Death penalty conviction overturned, re: INNOCENT
ALABAMA-death penalty conviction overturned-re: INNOCENT
A north Alabama man who spent 5 years on prison's death row has been found innocent at retrial.
Gary Wayne Drinkard, 45, of Falkville was released Friday after a Morgan County jury found him innocent of capital murder charges in the robbery-slaying of Decatur businessman Dalton Pace.
Drinkard's 1st conviction had been overturned by the Alabama Supreme Court because prosecutors were allowed to talk about Drinkard's prior criminal history.
Pace was killed at his home on Aug. 18, 1993 and robbed of about $2,000, according to testimony.
Drinkard had been held in the Morgan County Jail since last July while awaiting retrial. He had spent 5 years on death row awaiting an execution date.
Drinkard's lawyers during this week's retrial attacked the credibility of the prosecution witnesses.
Prosecutors called several witnesses, including Drinkard's adopted daughter and his half-sister.
Kelly Drinkard Harvell, who testified in 1995 that her father was at home when police said he killed Pace, changed her testimony and now says Drinkard was not at home the entire evening of the murder.
Defense attorneys called a couple that manages a motel in Panama City, Fla., who testified that Harvell worked for them and she stole money.
Harvell admitted she had grand theft and possession of a controlled substance charges pending in Florida.
Drinkard's half-sister, Beverly Segars, helped police build the case against Drinkard. She testified this week about wearing a tape-recording device to get him to talk about Pace's murder.
But the recorded conversation was distorted and authorities had it enhanced to make clear some of the words. Statements on the transcript from it were fragmented.
Segars testified that Drinkard told her he didn't realize how big Pace was until he grabbed him. However, she was not asked to interpret the partial statements of the transcript.
Rex Segars, the half-sister's common-law husband at the time, testified that Drinkard told him he killed Pace and took about $2,200 from the auto junk dealer.
Other witnesses, Willodene Brock and Thomas Carter, testified that they were at Drinkard's home on Aug. 18, and he was there the entire time.
Brock said she went there to help Harvell deliver her dog's puppies and they left around 10 p.m.
Authorities estimated the time of Pace's death to be around 8 p.m., according to testimony.
Beverly Segars' son, Robert Lambert, testified that his mother had a reputation for not telling the truth and said he would not believe her under oath.
(source: Associated Press)
ALABAMA: A man freed from death row after being acquitted in a murder retrial said he
wants to see his family and deserves compensation for nearly 8 years spent in prison.
Gary Wayne Drinkard, 45, spoke Wednesday in his lawyers' office after becoming the 4th Alabama inmate released from death row in 8 years.
Jurors in Morgan County last week acquitted Drinkard of killing Decatur junk car dealer Dalton Pace, 65, and robbing him of $2,000 on Aug. 18, 1993.
Drinkard was convicted and sentenced to death in 1995, but the case was overturned on appeal.
"I was ecstatic" with the verdict, Drinkard said. "I wanted to get out, to see the sunlight, to see my children."
Gov. Don Siegelman recently signed a law that allows compensation for people wrongfully convicted and imprisoned. A 9-member committee can award $50,000 per year served, and the legislature can approve higher amounts if the panel recommends.
Drinkard said he should be paid for the years he spent away from his family. He maintains his innocence, even though Pace's family doesn't agree.
"I'm sorry that their loved one is lost, and I hope they find out 1 day who killed him so they won't continue to think it's me," he said.
The victim's wife, Inez Pace, still believes Drinkard is the killer.
"They let a guilty man go free," Pace said. "I am positive he killed Dalton."
The Alabama Supreme Court overturned Drinkard's conviction because the lower court judge allowed prosecutors to discuss his criminal history.
Drinkard was sentenced to death largely on the testimony of his half-sister, Beverly Robinson Segars. She helped police by wearing a recording device and trying to get Drinkard to discuss the murder.
Drinkard was acquitted even though she and other relatives testified against him.
Ms. Segars, and her husband, Rex Segars, testified that Drinkard discussed the murder with them.
Kelly Drinkard Harvell, Drinkard's adopted daughter, said Drinkard bragged about how he shot Pace. Harvell testified during the 1st trial that her father was home at the time of the slaying, but she now says she was lying because she was afraid of him.
Drinkard said he wants to make up for lost time with his children, who were 6, 9 and 16 when he was arrested. However, he's not sure about Harvell.
"She was like my own child," he said. "I love her, but we're not speaking right now."
Drinkard was represented by Birmingham lawyers Richard Jaffe and Derek Drennan, who have helped free three of the prisoners released from death sentences.
A north Alabama man who spent 5 years on prison's
death row has been found innocent at retrial.
Gary Wayne Drinkard, 45, of Falkville was released Friday after a Morgan County jury found him innocent of capital murder charges in the robbery-slaying of Decatur businessman Dalton Pace.
Drinkard's 1st conviction had been overturned by the Alabama Supreme Court because prosecutors were allowed to talk about Drinkard's prior criminal history.
Pace was killed at his home on Aug. 18, 1993 and robbed of about $2,000, according to testimony.
Drinkard had been held in the Morgan County Jail since last July while awaiting retrial. He had spent 5 years on death row awaiting an execution date.
Drinkard's lawyers during this week's retrial attacked the credibility of the prosecution witnesses.
Prosecutors called several witnesses, including Drinkard's adopted daughter and his half-sister.
Kelly Drinkard Harvell, who testified in 1995 that her father was at home when police said he killed Pace, changed her testimony and now says Drinkard was not at home the entire evening of the murder.
Defense attorneys called a couple that manages a motel in Panama City, Fla., who testified that Harvell worked for them and she stole money. Harvell admitted she had grand theft and possession of a controlled substance charges pending in Florida.
Drinkard's half-sister, Beverly Segars, helped police build the case against Drinkard. She testified this week about wearing a tape-recording device to get him to talk about Pace's murder.
But the recorded conversation was distorted and authorities had it enhanced to make clear some of the words. Statements on the transcript from it were fragmented.
Segars testified that Drinkard told her he didn't realize how big Pace was until he grabbed him. However, she was not asked to interpret the partial statements of the transcript.
Rex Segars, the half-sister's common-law husband at the time, testified that Drinkard told him he killed Pace and took about $2,200 from the auto junk dealer.
Other witnesses, Willodene Brock and Thomas Carter, testified that they were at Drinkard's home on Aug. 18, and he was there the entire time. Brock said she went there to help Harvell deliver her dog's puppies and they left around 10 p.m.
Authorities estimated the time of Pace's death to be around 8 p.m., according to testimony.
Beverly Segars' son, Robert Lambert, testified that his mother had a reputation for not telling the truth and said he would not believe her under oath.
(News source: Associated Press)
