On February 12, 2010, police in Houston, Texas arrested 27-year-old Frederick Jeffery and charged him with possession of Phencyclidine, or PCP.
Jeffery pled guilty to the possession charge three days later in Harris County Criminal District Court and was sentenced to eight months in Texas State Jail.
On March 27, 2013, the Houston Police Department's crime laboratory tested the material said to be in Jeffery's possession and found that it contained no illegal substances. The Harris County District Attorney's Office notified Jeffery's attorney of this information in April, and the attorney filed a motion on May 1, 2013, to vacate Jeffery's conviction.
A judge granted the motion that day and also dismissed the charge against Jeffery. Several years later, in 2016, Jeffery was wrongfully convicted of another drug crime based on misconduct by then-Officer Gerald Goines of the Houston Police Department.
- Ken Otterbourg
Jeffery pled guilty to the possession charge three days later in Harris County Criminal District Court and was sentenced to eight months in Texas State Jail.
On March 27, 2013, the Houston Police Department's crime laboratory tested the material said to be in Jeffery's possession and found that it contained no illegal substances. The Harris County District Attorney's Office notified Jeffery's attorney of this information in April, and the attorney filed a motion on May 1, 2013, to vacate Jeffery's conviction.
A judge granted the motion that day and also dismissed the charge against Jeffery. Several years later, in 2016, Jeffery was wrongfully convicted of another drug crime based on misconduct by then-Officer Gerald Goines of the Houston Police Department.
- Ken Otterbourg
Posting Date: 06-21-2023
Last Update Date: 06-21-2023
Case Details:
State:
Texas
County:
Harris
Most Serious Crime:
Drug Possession or Sale
Reported Crime Date:
2010
Convicted:
2010
Exonerated:
2013
Sentence:
Term of Years
Race / Ethnicity:
Black
Sex:
Male
Age at the date of reported crime:
27
Contributing Factors:
False or Misleading Forensic Evidence
Did DNA evidence contribute to the exoneration?:
No