Brooklyn District Attorney's office will toss out nearly 400 convictions tied to NYPD officers later convicted of on-duty crimes
NEW YORK -- Nearly 400 convictions could soon be tossed out.
The Brooklyn District Attorney's office says the cases are tied to 13 former NYPD officers who were later convicted of crimes while on-duty.
In 2006, Gregory Barnes was convicted of selling heroin, a crime he says he did not commit. He ultimately served two and a half years in prison.
"That's 30 months I'll never get back. Memories, moments I'll never have again," Barnes said.
"What did you miss out on?" CBS2's Kevin Rincon asked.
"Job opportunities, relationships, housing," Barnes said.
He claims an officer planted evidence. That cop years later was found guilty of planting evidence.
Barnes' conviction, along with 377 others, could soon be vacated as part of an effort led by the Brooklyn DA's office.
"I had no faith in the justice system whatsoever. I basically felt like they do what they want to do and we're just pawns," Barnes said.
He says while behind bars, he felt he wasn't the only one there for the wrong reasons.
He's now part of the sixth largest mass dismissal of convictions in United States history, according to the DA's office. That's 47 felony convictions and 331 misdemeanors, cases where former officers were essential witnesses.
DA Eric Gonzalez says, "These former police officers were found to have committed serious misconduct that directly relates to their official job duties, calling into question the integrity of every arrest they have made."
"Some of these cases, if you look at them, many of them are 20 years old. So, depends on how you want to look at it, you could say what took so long?" said Elizabeth Felber, supervising attorney with the Legal Aid Society's wrongful conviction unit.
Many of Felber's clients have life sentences.
"They think they're going to die in prison, so for someone who's already served 25 years, to get the message you're going to be released, I think it's an unparalleled feeling," she said.
With some cases dating back decades, there are people on this list that don't even know yet that their conviction may be overturned. Getting in touch with them is now part of the legal process to try to bring them justice.
