No-sue deal 'suits city
$10M for exonerated B'klyn man
He spent almost three decades behind bars for a rape and robbery he didn’t commit — but now Mark Denny has nearly 10 million reasons to celebrate.
Comptroller Scott Stringer has quietly agreed to approve paying Denny a $9.75 million settlement — avoiding a potential $50 million lawsuit against the city that would have alleged cops framed the suspect, records obtained under the Freedom of Information Law reveal.
In exchange, Denny, now 48, on May 24 signed off on “general release” papers with the Comptroller’s Office, surrendering his right to sue the city and hold it liable for his arrest and incarceration, documents show.
“It was in the best interest of the city to settle prelitigation,” said Hazel Crampton-Hays, a spokeswoman for Stringer's office. The office declined to elaborate, citing the sensitive nature of the case.
In December 1987, Denny, then 17, was one of four men accused of robbing a Burger King in Brooklyn and raping an 18-yearold woman who worked there. He was sentenced to up to 57 years in prison.
But Denny always maintained his innocence, and was exonerated in December 2017 after the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office determined he had nothing to do with the crime and wasn’t even at the Burger King that night.
Denny alleges that he was “targeted and framed” by more than a dozen NYPD detectives who were investigating the crime, according to a notice of claim filed with the comptroller in March 2018 that warned the city of the potential $50 million suit.
The claim alleges detectives procured his conviction by fabricating evidence and failing to check his alibi or immediately test forensic evidence collected following the assault.
The rape victim, whose eyes were covered during part of the attack, didn’t initially identify Denny when shown a photo array, but picked him out of a lineup a few days later.
Denny alleges in the claim that detectives made “false representations” and used “outright suggestion to induce” the victim to identify him.
As a result, he has suffered “severe and ongoing damages,” including “physical and emotional pain,” loss of income and damage to his reputation, the claim says.
Both the NYPD and the city’s Law Department, which was not consulted on the settlement, declined to comment.
By law, the comptroller has the power to unilaterally settle prelitigation.
Denny’s lawyer, Rachel Skaistis, did not return messages, and Denny could not be reached for comment.