EVIDENCE WITHHELD

Three Men Freed 24 Years After Wrongful Murder Convictions

Prosecutors buried information from the defense that implicated others in the fatal shooting of an off-duty cop and a check-cashing store owner.

Twenty-four years after they were imprisoned for murdering a check-cashing store owner and a moonlighting cop in a botched robbery, three New York City men were free Friday—their convictions vacated because prosecutors withheld crucial evidence. The Greenpoint Post reports that the Queens District Attorney’s Conviction Integrity Unit investigated the case of George Bell, Gary Johnson, and Rohan Bolt and found prosecutors never gave the defense material that implicated other suspects in the crime and showed the witness against them suffered from hallucinations. One of the men was only 19 at the time, and prosecutors sought the death penalty against him. The judge said he was astounded by the misconduct. Bell, now 45, expressed gratitude at a hearing. “Sometimes, your honor, God might be late, but today, sir, he’s right on time,” he said.