DC Judge Orders Exoneration, Cites Hair Evidence DNA Test Rejected
51 year old, Santae Tribble, spent 28 years in prison for a murder that he did not commit. In 1978, he was convicted for the murder of a Southeast Washington taxi driver after an FBI examiner claimed that he microscopically matched Santae Tibble’s hair to one in a stocking found at the crime scene. However, it took almost 30 years for Tribble to finally be exonerated. DNA testing proved that none of the hairs used as evidence actually matched Tribble’s genetic profile. Judge Laura Cordero ordered Tribble’s exoneration and he became the second D.C. man in 2012 and the third since 2009 to be exonerated after serving a long sentence based on false hair matches. As a result of these exonerations and mistakes in the FBI Laboratory, the Justice Department announced a nationwide review of all cases in which were handled by the FBI Laboratory;s hair and fibers unit before 2000. Editorial note: In 1978, they did not even have the technical capability to positively identify an individual from a hair sample.
Read the full article here and even watch a video of Sentae Tribble telling his story
[Abstract by David Miller, ForensIQ Intern, December 19, 2012]
Citation
Hsu, Spencer S. “D.C. Judge Exonerates Santae Tribble in 1978 Murder, Cites Hair Evidence DNA Test Rejected.” Washington Post. The Washington Post, 15 Dec. 2012. Web. 19 Dec. 2012.
