2 ex-sailors to petition for full acquittal
Print Edition
TWO former sailors whose rape and murder convictions were tossed by a federal judge plan to ask Virginia’s governor to formally declare that they are innocent.
US District Judge John A. Gibney Junior on Monday overturned the convictions of Danial Williams and Joseph Dick — two of the so-called Norfolk Four, ex-sailors who claimed they were coerced into confessing to the 1997 rape and murder of Michelle Moore-Bosko. The four men, who were stationed at the Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, drew national attention when their innocence claims were backed by dozens of former FBI agents, ex-prosecutors and novelist John Grisham.
Don Salzman, an attorney for Williams, applauded the judge’s decision, and said the men now intend to petition Governor Terry McAuliffe for full exonerations.
“Our work is not over,” Salzman said.
A McAuliffe spokesman said the governor and his team give every petition the “thorough review matters of this significance deserve.”
Williams and Dick have been out of prison since 2009 when they were freed by then-Governor Tim Kaine because of doubts about their guilt. The tossing of their convictions means they will no longer be under parole supervision or registered as sex offenders. While on parole, Williams has been subject to a curfew seven days a week and forced to wear an ankle bracelet that tracks his movements.
The judge said he will give prosecutors 60 days to decide whether to retry the men. Gibney’s action comes about a month after he declared the men innocent.
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