On Nov. 11, 1978, Simi Valley police arrested restaurant manager Craig Coley for the murder of his girlfriend and her 4-year-old son. Despite a solid alibi, no criminal record, questionable evidence and a public outcry over his innocence, Coley was convicted of the crimes. He spent 38 years and 10 months in prison before Governor Jerry Brown, citing DNA and other evidence, exonerated him on Thanksgiving Eve in 2017. Regaining his freedom was one form of justice for Coley, who is now 71 and lives in Carlsbad. Another came on Saturday when the city of Simi Valley announced a $21 million settlement with Coley over a civil rights case he filed last year. Coley’s award is the highest individual civil rights case payout to an exoneree in California history and the fifth highest in the U.S. since record-keeping began in 1989, according to Jeffrey S. Gutman, co-director of the Jacob Burns Community Legal Clinics at George Washington University School of Law in Washington, D.C. https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/communities/north-county/sd-no-coley-settlement-20190225-story.html
On Nov. 11, 1978, Simi Valley police arrested restaurant manager Craig Coley for the murder of his girlfriend and her 4-year-old son.
Despite a solid alibi, no criminal record, questionable evidence and a public outcry over his innocence, Coley was convicted of the crimes. He spent 38 years and 10 months in prison before Governor Jerry Brown, citing DNA and other evidence, exonerated him on Thanksgiving Eve in 2017.
Regaining his freedom was one form of justice for Coley, who is now 71 and lives in Carlsbad. Another came on Saturday when the city of Simi Valley announced a $21 million settlement with Coley over a civil rights case he filed last year.
Coley’s award is the highest individual civil rights case payout to an exoneree in California history and the fifth highest in the U.S. since record-keeping began in 1989, according to Jeffrey S. Gutman, co-director of the Jacob Burns Community Legal Clinics at George Washington University School of Law in Washington, D.C.
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/communities/north-county/sd-no-coley-settlement-20190225-story.html