Joseph Sledge photo credit to www.newsobserver.com
By: Charlotte Smith
photo credit to www.newsobserver.com
Bladen County Board of Commissioners decided to offer a settlement of $4 million dollars to prevent a court hearing on a wrongful conviction case on Thursday, August 31st, but not everyone is in agreement with the decision. Many community members have asked BladenOnline.com staff why a settlement was offered instead of taking the matter to court.
The case in question is in reference to the wrongful conviction of Joseph Sledge, Jr. In January 2015, 70-year-old Joseph Sledge walked out of the Columbus County Courthouse a free man after being exonerated from the conviction of the stabbing deaths of two Bladen County women 37 years after the fact.
Many locals know the history of the case. On September 6,1976, two women were found dead in Elizabethtown, North Carolina. Both had multiple stab wounds and other injuries indicating a violent struggle according to reports.
Back then, Joseph Sledge, Jr., was 34 years old and was at the White Lake Prison Camp serving a four-year term for misdemeanor larceny charges. Sledge escaped the local prison on September 5, 1976.
On September 6,1976, the two women were found dead three to five miles away from where Sledge escaped. Sledge testified to escaping the prison because he was scared for his life after receiving beatings and threats.
Apprehended by Bladen County law enforcement on September 9th, 1976. Two men serving time with Sledge after the murders in the Columbus County jail, Herman Baker and Donnie Sutton, claimed Sledge had confessed to the crimes. Baker and Sutton’s testimonies were cited as the most critical evidence against Sledge.
The first trial in 1978 led to a hung jury, the second trail lead to Sledge’s conviction of the two murders. He was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences.
DNA testing was not available during the 1978 trials. Most professionals have said the conviction was made mostly on circumstantial evidence.
After he was sentenced, Sledge filed for an appeal and filed many post conviction motions. In 2003, Sledge requested DNA testing on evidence found at the scene. According to the reports some of the evidence was lost and only rediscovered in 2013 in Columbus County’s Clerk of Courts custody. The evidence was then sent for testing.
Sledge was found innocent by a panel of three judges in Whiteville after DNA experts testified the evidence collected in the case, a hair and fingerprints, did not belong to Sledge. The prison inmate and witness, Herman Baker, changed his story in 2013 citing he testified against Sledge during the 1978 trail because of a deal Baker made with officials for his own case. The other prison inmate witness, Sutton, had passed away by the 2013 trail. Some reports say both prison witnesses received lighter sentences and a payout for their testimonies against Sledge.
Now, Bladen County is not the only government agency or defendant Joseph Sledge, Jr., is seeking retribution from due to his wrongful conviction and 37 years in prison. According to local officals, Sledge has three other pending lawsuits.
North Carolina provides a limited statutory stipend to those who were wrongfully incarcerated. However, the amount provided to an exonerated individual is capped at $750,000. Sledge did receive the $750,000 stipend from the state.
Here are some points made on why some citizens feel the county should have taken Sledge’s complaint to court instead of settling.
– Bladen County may have been able to claim government immunity according to attorneys.
– The hair that was found not matching Sledge was in Columbus County, not in Bladen County according to reports.
– Herman Baker changed his story, and DNA testing was not available in 1978.
– The amount Bladen County offered to pay is over three million dollars more than the state paid out.
– According to discussions with officials, the SBI sent evidence back to the Sheriff’s Department. The reports stated the evidence had no letter, packing slip or any description of the content on the outside of the box.
– Some lawyers have said Bladen County could win the settlement case against Sledge.
– The North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence, who was the agency helping Sledge with his wrongful conviction case, was accused of inappropriate professional conduct in the case.
– Sledge did escape prison which lead to the next stage of events.
Bladen County Commissioners Charles Ray Peterson and Daniel Dowless voted against the motion to settle the case. The two commissioners did have notes listing the above concerns. The rest of the seven commissioners voted for the settlement.
Commissioner Ray Britt did state after the Thursday meeting a seasoned attorney for the insurance company advised the commissioners to settle the case. In addition, Commissioner Michael Cogdell alluded to the fact a trial could take longer, cost more time and money, and the settlement of four million dollars is less than what Sledge first asked for during his initial complaint.
References:
https://bladencounty.org/bladen-county-commissioners-voted-sledge-to-receive-4-million-dollars/
http://www.pathlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Sledge-Complaint.pdf
http://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=4627
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