Alfred Brown reaches out to hug Houston Chronicle columnist, Lisa Falkenberg after his release from the Harris County jail on June 8, 2015, in Houston

TEXAS (USA): ALFRED DEWAYNE BROWN IS RELEASED FROM PRISON

June 8, 2015: Alfred Dewayne Brown left jail on Monday after he was declared a free man. Brown, 33, Black, had spent more than a dozen years behind bars, 10 of them sitting on death row.
A Harris County jury sentenced Brown to death on October 25, 2005 for the robbery of a check-cashing business that ended with the fatal shooting of officer Charles R. Clark, 45, and store clerk Alfredia Jones, 27, on the morning of April 5, 2003.
Two years ago, District Attorney's Office agreed that he deserved a new trial because evidence that could have helped his defense was withheld. Then, on November 5, 2014 the Texas court of criminal appeals overturned Brown's conviction. The decision to overturn Brown's conviction hinged on evidence of a phone call. The Pittsburgh-based defense firm K&L Gates searched for 6 years for records of a call Brown said he made on the morning of the murder. Prosecutors said he and his alleged fellow conspirators were watching news coverage of the robbery at about 10am on 3 April 2003. Brown said he was at his girlfriend's apartment and had made a phone call to her employer. A record of the call was eventually found when a homicide detective was cleaning out his garage last year. The find was not only potentially exonerating, but also a violation of a guiding principle of prosecutorial conduct, called a "Brady" violation. The Brady case precedent requires prosecutors to turn over evidence to defense attorneys. Prosecutors said the failure was a mistake, not malicious.
District Attorney Devon Anderson said she was dismissing the case, that she didn't have enough evidence for a new trial, despite protestations from police officials that they had the right man.
"We re-interviewed all the witnesses. We looked at all the evidence and we're coming up short," Anderson told reporters. "We cannot prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt, therefore the law demands that I dismiss this case and release Mr. Brown." Anthony Graves, another Texas death row prisoner whose conviction was overturned in 2010, had tried to help Brown win a new trial, speaking with Brown’s girlfriend about the case and to the Houston Chronicle. Houston Chronicle columnist Lisa Falkenberg, whose coverage of the case helped her win a Pulitzer Prize in 2015, was waiting outside the Harris County Jail on Monday in Houston, together with Brown’s siblings. Brown's older sister, Connie Brown, who was among family waiting outside the jail Monday night, said she was on the computer at work when she got the news charges had been dropped. "It feels really good. It was a long wait but it was worth the wait," Brown said, tightly holding onto his sister's hand. He compared a life in prison to being in a dog kennel. Hardest to bear was being unable to embrace his family, including his daughter who will turn 15 in July. "You can't reach out and touch someone. You walk around with handcuffs all the time," Brown said. Brown said he holds no bitterness for the conviction that sent him to death row. "They had law, they did what they felt like was right, even though it was wrong," he said. Brown understands that some in law enforcement still believe he was responsible for the death of Officer Clark. But, he still maintains he had nothing to do with the murders. "I went there as an innocent man and I came out as an innocent man," Brown said. Because the case reverts back to an open investigation, Anderson would not answer other questions about the evidence or whether she believes Brown committed the crime. Anderson did say there is "insufficient evidence to corroborate the testimony of Brown's co-defendant." "When new evidence is discovered, this office will review it and proceed accordingly," she said. "There is no statute of limitations for capital murder."
Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland and Joseph Gamaldi, vice president of the Houston Police Officers Union, stood with Anderson as she announced to reporters that charges were dismissed, effectively clearing Brown. They both said they still believe he committed the crime. "I'm convinced that this is the person that we need to focus on," McClelland said. "I haven't seen any evidence that proves or convinces me that this individual is not guilty." Gamaldi was even blunter. "Let us be clear: we believed we had the right man at that time, and we believe we have the right man now," Gamaldi said. "That's what the witness statements bared out during the original trial and that's what we'll stick by." The two also said that having a conviction overturned does not mean a suspect did not commit the crime. "For those of you who are saying he has been wrongfully convicted: you're wrong," Gamaldi said. "He wasn't wrongfully convicted. He's just been granted a new trial. There's a big difference." Other lawyers who worked on Brown's appeal said it was the right decision. "I believed he was innocent the moment I met him, and there's finally justice," said Brian Stolarz, 41, an attorney who handled Brown's case for about five years at the Philadelphia-based firm K&L Gates. "I'm glad justice was finally done. I'm glad it wasn't too late."
Over the years, the lawyer developed a friendship with Brown, whom he says he loves "like a member of my own family." "After the birth of my kids, this is the greatest day of my life," said Stolarz. "I feel like it was my own personal, professional and even religious duty to get him out." (Sources: Houston Chronicle, Hands off Cain, 08/06/2015)