For years now, Hollywood has been gearing up for a feature film about Tulia, Texas starring Halle Berry.  It is a bit ironic that the Hearne story is now gracingthe silver screen when Tulia (a much bigger media story) has never reached the production stage.  Alfre Woodard, who plays the mother in American Violet, was initially slated to star in one of several contemplated Tulia movie projects.

The apparent anomaly is easily explained.  The Hearne story (the subject of the new film, American Violet)  is much cleaner than the Tulia saga.  Although you’d never know it from Bob Herbert’s savage columns in the New York Times, the guilt-innocence issues in Tulia were always ambiguous.  Friends of Justice argued that no one should be convicted on the uncorroborated word of a gypsy cop with a reputation for dishonesty and racism.  We never suggested that no one in Tulia ever sold dope to undercover agent Tom Coleman.  The truth was known only to Coleman, the defendants and Almighty God.

The Hearne story is much simpler.  Derrick Megress, the confidential informant who made dozens of uncorroborated cases, admitted without reservation that he set up every single defendant.  The fact that a number of his marks pled guilty in exchange for lenient plea bargains didn’t alter their actual innocence.

In addition, Regina Kelly is a very sympathetic figure (the picture above isn’t that far off).  In Tulia, media attention centered on Freddie Brookins Jr., an engaging young man with an articulate and supportive family, and Joe Welton Moore, an aging hog farmer with numerous health issues.  I firmly believe that both men were innocent, but nobody could prove it.  All we could prove was that the man pointing the finger wasn’t credible under oath.

Americans hate to think that an innocent person might be convicted.  Nonetheless, when the guilt-innocence issue is fuzzy it’s hard to get much interest–no matter how shoddy the state’s case.  Nobody will take a chance.

That’s why Friends of Justice focuses on cases with a high potential for wrongful conviction.  While others keep their distance until clear evidence of actual innocence is on the table, we consider getting involved so long as there is a strong defendant and weak evidence.  When people of color are arrested and investigated by white police officers and prosecuted by a white DA in front of a white judge and an all-white jury you can count on a conviction no matter how threadbare the case may be. 

When the victim of the alleged crime is white a black defendant is in deep trouble.  This simple fact gives American Violet its sizzle.

We can’t blame other organizations for shying away from the ambiguous cases, but there needs to be at least one organization willing to help vulnerable defendants who can’t prove their innocence any more than the state can prove their guilt.    When a case devolves into a guessing game Friends of Justice is willing to get involved.

The Kunstler Fund for Racial Justice is also willing to get involved at the pre-conviction stage, and there must be other organizations out there ready to aid those in danger of wrongful conviction, but I am not aware of any name brand non-profits willing to take that kind of gamble.  Amnesty International deserves credit for rising to the defense of Troy Davis.  If you know of any other organizations who intervene at the pre-conviction stage please let me know.

This morning I received Google alerts for two American Violet stories.  Both mention Tulia.  This movie review makes the erroneous assumption that American Violet is based on the Tulia story.  This article from Legal Affairs accurately describes Hearne and Tulia as twin posterboys for the federal Byrne Grant program.  Both are worth a quick look.

You should also check out Scott Henson’s take on the movie.   In a related post, Scott bears glad tidings of great joy: the Texas Senate just turned thumbs up to a proposal requiring corroboration for inmate snitch testimony.  An incremental step, to be sure, but it will make a big difference.  The Senate also passed a bill requiring that law enforcement adopt written standards for eyewitness identification.  Hopefully, both bills will be passed by both houses before the 2009 session ends.