Exonerated Black Man Settles Case: White DA Knowingly Used False Testimony to Get Murder Conviction in Oklahoma

In photo former Oklahoma County prosecutor Brad Miller was suspended from practicing law for only 180 days for “reprehensible” misconduct in a 1993 murder case, which lead to death sentences for 2 Black men [MORE] In 2006, a federal judge dismissed the murder convictions of Paris Powell and Yancy Douglas after finding that a deal made between the prosecutor and the key witness in the case was never disclosed to the defense attorneys. The Oklahoma Supreme Court found that Miller misused the subpoena process to force witnesses to cooperate, failed to disclose evidence to defense attorneys, and prevented the defense from accessing evidence. [MORE]

From [HERE] A former Oklahoma Black death row inmate freed after a court found prosecutorial misconduct has settled his lawsuit against a former prosecutor and the state of Oklahoma for an undisclosed amount.

The Oklahoman reported Saturday Yancy Douglas accepted the settlement in the federal case in which he initially sought $32 million for wrongful imprisonment, malicious prosecution and other claims.

Douglas and another former death row inmate, Paris Powell, filed separate federal lawsuits in 2010 after their murder convictions were overturned.

The two were convicted in the fatal drive-by shooting of a 14-year-old girl in south Oklahoma City in 1993. But a federal appeals court overturned their convictions in 2009 after concluding the racist suspect prosecutor, Brad Miller, knowingly used false testimony from the only eyewitness.

The federal appeals court condemned the prosecutor for his "knowing use of false testimony" from the only eyewitness.

Powell's lawsuit is still pending.