Wednesday, July 4, 2007

DENNIS FRITZ

Dennis Fritz started his "Journey Toward Justice" July 2005.
July is when he started writing his book "Journey Toward Justice" in which he details his arrest and subsequent imprisonment until his release April 15, 1999.

Dennis Fritz was Ron Williamson's friend and co-defendant in the Debra Sue Carter murder case. John Grisham wrote about the case in his book,The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town. Grisham writes about Ron Williamson and his role in the case. He does an excellent job and is a Great Book.
Dennis Fritz was close to Ron Williamson, and I am sure Dennis has his own stories about their life and times together.
John Grisham announced in 2005 he was going to write a book I decided then that if he could do it so could I", said Dennis Fritz. I am now on a Mission, and that is to bring about public awareness of false convictions." Dennis said, "It was a 12-year nightmare I suffered with my family for not doing anything and being completely innocent. That's a large part of the book, the obstacles and hurdles we had to go through.The harm that it did to me was that it took 12 years out of my life and away from my family members.I think the strongest part of my book is the total anguish and misery that I go through from being totally excluded from family, including my daughter," Fritz said. "I would not let her come and visit me because of the activities that were going on in the visiting rooms. I could not bear for Elizabeth to see what went on in that prison, so I restricted her from visiting me. It was not the kind of thing that any 11-year-old girl should see, and it tore my heart out by not being able to see her."
Fritz said. "I was subjected to indignities that no person should have to suffer, let alone a person who was innocent of the crime.""Just the fact that I was a suspect in a murder got me fired from my job," Fritz told the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.
Five years after the murder Fritz was arrested, there was a delay by state exhumation of Debra Sue Carter after an incorrect analysis of finger prints at the scene was noted. Also, an inmate that Fritz was paired with eventually came forward and stated that Fritz had confessed to the murder.
This jailhouse snitch gave a two hour taped interview revealing what Fritz had allegedly confessed to him. This confession came one day before the prosecution would have been forced to drop the charges against Fritz. According to Fritz, when they went to trial, an overzealous District Attorney, Bill Peterson, had a case built on flawed hair evidence and jailhouse snitches who received reduced sentences for their testimony.

The detectives then told me they knew I had not committed the crime, but they believed I knew who did it. From the very beginning, I always told them I was innocent, but it made no difference."

"My family, my mother my aunt and daughter stuck behind me the whole way," Fritz said. "Through our faith and their belief in my innocence, that is what busted those prison gates wide open. If it was left up to man himself, I would still be in their today."

"Our love prevailed over the mighty forces of the evil prosecutions that went on then," Fritz said. "Love itself is the most powerful thing. No matter what circumstances love always prevails. It just took 12 years for it to happen. We would not let go that the good Lord would set me free one day."


Dennis Fritz now works with the Innocence Project in Kansas City, Missouri. He makes appearances related to "the innocence movement" nationwide. He is using a book he recently published, "Journey Toward Justice", as a vehicle to bring awareness of the overall, devastating effects of how false convictions can destroy people's lives and how mistakes can be made in cases. He travels the United States speaking to law schools and also hopes to reach prosecutors and judges. You can find his book here


Journey Toward Justice Author Dennis Fritz click here On Amazon Here
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4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well done creating a blog for the purpose. I too, when I read the book 'The Innocent Man ', couldn't wait to write something about it. I have mentioned about Dennis Fritz also in my blog. I will read the book when I find one. I had heard about it.

Unknown said...

Every story about someone improperly convicted is heartbreaking, and it is unfortunately true that many innocent people are wrongly convicted, sometimes by prosecutors who bend the law (often by hiding evidence) to gain those convictions.

There is significant documentation of such improper convictions, in a series by the Chicago Tribune, in a study by Columbia Law School, in the book "In Spite of Innocence," and in the marvelous work of Barry Scheck and his colleagues in the Innocence Project.

It is a serious blemish on the American criminal justice system that too many prosecutors abuse their power, and get away with it.

My second novel, “A Good Conviction,” tells the story of a young man wrongfully convicted in a high profile Central Park murder, brought about by a prosecutor who knew the defendant was actually innocent and hid the exculpatory evidence that would have led to a not guilty verdict.

Several prosecutors and appeals attorneys helped me with the legal aspects of a Brady appeal in New York State, and all of them agreed that what I portrayed was both realistic and all too possible.

If you go to my amazon.com page ...

http://www.amazon.com/Good-Conviction-Lewis-M-Weinstein/dp/1595941622/ref=sr_1_1/103-7341421-1865416?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180587686&sr=8-1

... you can learn more about my novel and others' reaction to it.

LEW WEINSTEIN

Anonymous said...

I read John Grisham's book on a suggestion from a friend. I couldn't put it down. I can't believe that this treatment could take place in the US. Dennis if you are reading this, I hope you have found peace as you certainly deserve it, your story left me puzzled, angry, and happy for your ending. I wish you all the best and sincerely hope you continue to heal and enjoy life with your family.

Mike Buckley
Moncton, NB
Canada

Anonymous said...

After reading the Innocent Man,I heaved a sigh of relief that Dennis and Ron were finally vindicated.Thank God for that. I just sent Bill Peterson a mail on (billpeterson@cableone.net) his actions .Below is the mail

Dear Bill,

I am extremely upset at your actions after reading John Grisham's The Innocent Man. Though I have gone through your version of story, I still does not portray you in good light. Do you realize the final death of Ron Williamson lies in your hands? Just imagine if your son was to go through this ordeal, how would you feel? Can you imagine telling Dennis to his face during his trial that He deserves to die? You have a lot of repenting to do because I am personally enraged with you and your cohorts.

You claim intelligence, how could you bring brainless snitches (Mike Tenney, Harjo, Cindy McIntosh, and Terry Holland) to lie against Dennis and Ron? The prosecutor's case was almost entirely built on the lies of jailhouse snitches that got their sentences reduced for testifying against Dennis and Ron. Do you know how it feels to be accused of a crime you did not commit? Please I am terribly disgusted and wish you could get the same treatment Dennis and Ron got so as to know how it feels like. No amount of corrections on John Grisham’s story would change the fact that you gradually built evidences on what you were not sure of.

I just hope you will live with this guilt for the rest of you life and may be your children will go through what you subjected other peoples children to.


Thanks


Leslie Cyprain.