DENNIS FRITZ RON WILLIAMSON STORY WITH PHOTO

It took more than 11 years for Kansas City’s Dennis Fritz to be proven innocent of a murder he didn’t commit and released from an Oklahoma prison.
Dennis Fritz (left) and Ron Williamson upon their release from an Oklahoma prison in 1999.

Dennis Fritz author of "Journey Toward Justice"

It took three more years and the help of Kansas City attorney and MIP Board member Cheryl Pilate to obtain the compensation which Fritz and fellow exoneree Ron Williamson deserved for their wrongful convictions and years of incarceration. Fritz and Williamson were arrested, tried and convicted in the sexual assault and murder of 21-year old Debra Sue Carter, who was found strangled in December 1982 in Ada, Oklahoma.

In 1988, Fritz and Williamson were convicted in separate trials based partially on microscopic hair comparisons, done as part of a scientific testing method which has since been largely discredited. Fritz and Williamson were also convicted based on testimony of witness Glen Gore, an informant who was later proved through DNA testing to be the real killer. Gore has since been convicted of the rape and murder of Carter.

Fritz received a sentence of life in prison, while Williamson was given the death penalty.

At one point, Williamson came within five days of execution before a court intervened.
If not for DNA evidence saved from the scene and later tested, Fritz might still be incarcerated for the rape and murder. Both he and Williamson were exonerated and released from an Oklahoma prison in 1999 based on the results of DNA testing. Fritz was incarcerated from 1988 to 1999, during a large part of his daughter’s childhood — time he can never get back. “That makes his story even more tragic,” said Pilate, who helped Fritz seek financial compensation for his wrongful incarceration.

“Dennis not only had to live through the horror of prison, but he also missed out on watching his daughter grow up.”

For his part, Fritz is philosophical about his time in prison and the subsequent legal fight to gain his freedom and compensation. The publicity generated by the case helped focus attention on the wrongful incarceration issue.
“It made me feel like that if I had to go through this, there was some purpose,” said Fritz. In 2002, the City of Ada and the State of Oklahoma settled the lawsuits brought by Fritz and Williamson for significant amount, which cannot be disclosed because of a confidentiality agreement.

Fritz has remained active with the Innocence Movement in Kansas City, helping the Midwestern Innocence Project with fund-raising projects and keeping in touch with other local exonerees who are readjusting to society.

Williamson has not fared as well, however. Upon his release in 1999, he continued to experience mental health problems.

Once an aspiring baseball player, Williamson deteriorated dramatically in prison and was moved to an Oklahoma psychiatric hospital. Sadly, in 2004, Williamson passed away. “I cannot think of two better examples of why it is important to allow inmates with provable, justifiable claims of innocence to have their day in court,” said Pilate. “Science has progressed to a point where if physical evidence still exists in cases that are five, ten, 15 years old, the key to proving actual innocence is likely at the justice system’s fingertips.

We need to make the appeals process easier for those inmates who can legitimately claim innocence through previously unavailable scientific evidence or testimony from witnesses who may not have been brought to the attention of the court during trial.”

Source Midwestern Innocence Project

DENNIS FRITZ AND JEFF STACK TRAVEL TO JEFFERSON CITY TO LOBBY AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY

On March 5, 2009, Dennis Fritz and long-time activist Jeff Stack traveled to the State Capital in Jefferson City, Missouri, to lobby on getting the death penalty abolished. Dennis and Jeff spent the morning and the entire afternoon, speaking to members of both the House and Senate, to gain their combined support in abolishing the death penalty.

The numerous contacts that Jeff and Dennis made really paid off. Some of the Senators’ and House members, who had been previously staunch, pro death penalty advocates, whole-heartedly promised to give their full considerations in modifying their decisions making about the death penalty.

That evening, Dennis spoke to an assembly of Missouri University students, about the horrors of having been falsely incarcerated for 12 years in a very harsh Oklahoma penitentiary—for the crime of 1st Degree Capital murder, that he knew nothing about, whatsoever!

It was yet, another small victory for Dennis Fritz— in the picture as a whole— of dedicating himself to bring about that greater awareness of false convictions—to anyone and everyone that will listen.

PHOTOS CLICK HERE

DENNIS FRITZ - JEFF STACK TRAVEL TO JEFFERSON CITY TO LOBBY AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY

DENNIS FRITZ AND JEFF STACK TRAVEL TO JEFFERSON CITY TO LOBBY AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY


On March 5, 2009, Dennis Fritz and long-time activist Jeff Stack traveled to the State Capital in Jefferson City, Missouri, to lobby on getting the death penalty abolished. Dennis and Jeff spent the morning and the entire afternoon, speaking to members of both the House and Senate, to gain their combined support in abolishing the death penalty.
The numerous contacts that Jeff and Dennis made really paid off. Some of the Senators’ and House members, who had been previously staunch, pro death penalty advocates, whole-heartedly promised to give their full considerations in modifying their decisions making about the death penalty.
That evening, Dennis spoke to an assembly of Missouri University students, about the horrors of having been falsely incarcerated for 12 years in a very harsh Oklahoma penitentiary—for the crime of 1st Degree Capital murder, that he knew nothing about, whatsoever! It was yet, another small victory for Dennis Fritz— in the picture as a whole— of dedicating himself to bring about that greater awareness of false convictions—to anyone and everyone that will listen.

John Grisham TV Video with Related Links

John Grisham was interviewed at the Virginia Festival of the book. He discussed his career as a novelist, his writing practices, and his research on his lone nonfiction title, The Innocent Man. His latest novel is The Associate.
Other topics are:
Death Penalty - Wrongful Convictions - Ron Williamson - Dennis Fritz - Debra Sue Carter. A fantastic video. I highly recommend viewing
C-Span Video Library(click here)
Length: 46 minutes
Location: Charlottesville, Virginia
"The Innocent Man" - John Grisham’s first work of nonfiction, an exploration of small town justice gone terribly awry, is his most extraordinary legal thriller yet.

In the major league draft of 1971, the first player chosen from the State of Oklahoma was Ron Williamson. When he signed with the Oakland A’s, he said goodbye to his hometown of Ada and left to pursue his dreams of big league glory. Six years later he was back, his dreams broken by a bad arm and bad habits—drinking, drugs, and women. He began to show signs of mental illness.
Unable to keep a job, he moved in with his mother and slept twenty hours a day on her sofa.

In 1982, a 21-year-old cocktail waitress in Ada named Debra Sue Carter was raped and murdered, and for five years the police could not solve the crime.

For reasons that were never clear, they suspected Ron Williamson and his friend Dennis Fritz.
The two were finally arrested in 1987 and charged with capital murder.With no physical evidence, the prosecution’s case was built on junk science and the testimony of jailhouse snitches and convicts. Dennis Fritz was found guilty and given a life sentence. Ron Williamson was sent to death row.

If you believe that in America you are innocent until proven guilty, this book will shock you

If you believe in the death penalty, this book will disturb you.

If you believe the criminal justice system is fair, this book will infuriate you.

RELATED LINKS
> John Grisham's Web site
> John Grisham's MySpace Page
> John Grisham's Facebook Page
Dennis Fritz

Dennis Fritz Guest Speaker at First Christian Church in St. Joseph MO.

"A matter of life or death," by Erin Wisdom is in the Saturday St. Joseph News-Press.

Dennis Fritz lost 11 years of his life.

Mr. Fritz, who now lives in Kansas City, was sentenced to life in prison in 1988 after being charged with the murder of a woman who worked at a bar in Ada, Okla., he’d been known to frequent. Police claimed that hair found at the crime scene had been microscopically analyzed and determined to be his.

It wasn’t until 1999 that further DNA testing revealed the hair was not Mr. Fritz’s but actually belonged to the man who had been the state’s main witness at Mr. Fritz’s trial. Mr. Fritz was freed at last — but not before years of injustice took away his chance to see his daughter grow up and to otherwise live his life as he should have been able to.

Unfortunately, statistics show Mr. Fritz isn’t alone in being wrongly charged with murder and suffering severe consequences because of it. Some have been exonerated only after being put to death for crimes they allegedly committed — and it’s in light of this that First Christian Church in St. Joseph has hosted Mr. Fritz and others with similar stories who shared about their experiences.

In addition, the church voted Sunday to pass a resolution calling for a moratorium on executions of Missouri inmates on death row. This resolution supports a bill now in the Missouri legislature — HB 1870 — sponsored by Rep. Bill Deeken of Jefferson City. If the bill is passed, no executions will take place in Missouri until 2012. And during this moratorium period, a committee will study the details of cases in which the death penalty has been sought and will recommend remedies for deficiencies it finds.

“In Matthew 25, Jesus specifically mentions ministry to people in prison as ministry to him,” says the Rev. Chase Peeples, pastor of First Christian. “In our society, there is perhaps no group that could be considered 'the least of these’ more than people in prison, especially those in death row. Without approving of any crimes that may have been committed, we can declare that because of God’s love for them, each person on death row deserves a fair trial, competent legal counsel and access to the latest in DNA technology.”
Link

PROFESSOR CHRIS HUTTON AND DENNIS FRITZ JOIN FORCES IN BRINGING NEW DNA LAW INTO SOUTH DAKOTA

Christine Hutton, Professor of Law at the University of South Dakota, celebrated victory after having teamed up with Dennis Fritz in successfully bringing about a new post-conviction DNA law to South Dakota.
Dennis Fritz, one of the two main characters in John Grisham’s book, The Innocent Man and author of "Journey Toward Justice".
As mentioned in the previous story, (link HERE)
Mr. Fritz and Professor Hutton had convinced the S.D. House committee members, to unanimously allow the Professor’s proposed DNA bill onto the House Floor. Shortly thereafter, the House also unanimously voted the DNA bill in. Within a couple of weeks the bill was passed to the Senate, whereas, a landslide victory occurred by a majority of the Senate committee member’s votes.

What a victory this was for South Dakota. Now, any inmate claiming his innocence— with DNA involved— will have the right to do the DNA testing, under the bill’s narrowed provisions. South Dakota had been one of six states that did not have a DNA bill available.

A sweeping domino effect miraculously occurred. Within a week after the DNA bill passed in South Dakota, Mississippi’s legislative House and Senate, both voted the post-conviction DNA bill into law. Professor Hutton and Mr. Fritz are still celebrating as of today! What a wonderful tribute to these two people, in stepping forth to bring about the needed change which will free many innocent people in prison.
Hoooray!!!!