Los Angeles, USA

Justice delayed is justice denied! 

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That’s exactly what has happened with Gerardo Cabanillas of Los Angeles in the US. At the age of 18, he was arrested on charges of sexual assault. 

Three decades later, his innocence has been proved in a court of law. DNA evidence shows someone else had committed the crime, and he was falsely implicated in the case by the investigators.

Gerardo Cabanillas admitted to the crime

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Even as Cabanillas emphasised his innocence to the detectives, he was promised probation and relief as long as he admitted to the crime.

So, Cabanillas did the same thing. He falsely admitted to having committed the crime. He was accused of a brutal robbery at gunpoint and sexual assault of a young woman in South Gate in 1995, according to a report by LA Times.

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He was then subjected to a seven-hour-long painful interrogation with no access to an attorney. Detective Jack Lee Alirez promised him relief if he admitted to the charges framed against him.

Instead, the 18-year-old was convicted and sentenced to a de facto life sentence after investigators pressed at least 14 felony charges against him.

Justice delayed-Justice denied

“Justice has been a very long time coming ... if we can even call it that at this point,” said attorney Alissa Bjerkhoel, who represented Cabanillas through the California Innocence Project.

Bjerkhoel highlighted glaring issues with the case from the outset. There existed no tangible proof connecting Cabanillas to the assault. 

The victim initially selected Cabanillas from a police lineup of suspect photos but did not confirm his identity during court proceedings, which included a preliminary hearing and two trials, according to court records.

The victim's boyfriend stated that he identified Cabanillas only after a detective presented him with a photograph and informed him that "Cabanillas was the person they arrested and that he had confessed," as indicated in the records.

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For decades, Cabanillas consistently denied any wrongdoing. It wasn't until 2017 that the California Innocence Project took up his case, as mentioned by Bjerkhoel. 

This year, DNA evidence not only proved Cabanillas innocent but also identified another suspect who was already in prison awaiting trial for murder.

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