NCJ Number
130594
Date Published
1991
Length
410 pages
Annotation
This narrative details the sequence of events in which a young black man was accused and sentenced to death for the 1980 rape and murder of a 16-year-old female in a small Texas town.
Abstract
On August 23, 1980, the nude body of Cheryl Fergeson was found in the auditorium of Conroe High School. One week later, 28-year-old janitor Clarence Brandley, who was the only black man at the scene of the crime, was charged with raping and strangling her. He was acquitted in a mistrial in his first trial before an all-white jury. In the second trial, he was convicted and sentenced to the death penalty. He stayed on death row for 9 years, twice receiving stays of execution. The efforts of attorneys and private investigators revealed a combination of racism, political intrigue, and corruption, leading to a decision by the Texas Court of Appeals to overturn the conviction. The court noted that Brandley's treatment had been blatantly unfair and "a subversion of justice." The narrative notes that the case raises the issue of capital punishment in a society in which innocent people can be wrongly convicted. (Publisher summary modified)