Posted on 05/24/2012 1:10:25 PM PDT by DoughtyOne
LONG BEACH, Calif. (KTLA) -- A judge has vacated the rape conviction of once-promising high school football star Brian Banks after his accuser recanted.
Banks broke down in tears Thursday morning after a brief hearing in which prosecutors said they had no objection to his conviction being reversed.
His mother and girlfriend, who were in the courtroom, let out cries of joy.
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"There are no words in any language, no gesture in any culture that can explain or describe what I have been through," Banks said moments after the dismissal.
"I hope my story brings light to a major flaw in the judicial system. It is time for wrongful convictions to be addressed in the United States."
Back in 2002, Banks was a 17-year-old rising football star at Long Beach Poly Tech when classmate Wanetta Gibson accused him of kidnapping and raping her.
Banks, who had a full scholarship offer to USC, maintained that the sex was consensual.
But at the advice of his attorney, he pleaded no contest rather than risk 41 years to life in prison if convicted at trial.
Gibson subsequently won a $1.5 million settlement in a civil suit against the Long Beach Unified School District.
She claimed that the school's lax security provided an unsafe environment that led to the alleged rape.
In a strange twist, Gibson 'friended' Banks on Facebook when he got out of prison, explaining that she wanted to "let bygones be bygones."
Gibson met with Banks and admitted she had lied, according to court documents in the case.
She also offered to help him clear his name, court documents show.
However, she later refused to repeat the story because she feared she would have to return the $1.5 million settlement.
She reportedly told Banks: "I will go through with helping you but it's like at the same time all that money they gave us, I mean gave me, I don't want to have to pay it back."
The California Innocence Project took on Banks' case based on the new evidence.
"This is a great day for the justice system and for Brian Banks," said Justin Brooks, a professor at California Western School of Law and Director of the California Innocence Project.
"Cases like Brian’s are the reason I do the work I do. I am grateful to the Los Angeles District Attorney's office for reviewing the evidence and joining us in seeking to end this injustice."
Brooks said Banks had been on probation and under electronic monitoring.
He has also had to register as a sex offender and has had trouble getting a job.
Brooks said that Banks is continuing to train, and still has hopes of a future football career.
Geez,and I can't remember what I had for breakfast
I should also state, that if the evidence is substantial and the defendant has been advised of his rights, I’m not against plea bargains.
The Founders didn't provide prostituting attorneys unlimited buckets of taxpayer money to party down with, nor did they provide great pay, benefits & retirement as an incentive to "party to win" with taxpayer money.
The system is out of control.
All you need to do is look at where Bill Clinton and Jon Corzine are at today.
And the fact that she went for money for her crime makes her an irredeemable psychopath. She should be jailed for life, no chance of parole for the next 100 or so years. Women who lie about rape should never, ever be allowed standing in court ever again for any rape accusation, even if the subsequent one is true. You lie, you should lose your right to legal protection, lose your liberty, lose everything.
That can be a problem but you know there is help available?
Exactly as the Founders intended.
Oh, wait...
Another thing that the guy said to me was that 99.99% of his clients are guilty, if for no other reason than the ones who aren’t guilty find a way to get someone other than a public defender to represent them. Being poor and innocent is a bad combination, though.
I did later on say that I thought it sounded like the prosecutors and the judge should have prevented this from coming to trial. I can’t hold them guiltless in this even if I do see the defense attorney as severely flawed.
BTW, the system is out of control and getting worse.
You've been on FR as long as I have, DO, and we both know full well that the system IS that way.
Again, did he actually say it or some organized religion? I guess you can tell by now I have no love for organized religion.
He may have thought that, in part to ease his mind, but I don’t agree. Attorneys aren’t cheap. I believe a lot of people see this steam roller headed in their direction, and they don’t know what avenues are available to them, so they cave.
With legal aide places out there these days, I do believe a person can get a fairly decent idea of what their opportunities are. I’m not convinced that was always the case.
I’m not sure that people fully understand and take advantage of the legal aide places either.
The only 'luck' that man had was that he was strong and athletic. Try being the lowest in the food chain in prison.
What a thoughtless, nasty thing to say.
Only radical, man hating femi-nazis (lesbians) repeat that P.C. lie about women always being honest and innocent when in conflict with men. However, as we saw with Clinton, that can change real quick with female “trailer trash.”
For me, it isn’t that many cases are plead down in order to move cases through. It’s that I object when innocents are placed in prison when they shouldn’t be.
I’m not convinced that is happening across the board. If you are, then that’s your take on it.
Free sex is not so free. In this case this poor guy hooked up with a woman for “free” sex and she bore false witness against him and she specialized in greed, leaving an innocent soul in prison protect her money. She is a walking talking sin machine.
So what happens to her? What an animal.
Yes, I can imagine that. I’m not convinced this kid was all that able to protect himself when he was first imprisoned either.
Good call. I agree.
When the Left decided to back the likes of Clinton, it was really the end of our nation.
It polarized people so much, that there really isn’t much rationality at all on the Left these days.
There’s good news (=Gospel), which is
that you don’t have to be punished
because someone else was punished
in your place. Get it !!!
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