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DNA clears Texas man who spent 30 years in prison

Associated Press, news.yahoo.com
By JEFF CARLTON, Associated Press

Dallas County, TX

DALLAS – Prosecutors declared a Texas man innocent Monday of a rape and robbery that put him in prison for 30 years, more than any other DNA exoneree in Texas.

DNA test results that came back barely a week after Cornelius Dupree Jr. was paroled in July excluded him as the person who attacked a Dallas woman in 1979, prosecutors said Monday. Dupree was just 20 when he was sentenced to 75 years in prison in 1980.

Now 51, he has spent more time wrongly imprisoned than any DNA exoneree in Texas, which has freed 41 wrongly convicted inmates through DNA since 2001 — more than any other state.

“Our Conviction Integrity Unit thoroughly reinvestigated this case, tested the biological evidence and based on the results, concluded Cornelius Dupree did not commit this crime,” Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins said.

Dupree is expected to have his aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon conviction overturned Tuesday at an exoneration hearing in a Dallas court.

Photo 1:

Cornelius Dupree Jr., left, raises his hand to testify while attorney Barry Scheck, right, looks on in Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. Dupree served 30 years for rape and robbery before being exonerated by DNA evidence. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

<em>Cornelius Dupree Jr., left, raises his hand to testify while attorney Barry Scheck, right, looks on in Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. Dupree served 30 years for rape and robbery before being exonerated by DNA evidence.</em> (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

Photo 2:

Cornelius Dupree Jr., center, smiles while attorney Barry Scheck, right, speaks in Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. Dupree served 30 years for rape and robbery before being exonerated by DNA evidence. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

<em>Cornelius Dupree Jr., center, smiles while attorney Barry Scheck, right, speaks in Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. Dupree served 30 years for rape and robbery before being exonerated by DNA evidence.</em> (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

Photo 3:

Cornelius Dupree Jr., center, raises his hands in celebration with his lawyer Nina Morrison, left, and attorney Barry Scheck in Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. Dupree served 30 years for rape and robbery before being exonerated by DNA evidence. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

<em>Cornelius Dupree Jr., center, raises his hands in celebration with his lawyer Nina Morrison, left, and attorney Barry Scheck in Dallas on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011. Dupree served 30 years for rape and robbery before being exonerated by DNA evidence.</em> (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

Photo 4:

This undated handout photo provided by The Innocence Project shows Cornelius Dupree Jr., right, and his wife Selma Perkins Dupree. Dupree, who made parole six months ago, was declared innocent Monday, Jan. 3, 2011 of a rape and robbery that put him in prison for 30 years, more than any other DNA exoneree in Texas. (AP Photo/Courtesy of The Innocence Project, ho)

<em>This undated handout photo provided by The Innocence Project shows Cornelius Dupree Jr., right, and his wife Selma Perkins Dupree. Dupree, who made parole six months ago, was declared innocent Monday, Jan. 3, 2011 of a rape and robbery that put him in prison for 30 years, more than any other DNA exoneree in Texas.</em> (AP Photo/Courtesy of The Innocence Project, ho)

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