[Wrongful Conviction\Terrel Barros]
Barros’s case was brought to Flom’s attention by students of the “Making an Exoneree” course at Georgetown University.
Photo: YouTube
On June 24, Wrongful Conviction podcast with Jason Flom takes on the case of Terrel Barros.
The Barros case is so powerful it attracted the attention of the students of the “Making an Exoneree” course at Georgetown University.
In the summer of 2013, Terrel Barros was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences plus 30 years after being charged for murder. When an argument between two groups of friends (Barros and Stephen Bodden, Jamal Cruz and Rokiem Henley) at a Providence, Rhode Island nightclub spilled into the parking lot and turned violent, two of the men were shot – and one of them died from his wounds. When police arrived, they found Barros in a car with Bodden, who was trying to conceal a gun in the passenger’s side door of the vehicle.
Upon being apprehended, Bodden confessed to the murder. Despite his claim of innocence, Barros was also arrested, with authorities saying that Cruz had identified Barros as the shooter before his death (this despite Cruz being legally intoxicated and suffering from a fatal gunshot wound to the stomach…and the fact that both Bodden and Barros were wearing black pants and white t-shirts).
During his trial, additional questionable testimony and facts emerged that should have freed Barros.
Henley, the other shooting victim, was never questioned by detectives on the night of the shooting, despite the fact that (unlike Cruz) he was not fatally wounded. Gregory Zorabedian, the sole eyewitness, initially claimed that he didn’t witness the shooting, but changed his testimony to accuse Barros six days before the trial. Ballistic and DNA evidence were also presented that should have excluded Barros.
Despite all of this, as well as Bodden’s admission of guilt to the arresting officers and (according to signed affidavits) to his direct family members, Barros was found guilty of murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and related firearms charges.
Barros’s case was brought to Flom’s attention by students of the “Making an Exoneree” course at Georgetown University. The course, sponsored by the Prisons and Justice Initiative and co-taught by PJI director Marc Howard and his childhood friend Marty Tankleff (the latter an exoneree who served almost 18 years in prison – a story covered in Season One of Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom), is comprised of undergraduate students who work to free individuals who have been imprisoned for crimes they didn’t commit. So far, students in the course have successfully freed five innocent individuals who served a combined total of 94 years behind bars after being wrongfully convicted.
Recent Georgetown graduate Nourjannah Hendi (who joins Barros as Jason’s guest on this week’s episode) is leading the students in an effort to free Barros. This spring, Hendi led a team of student investigators in the acquisition of new eye witnesses. She also sought out information on the case from the other victim of the crime, family members of the shooter, and multiple forensic experts. In addition, she worked on producing a short documentary on Barros, who has another hearing in September with a potential for a new trial later this year. With the support of community members and influential figures, Hendi and the “Making an Exoneree” students hope that Barros will be the next wrongfully-convicted person whose freedom they are able to secure.
About the Prisons and Justice Initiative:
Georgetown University’s Prisons and Justice Initiative was founded in 2016 in order to respond to the dual crisis of incarceration and recidivism. It brings together leading scholars, practitioners, and students to tackle the problem of mass incarceration—one of the most crucial moral and political issues of our time. Through public events, research seminars, and programs at local prisons/jails and for returning citizens in the Washington DC area, PJI works to better understand the causes and consequences of the mass incarceration crisis and to contribute to bipartisan solutions for effective reform.
About Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom:
Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom is a podcast that explores the tragedy and triumph of unequal justice and actual innocence. Based on the files of the lawyers who freed them, Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom features interviews with men and women who have spent decades in prison for crimes they did not commit. Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom, and the slate of Wrongful Conviction Presents podcasts including the hit true crime series Wrongful Conviction: False Confessions with Laura Nirider and Steve Drizen, are produced by Lava for Good™ Podcasts in association with Signal Co. No1 and PRX.
