A Tampa man who was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for 37 years will receive $14 million as a settlement.
The individual, identified as 59-year-old Robert DuBoise, was wrongfully convicted of rape and murder of a woman in 1983. He was only 18 years old when he was arrested in relation to the murder of 19-year-old Barbara Grams, who was beaten to death and whose body was found behind a dental office on the north side of the city on Aug. 19, 1983.
In 1985, following a one-week trial, DuBoise was convicted of first-degree murder and attempted sexual battery. The trial included a jailhouse informant claiming that the defendant was guilty and prosecutors arguing that DuBoise's teeth matched what they described as a bite mark on the victim's cheek.
While the man was initially sentenced to death, the Florida Supreme Court, three years later, changed that sentence to life in prison. In August 2020, DuBoise was freed after new DNA evidence surfaced that exonerated him and implicated two other men who were later charged in the murder of Grams, as per the New York Times.
In 2021, DuBoise filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Tampa, four former police officers, as well as the forensic odontologist who had testified against him. The Tampa City Council on Thursday unanimously approved the settlement, which is to be paid in three installments over three years.
In an interview on Thursday, DuBoise said that he was grateful, adding that he was hoping that his case would serve as an example for others who had been wrongfully convicted. He noted that he was also hoping that "they get justice and can move on without having to spend the rest of their life fighting the system that has already wronged them."
Based on DuBoise's lawsuit, the odontologist, identified as Dr. Richard Souviron, "knowingly fabricated" the bite mark evidence. This was supposedly in collaboration with the law enforcement personnel involved in the complaint.
Imprisoned for 37 Years
Following the settlement announcement, DuBoise recalled what was going through his mind while he was in court. He said that he was dumbfounded through the whole trial, noting that he did not understand how it could have happened, according to Fox13News.
The Innocence Project got involved with DuBoise's case in 2018 and investigators later agreed to re-test the DNA evidence in the case. The Hillsborough's State Attorney at the time of DuBoise's conviction, Andrew Warren, said, "I have no idea how you put a price on 37 years that's been taken away."
DuBoise also said that he is glad that the entire issue has been resolved, adding that he no longer has to worry about court cases for the rest of his life. Council members said that the settlement money was the least that the city could do for him following his wrongful conviction.
DuBoise did not attend the Thursday council meeting as he was represented in the case by the Chicago-based Loevy & Loevy civil rights law firms. The company has handled numerous wrongful conviction cases across the United States, said WTSP.
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