The Virginian-Pilot
©
NORFOLK
A Circuit Court judge has dismissed appeals by members of the Norfolk Four that sought to throw out their convictions based on misconduct by former Detective Robert Glenn Ford.
Chief Judge Everett Martin said the petitions by three former sailors came too late, and rejected an attempt to re open investigations into their cases. He stressed that he was not deciding the guilt or innocence of the men or whether their confessions were voluntary or coerced.
In a seven-page decision, Martin wrote that many were harmed by Ford's corruption, including Norfolk residents, victims and those in the criminal justice community.
But, Martin said, nothing the three men produced to the court "indicates there is any connection whatsoever between their prosecutions and Ford's corrupt acts."
Last week, a federal judge sentenced Ford to 12-1/2 years in prison for crimes unrelated to the Norfolk Four cases. They included extortion, conspiracy to commit extortion and giving a false statement to federal investigators. Ford spent nearly 30 years on the Norfolk police force before he retired in 2007.
He served as a lead investigator in the 1997 rape and murder of Michelle Moore-Bosko, which led to convictions of four Navy sailors, known as the Norfolk Four, and one other man.
That other suspect, Omar Ballard, is serving a life sentence and confessed to committing the crime alone. The former sailors have been released from prison.
Lawyers for Danial Williams, Joseph Dick and Eric C. Wilson said in a statement that the men are innocent of the crimes and they will continue to advocate for them. The fourth man, Derek Tice, has an appeal pending in federal court.
Since Ford has been convicted, the lawyers wrote, "we believe the Commonwealth has a duty to step forward and proclaim that these convictions are false and unjust and can no longer stand."
A spokesman for the Virginia Attorney General's Office declined to comment on Martin's decision.
Lawyers for the three men petitioned Norfolk Circuit Court in June to overturn their convictions and free them from probation.
Williams, Dick and Tice were granted partial pardons by Gov. Timothy M. Kaine in 2009 and released from prison. Wilson, convicted of rape alone, had served his prison term and been released by then.
The three men argued in Norfolk court that although the legal deadline for filing their petition passed a few years ago, new evidence discovered in the federal corruption case against Ford should allow them to re open their cases.
Lawyers for the Office of the Attorney General said the appeals came too late.
Martin found that several assertions in the new petitions had been addressed during the original proceedings and trials. For example, statements that Ford improperly coerced confessions from Williams, Dick and Wilson were rejected by trial judges, Martin wrote.
Williams' lawyers also stated in court papers that an unnamed witness heard Ford say that the Norfolk Four were innocent. Ford, through his lawyer, denied making the statement.
Louis Hansen, (757) 446-2341, louis.hansen@pilotonline.com
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After watching Frontline...
I am convinced these men are innocent. And were convicted by coerced confessions. By detective Robert Ford. There were no DNA evidence tying these men, to the crime scene. The Norfolk Police dept. are getting some national exposure. Not for doing good police work, but just the opposite.
My instincts tell me that
My instincts tell me that there re four men sitting in jail for a crime they did not commit. You would think that the commonwealth of VA would do everything in their power to get this right. On the other hand four convicted wrongly, could cost the state a pretty penny.
Better off un-innocent.
Instead of being innocent, they would have been better off if they would have tortured some dogs to death. Then they'd have been out of jail a long time ago!
Here's a case for a full Pardon. 4 Innocent men were
convicted of crimes they did not commit. Of what value is it to society and the state of Virginia to continue to make their lives difficult?
I say once the Justice system realizes a mistake has been made, the state should make an admission and try to make things right.
There never has been and there never was any forensics or other evidence that any of these 4 men had anything to do with this horrendous crime. They were convicted because of a system that allowed transgressions by police and the prosecutor to go unchecked.
Unfortunately in America the justice you get is only as good as the attorney's you can afford. It isn't about justice at all, it's about egos and following a system no matter who is harmed.
When it comes to justice,
When it comes to justice, there seems to be a time limit on innocence. If you are not guilty but convicted anyway, apparently they have some sort of statute of limitations that says you are guilty regardless when that time is up. The courts are happy when things are laid to rest because they don't have the time to deal with it, even if it is at the expense of the innocent. It is as if the justice system enjoys playing some sort of sick and twisted game with peoples lives.