 James Haley
Less than 24 hours later, Haley surrendered to police and was charged with first-degree murder. He denied involvement in the crime.
Police said that Haley’s wife of six months, Brenda, had left him after they had a fight. She had gone to Delaware to stay with her mother. However, on July 9, Brenda had returned to Dorchester and was staying with Curtis and Myers. The police believed that Haley had come looking for Brenda, and was confronted by Myers, who was stabbed and shot during a struggle.
On February 28, 1972, Haley went to trial in Suffolk County Superior Court. Curtis and Brenda both testified they had seen Haley in the neighborhood the day before the attack. There was no physical or forensic evidence linking Haley to the crime.
Haley testified that he spent the night at a party in Dorchester and had gone out to get food at 3 a.m. and returned to the party at 4 a.m. Haley’s sister testified that she saw Haley between 5 and 6 a.m., at about the time the crime occurred.
On March 3, 1972, the jury convicted Haley of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
In 2006, Haley filed a public records request with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office and the Boston police department. The police department turned over 60 pages of documents that included reports from two police officers, Joseph Kelly and John Harrington. The reports said that Brenda and Curtis said they had not seen Haley for at least a month – in contrast to their trial testimony that they had seen him the day before the crime. These reports had not been disclosed to Haley’s trial defense lawyer.
In October 2007, Haley filed a motion seeking a new trial. On December 21, 2007, the prosecution agreed to vacate his conviction. Haley was released on bond on January 18, 2008, pending a retrial. He had spent more than 34 years in prison since his conviction.
On August 26, 2008, the prosecution dismissed the case.
Haley subsequently filed a federal civil rights lawsuit that was dismissed in 2009. His lawyers appealed. On December 23, 2010, Haley died.
In 2011, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed the dismissal and in 2013, the city of Boston agreed to settle the lawsuit for $3 million. The money was paid to Haley’s estate.
– Maurice Possley
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