An overlooked sixth co-defendant in the Central Park Five saga is set to have a conviction relating to the case overturned on Monday. The 1989 case of a white woman being raped in New York City led to the conviction of five teenagers of color using false confessions. All five had their convictions overturned after the true attacker was identified in 2002, with the wrongfully convicted group eventually receiving $41 million in a settlement against New York City. Steven Lopez, who was arrested aged 15, made a deal with prosecutors ahead of his trial to plead guilty to a robbery charge against a male jogger to avoid the more serious trial for rape. Now 48, Lopez, who did not receive any settlement money despite also going to prison, is set to have his conviction vacated. “We talk about the Central Park Five, the Exonerated Five, but there were six people on that indictment,” Manhattan district attorney Alvin L. Bragg said. “And the other five who were charged, their convictions were vacated. And it’s now time to have Mr. Lopez’s charge vacated.”
