It Could Happen to You, Too

In January 29, 2009, Alan Beaman, a client of the Center on Wrongful Convictions, was exonerated after spending almost 14 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.

Beaman was convicted of Jennifer Lockmiller's murder in 1995 and sentenced to 50 years in prison despite the lack of any direct evidence of his guilt. During the course of lengthy post-conviction proceedings, Beaman's Center attorneys developed evidence showing that the prosecution had failed to disclose evidence regarding another suspect in the case and had misled the jury with regard to critical timeline facts. Although the circuit and appellate courts continued to uphold the conviction, the Illniois Supreme Court unanimously reversed Beaman's conviction on May 22, 2008, finding that the trial prosecutor had violated Beaman's constitutional rights. The high court characterized the State's case against Beaman as tenuous and found it probable that the jury would have acquitted him had it known about the other suspect.

At that point, the McLean County State's Attorney's office had the option of retrying Beaman or dismissing the case against him. Eight months after the high courts decision, all charges against Beaman were dropped.

Here's a video about the Beaman case:


Please share it with others. What happened to Alan Beaman could happen to anyone.