The North Carolina Supreme Court recently issued a permanent stay, halting the release of two members of the Winston-Salem Five.
The group was accused of the murder of Nathaniel Jones, the grandfather of NBA star Chris Paul. A judge had overturned the convictions of the five men in August, but the state Attorney General’s office appealed the decision.
WFDD’s DJ Simmons recently spoke with The Assembly’s Michael Hewlett, who’s been following the case.
Interview highlights
"The (NC Inquiry) Commission investigated. It was during their investigation that they discovered Jessica Black, who was a key witness in the original trials, she recanted. She said that she was coerced into making false statements implicating the five boys, and the biggest nail in the coffin was her testimony, specifically, that she was outside in a park and that she heard the boys beating Jones and heard Jones crying out. So that was compelling evidence that led to all of their convictions. Since then, she has said all of that was a lie."
"The State Supreme Court has to decide whether or not it's going to review the court of appeals decision, and there's no timeline for when they'll make a decision. If they do decide to review, then there's another period of time where both sides will file briefs, and maybe there might be oral arguments. So it could take up to two years or more before it's resolved at the state level. And then there is also a possibility that, depending on what the state Supreme Court ultimately does, it could be appealed to the federal court."