In November 1992, a retired police sergeant was shot and killed while intervening in the robbery of a Radio Shack in Manhattan. In January 1993, Anthony Moore was arrested for two unrelated robberies, and tried to make a deal with the police by offering details about the November shooting. Moore gave the police some second-hand information he had heard, but after the police told him those details were useless unless he was part of the crime, and that nothing he said could be used against him, Moore confessed to participating in the robbery along with a man he called Melvin Brown. Though Moore asked for a lawyer several times, police continued the interrogation without one until he confessed. Brown, whose first name is actually Marvin, was arrested for the crime as well. Moore’s confession was admitted at trial. In addition, an eyewitness claimed to have seen Moore in the area before the robbery. In 1996, a jury convicted Moore of second degree murder, and he was sentenced to 25-years-to-life in prison.
In 1997, the police got a tip that led to the arrest in January 1998 of three men not previously linked to the case. The evidence against these new suspects indicated that Moore and Brown had not been involved in the crime. Following the new arrests, charges against Brown, who had not yet been tried, were dismissed, and Moore’s conviction was vacated on the motion of the district attorney.
- Stephanie Denzel
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