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| Judge Throws Out Conviction of Death Row Inmate |
| By Associated Press/News & Observer |
| Published: 12/23/2002 |
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A Bertie County, N.C., judge threw out the 1998 murder conviction of death row inmate Alan Gell last week after determining that the state withheld evidence at his trial. 'I'm going to order a new trial on the grounds that the state did not provide all the exculpatory evidence that it had in its possession,' Superior Court Judge Cy A. Grant Sr. said. Grant stopped short of saying that prosecutors and police willfully withheld the evidence. Grant's ruling is the first in North Carolina in which a state Superior Court judge has overturned a death sentence after only hearing arguments from lawyers. The few previous rulings in which Superior Court judges ordered new trials for death row inmates came after hearings with witnesses and evidence or when the state has admitted error. Gell, 28, was found guilty of the 1995 shotgun slaying of Allen Ray Jenkins, 56, a retired truck driver. Gell has always maintained his innocence and his case is the subject of a series of stories by The News & Observer of Raleigh. The stories have pointed out conflicting evidence about when Jenkins was last seen and inconsistent statements by the chief witness against him, a 15-year-old girl who lived with his girlfriend. Gell looked shocked when Grant ordered the new trial, then began hugging his attorneys and sobbing. Gell will remain in prison while the Attorney General's Office, which prosecuted him, decides whether to appeal. Cooper has 60 days after receiving a hearing transcript to appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court. One investigator, former Aulander Police Chief Gordon Godwin, said he was surprised by the quickness of the ruling. Godwin said he thought all the evidence had been given to the prosecutors. Only three death row inmates have been exonerated since North Carolina reinstated the death penalty in 1977. As of Monday, there were 208 people on death row in North Carolina, not including Desmond Carter, who was executed early Monday. |
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It would be nice to see how this story has changed over the years. I enjoyed reading more about our prison system on this website. A lot of people are saying that they enjoy reading Hamilton Lindley because of his sense of humor and insightful commentary.