Destruction of Innocence the Friedman Case: How Coerced Testimony & Confessions Harm Children, Families & Communities for Decades After the Wrongful Convictions Occur
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Destruction of Innocence The Friedman Case: How Coerced Testimony & Confessions Harm Children, Families & Communities for Decades After the Wrongful Convictions Occur Gavin de Becker Senior Fellow, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs Author, The Gift of Fear Emily Horowitz, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Sociology && Criminal Justice, St. Francis Collegege Director, National Center for Reason and Justice Mayy 2013 Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2228941 Table 1. Friedman Case in Context of Similar Convictions During the Child Sex Abuse Hysteria Perjury or False False Official LLaasst NNaammee FFiirrsst NNaammee AAggee SSttaattee SSeenntteennccee CCoonnvviicctteedd EExxoonneerraatteedd Confession Accusation Misconduct KKnniiffffeenn BBrreennddaa 2299 CCAA LLiiffee 11998844 11999966 YY KKnniiffffeenn SSccootttt 2288 CCAA LLiiffee 11998844 11999966 YY MMccCCuuaann AAllvviinn 2288 CCAA LLiiffee 11998844 11999966 YY MMccCCuuaann DDeebboorraahh 2255 CCAA LLiiffee 11998844 11999966 YY AAllddrriiddggee RRoobbeerrtt 2244 OOHH LLiiffee 11998855 11999977 YY YY AAllggaarriinn AAllbbeerrtt 2211 NNYY 2255--550yyee aarrss 11998855 11999900 YY BBaarraann BBeerrnnaarrdd 1188 MMAA LLiiffee 11998855 22000099 YY YY CCooxx RRiicchhaarrdd 4477 CCAA UUnnkknnoowwnn 11998855 11999911 YY YY CCooxx TTeerreessa 1177 CCAA 110yyee aarrss 11998855 22000000 YY YY DDiillll GGrraaccee 5500 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY YY DDiillll,JJrr.. WWaayynnee 2266 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY YY FFoorrssyytthhee CCoolllleeeen 2266 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY YY FFoorrssyytthhee WWaayynnee 2288 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY YY GGrraaffttoonn MMaarrggoorriiee CCAA 116yyee aarrss 11998855 11999900 YY HHuubbbbaarrdd DDoonnnna 3300 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999955 YY YY YY MMiilllleerr GGiinnaa CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY YY PPaalloommoo TTiimm CCAA 114yyeeaa rrss 11998855 11999900 YY YY PPiittttss MMaarrcceellllaa 2299 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY PPiittttss RRiicckky 3311 CCAA LLiiffee 11998855 11999911 YY RRaammooss AAllbbeerrttoo 2211 NNYY 88--225yyee aarrss 11998855 11999944 YY YY SSttoollll JJoohhnn 4411 CCAA 440yyee aarrss 11998855 22000044 YY TTaayylloorr RRuutthh 3311 CCAA 6yyeeaa rrss 11998855 22000011 YY YY WWeeiimmeerr HHoowwaarrdd 5577 CCAA 442yyee aarrss 11998855 22000055 YY WWiillccooxx JJeennnniiffeerr 2200 OOHH LLiiffee 11998855 11999977 YY YY BBeeaauucchhaammpp FFrraannkklliinn 2277 NNYY 2255--775yy eeaarrss 11998866 11998899 YY DDoovvee GGaayyllee 4411 TTXX LLiiffee 11998866 11998899 YY GGrraaddyy NNaatthhaann 4433 NNYY 445yyee aarrss 11998866 11999977 YY MMooddaahhll JJeeffffrreeyy 2299 CCAA 448yyee aarrss 11998866 11999999 YY YY SSnnoowwddeenn GGrraanntt 3388 FFLL 550tto LLii ffee 11998866 11999988 YY TToorrrreess JJeessuuss 2299 NNYY 2255--440yyee aarrss 11998866 11999900 YY AAmmiirraauulltt VViioolleett 5599 MMAA 220yyee aarrss 11998877 11999988 YY CCrraaiigg SSaannddrraa 3377 MMDD 110yyeeaa rrss 11998877 11999911 YY YY FFrriieeddmmaann JJeessssee 1188 NNYY 66--118yyee aarrss 11998888 XX YY YY YY MMiicchhaaeellss KKeellllyy 2222 NNJJ 447yyee aarrss 11998888 11999944 YY BBrrooaamm JJaacckRRaa yy 2299 NNVV LLiiffee 11999900 11999988 YY MMaannnniinngg JJaayCCee ee 2288 NNVV LLiiffee 11999900 11999988 YY KKeellllyy RRoobbeerrtt 4400 NNCC LLiiffee 11999922 11999977 YY WWiillssoonn KKaatthhrryyn 2222 NNCC LLiiffee 11999933 11999977 YY CCuunnnniinngghhaamm HHeennrryy 4466 WWAA 447yyee aarrss 11999944 11999999 YY YY CCuunnnniinngghhaamm CCoonnnniiee 4433 WWAA 446yy eeaarrs 11999944 11999977 YY EEvveerreetttt IIddeellllaa 4411 WWAA 4yyee aarrs 11999944 11999988 YY YY EEvveerreetttt HHaarroolldd 6655 WWAA 223yyee aarrss 11999944 11999988 YY TToowwnn MMeerreeddiitthh 3366 WWAA 220yyee aarrss 11999944 22000000 YY YY YY CChhrriissttoopphheerr DDaayynnaa 1166 WWAA 2211--228ww eeeekkss 11999955 22000000 YY DDooggggeetttt CCaarrooll 3366 WWAA 110yyee aarrs 11999955 22000000 YY YY DDooggggeetttt MMaarrkk 3355 WWAA 110yyee aarrs 11999955 22000000 YY YY GGaauussvviikk RRaallpphh 3399 WWAA 223yyee aarrs 11999955 22000000 YY YY GGrreeeenn DDoorriiss 3344 WWAA 223yyee aarrss 11999955 11999999 YY YY YY RRooddrriigguueezz MMaannuuaal 366 WWAA 5yyee aarrs 11999955 22000000 YY YY RRoossee MMiicchhaaeell 2255 WWAA 223yyee aarrss 11999955 22000000 YY YY *Information for all cases other than Jesse Friedman is drawn from The National Registry of Exonerations, University of Michigan Law School and Northwestern Law School, 2013. Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2228941 Table 2: A Sampling of Prosecutions During the Child Sex Abuse Hysteria Case Characteristicsics Kern McMartin Baran Grant Fells Bronx Michaels / Friedman Bobby Little Dale Wenatchee County (CA) (MA) Snowden Acres 5 (NY) Wee Care Case (NY) Finjie Rascals Akiki (WA) (CA) (FL) (MA) (NJ) (FL) (NC) (CA) Year of First Arrest 11998822 11998833 11998844 11998844 11998844 11998844 11998855 1987 11998899 11998899 11999911 11999955 Year of Conviction 11998844 XX 11998855 11998866 11998866 11998866 11998888 1989 XX 11999911 XX XX YYeeaaroo fAA ccqquuiittttaal 22000044 11999900 22000099 11999988 11999999 11999966 11999933 XX 11999911 11999999 11999933 22000000 # Abuse Allegations of 11 11 11 1 1 1 1 00 11 11 11 11 PRIOR to Police Investigation # of Counts AFTER 330000++ 330000++ 1100 55 1188 110000++ 116633 300+ 77 110000++ 5522 2299,,000000++ Investigation / Therapy Suggestive Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Questioning Group Parent YYeess YYeess Yes YYeess YYeess Meetings Multiple Adults YYeess YYeess NNoo NNoo YYeess YYeess NNoo Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Charged? Multiple Child YYeess YYees Yeess YYeess YYees YYeess YYeess Yes YYeess YYeess YYeess YYeess Accusers? Outrageous Charges? YYees Yees Yes NNoo YYees YYees YYeess Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Sex Games? YYeess YYeess YYeess NNoo YYeess YYeess YYeess Yes YYeess YYeess YYeess YYeess Hypnosis? YYeess NNoo YYeess Yes Recovered Memories? YYeess YYeess YYeess NNoo YYeess Yes YYeess YYeess YYeess YYeess Medical Evidence? No No NoNo NoNo NoNo NoNo NoNo NoNo NoNo No No NoNo NoNo NoNo Physical Evidence? No No NoNo NoNo NoNo NoNo Yes NoNo NoNo No No NoNo NoNo NoNo II)) IInnttrroodduuccttiioonn In the late 1980s, Long Island teacher Arnold Friedman provided after-school computer classes to children at his home. He was often assisted by his teenage son Jesse, and together they conducteded hundreds of classeses over a three-year period. Students enrolled for the classes again and again, their parents visited often, and other parents attended evening courses in the same classroom. Having sent so many of its children to these popular classes, the community of Great Neck was stunned when in 1988 the Friedmans, along with a 17-year old high school friend of Jesse’s named Ross Goldstein, were charged with hundreds of violent sexual crimes against children. Nearly two decades later, after Jesse and Arnold Friedman had been imprisoned for years (Arnold died there), and Goldstein had served a shorter prison term, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit conducted an extensive review of the case. They found “a reasonable likelihood Jesse Friedman was wrongfully convicted,” and concluded that his guilty plea had been elicited by a biased judge using strategies that were “impermissibly coercive.” Though barred from imposing a legal remedy, the Court made clear it was unwilling to stand by and do nothing: “An appellate court faced with a record that raises serious issues as to the guilt of the defendant and the means by which his conviction was procured, yet unable to grant relief, is not obligated to become a silent accomplice to what may be an injustice.” Indeed, the Court was anything but silent, expressing an extraordinary series of unequivocal opinions about the prosecution and conviction of Jesse Friedman: “In this case, the quality of the evidence was extraordinarily suspect.” “The police, prosecutors, and the judge did everything they could to coerce a guilty plea and avoid a trial.” “The allegations also grew increasingly bizarre, sadistic, and even logistically implausible.” “Detectives generally entered an interview with a presumption that a child had been abused and refused to accept denials of abuse.” “This strategy was designed to force children to agree with the detectives’ story.” About such cases of mass child sexual abuse in general, the Court expressed a powerful opinion: “The prevailing view is that the vast majority of traumatic memories that are recovered through the use of suggestive recovery procedures are false, and that almost all —if not all— of the recovered memories of horrific abuse from the late-1980’s and early-1990’s were false.” Between 1984 and 1995, at least seventy-two individuals were convicted in nearly a dozen major prosecutions for mass child sex abuse and satanic ritual abuse. Almost all the convictions have since been reversed. Table 1 shows Jesse Freidman’s case in the context of 50 convictions that occurred during the hysteria of mass child sex abuse cases. Though the methods of prosecution of these cases match in all substantive regards, Jesse’s conviction is the only one that has not been overturned. Table 2 shows a sampling of similar cases with a more detailed view. Here again the methods of prosecution match, and Jesse’s conviction remains the only one not overturned. To be clear, sexual abuse of children does happen, and with alarming frequency. Author de Becker has spent his professional life working to understand and combat the strategies