Keker and Innocence Project Team to Free Father in 'Shaken Baby' Case
A state court judge in Sacramento granted a writ of habeas corpus overturning the 2002 murder conviction of Zavion Johnson, who was convicted of killing his 4-month-old daughter based of medical testimony that has been undermined by more recent research.
December 08, 2017 at 06:13 PM
7 minute read
A team from Keker, Van Nest & Peters and the Northern California Innocence Project have teamed up to overturn the conviction of a man who has served nearly 17 years in connection with the death of his 4-month-old daughter.
A state court judge in Sacramento on Friday morning granted a writ of habeas corpus overturning the 2002 murder conviction of Zavion Johnson. Johnson was convicted of killing his infant daughter Nadia when he was 19 years old based on medical testimony that has been undermined by more recent research.
Keker partner Khari Tillery, one of the lead pro bono lawyers on the case, said that about 30 of Johnson's family members were gathered at Friday morning's hearing where Sacramento Superior Court Judge James Arguelles overturned the conviction.
“You know he was excited, a little overwhelmed, but he kept saying, 'I'm ready, I'm ready.' That was the thing he kept telling us,” Tillery said of Johnson's reaction. “You have to remember he lost a child and I don't think he's had a chance to really process and grieve since he was arrested at his daughter's funeral.”
Johnson has contended that his daughter died from injuries suffered when he fell into the tub while rinsing her off in the shower. At the time of Johnson's trial, the prosecution's medical experts testified that the only possible explanation for Nadia's injuries and death at her age was so-called “shaken baby syndrome”—the result of violent shaking—combined with an impact with a hard surface. Tillery said Friday that 13 witness testified at trial that Johnson was a caring and gentle father and his conviction was based solely on the medical evidence.
Tillery said in Johnson's case two of the prosecution's experts have repudiated portions of their testimony since trial. There have been widespread efforts to review convictions in shaken baby cases. In the United States, according to the National Registry of Exonerations, at least 14 people have been exonerated in such cases since 2011. Courts In the United Kingdom and Ontario, Canada, are undergoing system-wide reviews of shaken baby convictions.
Local prosecutors have stipulated to allow Johnson to be freed while they consider whether to pursue a new trial. “The fact is, from my perspective, they clearly don't have a case,” said Tillery on Friday afternoon as he was waiting for his client's paperwork to be processed and for the prison system to release Johnson. “This trial was all about the medical evidence,” he said.
Tillery said that Keker has done about 10 cases with NCIP at this point and that the organization brought Johnson's case to the firm about a year-and-a-half ago.
In a press release, NCIP attorney Paige Kaneb said, “Zavion is one of the most gentle, caring, and thoughtful people I have ever met and society will be a better place the moment he re-joins it.”
According to Tillery, Johnson was released from county jail around 5:30 on Friday evening.
A team from
A state court judge in Sacramento on Friday morning granted a writ of habeas corpus overturning the 2002 murder conviction of Zavion Johnson. Johnson was convicted of killing his infant daughter Nadia when he was 19 years old based on medical testimony that has been undermined by more recent research.
Keker partner Khari Tillery, one of the lead pro bono lawyers on the case, said that about 30 of Johnson's family members were gathered at Friday morning's hearing where Sacramento Superior Court Judge James Arguelles overturned the conviction.
“You know he was excited, a little overwhelmed, but he kept saying, 'I'm ready, I'm ready.' That was the thing he kept telling us,” Tillery said of Johnson's reaction. “You have to remember he lost a child and I don't think he's had a chance to really process and grieve since he was arrested at his daughter's funeral.”
Johnson has contended that his daughter died from injuries suffered when he fell into the tub while rinsing her off in the shower. At the time of Johnson's trial, the prosecution's medical experts testified that the only possible explanation for Nadia's injuries and death at her age was so-called “shaken baby syndrome”—the result of violent shaking—combined with an impact with a hard surface. Tillery said Friday that 13 witness testified at trial that Johnson was a caring and gentle father and his conviction was based solely on the medical evidence.
Tillery said in Johnson's case two of the prosecution's experts have repudiated portions of their testimony since trial. There have been widespread efforts to review convictions in shaken baby cases. In the United States, according to the National Registry of Exonerations, at least 14 people have been exonerated in such cases since 2011. Courts In the United Kingdom and Ontario, Canada, are undergoing system-wide reviews of shaken baby convictions.
Local prosecutors have stipulated to allow Johnson to be freed while they consider whether to pursue a new trial. “The fact is, from my perspective, they clearly don't have a case,” said Tillery on Friday afternoon as he was waiting for his client's paperwork to be processed and for the prison system to release Johnson. “This trial was all about the medical evidence,” he said.
Tillery said that Keker has done about 10 cases with NCIP at this point and that the organization brought Johnson's case to the firm about a year-and-a-half ago.
In a press release, NCIP attorney Paige Kaneb said, “Zavion is one of the most gentle, caring, and thoughtful people I have ever met and society will be a better place the moment he re-joins it.”
According to Tillery, Johnson was released from county jail around 5:30 on Friday evening.
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