WA: County to pay $115K to man mistakenly listed as sex offender
FAC COMMENT: Gotta wonder how courts could argue that this is “non-punitive” when an individual gets a monetary judgment for being wrongly labeled? Would he have gotten six figures if the state wrongly marked him as a price club member? I think not!
The county has agreed to settle a lawsuit involving a man who was wrongfully listed as a sex offender.
Yakima County will pay local man Damian Garza Cantu $115,000 after someone else’s criminal convictions of third degree rape were mistakenly placed on his record.
A statement from the Board of Commissioners announced June 5, 2018 the county will pay for the full settlement.
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He was paid because false AND harmful information was PUBLISHED about him. This was a CIVIL case. He is lucky that the county did not have/claim sovereign immunity. This was LIBEL PER SE because he was falsely “accused” of what has become the most notorious crime out there.
I believe that my son John Flener is wrongly mark as a sex offender, because of the Romeo and Juliet act.
Yes he has sex with a 14 yrs old but he was 17 yrs old at the time . The mother of said girl gave permission then got mad at John for some other reason and called the cops. When the mother went to drop the charges the state refused. He can`t hirer a law to fight and has been 20+years and he still not able to rent a home for his family. I wish you would go that thought his file and please help he with this issue. Thank you for your time with this.
Betty,
FAC is not a law firm. We are not lawyers and we are neither licensed, nor qualified to provide legal assistance to individuals in their cases. Your son would need to retain an attorney to assist him. You write that he can’t hire one, but his only other option would be to petition pro-se (on his own behalf) which, if he doesn’t know what he’s doing, might be a huge mistake.
Very good advice FAC. Often you are only allowed to petition once and only once for removal. Best to see if there are any free legal services available. If the law and the facts are on his side, it wouldn’t take much work for a lawyer. Plus Romeo & Juliet laws are strictly enforced, but removal is not automatic. I believe that in Michigan if the age difference is 3 years and even 1 more day, it doesn’t qualify.
Makes you wonder how much someone falsely accused of rape should get after spending 9 years in prison for it. In Michigan, you get nothing!
http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2012/11/20/freedom-for-man-held-10-years-on-rape-conviction/
A few legislators here in Michigan have tried to pass laws that would provide compensation for those who were wrongly convicted, but nothing has passed. I am the one who prepared the original appeal for the man in that case, James Grissom, I am proud to say. One quote from that article was “Grissom’s sentence in 2003 was enhanced by an allegation that he also had given the woman a sexually transmitted disease.” That info is not correct. Sara Ylen did allege that, but a medical exam showed that Mr. Grissom didn’t have that particular disease. You would think his lawyer would have used that at trial, but public defenders try to do the minimum they can get away with. His accuser also appeared on The Montel Williams Show, telling additional lies about the nonexistent rape. Would have been nice if Montel had offered him some money for being placed in danger in prison by a story that portrayed him as a monster.
Seems this might be a foundation for a huge class action lawsuit.
It would be difficult to find a class of similarly situated people. There would have to be several cases of mistaken identity for that to happen.
FAC is 100% correct. One is not paid $115,000 for a ‘non-punitive’ clerical error.