McGowan is McGone
Thomas McGowan finally freed after 23 years in jail
The Crime
“I was 19 years old, young and getting ready to go to college,” -victim
“I knew it was him,” -victim
The Conviction
Freedom At Last
“I’m determined to take a very negative thing in my career and make it a positive thing for my profession,” -Thomas McGowan
Analysis
-fear/shock - her life was being threatened and she was being sexually assaulted
-impaired vision - he wrapped her head in a robe
-pressure- influenced by the police officer telling her she had to make a decision
-time - she was shown a lineup 10 days after the crime
-familiarity - three of the lineup photos had a location of Richardson Texas (the same town that the crime was committed in) also she might have been drawn to only look at the color photos and no the black and white
“To talk to him and to see him was very humbling for me,” she said. “I can’t give him back what he lost.” -victim
Reflection
I thought that this case could have been handled much better. The lineup that the victim saw was irregular and may have contributed to the wrongful conviction. She was shown black and white and color photos some with locations and some without. If the photographs were uniform maybe she could have made a correct conviction. Also the police officer showing her the lineup may have pressured her to make a conviction because he told her she had to be absolutely sure after she told him she thought it might be Thomas.
The police officer should have not told her that she had to make a decision. He should have also presented her with a completely uniform and unbiased lineup. All the pictures should have been without locations and in color.