On January 10, 2012, police in Houston, Texas, arrested 23-year-old Dequinncy Tyson after they seized a substance from him that field-tested positive for methamphetamine.
On January 12, Tyson pled guilty in Harris County Criminal District Court to possession of a controlled substance. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail.
In September 2014, the Harris County District Attorney’s Post Conviction Review Unit was informed by the Houston Forensic Science Center that a laboratory test performed on the evidence in October 2012 was negative for the presence of any illegal substance.
The prosecution informed Tyson’s defense attorney and joined in a state petition for a writ of habeas corpus to vacate the conviction.
On February 25, 2015, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted the writ and vacated the conviction. On March 25, 2015, the prosecution dismissed the charge.
– Maurice Possley
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