Detroit man exonerated of murder conviction after serving 17 years in prison
A Detroit man who served 17 years in prison was released after the Cooley Law School Innocence Project worked with the Wayne County Conviction Integrity Unit to seek dismissal of his murder conviction.
DNA analysis was key to the exoneration, authorities said.
The case involved the murder of Tatanisha "Joy" Williams of Detroit on Sept. 10, 2007.
During Tuesday's hearing, Wayne County Circuit Judge Tracy Green vacated Dell Crawford's second-degree murder conviction and sentence, and dismissed the charge without prejudice.
"We can't give you back that time, but we can certainly try to do the best that we can to right wrong," the judge said. "Your conviction was not the only tragedy here. There is perhaps someone out there who has gotten away with the murder of Miss Williams and that is almost as disturbing as the amount of time you have spent in prison as an innocent man."
Crawford participated in the hearing via video conference from Jackson State Prison, thanking those who had continued to research the case and listen to his requests. He was released after the hearing.
He was represented at Tuesday's court hearing by Cooley Innocence Project attorneys Jessa Webber and Niquole Caringi.
"At the time of trial, there was no physical evidence implicating Mr. Crawford, and the case was based largely on the changing statements of a witness," Caringi said. "The DNA exclusion under the victim's fingernails demonstrates what Mr. Crawford has been telling us for the last 17 years: That he had nothing to do with this crime."
The Cooley Law School Innocence Project said that Crawford had gone inside Williams' home in 2007 after he was unable to contact her. Crawford got help from a friend to get inside as a key had broken off in the lock. The two men then discovered her body in the home.
Crawford called 911 and made arrangements for Williams' children to go to another relative's home.
The Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office conducted an autopsy and determined the cause of death to be brain injuries from being struck in the head. DNA testing at the time of trial did not detect the presence of male DNA under the victim's fingernails.
Instead, the Cooley Law School Innocence Project said, Crawford's conviction was based on testimony from an unreliable witness whose story changed multiple times.
A jury acquitted him of first-degree murder but issued a conviction of second-degree murder. He was sentenced to 20 years and 10 months to 45 years in prison.
The additional DNA testing on this case took place during October 2024, the organization said.
"As we all know, nothing and no one can give Mr. Crawford those lost years back," Caringi said. "But I'm honored to stand before you today, prepared to welcome him back to the community that he was taken from. I've been working with him for some time now and have seen what an intelligent, kind and entrepreneurial man he is, and I know the community is going to gain a lot if he is welcomed back into it."
This case is the 10th exoneration attributed to the efforts of the Cooley Law School Innocence Project since it formed 25 years ago. The office has reviewed over 6,000 cases.
The Wayne County Conviction Integrity Unit works with the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office to determine whether there is clear and convincing new evidence that a convicted defendant was not the person who committed the offense in question.
