Legal Commentary

NY to Pay $9.9 Million To Man Framed By Corrupt Detective

By Jeralyn

New York City has agreed to pay Barry Gibbs $9.9 million. Gibbs served 19 years in jail as a result of being framed by a corrupt detective.

....Barry Gibbs, had served 19 years in prison when his conviction was overturned in 2005 after questions were raised about how his case had been handled by Louis J. Eppolito, a New York City police detective, one of the notorious “Mafia cops” serving life in prison for taking part in mob-related killings.

.... “They are permanent scars,” he added. “It’s been a long road. I’ve been through a lot, and it was very traumatic for me.” Mr. Gibbs, 62, who has recently wrestled with severe health problems, previously received a $1.9 million settlement from the state.

The victim was a prostitute, and at the time of her murder, Gibbs was a postal worker with a drug problem who had had a relationship with her. [More...]

“It’s a horrible injustice,” said Barry C. Scheck, one of Mr. Gibbs’s lawyers and a co-director of the Innocence Project at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. “He was in prison close to 19 years, and he was framed by one of the worst cops that ever served in the New York City police force, a man who disgraced the badge.”

(The Innocence Project helped get Mr. Gibbs’s verdict overturned, but Mr. Scheck represented Mr. Gibbs in his lawsuit through his private firm and will receive one-third of the settlement, the standard contingency fee.)

Gibbs is recovering from colon cancer, and recently got engaged.

Background on the crooked cop (Eppolito and partner) is here and here. Interesting factoid: Eppolito played "Fat Andy" in the movie Goodfellas.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on June 04, 2010 (boomark / email).