DCMP on 
Dana Porter on 
On August 4th, residents of Columbus approved Issue One, a tax increase designed to save city services including hundreds of police. Did the City of Columbus wait to dismiss a racially sensitive case involving a young African American until after the passage of Issue One?
Today, 19 year old Derris Lewis was acquitted of the murder of his twin brother 17 year old Dennis Lewis.
Upto five men wearing masks had burst into the Lewis home on Jan. 18, 2008 to rob the place. Dennis resisted and was shot and killed. Police charged Derris with the act because a bloody palm print that was found at the scene matched his DNA.
Here’s the problem. After over a year and a mistrial, they found out the palm print was not in blood?
“We’ve got no case without the palm print being in blood,” O’Brien said.
After a year how could prosecutors and police not know that the palm print was not in blood. Private investigator Teresa Edwards who worked on the case for the Lewis family thinks she knows why.
Edwards believes miscommunication between homicide detectives and analysts in the crime lab led to a string of wrong assumptions among police and prosecutors, who simply assumed the print had been tested for blood when in fact it never had been.
…The defense had suspected even at the first trial, based on their own review of the evidence, that the palm print wasn’t in blood but likely had been left in the room long before the killing, a feasible idea since Derris had lived in the family home.
I’m sure there will be lawsuits filed and there should be. In addition, the unprofessional conduct by the police and the prosecutors should lead to an investigation. First, to see if policies were violated or should be changed. Second, to see if some involved were so derelict in there duties they should be dismissed. Third, too see if some engaged in criminal conduct.
After all, a young innocent man lost a year of his life and a family was forced to endure the unthinkable all due to the unbelievable incompetence of city prosecutors and the police.
Some African American’s have a deep mistrust of the police and “the system.” It is easy to see why when you see malfeasance such as this.
While I supported Issue One as did and a high percentage of African American’s, I think it is interesting that this acquittal was not announced until after the vote. Did the city delay the acquittal of Derris Lewis in order to save African American votes and thus Issue One?
Comment on the Derris murder case:
Just a quick thought: I didnt catch the whole IN SESSION scene. The g/f at the time said he was in bed w/ her and got a phone call…. If the house he was going to was 10-15 minutes away: could cell phone records/ pings have exonerated him as not being closer to the crime scene?
Also, the g/f’s saying that lying for the defendant would be “morally incorrect”… ummm, isnt sleeping w/ him morally incorrect? I’m merely wondering about her moral compass.
I’m glad the guy is free. Idiot cops and prosecutors. : (
Thanks for commenting Teresa.
Don’t remember much about the girlfriend. If any at all.
But it seems that when she states that lying for her boyfriend would be “morally incorrect,” she appears to be saying he was not there. Because, if he was, how could it be morally wrong to tell the truth and exonerate Derris?
I don’t believe the police need to know what they were doing, just that he was truly there during the time of the crime.
I’m sure there’s more behind the scenes in this case. Regardless, for public official’s to take over a year to realize they had the wrong guy is ridiculous.
I’m glad to see you feel the same as well.
My point in writing the post was not to argue the facts of the case, but to show the incompetence of the public officials so that this does not happen again.