Bogus testimony by prisoners about confessions played roles in both cases.
Officials have said inmates were among several people who applied for the $150,000 reward in Howell’s case, but the prisoners’ names haven’t been disclosed for their own safety.Īdvocates for Connecticut’s new law cited the DNA-based exonerations of two men - Alfred Swinton and Miguel Roman - who were freed after they both spent about two decades in state prison for killings they did not commit.
It’s not clear if Mills, also serving life in prison, received any benefits for providing the information. One of Howell’s cellmates, convicted killer of four Jonathan Mills, told authorities that Howell talked about the killings and where he buried the victims.
Prison architect informant serial#
Some worry new informant laws take witness credibility determinations out of the hands of juries and leave it to judges to decide before cases even go to trial.įellow inmates were key in bringing down Connecticut serial killer William Howell, who is serving a life sentence for killing seven people in 2003. While prosecutors agree there needs to be skepticism about jailhouse informants, they say such witnesses offer crucial, truthful information that helps bring perpetrators to justice in many cases. But civil liberties advocates say new laws are needed to specify exactly what kind of information must be disclosed including key details about informants. Of the 365 people exonerated nationwide by DNA evidence, nearly one in five were convicted based in part on lying informants, according to the Innocence Project.įederal court rulings and the Constitution do require prosecutors to turn over certain information about witnesses, including exculpatory evidence favorable to the defense. “Jailhouse informant testimony is one of the leading factors in wrongful convictions.” “We’re really seeing the issue start to gain momentum around the country,” said Rebecca Brown, policy director for the New York-based Innocence Project, which works to exonerate the wrongly convicted. Ned Lamont signed a wide-ranging bill in July that will create the nation’s first statewide system to track the use of jailhouse informants, including any benefits offered in exchange for their testimony.