Man Convicted of Killing NYPD Officer in 1998 May Have Conviction Overturned After New Evidence
On Monday, prosecutors are set to take action to overturn the murder conviction of Jon-Adrian Velazquez, who has received an apology from President Biden and is the subject of a film.
Velazquez faced conviction for the 1998 killing of retired NYPD officer Albert Ward amid a botched robbery in Harlem. After spending 24 years in a maximum security state prison, he received clemency from then-Governor Andrew Cuomo.
His story is highlighted in the 2023 film titled after the Correctional Facility, and he joined President Biden to talk about reforms in the criminal justice system.
On a Monday morning in court, the Manhattan district attorney’s office plans to seek the annulment of Velazquez’s conviction, following advanced DNA testing that indicates another individual may be responsible for the crime, as stated in a court document.
“Specifically, the People believe that a reasonable probability of a more favorable outcome exists in this case not only because of the new DNA analysis, but also because that analysis could have affected the jury’s consideration of other trial evidence,” the filing by assistant district attorney Terri Rosenblatt said.
Prosecutors indicated that eyewitness accounts varied significantly, raising questions about the dependability of certain witness identifications. “Although those concerns did not hold weight during the trial, they might have been viewed in a different light if backed by a DNA exclusion,” Rosenblatt stated.
Authorities indicated that there was no tangible proof linking Velazquez to the offense.
