Find wrongful prosecutions by county.
All of the following cases are wrongful capital prosecutions carried out in North Carolina since 1989. They are instances in which the state prosecuted a person for a death penalty eligible murder, despite not having enough evidence to prove the defendant even committed the crime. Unlike the exonerees tracked by the National Registry of Exonerations, these defendants eventually had their charges dismissed or were acquitted by juries — but most spent years in jail and many lost homes, jobs, relationships, and their financial and emotional stability.
Jerry Anderson - Detailed Profile
Date of Arrest: 01/27/2006
Caldwell County
Race: White
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): Emily Anderson
Notes: Hung jury at trial. Charges dismissed by prosecutor after trial.
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 11/27/2007
Days in Jail: 670
Time deliberated by jury: 7 days
John William Bare
Date of Arrest: 10/02/1987
Guilford County
Race: White
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): Janett Pace Bare
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 08/04/1989
Days in Jail: 7
Received Bond
Derrick Donta Bell
Date of Arrest: 08/16/2002
Wake County
Race: Black
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): Pierre Williams
Type of Case: Dismissal before Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 10/29/2003
Days in Jail: 440
Anthony Vidal Burris
Date of Arrest: 06/13/1997
Gaston County
Race: Black
Names of Victim(s): Angela Shantea Mitchell
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 10/04/1999
Days in Jail: 844
Time deliberated by jury: 3.5 hrs
Daniel Carlson
Date of Arrest: 08/08/2003
Cumberland County
Race: White
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): Andrea Chavarria
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 03/05/2007
Days in Jail: 207
Received Bond
Time deliberated by jury: 3 hrs
Gregory Chapman
Date of Arrest: 07/02/2008
Duplin County
Race: Black
Names of Victim(s): Unborn twins
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 03/31/2015
Days in Jail: 2464
Time deliberated by jury: 30 min
Dirk Chontos
Date of Arrest: 03/31/2000
Caldwell County
Race: White
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): John David Sauls
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 11/05/2002
Days in Jail: 950
Bobby Ray Dial
Date of Arrest: 06/18/1999
Robeson County
Race: Native American
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): Charles Anthony Smiling
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 02/22/2002
Days in Jail: 981
Time deliberated by jury: 22 min
Michael David Dowd
Date of Arrest: 11/25/1998
Chatham County
Race: White
Names of Victim(s): Lee Otis Baldwin, Joe Daron Glover
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 05/24/2000
Days in Jail: 547
Leslie Arlene Lincoln - Detailed Profile
Date of Arrest: 09/19/2002
Pitt County
Race: White
Names of Victim(s): Arlene Lincoln
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 03/23/2007
Days in Jail: 1133
Received Bond
Dolan Locklear
Date of Arrest: 05/04/1999
Robeson County
Race: Native American
Names of Victim(s): George Locklear
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 03/19/2003
Days in Jail: 1416
Time deliberated by jury: 2 hrs
Michael Lane Mead - Detailed Profile
Date of Arrest: 02/03/2009
Gaston County
Race: White
Names of Victim(s): Lucy Johnson
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 07/12/2011
Days in Jail: 24
Received Bond
Time deliberated by jury: 9 hrs
Kathy Wilson Miller
Date of Arrest: 10/27/1998
Rowan County
Race: White
Causes of Wrongful Prosecution:
Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision
Names of Victim(s): Leon Wilson Jr.
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 03/07/2000
Days in Jail: 498
Time deliberated by jury: 4 hrs
Julius Ray Sanders
Date of Arrest: 10/14/1994
Cabarrus County
Race: White
Names of Victim(s): Pamela Sanders
Type of Case: Acquittal at Trial
Date of Acquittal/Dismissal: 11/09/1995
Days in Jail: 392
Time deliberated by jury: 1.5 hours