Surviving kin of wrongly jailed man settle suit
THE WIDOW and daughter of a Brooklyn man who served more than 22 years in prison for murder before his conviction was tossed out by a federal judge will receive $8.25 million to settle their lawsuit, the Daily News has learned.
In a tragic twist of fate, William Lopez died of an asthma attack 20 months after gaining his freedom. He was 55 at the time.
“The settlement is a vindication of Willie’s innocence, but it’s also a bittersweet moment because he’s not here to enjoy the proceeds of the suit,” said lawyer Dennis Kelly, who represented Lopez’s widow Alice Lopez and his daughter Crystal Martinez.
The civil case, alleging malicious prosecution against the city and NYPD Detective Patrick Boyle, was scheduled to go to trial in November in Brooklyn Federal Court.
Previously, Lopez’s survivors received a $4.2 million settlement from New York State for a wrongful incarceration claim, according to his lawyer.
Lopez was convicted in 1989 of the shotgun killing of a drug dealer in a crack house. The evidence largely rested on shaky testimony from a crack dealer and a crackhead.
After reviewing Lopez’s appeal, Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis overturned the conviction in 2013, finding that the case was “rotten from day one” and that the flimsy evidence had been “reduced to rubble.”
Alice Lopez told The News she was relieved the case was over. “There’s closure, but no money in the world can bring him back,” she said Friday.
She said the best memories of their time together after he was released from prison were getting an apartment in the Bronx, eating meals together, walks in the park together, and a trip to Puerto Rico.
“It was still very hard for him to integrate,” Lopez said. “He used to have nightmares.”
Crystal Martinez gave birth to a boy last year — but Lopez never got to meet his only grandson.
A spokesman for the city Law Department said, “In vacating Mr. Lopez’s conviction because of newly discovered evidence and other issues with his criminal case, the court pointed to his likely innocence. After a review of the issues raised by the court and the evidence, we have determined that a settlement with Mr. Lopez’s family is fair and in the best interests of the city.”