The Wrong Carlos

In 1989, Carlos DeLuna, a poor Hispanic man with childlike intelligence, was executed in Texas for the murder of Wanda Lopez, a convenience store clerk. His execution passed unnoticed for years until a team of Columbia Law School faculty and students almost accidentally chose to investigate his case and found that DeLuna almost certainly was innocent. The Wrong Carlos documents DeLuna‘s conviction, which was based on a single, nighttime, cross-ethnic eyewitness identification with no corroborating forensic evidence. At his trial, the prosecution branded DeLuna as a liar for fabricating Carlos Hernandez, the man he identified as the real killer. The evidence the Columbia team uncovered reveals that Hernandez not only existed but was well known to the police and prosecutors and had a long history of violent crimes, especially against women. This book and its Web site (thewrongcarlos.net) reproduce law-enforcement, crime lab, lawyer, court, social service, media, and witness records, as well as court transcripts, photographs, radio traffic, and audio and videotaped interviews, documenting one of the most comprehensive investigations into a criminal case in U.S. history. The principal investigators conclude with suggestions for improving accuracy among the police, prosecutors, forensic scientists, and judges.