By Jessica Weisman
BRONX, NY – Andre Brown, after finally have his conviction overturned and after spending 22 years in prison for alleged attempted murder back in 1999, is expected to be released Tuesday on his own recognizance, although prosecutors are appealing that decision.
Jeffrey Deskovic of The Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation for Justice joined Brown’s legal team following his initial hearing in March and oral argument in July of 2022.
As a fellow exoneree, Deskovic said he was empathetic to Brown’s circumstances.
After reviewing a 93-page decision of evidence provided by Brown’s legal team, Judge David Lewis of the Bronx Supreme Court determined Brown’s previous trial lawyer “was ineffective for failing to produce medical evidence at the 1999 trial that Andre (Brown) had suffered a serious gunshot wound to his right leg.”
Because the suspect in the crime “ran towards the victims and chased one of them for more than the length of a city block,” it is clear Brown was physically unable to commit the violent act, said supporters.
Despite this medical evidence, however, the judge “ruled that it was not enough to establish his actual innocence as a matter of law” because eyewitnesses picked Brown out of a lineup.
In the court’s official statement on the effectiveness of Brown’s previous lawyer, the court agreed that if Brown was suffering from a gunshot wound in his leg, he “could not run,” and “the eyewitnesses are mistaken and misidentified the gunman.”
Brown’s legal team has said it is disappointed in a lack of justice for Brown, noting all of the evidence presented in favor of him.
