| First Name | Earl |
| Last Name | Washington |
| Year of Conviction | 1984 |
| Year of Exoneration | 2000 |
| Testing inculpated culprit | Cold Hit |
| State of Conviction | Virginia |
| Trial, Bench Trial, or Guilty Plea | Trial |
| Type of Crime | Rape and Murder |
| Death Sentence | Yes |
| Gender of Exoneree | Male |
| Race of exoneree | Black |
| Juvenile | No |
| Mentally Ill or Intellectually Disabled | Intellectually Disabled |
| Type of Innocence Defense |
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| Description / Quotes from Testimony Concerning Defense | ● Defense called two witnesses: the defendant and his sister. |
| Did the defendant testify at trial? | Yes |
| Quotes from Exoneree Testimony | The defendant recalled that he was out of work that month and said that he was probably “at home cleaning up in the yard” the day of the crime. |
| Types of evidence at trial |
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| Were non-public facts alleged? | Yes |
| Type of Forensic Evidence |
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| Types of Flawed Forensics |
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| Brief Quote / Description of Testimony | A written report altered the blood type described in a first report never provided to the defense that excluded Washington. See Part II.F.1. |
| Examples of Non-Public or Corroborated Facts and Inconsistencies | ● Victim was a woman who was raped and stabbed ● He left his shirt at crime scene ● He left it in a back bedroom in a dresser drawer. ● He took off the victim’s halter top. ● He cut himself and bled ● The radio was on ● Location of attack BUT Numerous inconsistencies, including the race of the victim, described her as short when she was tall, described a few stabbings when there were many, he could not locate the victim’s apartment until being brought to it. |
| Quotes from law enforcement testimony | “I asked him at this point did he take anything from the apartment or did he leave anything in the apartment. He replied that he left his shirt. At this time Lt. Hart went to his car outside and got a blue long sleeved shirt which we had picked up as evidence in this case. I brought the shirt back. We displayed it to him and asked him if this was his shirt. He stated that that was the shirt that he was wearing on the day this occurred. I questioned him very carefully about the identity of this shirt, as to how he knew it was his. He again stated that that was the shirt he had worn. I asked him at this point what makes it stand out. He said there was a patch missing from the top of the pocket…” “I asked him directly why he left his shirt. He said it had blood on it and he didn’t want to wear it outside.” |
| Quotes from prosecution arguments | “Now, how does somebody make all that up, unless they were actually there and actually did it? I would submit to you that there can’t be any question in your mind about it, the fact that this happened and the fact that Earl Washington Junior did it.” |
| Interrogation Recorded | Written and signed confession statement |
| Highest level reached | FederalHabeas |
| Claims Raised During All Appeals and Postconviction |
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| Harmless Error Rulings |
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| Citations to judicial opinions | Washington v. Com., 323 S.E.2d 577 (Va. 1984) |