Two Kansas City, Kansas, men are expected to be freed soon after a Wyandotte County judge threw out their convictions for a 2009 double murder, citing prosecutorial misconduct.
Wyandotte County District Attorney Mark Dupree backed the judge’s decision, announcing Wednesday that he will not seek to retry Cedric Warren, 34, and Dominic Moore, 40, whom he said did not get a fair trial because a former county prosecutor withheld evidence.
“What the previous administration did was, indeed, improper," Dupree said. "It was a foul strike, and yet another stain on the criminal justice system if the right people do not do the right thing.”
Prosecutors charged Warren and Moore with first- and second-degree murder for the fatal shootings of two men in a house where, according to court documents, the pair conducted drug transactions. They were convicted on the account of one eyewitness who was mentally ill, Warren’s attorneys said. Kansas City, Kansas, police dropped the witness off at a psychiatric institution after taking his statement, Warren’s attorneys said.
Judge Aaron Roberts threw out the convictions, finding a prosecutor violated the law in failing to disclose evidence to defense attorneys, a violation of the Brady rule established by a 1963 U.S. Supreme Court case that requires law enforcement to provide evidence to the defense, even if it’s considered to be favorable to the defendant.
Brittany Robinson, Warren’s cousin, said his family always knew he was innocent. She thanked the Midwest Innocence Project for representing him, and she encouraged other families who believe their loved ones are unfairly incarcerated to “just don’t give up.”
“A lot of times people lose hope, but we’ve been fighting,” Robinson said. “We knew he was going to come home. On his mama’s deathbed she said, ‘Don’t quit fighting ‘til my baby come home.’”
Warren’s mother, Kathy, died in 2018.
In addition to the Midwest Innocence Project’s Tricia Bushnell, Warren was represented by attorneys Lindsay Runnels, Cheryl Pilate and Kylie Mank. They issued a statement Wednesday saying they were happy that he will get to enjoy the holidays with his family, but that nothing will restore the 15 years his wrongful conviction took from him.
“We are grateful for the dismissal of this case and believe it is a just and necessary outcome,” the attorneys’ statement said. “Mr. Warren is completely innocent. His convictions in this case were based solely on the testimony of a single eyewitness who provided confused and conflicting accounts.”
Although former Kansas City, Kansas, Police Detective Roger Golubski was captain of the homicide unit at the time of the men’s convictions, Dupree said he was not involved in their wrongful convictions. Dupree also said his decision not to retry Warren and Moore was based on the judge's decision and was "in the interest of justice."
"The court did not make any ruling concerning their guilt or innocence, thus it is not an exoneration for either Moore or Warren. But it is doing our part," he said.
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