#336 Jason Flom with Lerico Kearney

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On the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. [MUSIC PLAYING] On November 21, 1997, the Suffolk County Virginia man known for drug dealing and gambling named Jean Artis and his sister, Yvonne Giles, were both fatally shot in front of Yvonne's six-year-old son, Trayvon. The boy was discovered in his blood soaked t-shirt and underwear outside of the house shortly after the shooting around 10 p.m. Trayvon gave a very descriptive police report, but later became unable to remember the details of the tragic event in a court of law. However, Jean Artis's girlfriend and several other associates began making police statements that named another man involved in the drug trade, Leriko Kerni, collectively saying that he shot Jean to recover a large gambling loss. Shortly before his trial, another drug dealer claimed that Leriko had plotted to rob Jean Artis of the gambling score in order to repay him for a drug dead. Leriko was convicted, but a constitutional violation triggered a new trial in which three new witnesses joined the Commonwealth's case. With this many people willing to testify, revealing the statements of the only person who actually saw the murders wouldn't even have seemed like it was necessary. But this is wrongful conviction. Welcome back to wrongful conviction. Today, we have another case out of Virginia, which again, the entire substance of the state's case was built upon the words of incentivized witnesses, receiving leniency on their own charges, by the way, all while ignoring the only actual credible witness and the most likely suspect. Meanwhile, the man who they focused on instead is calling in today over 25 long years later from Green'sville Correctional Facility of Virginia. Leriko Kerni, I'm sorry you're with us today under the circumstances, but all of us here at wrongful conviction are happy in honor that you're joining us today. Thank you all just for giving me this opportunity to share my story. Yeah, you're most welcome and also joining us. And you'll remember him from our Comforteridge of Terence Hobbs is Lenny Singleton, who did his own stint, a legal conviction, but a crazy sentence of 1,310 years for having stolen a little over $500. No one was hurt and no weapon was used. Lenny was a jailhouse lawyer and then benefited from a conditional pardon and soon joined the Kaga Shal law firm from which he and his wife Vandy Crusade for the wrongfully convicted. So Lenny, welcome back to the show. Oh, thank you. It's great to be here. I think our audience will agree that this is very similar to Terence Hobbs' case, not the story itself, but the patterns of the investigation and the misconduct and the prosecution, the towns in which they occurred, less than 20 miles apart, by the way, where as I alluded to in the opening, you have a crime that occurred in the drug culture of the '90s, and an investigation that bent over backwards to ignore the most likely suspect, turning instead to incentivized and/or coerced witness testimony, in exchange for sentence reductions and things like that. The similarities of the cases are striking from which it's easy to see that there's patterns here, right? We see these all over the country, but it seems like there's a cluster of them in Virginia. I don't know that we could just focus on Virginia. I think this is a widespread issue where snitches, and most of them do this for a living, they're always in trouble, and they know how to work the system. They know who to call, they know who to get in contact with. I've seen several cases in Virginia where guys will see someone on TV on the news, call someone, and say, look, I'm in the pub with this guy, and I overheard him saying this, that, and the other. When in fact, those things have never happened, but it is a culture in Virginia that needs to be stopped, for sure, because I've never seen one that actually was true. They're always working to get a deal, get a time cut, as you could clearly see in the letters that Leriko's attorney was able to obtain these inmates' writing folk telling them, I'll say whatever you need me to say, just let me get this certain deal. - Yeah, and we'll quote from those letters later, it's really egregious, and of course, this doesn't only happen in Virginia, it happens in all 50 states, but some states have even enacted laws in order to only allow this kind of testimony if it's corroborated by some physical evidence of which there usually is none, and this case is no exception. But before we get into all of that, Leriko, you grew up in kind of like two different places, mostly with your mom and sorry, Virginia, and then part of the time with your father and your grandparents in Suffolk, Virginia, is that right? - I'm a resident from Suffolk, Virginia. My mom was a single parent. My dad, he was in and out in the streets. He was in and out in jail. My mother's job, parent, have different places. So I moved from Suffolk to Windsor, and eventually I moved to Surrey County, but I was still visiting my grandmother and my father on the weekends. And like I said, my father, he told drugs, and me watching my father, you see the so-called drug, does they wear nice clothes, driving nice cars, and I thought that was cool. - And this is something I've heard before. What a young person growing up around that scene, quickly notices that everyone who's not selling drugs is struggling to get by while the ones who are involved in the trade have seemingly comfortable lives. - And money in your pocket. Yeah, back in those days, seriously. - Yeah. - You know, when crack cocaine hit, yeah, they were the heroes in the neighborhood, actually, sadly. - And the only ones with any real economic power, until of course they got caught, and sent away from someone godly sentence, like Leriko's father. - But my father was the prison in 1995. He had 54 years under the old law with parole. He was denied a couple of times, he ended up doing 16 years and four months. - And what did life look like for you after he went away? I understand you had moved out of your moms and with your father and your grandparents. - It's just me, my grandmother, my grandfather. I'm in those in the streets. There's nothing, you know, the glorified, you know, be proud of her, but I was in no bag in the Southern drugs. - Right, so you were probably already on the radar of a local law enforcement, but had you ever been arrested before? - I was arrested in October of 97. I had a possession of cocaine, assault on the officer and other traffic violations that came with that same incident. One month before this happened. - Whoa, whoa, back up a second there, though, assault of a police officer. What happened in that case? - I think in the process of them restraining me, I think he may have heard his finger. Oh, Jesus Christ, I mean. So since the arrest was the impetus for the officer's injury, they, of course, you know, some sort of citizen's or gaslighting move, they got to charge you with assault of an officer, which makes you sound like a super violent person when in actuality he had injured himself. - Yes, sir. - And so now with this arrest and the alleged assault, and I'm putting that in quotation marks, of a police officer just a month before the murders, from what I understand, this put you on house arrest, whether they come on or would only supervised outings. So, needless to say, you're a well-known entity of a local police. You were right for the picking, so to speak, right? You were an easy fall guy for them. And one of the deceased in this case was also known to both of you and the police, which is the guy named David Eugene Artis, who went by a gene. What was your relationship to gene? - We were running to each other on a regular basis, you know, like I said, he was a drug dealer in the area. And Gene, you know, always looked at and typed people to gamble, the shoot dice, because he was good at it. I guess that's how he supported himself, you know, gambling and selling drugs. - And it was part of the state's theory that he had enticed you into a few games in which you had lost big money. Did you use to gamble with Gene? - I never personally gamble with Gene because I knew how good Gene was. - Yeah, some of those guys, man, they come up with these techniques. There's a way you can, can actually set the dice and increase the probability of a certain number. Jean probably was good with dice. He knew how to set him. He knew how to increase his chances of winning. So you knew better than to play with Jean. Had your father, was it the one who gave you that advice? He actually did. You know, more than one occasion, he actually did. You had even turned him down in front of two individuals who eventually were coerced into testifying against you. I'm talking about Casey Davis and Travis Chock. The morning that Jean artists was killed. He came to the house to try and entice us to gamble. Of course, all of us said no. Right, but the authorities eventually coerced those two men into making false statements about you saying that you were in possession of a black 45 caliber firearm the day before. I meant the morning to 21st that you had said, quote, if he don't have a G or better, I'm going to kill him because I'm tired of him winning my money and coming with no money. End quote. I went on to say that you and Jean shot dice for about an hour and then agreed to pause the game and pick it up later. The authorities were also successful in getting Jean's girlfriend at the time to say that you had once lost something like $5,000 to Jean in the dice game, but that also had never happened. His girlfriend at the time, her name was Sabrina Norfluj. I think that she had some challenges pending or she had a situation going on. You know, that's why she fabricated the story which never happened. And then Miguel with Jean in the place that as God's my will, that I had never my life been to. But there was something that she testified to that was true, which was seeing you and Jean together earlier on in the night that he was murdered when she pulled up to Jean in a gas station and you had asked him for a ride home. I was at the sub shot that was across the street from the gas station that Jean artist was at the actual for a ride and she had pulled up in that gas station too. I guess her and Jean they had an argument, but she did see me sitting in the car with Jean. He was just giving me a ride home. So he dropped you off of your grandparents. You later walked down the street to be with one of your kids at the child's mother's house. Both the child's mother and grandmother later testified to your whereabouts during the murders of Jean artist at a sister Eva Giles, which was November 21st 1997. There were both shot while at home sometime between 9 and 10 pm and apparently there was a pizza delivery before the murders. The pizza delivery person Teresa Rick's saw two men arguing on their way into the residence at 116 Franklin Street, neither of which she recognized as you Rico. So there was another witness to this entire harrowing scene this whole ordeal. There was one person who was there and who actually saw the killer, six year old Trayvon artist who lived in the apartment with his mother and his uncle at about 10 pm the night of November 21st 1997. Trayvon was found standing outside of that 116 Franklin street address wearing nothing but a shirt and his underwear with his mother's blood on his clothes and he led a neighbor to the bodies in the apartment. Okay, first let's take a second to recognize that this is a frightened little boy in a terrifying situation. Now the neighbor that took him back inside was his mother's boyfriend, Jodie Cross. And by now the police have been called. Trayvon gave a statement to the police at 11 pm. So this wasn't long after and which he stated clearly and unequivocally that a relative of his named Gregory artist, not Leriko, had been in the apartment and had shot and killed his mother. Yvonne Giles right in front of him. He repeated these statements to the police twice more the next day. And he's crystal clear with the police about what happened. Can you read some of the report for us? A question. Did you see the man that shot your mom? He said yes. And they asked him is his name Jodie Cross? He says no that's my mom's boyfriend. Did Gregory artist shoot your mom? Yes. Did you see Gregory artist shoot your mom? Yes. How do you know Gregory artist? He has been to my house before and played cards with my uncle. Trayvon gives the police details. He says I've spent time at his house. His kids and I play together. He knows this guy. So they ask him tell me in your own words what you know about this offense. And I guess this is the next day. He says Trayvon artist advised he was in his mom's bedroom with her watching TV when he heard David and Gregory artist arguing. They were arguing over a card game. Gregory said that David was cheating. Again, Jean's full name is David Eugene artist. So the name David and Jean refer to the same man. He says that Jean had a small silver gun and that Gregory had a big black gun that Jean shot Gregory and Gregory shot at Jean. Him and his mom went into Trayvon's closet to hide when no more shots were fired him and his mom got out of the closet and went down the hall. He followed his mom. Once they were in the front for your Gregory and David were standing there and two more shots were fired and he fell dead on the floor. Gregory then walked up to me and my mom and he was told by Gregory I'm going to shoot and kill your mom now and remember Gregory artist killed your mom and that's when he shot her. This says in the neck area and she fell on the floor by the window and he shot her again. Gregory then left out the house and then asked him to describe Gregory artist and he describes him to the tea. He says that Gregory artist was a black male darker skinned with two birthmarks or moles on each side of his forehead and white freckles. He's about 50 years old. Gregory lives in North Carolina, the two story house and lives with his mom. It's just awful for this little kid and then the authorities appear to have completely ignored him except for the description of the murder weapon, a big black gun which they knew to be a 45 from the fragments they pulled from his mother's skull. Now 700 hours in cash was also found at the scene. I believe I've learned 50 of which was in Gene Artis's pocket in addition to some drugs. The idea that this was a robbery sprung on by dice game losses to a fellow drug dealer is absurd. Instead of going to North Carolina and arresting Gregory artist, Detective E.C. Harris appears to use Gene's involvement in drugs as an opportunity to target other guys in that business, including yourself, for either a wrongful conviction or a false statement to use it a wrongful conviction. As we mentioned, you were on house arrest at the time for that cocaine possession and the bogus assault charge when they came to see you and you had been seen with Gene at the gas station that night so your name was floating around in the rumor mill so to speak. So my name was in this rumor mill and they realized that I was on house arrest that gave me a violation because I was actually out of my house that weekend that this crime happened. So I was taken to jail and I guess the prosecutor whoever had planted me to jail within the informant. His name was Brad Parker and he tried to question me about these homicides and I explained to the gentleman like, "No, that's not what I'm locked up for. The following week I was given a bond so I was out again." Later on he ended up writing to the prosecutors or whatever and telling them that I admitted to him when I was in that seal about committing these crimes. So I think all investigation, everything's dimmed from that. And he wasn't the only one willing to offer false statements against you and your co-defendant Quentin Parish, aka QP. Eventually, a laundry list of people was compiled, including Casey Davis, Travis Chalk, Sabrina Norfleet, as well as two other guys, Tony Booth and Willie Hardy. What was this statement from Brad Parker, how they originally obtained your arrest warrant? No, it wasn't Brad Parker. They had got a statement from a Willie Hardy stating that I made a last confession to him about committing these murders. He was a suspect in his crime. Him and my co-defendant, Quentin Parish. So it turned out that he and Quentin Parish were childhood buddies who grew up on the same block, but Quentin refused to give false statements unlike Willie Hardy. So you were arrested on December 28, 1997. And your family hired an attorney named Ken Melvin, who was very effective. Now, Hardy testified to this false statement at a preliminary hearing in June of 98, but ended up catching his own charges and hired William P. Robinson, the same attorney as his buddy Quentin Parish, your co-defendant. Hardy admitted to his attorney, Robinson, that he had given false testimony against you, and your attorney, Ken Melvin, was present. They recorded this conversation where he admitted to lying about Leriko Kerni. Willie Hardy said he had been threatened and harassed by detectives every day, threatening to charge him with the crimes for which Kerni is incarcerated. So now with this recording, your attorney filed a motion for dismissal of all charges against you, and eventually there was a hearing. Meanwhile, the prosecution was scrambling to find a new star witness, and they found another guy from the Suffolk Drug Game, Tony Booth. I've ran into him one time and then once the time, what a reason to jail. Well, movies on the basketball court in the jail. He had high kin and melvin, and he asked me about how kin and melvin was doing on my case. And I was like, yeah, he's doing a good job. Maybe a couple days later, he was transferred from the western time with a reason to jail to Chesapeake. That's when I later learned that he had hopped on my case. Right. So he hired Ken Melvin for his own charges, and then using this conversation on the yard as a pretext for an alleged confession, began working with the state as a witness in your case, presenting Ken Melvin with a conflict of interest. And now this attorney who had been super effective thus far was likely to be forced to drop you as a client. All this may or may not have been engineered by the prosecution. Smells like an onion might be an onion, but for now let's get back to the hearing to dismiss your charges based on the recording which Willie Hardy admitted to purgeering himself at your preliminary hearing. What happened when they got him on the stand? Fearing he would be charged with purgeery, he said he'd been through a lot and he'd been shot so he couldn't remember anything now. George, what's Pupacca said is a possibility that before Mr. Kennedy trial comes up, he may regain his memory back and so this judge, Westbrook Parker, ruled that currenties indictment would not be dismissed because the witness did not recant even though they had a recording that he said he was lying about. So now on this day, the prosecutor put it in the emotion to have Mr. Melbourne disqualified from my case because they now have another witness which is Tony Booth. What's up fam, I'm sports journalist Ari Chambers. Hey what's up y'all, it's your girl Sam Jay. And we're the host of Everyone Watches Women's Sports, a new podcast from Together and I Heart Women's Sports. Because let's be real, women's sports is giving us way too much to talk about these days. So Kelsey and Ler, she became the first female solo roeer to go from California to Hawaii. My first thought is like what's up with the snacks, like what are we, what are we eating? The highlights, the rivalries, the breakout stars, the moments to take over your entire timeline. And the conversations that start during the game and somehow keep going all week, every week, we're breaking down the biggest stories across women's sports. Naomi Osaka showing out, she beat Sabalinka. You get the palm Naomi, you get the palm for that. Because we're not just interested in what happened, we're interested in why everyone's talking about it because everyone watches women's sports. Listen to everyone watches women's sports on the iHeart Radio app Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcast. Hey Portlandia fans, Kerry Brown seen in Fred Armason here. You know us or rather you know them. Tony and Candace, Nina and Lance, Spike and yes, the chicken. We've played a lot of iconic characters over the years, but today we're showing up as ourselves to tell you about podlandia, AO rewatch, our brand new podcast. 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Join Yamanika Saunders as she breaks down the week's most problematic stories on her new podcast. You're the problem with Yamanika. Do you know I just found out who Sydney Swini was? New episodes weekly every Wednesday is part of my new network, The Dear Chelsea Network. Do better or do less so I don't have to do so much. So join Yamanika each episode as she answers one question. Who's the problem? I'm Yamanika and I'm out. Listen to you're the problem with Yamanika on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. Mr. Melbourne was disqualified off my case. It was strategic. You know, I guess they felt still with the case that they had. It would have been hard for them to get a conviction on me. I had a kid of Melbourne as my attorney. So that was September of 99 and as your first trial was fast approaching your co-defendant Quentin Parish, probably seeing what you both were up against decided to take it out for play to avoid a potential life sentence. And that's how they get a lot of guys to their scare with that. I could see him very easily pleading out even though he had nothing to do with it just because he was afraid he would never get out. But Leriko you weren't backing down even though you were facing a similar fate. Yeah I had two counts of capitol murder and two counts of use of a foul. So the state's theory of this crime was circumstantial evidence of Rico's alleged rift with Jean Artis over some gambling bit. Now, Leriko tells us that this whole disagreement over gambling between him and Jean was impossible because he knew better that the play dice with a guy that was a real hustler, right? Jean was that guy? He didn't want to lose his money. But the state fabricated statements to the contrary from Sabrina North Fleet Travis Chalk and Casey Davis. Sabrina North Fleet gave false testimony with it's in Jean when $5,000 from me around September of that year. So that provided a false motor for them. Travis Chalk gave a testimony that he was at you know my house before these murders happened. He said when Jean pulled up I made a statement to him if Jean didn't have $1,000 a bottle I would kill him because I'm tired of Jean winning my money and coming with no money and we went in the house to gamble. And the gentleman that was in the driveway with him at the time whose name is Casey Davis he testified to seeing me with the 45 caliber file arm on November 20. A firearms identification expert testified that the 45 caliber bullet killed Miss Giles. They're saying that they were fired from the same weapon and some cartridge casings were found both of the 45 and a 380 caliber. Right no bullets or fragments were found in Jean but two different casings likely came from the exchange between Jean and Gregory artists. So they fabricated the motive and the means and now they place you with Jean which is actually something that was true. Sabrina North Fleet saw you two guys together at the gas station that night. Yeah she sent us a gather at the East Coast gas station she just playing to him about the argument and you know she told them that I was the last person you know seeing with Jean artists and my thing is this you know y'all charged me with another individual so where did come in at the y'all linked me with Mr. Persia she's telling y'all it was just me and Jean together. Right part of the state's evidence was this Mr. Travis Chalk who said that he had seen Jean driving alone in a white Chevy and that Leriko and Quentin Parish known as QP they were in a white Mitsubishi Gallup heading towards Franklin Street following him. So he was supposed to be in Jean's car but now he's in a different car with another guy following Jean but which way is it guys I mean you can't have it both ways. Travis Chalk several years later gave an affidavit that all of it was alive. In fact I do have that affidavit. Travis Chalk said I never saw Leriko kerney with a gun nor did he say anything about killing anyone over some gambling debts as stated to me by detective EC Harris. He says that that detective led me to say I saw Leriko kerney with the type of gun that was used in the murders and that he harassed me almost daily and that he came with papers to encourage me to sign threatening me with incarceration if I did not cooperate. Travis Chalk said I was young and afraid and I was given paperwork as to what the saying court by detective EC Harris. Obviously the jury didn't benefit from this knowledge just as they had not benefited from Willie Hardy's admissions from the preliminary hearing. Then the Commonwealth brought in another steaming pile of conflicting testimony from Tony Booth. Now the motive isn't just about being mad about losing five grand to Jean. Now it was five grand that he needed to pay Mr. Booth for drugs. Tony Booth said that I sold drugs for him. I owed him money and I told him that you know I had to kill some people to get the money back. I lost the money gambling and the testimony that he gave it then matched the evidence. He just said I said I know hell the guns to the people who had while PC he said PC and my co-therfinder name was QP and he was saying PC and PC first there pockets of money and drugs you know why I hear the guns to him and killed him out of the you know Jean honest he had crack cocaine is $550 and cash in this pocket at the time of his death so the testimony there Tony Booth gave it didn't even match the evidence. Right if you had robbed Jean to pay Tony as he alleged then Jean's pockets whew. God have been full of money and drugs you don't have to be sure lock homes to figure this out. Yeah absolutely Booth was awaiting sentencing for his own charges which was a projected 280 months over 23 years and that sentencing was suspended until he fulfilled his obligation at your first and second trials. Tony Booth you guessed it ended up serving only five years. Now the Rico's public defender courtesy of Tony Booth mind you Michael Rosenberg poked holes in Booth's story and and its credibility on cross-examination. That's good, but what else was presented in the past? your favor. The defense called an attorney to get on the stand, to explain to the jury about the plea bargain that Tony Booth had entered into, know about him, know, looking for a sentence reduction. Also witnessed Teresa Rick's testified she was a pizza delivery person who would deliver the pizza to one 16 Franklin Street in the hours before the murders and she did see two black men, one heavy set, one medium bill, enter the house after arguing with each other getting out of their car. And this Miss Rick's testified that neither of these men were lyrical, kerney, who she knew from school. They went to school together. My son's mother and her mother, they actually testified on my behalf too, saying that, you know, I was there for my baby mother's house, you know, determined this alleged defense had happened. Well, she actually testified on my behalf too, you know, she told the jury that, you know, she was in the driveway when I came from my baby mother's house. Unfortunately, loved ones don't make convincing alibi witnesses as they're easily explained away as someone who might be willing to lie. But his attorney was in possession of the statement from the only witness who should have mattered, which was Trayvon. And Trayvon was who pointed the finger directly at Gregory Artis. Yet this alternate and much more likely suspect was never presented to the jury among so much more. The fact that his lawyer didn't bring up any physical evidence and none of it pointed to Leriko was just astounding to me. They took fingerprints from the crime scene and to this day they haven't tried to match those fingerprints to anyone except Leriko, kerney. I mean, what about Gregory Artis? Apparently no one was interested enough so the jury came to a predictable conclusion. I mean, I didn't have any idea that I could be actually convicted of that crime. You know, I had high hopes. Like I said, I was going home, my friend in the courtroom. I didn't think of it as anywhere they could find me guilty. I mean, I couldn't believe it. I was in shock. Like I was known. I kind of felt like, you know, I let everybody down, even though it was beyond my control. And your verdict that the first trial was really odd. You were found guilty of first degree murder, but only of Yvonne Giles along with the related firearm charge. You know, because you had Casey Davis testified, he sent me with the 45 caliber weapon. I guess they said, you know, the 45 caliber fragment of a bullet was found in the skull. It was a comp of mass. Right. 45 caliber bullet fragments were only pulled from Yvonne Giles' skull. And maybe they weren't totally convinced of your guilt. So they acquitted you for the murder of Jean Artis cold comfort there. But you were still sentenced to life for the Yvonne Giles homicide plus three years for the gun charge. But you're probably defender. A new one who you had been assigned Joseph Winston was actually able to appeal this verdict and win since the only person who could contradict Tony Booth was you. And the commonwealth's attorney unconstitutionally argued to the jury that you should have testified this constituted a clear violation of your Fifth Amendment rights. So they properly declared it a mistrial. I was convicted in February of 2000. My case was overturned January 29, 2002. I hadn't been in prison at that time, but 15 months. But I have been around guys that actually been down 20 to 25 years. You know, I finally get that paperwork saying that my case was overturned and I shared that with a few individuals. And you know, like some people will have it for me. Like, you know, we've been waiting like to get paper like this for 20 plus years. And they was basically telling me don't take advantage of the opportunity. And when I did go back to court, they offered me a plea bargain. They just convicted you, but now they're offering you a plea. That kind of feels like they had a little bit of a guilty conscience. Maybe like they knew this conviction was bullshit. So now Joseph Winston was off your case. You were transferred to jail and a new public defender named Dwayne Struthers was assigned to your case. You know, he came to see me and asked me would I be interested in taking a plea deal. You know, I told him no, that that's it to be time served. You know, because, you know, I mean, I didn't do this. That's what I'm explaining him. He asked me where they would offer 10 years to serve. Would you be interested in that? And at the time, I had been incarcerated a little bit over five years. And I said, would this five years that already did be included with this 10 and he didn't know. So without a potential five year deal or time served, you were ready for a second chance to fight for your innocence in court and not meant the state got a second chance too. So you were initially in protective custody or the PC pod as it's known. And then you got transferred into the general population where you made some new acquaintances, notably Ronald Brookins and Raymond Copeland. They tried that, you know, befriend me. So I had been in there with them maybe a couple of months and all of a sudden they put me back in this protective custody pod and the book and then coped and came to visit. And you know, they enticed them to lie. I know you've read them. I've got the letters that they wrote to the prosecutor and to the detective. E.C. Hurts about the meeting that they had. So Mr. Brookin says to the Commonwealth attorney, Mr. James and I love Mr. James. And I'm hoping to find you and yours in the best of health. Highest of spirits. The highest of spirits. That's a crazy. I'm writing you in concern of the visit received from you today. I feel as if we did not reach a very clear understanding about having my Jeep returned and the charges dropped. Now I'm waiting on an appeal. This you could stop. Just have the federal courts to withdraw their appeal and drop the case. I have never had a violent charge. So this should not be hard. I have gave my life to the Lord. Oh, and I'm willing to help you as best as I can. If I'm going to take the stand, I need to know my charges are being dropped. I just want a chance to start my newfound life in Christ over on the outside. If you give me another chance, I will not let you down. Sincerely yours in Christ while I put my hand on the Bible, swear to tell the truth, and then lie my ass off to help the state ruin another man's life. Just like Jesus would do. I mean, apparently Mr. Brookins pretended to be a friend of Leriko's father. And then he took a look at Leriko's transcripts all in this twisted attempt to concoct a believable alleged confession in exchange for his own charges being dropped and the return of his Jeep. And then along comes Mr. Brookins cellmate or blockmate Raymond Copeland. Raymond Copeland, he was sentenced to 10 years in the letter that he wrote to the prosecutor. He was seeking to have his 10 years sentence cut to three, you know, for his testimony and basically saying he can be as convincing and moving as possible to help bury me. And also that he had testified in another murder case for this prosecutor before. Right. So this is a trial-tested bullshit artist. So let me please read from the letter Mr. Copeland wrote about the meeting he had with a Commonwealth Attorney just six days before his own proceedings. Raymond Copeland, he says I am writing in concern about our last meeting which took place on January 28, 2003, where you mentioned not making any promises and I can respect that. But perhaps we need to discuss my situation more clearly. I am participating in a double murder trial. I know others are involved that have a lot more time and more serious crimes than I do. So I want you to know I'm not trying to wait until I get to prison before my requests are granted. I was sentenced by West Brook Parker, which you may be familiar with. I know from experience if you can talk with Mr. Parker who's the judge I can get everything I've asked for because I'm not asking for much. I can't go to any prison because of possible retaliation for my testimony. Now before I take the witness stand all I'm asking is your word off the record. Please contact me and let me rehearse my testimony and also I need to evaluate my situation as far as how I will be rewarded. Rehearse my testimony. There was also a third jailhouse niche Christopher Joyner but we were unable to obtain any damning letters from him. However in Virginia there's no parole and Joyner's 54 year sentence appears to have magically disappeared as he was released in fact years ago. He alleged that he overheard incriminating statements from Lerico while he was on the phone. So now that everyone was well rehearsed you went back to trial in February 2003. There was still no physical evidence tying Lerico to the scene. Fingerprints that they believe would be probative just didn't match Lerico Kerney. Sabrina Norfly, Travis Chalk, Casey Davis and Tony Booth returned. So this much was exactly the same minus the Fifth Amendment violation and now there were three new lying jailhouse snitches and in addition to their sentence reductions and letters to the Commonwealth Attorney there were even more reasons to find their testimonies totally unreliable. Broken's testified that my said I kicked the door in and that was known throughout the trial like whoever had committed this crime it was no force entry they knew the victims. Struggles he did point that out and if the prosecutor we know just made up some bogus there like show them a picture of a door in the back of the apartment like look at that door don't it look like somebody was trying to get out that door. So clearly Broken's misunderstood the facts that he was supposed to regurgitate for the state but what about Copeland? His testimony was basically the same because they were in the same block and of course they got together. Do you know where to go over where they were saved? Including the same mistakes that proved they didn't know what the fuck they were talking about. Now Christopher Joyner, he was in the protective custody pod with you because he was also cooperating on a number of other cases which does not bode well for his credibility either. And he alleged overhearing you say and criminating things while on the phone. Now you had taken a phone call while he was in your shot one day when you had returned from motion hearing in which you found out that Brookins and Copeland were going to testify against you. My child was a star that Monday and I found out that Friday so when I came back I used the phone. I called my stepfather, just playing into him with it happened to court and everything that he heard me say on the phone to my stepfather he wrote it down and put his own little twist and spin on it. He actually testified that I professed Brookins and Copeland about me doing the murder. I was bragging and saying that I was like a O.J. Simpson is just some bogus stuff he was saying that didn't even make sense. And like we mentioned, he too received a sentence reduction for his O.J. Simpson references. Now the defense called the alibi witnesses again, your loved ones as well as the pizza delivery person in addition to other people who Copeland and Brookins had previously test the lied about. But the difference with this trial was Trevon who is now 11 years old because five years had gone by. And then to the stand to get him to recount what he had already said to the statements to police, which was the Gregory artist had murdered gene artists and Yvonne Giles right in front of him alone. I tried to call him as my witness at the second trial and I'm trying to get him to testify to what he said or at least get the statement presented to the jury and no they excuse the jury and they deal with you call the profile and they placed them on the stand. He just said he didn't remember anything. Do you know they showed him the statement and he like I guess he may have been coached but he just said he couldn't remember and the judge said that I couldn't get the statement in to the jury because I couldn't have peed to my own witness. So they didn't allow the statement to get into the jury. And once again the jury did not hear the most important witness statement. The one taken from the only eyewitness to the crime just moments after it happened. Now who knows if he was coached or coerced by the state or maybe by his own family. After all Gregory artist was his relative. It's even possible that the memory was so painful that the soci of amnesia took over. Either way the jury didn't hear what we all know he had said right after he saw his uncle and mother fatally shot. Instead the state pieced together coerced or incentivized witness statements. People with no knowledge of the crime. That's the state's case. That's it. Floating on the hope that the jury might think well yeah they can't all be lying and I understand the Commonwealth Attorney did something that showed that they knew. You tell me what you think but it seems like they knew how fraudulent this prosecution was. Passed a plea deal to your attorney, Duane Strothers, even after all this. After the Commonwealth presented their case they asked him without me willing to plead to second degree murder. And again I asked him like you know how much time it has occurred. And from his actions you know the way he looked at me he wanted me to gamble with the jury. I've already been convicted once and I knew it was a possibility that you know I could get life in prison again. And your attorney didn't properly advise you about this. But second degree murder carries a sentence of 5 to 40 years. Not life, not in Virginia. And I refused it. And here I am send again you know I get convicted again on end of the life. I mean it must have felt like deja vu all over again. It definitely did. I'm like this can't be happening like a second time. It's like I just felt like defeated and I know this time my fight would be a whole lot harder. It's very rare that you see anybody get three trials being convicted the second time it was hard. Going back to Walters with I just remember the ride that I had when my first trial was overturned and it turned me back to the jail. I was in tears for really cause other prison conditions and all the people that I'm going to leave behind like I would never see this again. Guys don't get these this opportunity I'm about to get. And like I said the whole ride back to that jail I was in tears. I was like this is a child of my life that's over with. And it didn't happen that way. What's up fam I'm sports journalist Ari Chambers. Hey what's up y'all it's your girl Sam Jay. And we're the host of everyone watches women sports a new podcast from together and I heart women sports. Because let's be real. Women sports is giving us way too much to talk about these days. So Kelsey and Ler she became the first female solo roe to go from California to Hawaii. My first thought is like what's up with the snacks like what are we what are we eating? The highlights the rivalries the breakout stars the moments to take over your entire timeline. And the conversations that start during the game and somehow keep going all week every week. We're breaking down the biggest stories across women sports Naomi Osaka showing out she beat Savalinka. Shout out to you Naomi you get the palm Naomi you get the palm for that. Because we're not just interested in what happened we're interested in why everyone's talking about it because everyone watches women sports listening everyone watches women sports on the i heart radio app Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcast. 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The world gets crazier and Yamannika is here to tell whoever's responsible you're the problem. If you come over here to play games I'm going to check you. Okay. If you do something in the news that don't sound good I'm going to play you. Join Yamannika Saunders as she breaks down the week's most problematic stories on her new podcast. You're the problem with Yamannika. New episodes weekly every Wednesday is part of my new network the Dear Chelsea network. If he got a bunch of women then I should have a bunch of men. To join Yamannika each episode is she answers one question. Who's the problem? I'm Yamannika and I'm out. Listen to you're the problem with Yamannika on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. You know me being convicted the second time is I knew my fight would be your whole hard course I went through the litigation process and my family laid home down the line you know put out more money for me trying to get me out. I just always try to be positive and keep their hope like one day like like Justin will prevail and I will be able to you know walk out these drizzled doors. That return trip to prison was February 2003. It's now February 2023 and you're still there. But like you said the fight is not over. Your first attempt was for ineffective assistance of council. The Wayne Struathers had a series of like this murder actions from the state bar like in 2003 then his license was suspended for two years in 2006 because you know he felt that you know communicate with his class and you know he did pursue cases diligently. So I was hoping when I found his habeas claim against him that they would overturn my case this based on the lack of competence of the Wayne Struathers and I did get the evidentiary heard on Struathers in competency because Adam offer me the plea bargain for the second degree murder and he didn't know how much time that occurred. The district court granted to hear my issue on that claim back in 2008 but the day where I didn't get in the relief on that issue is because you know the Commonwealth of attorney Philip Ferguson the head Commonwealth of attorney and Suffolk at that time he testified that in Suffolk he has a policy that all plea bargains must be reviewed and signed by him and he wasn't going to give the authorization. So that's what he judge then he didn't rule my favor. And so that rendered the point mood not that there aren't plenty of other points to raise about it effective assistance because at the second trial he did not point out that the only witness to the murder young Trayvon did not point you out in court. It seems like seeing you in court should have jared something loose if you in fact had killed his mother. But you didn't. And once again the fact that none of the fingerprints taken from the scene that they felt were provative none of them were a match for you because you weren't there. But this was not raised as was the fact that the fingerprints have never been tested against Gregory artists which is insane. So Lenny I know you've been on this case since your release brought you to the Western branch of the John A. Cogasel law firm. And in another stunning awful setback for this case attorney Cogasel a legend in the UNICEF community and a friend to me and you guys and so many others passed away suddenly in June 2022. He rest in peace. So where does that leave Leriko's case? So once again the law firm of Johnny Cogasel. filed Leriko's petition on January 5, 2022 to the Secretary of Commonwealth Office. That petition primarily dealt with the statements made by Travon artists the day of the murders and the following day when they interviewed him again. Of course we know there was no physical evidence that pointed to Leriko Curry's guilt and that Travon artists definitively told the detectives who killed his mom and uncle. That was the foundation upon which this petition was established. Along with the convicted felons who came forward with false testimony in order to get deals. Unfortunately we were able to get it after David from Mr. Travis Chalk who said he just wanted to clear his conscience and he came forward and said it was all a lie. Everything he said was a lie. He didn't see Leriko Curry with a gun. He didn't see Leriko Curry following Gene Artis. He was told exactly what to say by this detective when he went to court and he said as much in the affidavit. The petition also details everything you've heard here. The inconsistencies and contradictions between the false witnesses and between the statements and the facts of the crime. So what does the petition seek? A conditional pardon on behalf of Leriko Curry. His petition is awaiting review because of the long list of people with filed before him from what we've been told they're so swamped that it's going to be a long process. So we're hoping to get as much airplay as possible for Mr. Curry to hopefully change this wrongful conviction. Well, you have all of our support and hopefully our audience will lend a hand as well. There's currently a petition alerting the governor of this wrongful conviction pleading for his team to take notice of the grave injustice that this is. So please do it right now. Click the link in the episode bio and get involved. And now we go to my favorite part of the show. It's called of course closing arguments where I first of all thank you guys for being here and sharing this harrowing story. And then I'm going to turn my microphone off, leave my headphones on, kick back in my chair and just listen to any closing thoughts you may have. So let's kick it off with Lenny and then close it out with you, Leriko. Once again, we have a case where the only evidence that the Commonwealth has in a double murder is convicted felons. It's a sad state of affairs when we are putting people away for life based on convicted felons getting deals. It's time for us to do something, especially in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It's time for prosecutors to bear some of this weight for using convicted felons that they know have extensive criminal records and they know they're getting deals. It's time for the prosecution to possibly suffer as a result of this. I mean, it's the only way that I can see that this situation will ever change. It's a sad day that somebody like Leriko Kerney has been in the prison system for 25 years or more for something he did not do. There is no evidence to support it. It's time for this to change. I mean, I would just like to say thank y'all for allowing me the opportunity to share my story with the world. Again, this is a situation that anybody can find themselves in. Anybody can come forward and just say you say anything. It's not right without the support and evidence, but 25 plus years of prison, you know, I'm still healthy. I still have hope that someday, you know, the justice will prevail and I will be able to walk out this prison and be with the people that love me. Try to build, you know, a relationship with my children. I would like to see my daughter walk down the aisle. And like I said, just want to, you know, just go out there and just be a pillar to my community and try to help others that may be lost so they won't end up in the same position that I'm in. Again, I just express my condolences to, you know, the artist family, what they have through, you know, no value deserve to die, but I shouldn't spend the rest of my life in prison based on, you know, people trying to help their own situations. And I'm just looking forward to the day, like I said, I'm releasing. I feel in my heart that, you know, justice will prevail and the right thing will be done. You know, my heart and my courage, I'm just, you know, too big just to die in prison. Thank you for listening to Raffle Conviction. I'd like to thank our production team, Connor Hall, Jeff, Clive Ernen, Kevin Wartis, with research by Lila Robinson. The music in this production was supplied by three time Oscar nominated composer Jay Ralph. Be sure to follow us on Instagram @wrongfulconviction on Facebook @wrongfulconvictionpidcast and on Twitter @wrongconviction as well as @LavaForGood on all three platforms. You can also follow me on both TikTok and Instagram @itsjasonflom. Raffle Conviction is a production of Lava for Good Podcasts and Association with Signal Company #1. Hey Portlandia fans. We're launching Podlandia, AO reWatch. Our brand new podcast where we revisit every episode of Portlandia together, breaking down sketches, going deep on our iconic characters and pulling back the curtain on how it all got made. guest stars, collaborators and friends, including director Jonathan Kreisel, the mayor himself, Kyle McGlockwyn, legendary musician Amy Mann, and many more. Well, I thought you were all going to write a song. Listen to Podlandia, AO reWatch on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Do better or do less. So I don't have to do so much. Listen to You're the problem with Yamanika on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up fam? Hey, what's up y'all? It's your girl Sam Jay. The viral moments. He looks good. Tarkombos or Swift. The story's everyone's talking about across women's sports. On the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.