A Denver man who spent 28 years in prison for a rape and assault he did not commit is filing a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city, a former district attorney and police investigators.
Clarence Moses-EL, who was acquitted by jury in November 2016, is accusing the defendants of malicious prosecution, destruction of evidence, manufacturing false evidence, mishandling evidence, conspiracy to violate his civil rights and fundamental unfairness of prosecution, according to a copy of the lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Denver.
The lawsuit asks for an unspecified amount in damages.
Moses-EL had been convicted of raping and beating a neighbor in 1987. He went through two trials before a jury determined last year he was not guilty of first-degree sexual assault, second-degree assault and second-degree burglary.
The brutal rape and attack remains unsolved.
From the beginning, Moses-EL insisted he was innocent and that the victim falsely identified him. He refused to accept plea bargains that were offered over the years.
The case featured many twists and turns.
The accuser identified him as the attacker after a dream. Police mistakenly destroyed DNA evidence. Another man confessed to the crime and recanted.
In December 2015, a Denver District Court judge ordered a new trial, saying new evidence and previously submitted evidence most likely would lead to an acquittal in a new trial. Moses-EL was released from prison.
Still, former District Atttorney Mitch Morrissey pushed ahead with a new trial.
Besides the city and county of Denver, the other defendants in the lawsuit include, Morrissey, Bonnie Benedetti, chief deputy district attorney; Robin Whitley, former deputy district attorney; Lynn Kimbrough, former communications director for the district attorney; Jeff Carroll, a district attorney’s office investigator; Kathren Brown-Dressel, former Colorado Bureau of Investigation and Denver Police Department forensic serologist; Estate of James Huff, a Denver police detective; and Ann Perry, a former Denver police forensic serologist.
Moses-EL is represented by Gail K. Johnson of the Johnson & Klein law firm.
