Center on Wrongful Convictions
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George Whitmore Case DataCompiled by Rob Warden Crime date: April 23, 1964 Jurisdiction: Kings County, New York Crime: Attempted Rape Related crimes: Murder on August 28, 1963, of Janice Wylie and Emily Hoffert in New York County and murder on April 14, 1964, of Minnie Edmonds in Kings County. Age at time of crime: 19 Gender: Male Race: Black Arrest date: April 24, 1964 Victim: Elba Borrero Victim’s occupation: Practical nurse Victim’s gender: Female Victim’s ethnicity: Puerto Rican Victim’s age: 21 How defendant became a suspect: Found loitering near the crime scene Principal evidence of defendant’s guilt: Confession Principal defense: Confession extracted by force Type of trial: Jury (tried four times by juries; one trial ended with a hung jury, the others with convictions). Conviction date: November 18, 1964 (first conviction), March 25, 1966 (second conviction), May 17, 1967 (third conviction). Convicted of: Attempted rape Sentence: Not sentenced following first conviction. (The judge delayed sentencing pending Whitmore’s New York County trial for the potential capital offense of killing Wylie and Hoffert.) Sentenced to five to ten years in prison following both the second and third convictions. Appellate record: People v. Whitmore, 45 Misc. 2d 506 (1965), People v. Whitmore, 45 Misc. 2d 506 (1965), People v. Whitmore, 278 N.Y.S.2d 706 (1967). Basis for exoneration: Affidavit obtained by journalist Selwyn Raab discrediting the Borrero’s identification of Whitmore. Legal form of exoneration: Conviction vacated Causes of wrongful conviction: False confession, erroneous eyewitness identification. Release date: April 10, 1973 Days of incarceration: 1,216 (from his arrest on April 24, 1964, until his release on bond on July 13, 1966, and from the revocation of his bond on February 28, 1972, until his exoneration on April 10, 1973). Prior record: None Compensation: None — see Whitmore v. New York, 541 F. Supp. 564 (1982). Last Modified: July 11, 2006 | |
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