WEBVTT - #159 Jason Flom with Keyontay Ricks 0:00:02.640 --> 0:00:05.120 Keyante Rix had had three run ins with the law 0:00:05.320 --> 0:00:08.799 and had been wrongfully convicted twice, the first when he 0:00:08.920 --> 0:00:11.880 was four foot eleven and mistaken for a robber that 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:15.360 was six feet tall. While on parole from Juvie, Kyante 0:00:15.520 --> 0:00:18.400 worked with a youth group mentoring troubled teens, one of 0:00:18.400 --> 0:00:22.160 whom was an illiterate wheed dealer named Kurtel Walker. One 0:00:22.200 --> 0:00:24.959 of Kurtel's customers was the manager of a rent center 0:00:25.000 --> 0:00:28.400 who handled the business's bank deposits. The pair had crafted 0:00:28.440 --> 0:00:31.280 a scheme in which the customer would settle a twenty 0:00:31.280 --> 0:00:33.840 five hundred dollars weak debt by handing over the rent 0:00:33.840 --> 0:00:37.120 to center deposit bag to Kurtel and then claiming that 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:40.240 he had been robbed. On June twenty eight, two thousand 0:00:40.240 --> 0:00:42.760 and four, keyante Rix was on his way to Six 0:00:42.800 --> 0:00:46.320 Flags with his children's mother, a friend, and Kurtel, but 0:00:46.360 --> 0:00:48.839 before getting on the road, the group made a stop 0:00:49.000 --> 0:00:51.640 near the rent a center, where, unbeknownst to the others, 0:00:51.880 --> 0:00:54.840 Kurtel met up with his customer to follow through with 0:00:54.960 --> 0:00:58.200 their plot. Taking a bit too long, the other three 0:00:58.320 --> 0:01:01.240 almost left without him, but Kurtill caught up with them, 0:01:01.360 --> 0:01:04.200 making a big scene in the process. When the police 0:01:04.280 --> 0:01:08.600 arrived to investigate the stage robbery, a concerned passerby who 0:01:08.600 --> 0:01:11.560 saw Curtel screaming and running after the car, gave the 0:01:11.600 --> 0:01:15.800 police the license fleet number, even though Keyante had none 0:01:15.840 --> 0:01:19.000 of the money and wasn't involved in any way, one 0:01:19.240 --> 0:01:23.040 offhand remark in the interrogation room sent a racist cop 0:01:23.200 --> 0:01:26.759 on a mission to pin the entire crazy scenario on him, 0:01:27.240 --> 0:01:30.280 falsified evidence, made the mistimeter of felony, and put the 0:01:30.360 --> 0:01:34.600 money in Kiante's possession. A statement was coerced, prepared and 0:01:34.800 --> 0:01:38.839 signed by the illiterate Curtel, and even when Kurtel tried 0:01:38.880 --> 0:01:42.080 to recant and the alleged victim came forward about the 0:01:42.120 --> 0:01:47.039 stage robbery plot, both were silenced. Keante Rix was sentenced 0:01:47.200 --> 0:01:51.720 to twenty years in prison. This is Wrongful Conviction with 0:01:51.880 --> 0:02:06.480 Jason Plomm. Welcome back to Wrongful Conviction with Jason Foum. 0:02:06.560 --> 0:02:09.560 That's me. I'm your host, and today we're gonna share 0:02:09.600 --> 0:02:12.400 a story. It's the story of Kyante Rix. But before 0:02:12.440 --> 0:02:16.120 I even introduced Kyante, let me just run a few 0:02:16.200 --> 0:02:20.840 numbers by you. So Kyante was wrongfully arrested three times, 0:02:21.320 --> 0:02:25.120 wrongfully convicted twice, and on one occasion he was shot 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:29.160 twice and then made into a suspect. He spent five 0:02:29.280 --> 0:02:32.800 years wrongfully incarcerated as a child from fourteen to nineteen, 0:02:32.919 --> 0:02:37.119 and then was said back to prison as an adult, 0:02:37.320 --> 0:02:41.080 where he served almost thirteen years. And the problem is 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:48.200 he never did anything. I mean, Kyante, I'm glad you're here, 0:02:48.200 --> 0:02:50.000 but I'm sorry you have to be here man, after 0:02:50.040 --> 0:02:51.040 everything you went through. 0:02:51.400 --> 0:02:51.720 Thank you. 0:02:52.600 --> 0:02:55.960 And as you will soon see, Kyante has maintained an 0:02:56.000 --> 0:02:59.440 incredible attitude, even a sense of humor through all of this. 0:02:59.639 --> 0:03:02.200 And Chiante, let's go back to the beginning, if it's 0:03:02.240 --> 0:03:04.359 okay with you. And first of all, this is back 0:03:04.360 --> 0:03:05.320 at Buffalo. 0:03:04.960 --> 0:03:08.080 Right, Yes, sir, I grew up in Buffalo, New York. 0:03:08.400 --> 0:03:10.560 The third incident transpired in the. 0:03:10.520 --> 0:03:14.520 Amherst and Amherst is a suburb of Buffalo, where you 0:03:14.560 --> 0:03:17.600 lived with your daughter and her mother, Marina, during the 0:03:17.680 --> 0:03:20.519 time of your second wrongful conviction. But let's go back 0:03:20.560 --> 0:03:24.320 to your first wrongful conviction as a minor. You were 0:03:24.480 --> 0:03:27.560 fourteen years old fourteen? How old are you now? I'm 0:03:27.560 --> 0:03:30.320 thirty eight, so this is twenty four years ago. You're 0:03:30.360 --> 0:03:33.960 fourteen years old, four feet eleven. What's crazy about this 0:03:34.040 --> 0:03:39.280 original case was this was related to a situation. Your 0:03:39.320 --> 0:03:42.480 cousin had had some involvement in a scuffle that was 0:03:42.520 --> 0:03:46.400 forty dollars that was owed and recovered. The alleged victim 0:03:46.440 --> 0:03:48.440 claims he was robbed in stabbed, but now we know 0:03:48.520 --> 0:03:52.360 that never even happened. The victim describes his assailants to 0:03:52.520 --> 0:03:55.920 assailants as six feet and five eleven, and you were 0:03:56.000 --> 0:03:59.960 four eleven. So how did you first get involved? 0:04:00.080 --> 0:04:02.280 Well, I was actually with my cousin on his street 0:04:02.440 --> 0:04:06.600 outside and the police put up and handcuffed us and 0:04:06.680 --> 0:04:08.840 put us in a police car and then drove us 0:04:09.280 --> 0:04:12.880 to a hospital. And some guys came out and they 0:04:12.880 --> 0:04:15.200 looked in a police car and they said, yeah, that's them. 0:04:16.080 --> 0:04:19.560 And I mean that was the beginning of that right there. 0:04:20.080 --> 0:04:22.520 The only way the police could sort of rope you 0:04:22.600 --> 0:04:25.840 into this was by bringing you in as in like 0:04:25.880 --> 0:04:28.000 a show up inside of a squad car, right, which 0:04:28.040 --> 0:04:30.560 is of course going to buy us anybody. But and 0:04:30.600 --> 0:04:32.560 I guess you might look taller sitting on the seat 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:36.960 in a squad car, but this is obviously madness. And 0:04:37.000 --> 0:04:38.800 then you go all the way to trial on this 0:04:38.920 --> 0:04:42.200 crazy thing, even though we're talking about an imaginary crime 0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:46.080 and two imaginary suspects who were a foot taller than 0:04:46.120 --> 0:04:48.480 you were, and you're fourteen years old, you're a child. 0:04:49.400 --> 0:04:51.560 Yes, and I was sentenced as an adult when I 0:04:51.600 --> 0:04:53.720 went to trial. But this is the thing, though, the 0:04:53.760 --> 0:04:55.640 things that we just spoke about, it actually came out 0:04:55.640 --> 0:04:59.800 and trial. The public defender that I had did mention 0:04:59.839 --> 0:05:02.400 it that the guy gave the description of five eleven 0:05:02.400 --> 0:05:05.000 and six foot and I was only four foot eleven. 0:05:05.040 --> 0:05:06.720 And he also mentioned that the guy did not get 0:05:06.760 --> 0:05:12.320 stabbed and had a superficial wound that required a band aid, 0:05:13.440 --> 0:05:17.440 even though the jury was constantly told that this guy 0:05:17.520 --> 0:05:21.279 got stabbed and I was sentence as an adult to 0:05:21.360 --> 0:05:23.440 three and a third to ten years in a juvenile 0:05:23.440 --> 0:05:24.720 maximum secure facility. 0:05:25.279 --> 0:05:27.839 Is it true that your lawyer was drunk at trial? 0:05:28.839 --> 0:05:29.159 Yes? 0:05:29.680 --> 0:05:31.320 And how did that come out? 0:05:31.640 --> 0:05:34.080 Well, I can see he was slurred while he was talking. 0:05:34.880 --> 0:05:36.920 Oh so he was. He was legit drunk. He wasn't 0:05:36.920 --> 0:05:39.760 a little drunk. He was like he was, yeah, okay, 0:05:39.760 --> 0:05:43.039 that's great. I mean, I'm sorry, I just have to 0:05:43.040 --> 0:05:45.239 be sarcastic because if I don't laugh, I'm gonna cry 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:47.320 and this is not of course, that's what I do. 0:05:48.680 --> 0:05:50.920 This is not the first time we've heard this though, 0:05:50.960 --> 0:05:53.280 that a lawyer was drunken trial. So the lawyer was 0:05:53.320 --> 0:05:55.920 drunk a trial. He claimed that he appealed to charge, 0:05:55.960 --> 0:05:58.040 but we know that never even happened. I mean, this 0:05:58.120 --> 0:06:01.840 is this is disgusting, and you lived through this and 0:06:01.880 --> 0:06:05.160 I can't even imagine, Like, and you're a child at 0:06:05.160 --> 0:06:07.920 fourteen years old, they call it a teenager. That's a child. 0:06:08.160 --> 0:06:11.320 So fourteen years old you go to prison, right do 0:06:11.400 --> 0:06:14.120 they call it juvie? But your sentence is an adult? 0:06:14.160 --> 0:06:15.479 And what is that? Like? 0:06:17.040 --> 0:06:22.040 Well, I just say that, I mean you had the 0:06:22.080 --> 0:06:24.839 man up. I mean it was a serious environment. I 0:06:24.839 --> 0:06:26.920 mean all of the other kids that was in these 0:06:27.240 --> 0:06:30.680 juvenile maxes, a majority had you know, like eight the 0:06:30.800 --> 0:06:34.400 life and stuff like that. And you know, you're away 0:06:34.440 --> 0:06:36.840 from family, you can't be around your loved ones. 0:06:36.960 --> 0:06:40.040 And I mean at fourteen, a lot of kids have 0:06:40.080 --> 0:06:41.640 trouble adjusting the summer camp. 0:06:41.839 --> 0:06:43.640 I was putting the jungle when I had to survive 0:06:43.680 --> 0:06:45.800 in it. So you know that week get took an 0:06:45.800 --> 0:06:49.000 advantage of you know, and I'm not a weak person, 0:06:49.160 --> 0:06:51.520 so I mean it was a lot of fighting, and 0:06:51.560 --> 0:06:53.600 there was a lot of stress. It was depression, it 0:06:53.680 --> 0:06:55.920 was all kind of stuff you know that comes with 0:06:56.080 --> 0:06:59.800 the problems of being incarcerated period. And then as a kid, 0:06:59.880 --> 0:07:01.840 it was like, you know, I needed to be home, 0:07:01.880 --> 0:07:04.200 I needed to be around family and loved ones and 0:07:04.279 --> 0:07:07.520 you know, being deprived of that love and you know 0:07:07.560 --> 0:07:09.760 I made it through it. I just have a different attitude. 0:07:09.760 --> 0:07:11.120 I want you, I just want to say that that 0:07:11.800 --> 0:07:13.560 even though I was victimized, I don't live like a 0:07:13.640 --> 0:07:15.760 victim because I know that you re victim I yourself 0:07:15.760 --> 0:07:17.680 every day if you allow your thoughts to stay there. 0:07:18.280 --> 0:07:20.720 So that's why my attitude is more passive of saying, like, 0:07:20.840 --> 0:07:22.680 you know, I did what I had to do when 0:07:22.760 --> 0:07:24.080 I went through what I went through. 0:07:25.400 --> 0:07:27.120 I did what I had to do, and I went 0:07:27.160 --> 0:07:29.200 through what I went through. But I think everybody can 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:32.680 use to hear that. So thank you for sharing that. So, Chante, 0:07:32.720 --> 0:07:37.840 you're parole at nineteen, you're out free, still under control 0:07:37.880 --> 0:07:41.080 of the system because you're on parole, but you started 0:07:41.080 --> 0:07:45.120 a family. Life is starting to look up. But then 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:49.400 tragedy struck again, right, and this goes back to when 0:07:50.200 --> 0:07:53.840 you well, you were actually on your way to the 0:07:53.920 --> 0:07:56.320 hospital when this incident happened. 0:07:56.360 --> 0:07:59.480 Right, Yes, my daughter was more the day before. I 0:07:59.480 --> 0:08:01.360 couldn't stay in the hospital because I was on parole, 0:08:01.960 --> 0:08:04.040 so she wanted me to come to the hospital the 0:08:04.080 --> 0:08:06.760 next day. I was actually at my cousin's house. I 0:08:06.800 --> 0:08:10.280 left out of the house and as soon as I 0:08:10.320 --> 0:08:15.520 closed the passenger door, two guns went off. I was 0:08:15.560 --> 0:08:20.080 shot twice. They collapsed both my lungs, my ribs was broke, 0:08:20.120 --> 0:08:21.480 and I ended up in critical condition. 0:08:21.920 --> 0:08:23.600 And you were taken to the same hospital that your 0:08:23.640 --> 0:08:24.240 daughter was at. 0:08:24.400 --> 0:08:27.520 No. I was rushed to every county medical center, and 0:08:27.640 --> 0:08:30.920 a security officer testified actually at the parole preliminary hearing 0:08:30.920 --> 0:08:33.040 that the car put up the driver said the passenger 0:08:33.080 --> 0:08:35.240 was shot him and three nurses ran up to the car. 0:08:35.440 --> 0:08:37.920 They said I was slumped in the seat. They put 0:08:37.960 --> 0:08:39.440 me out of the car. See how many times I 0:08:39.480 --> 0:08:41.600 was shot. Then they put me on a stretcher pushed 0:08:41.640 --> 0:08:44.600 me into the hospital. Then later on they assumed that 0:08:44.760 --> 0:08:47.880 somebody was breaking into the car and they ran over 0:08:47.880 --> 0:08:49.120 to the car and they seen a gun in the 0:08:49.160 --> 0:08:52.400 car that was in the seat that allegedly I was 0:08:52.400 --> 0:08:52.800 sitting in. 0:08:53.840 --> 0:08:57.080 Right, I remember reading, they found a gun in the 0:08:57.120 --> 0:08:59.720 car and tried to pin it on you, and then 0:09:00.040 --> 0:09:04.040 nine months of more legal struggles and your life hanging 0:09:04.080 --> 0:09:07.079 in the balance again. Of course, charges in that case 0:09:07.120 --> 0:09:10.880 were dismissed, but your troubles weren't even over yet. Now 0:09:10.920 --> 0:09:14.600 we get to Kurtel Walker. Can you tell us about 0:09:14.679 --> 0:09:16.240 Kurtel and who he was to you? 0:09:16.800 --> 0:09:20.079 Well, Kurteil was a trouble youth. He had a lot 0:09:20.080 --> 0:09:22.680 of mens abilities, you know, he had a similar situation 0:09:22.840 --> 0:09:25.360 like his mom was on drugs and stuff like that. 0:09:25.400 --> 0:09:28.319 And I was actually working for a youth organization that 0:09:28.480 --> 0:09:30.720 was ranan by this older gentleman named fred A lamin 0:09:31.320 --> 0:09:33.720 riused to help the troubled youth, you know, to prevent 0:09:33.720 --> 0:09:35.760 them from making bad decisions and stuff like that. So 0:09:35.840 --> 0:09:38.440 Kurteil was one of them that was basically, you know, 0:09:38.520 --> 0:09:39.960 participating in the programs. 0:09:40.600 --> 0:09:43.520 So you were sort of keeping an eye on Kurtel, 0:09:43.640 --> 0:09:46.000 Is that right, Like trying to keep him out of trouble, 0:09:46.040 --> 0:09:48.120 even though he was selling weed. And you know, by 0:09:48.160 --> 0:09:50.600 the way, a lot of people are selling weed now, 0:09:50.800 --> 0:09:53.040 I mean it's like the people are getting rich off 0:09:53.040 --> 0:09:56.760 of weed legally, So that's a whole nother story. But okay, 0:09:56.840 --> 0:09:58.719 so you were trying to sort of be almost like 0:09:58.760 --> 0:10:00.319 a big brother to him, right, Yeah, I was. 0:10:00.360 --> 0:10:01.559 I mean I was a big brother to a lot 0:10:01.600 --> 0:10:03.320 of the kids because a lot of them, you know, 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:05.679 grew up fast being into the streets, doing a lot 0:10:05.720 --> 0:10:07.680 of things they wasn't supposed to be doing. So, yes, 0:10:07.720 --> 0:10:08.920 she was one of the kids. 0:10:09.880 --> 0:10:13.400 And now we fast forward to June twenty eight, two 0:10:13.440 --> 0:10:16.920 thousand and four, and correct me if I'm wrong, But 0:10:16.960 --> 0:10:20.440 the way I understand that you and your children's mother, Marina, 0:10:20.640 --> 0:10:23.120 and this is an important part of the story because 0:10:23.480 --> 0:10:26.080 Marina is white, and we know that there's a cop 0:10:26.120 --> 0:10:29.199 who gets involved in this, and people are saying that 0:10:29.280 --> 0:10:31.520 it's because he didn't like the fact that you were 0:10:31.520 --> 0:10:34.120 a black guy dating a white girl or avage kids 0:10:34.120 --> 0:10:34.320 with her. 0:10:34.640 --> 0:10:38.880 Nonetheless, yes, Officer Brown had prior problems with them. 0:10:38.960 --> 0:10:43.840 And you were celebrating your birthday, right, yes, right, So 0:10:44.200 --> 0:10:45.880 June twenty eight, two thousand and four, you and the 0:10:45.880 --> 0:10:48.600 Marina celebrating your birthday going to six Flags and Darien 0:10:48.679 --> 0:10:51.600 Lake in her car. Your friend Tina's driving, and Kurtel 0:10:51.720 --> 0:10:55.760 was along for the ride. Yes, And so Tina had 0:10:55.800 --> 0:10:59.360 an errand to run before you went to pick up 0:10:59.480 --> 0:11:01.840 your daughter for this little day trip. Right, and the 0:11:02.040 --> 0:11:05.000 erin happened to be right near a rent a center. 0:11:05.360 --> 0:11:11.040 Unbeknownst to you, one of Kurtel's customers owed him twenty 0:11:11.040 --> 0:11:12.080 five hundred dollars for weed. 0:11:12.200 --> 0:11:16.280 Right, Yes, the manager of the Renaiscenter store. His job 0:11:16.600 --> 0:11:19.160 was to fill out the receipts and stuff like that 0:11:19.280 --> 0:11:22.080 and to put the stuff into the bank deposit bags. 0:11:22.160 --> 0:11:24.760 Then additionally take the deposit bags to the M and 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:28.240 T bank that was located in the same plaza. But 0:11:28.280 --> 0:11:31.319 instead of him doing that, he established a plan where 0:11:31.320 --> 0:11:34.120 he would pay Kurtail the money that he owed him. 0:11:34.440 --> 0:11:37.040 So the manager put the money that he owed Kurtail 0:11:37.160 --> 0:11:39.839 in the bag, had Kurtail meet him, and then gave 0:11:39.920 --> 0:11:43.079 Kurtail the bag, and then later on faked as if 0:11:43.200 --> 0:11:45.240 Kurtail had actually robbed him because he had to have 0:11:45.240 --> 0:11:47.240 a way to cover up what he did. 0:11:47.400 --> 0:11:48.920 Right because sooner or later they would have noticed the 0:11:48.960 --> 0:11:51.280 twenty five hud dollars missing, obviously, so they staged this 0:11:51.360 --> 0:11:54.360 fake robbery. Again. It's like something out of a bad movie. 0:11:54.640 --> 0:11:58.320 But okay, So back to the car before picking up 0:11:58.360 --> 0:12:01.520 your daughter and heading the six flag, Tina stopped to 0:12:01.600 --> 0:12:04.600 run an errand near the rent to center, Tina went. 0:12:04.520 --> 0:12:07.679 To the store. I was sleeping the back seat, and 0:12:07.840 --> 0:12:11.240 Curtail told her listen, I'll be right back and hopped 0:12:11.280 --> 0:12:14.120 out of the car and left, so no one in 0:12:14.160 --> 0:12:16.760 the car knew what he was doing. When Tina came 0:12:16.840 --> 0:12:19.480 out of the store, Curtail was not back and we 0:12:19.480 --> 0:12:23.560 was about to leave him, so she put off. Curtail 0:12:23.600 --> 0:12:26.640 came running to scream stop the car, so Tina put over. 0:12:26.960 --> 0:12:29.520 Curtail came and hopped in the car and Tina in 0:12:29.559 --> 0:12:31.400 them sat there for a while. I think one of 0:12:31.440 --> 0:12:33.640 them thought that they had misplaced their keys or something, 0:12:33.679 --> 0:12:36.440 so they set there for a while. And that's when 0:12:36.520 --> 0:12:39.280 the guy, Edward Dupre, who just happened to be walking 0:12:39.320 --> 0:12:42.520 down the street, said that he thought something criminal happened 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:45.480 when he's seen the way that Curtail ran and screamed 0:12:45.520 --> 0:12:47.840 to stop the car, and when the car remained idle, 0:12:48.160 --> 0:12:50.360 that he walked directly by the car, wrote the license 0:12:50.360 --> 0:12:52.679 plate number down and got a good look in the 0:12:52.720 --> 0:12:54.960 car and said that he's seeing the two females and 0:12:55.040 --> 0:12:57.680 Kurtail walker. But I was in the car, but he 0:12:57.679 --> 0:12:59.040 didn't see me in the car because I was sleeping 0:12:59.080 --> 0:13:02.240 in the back seat. Oh that's how that happened. 0:13:02.679 --> 0:13:05.920 And did you have any idea of all the insanity 0:13:05.960 --> 0:13:07.080 that was taking place? 0:13:07.480 --> 0:13:09.960 I did not, because I mean, you have to understand this, Jason, 0:13:10.480 --> 0:13:14.000 I got a pregnant girlfriend in the car. I'm on parole, 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:19.080 I'm working. Of course, I would never have been around 0:13:19.120 --> 0:13:22.640 something like that. So I did not know what Kurtail 0:13:22.679 --> 0:13:25.600 Walker had did. And this was another thing that you 0:13:25.640 --> 0:13:29.439 know that came out in the transcripts. If the individuals, 0:13:29.480 --> 0:13:32.760 even if you have stupid criminals, okay, it's no way 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:35.480 in the world that a car of criminals is going 0:13:35.520 --> 0:13:39.080 to sit less than a street away from where a 0:13:39.160 --> 0:13:40.559 fake robbery transpired. 0:13:41.080 --> 0:13:44.080 It defies all logic and common sense. You're not going 0:13:44.160 --> 0:13:46.400 to sit around and wait to get in trouble or 0:13:46.400 --> 0:13:49.520 get arrested or whatever it is. So the manager calls 0:13:49.640 --> 0:13:53.480 nine to one to one and then things go downhill 0:13:53.480 --> 0:13:53.920 from there. 0:13:54.240 --> 0:13:56.760 The guy Edward Deprido was walking through when he said 0:13:56.800 --> 0:13:59.320 that he wrote the license plate number down. When the 0:13:59.360 --> 0:14:01.960 police put up to the crime scene, he gave the 0:14:02.000 --> 0:14:05.600 police the license plate number. That's when the APB got 0:14:05.640 --> 0:14:07.840 put out for Marina's car. 0:14:08.160 --> 0:14:14.160 And then here comes this officer who becomes your tormentor. 0:14:14.840 --> 0:14:16.640 But it starts with him spotting the car. 0:14:16.920 --> 0:14:19.560 So we got off the interstate and Officer Brown was 0:14:19.680 --> 0:14:23.680 shooting radar. He began to follow Marina's car. We put 0:14:23.720 --> 0:14:26.160 in our driveway and Pheasant run. At this time, I 0:14:26.200 --> 0:14:28.560 was living in Amherst when I had prior problem with 0:14:28.680 --> 0:14:33.680 Officer Brown. Officer Brown performs a felony stop after he 0:14:33.760 --> 0:14:36.040 calls for backup. It was a lot of Amherst police 0:14:36.040 --> 0:14:39.720 that was immediately there. Officer Brown comes to me, throw 0:14:39.800 --> 0:14:42.160 me on the ground, handcuff me on my hands behind 0:14:42.200 --> 0:14:46.160 my back, search me. Find absolutely nothing on me because 0:14:46.160 --> 0:14:49.040 I did not have anything place me in the police car. 0:14:49.520 --> 0:14:54.520 The other officers, you know, check search everybody else. Walker 0:14:54.560 --> 0:14:57.560 said that he did not have handcuffs on. Walker actually 0:14:57.600 --> 0:15:00.760 took the bank deposit bags and hid it in his 0:15:00.800 --> 0:15:04.000 boxer briefs, which makes sense that the officers is not 0:15:04.080 --> 0:15:07.880 checking your area, you know. So they didn't find any 0:15:07.880 --> 0:15:10.000 of the stolen items that Kurteil had on him. 0:15:10.280 --> 0:15:13.200 They also put Marina, who as you said, was pregnant, 0:15:13.200 --> 0:15:15.360 on the ground, and the cops need her on the 0:15:15.560 --> 0:15:17.440 neck right on the pavement. 0:15:17.480 --> 0:15:19.200 No, they had their knee on her back. And then 0:15:19.200 --> 0:15:23.280 her mother ran outside with my daughter in her hand 0:15:23.480 --> 0:15:25.680 and went up and the police officers aimed the gun 0:15:25.680 --> 0:15:27.440 at her mother and told her to back up, and 0:15:27.720 --> 0:15:31.560 her mother was screaming, she's pregnant, she's pregnant Oflficer Brown 0:15:31.680 --> 0:15:35.000 then had Marina to sign a waiver and he went 0:15:35.080 --> 0:15:38.720 and searched her car. When he searched her car, he 0:15:38.840 --> 0:15:42.000 found the two purses that belonged to Marina and Tina 0:15:42.080 --> 0:15:45.120 that was in the front seat. Alficter Brown then took 0:15:45.200 --> 0:15:48.240 money out of both of those purses. Then he came back. 0:15:48.720 --> 0:15:52.760 He transported me in patrol car one o seven. Because 0:15:52.800 --> 0:15:56.840 these numbers are very very important reference to the fabrication 0:15:56.920 --> 0:16:00.240 of evidence. He transported me in his patrol car, which 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:04.000 was Amherst patrol car one o seven, to the crime scene. 0:16:04.160 --> 0:16:07.200 He brought me out of the car. The fake victim 0:16:07.440 --> 0:16:10.040 manager came out and said, no, that's not him. He 0:16:10.200 --> 0:16:13.840 got Kurtail Walker out of Amherst patrol car one oh five. 0:16:14.040 --> 0:16:17.400 He didn't identify him as well. He then went and 0:16:17.480 --> 0:16:20.440 searched the patrol car that Kurtil Walker was in patrol 0:16:20.440 --> 0:16:24.400 car one o five found two thousand dollars that Kurtail 0:16:24.440 --> 0:16:28.600 Walker had took out of his pants. Now, based upon 0:16:28.680 --> 0:16:31.520 the testimony, Kurtail Walker said that he hid two thousand 0:16:31.560 --> 0:16:34.160 dollars at the back of patrol car one oh five 0:16:34.520 --> 0:16:37.480 and he had eighty eight dollars in his pocket. Officer 0:16:37.520 --> 0:16:40.920 Brown then made Kurtail Walker kick off his shoes and 0:16:40.960 --> 0:16:45.320 he recovered deposit bags, audit slips, and receipts that belonged 0:16:45.360 --> 0:16:49.360 to the renn A Center. So, after Thomas Brown recovered 0:16:49.360 --> 0:16:51.880 the checks, the deposit bags, and the money from Kurtail Walker, 0:16:52.400 --> 0:16:54.000 he then got back at the police car that I 0:16:54.080 --> 0:16:58.840 was in transported me to Buffalo Police headquarters. And based 0:16:58.920 --> 0:17:01.720 upon the transcript, Officer Thomas Brown stayed the Buffalo Police 0:17:01.760 --> 0:17:06.440 Headquarters for about two hours while the Buffalo Police officers 0:17:06.440 --> 0:17:10.960 conducted the investigation. So Officer Brown then asked me that 0:17:11.040 --> 0:17:13.800 I have any information about the criminals and am hearst 0:17:13.800 --> 0:17:16.240 and that if I gave him information then I wouldn't 0:17:16.240 --> 0:17:19.920 have to worry about a parole violation. And I told him, yes, 0:17:20.000 --> 0:17:22.199 I have information. You should take your handcuffs out and 0:17:22.240 --> 0:17:28.200 rest yourself. Officer Brown became very angry, and he started saying, 0:17:28.200 --> 0:17:30.240 you know, you nigger, this that and the third, ou't 0:17:30.320 --> 0:17:32.320 make sure you never get out of jail, and this, 0:17:32.400 --> 0:17:36.640 that and the third, and you know he went above 0:17:36.680 --> 0:17:38.840 and beyond after that, I'll say. 0:17:38.640 --> 0:17:43.119 That now they brought Kurtel into it, right, And so 0:17:43.160 --> 0:17:47.760 they interrogate Kurtel, who couldn't read or write, and under 0:17:47.960 --> 0:17:50.880 physical duress and under pressure of a twenty five year 0:17:51.000 --> 0:17:56.359 sentence and he was underage, they got him to sign 0:17:56.400 --> 0:17:59.280 a statement that again he couldn't have understood because he 0:17:59.280 --> 0:18:03.360 couldn't read, and say that you had planned the robbery 0:18:03.800 --> 0:18:06.040 and that he just was sort of went along with 0:18:06.080 --> 0:18:07.320 it and gave you the money. 0:18:07.119 --> 0:18:09.679 Right, Kurtail Walker. On the day of the incident, the 0:18:09.760 --> 0:18:12.399 officers basically slapped him around and did all of the 0:18:12.440 --> 0:18:15.359 stuff to him. Right, So the officer that prepared the report, 0:18:15.480 --> 0:18:18.560 Detective Mark Joseph Lauber, first of all, I will say 0:18:18.640 --> 0:18:21.560 that he got caught up in some racist stuff. I 0:18:21.640 --> 0:18:24.280 actually have the New York Times article. He got caught 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.000 up in some racial text messages and stuff and killed 0:18:27.000 --> 0:18:28.879 a black guy and said that the guy aimed the 0:18:28.880 --> 0:18:30.920 gun at him and the gun got found on the roof. 0:18:31.320 --> 0:18:33.919 So this is not you know, a good police officer. 0:18:34.000 --> 0:18:35.159 Let me put it like that, even though he was 0:18:35.200 --> 0:18:37.479 able to beat these charges. Okay, now he's the one 0:18:37.560 --> 0:18:40.600 that was in the room with Kurtail that prepared the statement. 0:18:41.040 --> 0:18:43.959 Kurtil could not read, so you know, they threatened him 0:18:44.000 --> 0:18:46.320 and told his grandmother listen, if he do not sign 0:18:46.320 --> 0:18:48.440 this statement, he's gonna get twenty five years in jail. 0:18:48.480 --> 0:18:51.800 He needs to sign a statement. So the statement still 0:18:51.840 --> 0:18:54.200 stated that it wasn't a robbery. Though this is the thing, 0:18:54.240 --> 0:18:56.280 they just added my name in there. Kurtail still let 0:18:56.359 --> 0:18:58.080 him know, like listen, you know the guy gave him 0:18:58.080 --> 0:19:01.400 the money. So the very next day, when we got 0:19:01.400 --> 0:19:04.280 out on Bill, I was informed that my name was 0:19:04.320 --> 0:19:06.600 in a statement, and I was very upset. I was 0:19:06.800 --> 0:19:09.679 very upset. So the families all had a meeting, his 0:19:09.720 --> 0:19:12.879 family's grandmother, mother, father, everybody had a meeting, and that's 0:19:12.920 --> 0:19:15.200 when Kurtil told them, like, listen, this is the truth. 0:19:15.280 --> 0:19:17.479 You know the guy owe him money and that you know, 0:19:18.160 --> 0:19:20.000 basically I had no knowledge of it, nothing to do 0:19:20.040 --> 0:19:22.600 with it, and neither did the girls. So the grandmother 0:19:23.240 --> 0:19:27.200 takes Kurtail to Buffalo police station. The very next day 0:19:27.680 --> 0:19:30.399 and tells the officers, listen, Kurtil Walker wants to confess. 0:19:30.440 --> 0:19:33.280 My grandson wants to confess, to tell y'all exactly what happened, 0:19:33.280 --> 0:19:36.840 because he just told us exactly what happened. The officers 0:19:37.040 --> 0:19:41.600 refused to take the confession and documented in a police 0:19:41.640 --> 0:19:45.160 report and say, Kurtil Walker came in here the next 0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:47.840 day to the Major Crimes unit, told us that the 0:19:47.920 --> 0:19:50.080 first statement was false and that he wanted to recent 0:19:50.200 --> 0:19:53.200 the involvement of ricks and we told him to leave 0:19:53.240 --> 0:19:55.159 and have a nice day, and the officers wouldn't even 0:19:55.200 --> 0:19:57.679 take the confession from him. And I actually have the 0:19:57.680 --> 0:20:00.119 police reports to prove every single thing. You know what 0:20:00.160 --> 0:20:00.560 I'm saying. 0:20:01.640 --> 0:20:06.000 Now they start fudging more of the evidence, right because 0:20:06.040 --> 0:20:09.600 in order to charge you with a felony, they had 0:20:09.640 --> 0:20:13.560 to have over three thousand dollars that was stolen, right, 0:20:13.800 --> 0:20:17.200 And they've got all these disparate amounts of money. They've 0:20:17.240 --> 0:20:20.280 got the money that they actually stole from the girl's 0:20:20.440 --> 0:20:23.840 purses was fourteen hundred. Then they've got the two thousand 0:20:23.880 --> 0:20:26.600