nicole Casarez.
Graves said he will continue to press for compensation.
"Nothing has ever been easy for me on this road to justice," Graves said. "I haven’t given up on it and I hope justice will prevail and I’ll be compensated."
Casarez said she was informed of the refusal Friday after phoning the comptroller’s office to find out why she hadn’t received a response even though the 45-day limit to act on Graves’ request had lapsed.
A letter e-mailed to Casarez from the comptroller’s office said the order dismissing the charges must say explicitly that Graves is innocent. Casarez said the office should have taken her client’s unique circumstances into consideration.
And:
Kelly Siegler, the special prosecutor who recommended dropping the charges against Graves, said that the words "actual innocence" are not commonly used in the courtroom. She said the compensation law likely was designed for cases involving innocence proven through DNA, not a case thrown out by prosecutors after a reexamination of the evidence.
"Who would have envisioned this kind of situation happening?" Siegler said.
"I’m willing to testify to the fact that we believe he’s innocent," she said. "I’ve signed an affidavit. I’m not sure what we are supposed to do to make it happen."
In December, lawyers in the case discussed asking state District Judge Reva Towslee-Corbett, who signed the order freeing Graves, to change the wording of the order. This never happened, however, for reasons that could not be determined Monday.
Casarez said a civil suit seeking compensation was one of several options that would be discussed with attorneys who specialize in that particular type of law.
The Comptroller of Public Accounts' letter rejecting the claim is at the link.
"Ex-Death Row inmate's claim for compensation is rejected," is Michael Graczyk's filing for AP, via the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
R.J. DeSilva, a spokesman for the comptroller's office, said either a pardon from Gov. Rick Perry or a court order needs to be submitted with Graves' compensation claim to comply with the law.
"Neither of those documents was sent in with the Graves application, so it could not be approved," he said.
DeSilva said Graves' lawyers have until next week to remedy the situation.
"State won't compensate exoneree Anthony Graves," is Colleen McCain Nelson's post at the Dallas Morning News Death Penalty Blog.
Of course, the money can't make up for the 18 years that Graves lost. But it could help him rebuild his life now. The comptroller, it appears, is following the letter of the law. But this appears to be an unfortunate loophole that could mean that Graves comes out on the losing end yet again.
Earlier coverage is at the link; also, coverage of Anthony Graves' exoneration. All coverage is in the Anthony Graves index.
More on the issue of compensation for those wrongly incarcerated begins with the post, "Texas Lawyer Sued by State Bar Over Dealings With Exonerees."
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