CBS News New York A retired New York City police detective continued to refuse to comment Monday about a review of cases associated with him by the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office.
As CBS 2’s John Slattery reported, the review of cases handled by retired Detective Louis Scarcella began after a high-profile 1990 murder case he investigated was thrown out.The defendant in the case had been convicted and served 23 years in prison.
Outside his Staten Island home, Scarcella declined to comment to CBS 2 for the second day.
“”I have no comment,” he said.
Scarcella, 61, who retired in 1999, appeared on the Dr. Phil show in 2007. The issue was the psychology of false confessions.
“Are there rule when it comes to homicide?” Dr. Phil asked.
“No, there are no rules,” Scarcella replied. “I will do whatever I have to, within the law, to get a confession.”
In March, one of Scarcella’s targets, David Ranta, was freed after spending 23 years in prison in the killing of a Brooklyn Rabbi Chaskel Werzberger. The conviction was vacated.
The defense blamed detectives with fabricating evidence and coaching witnesses. In March, Scarcella spoke.
“I stand by the confession. I stand by the case,” Scarcella said. He denied coaching witnesses.
The very day after he was released, Ranta suffered a massive heart attack. The office of Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes has now confirmed it’s looking into approximately 50 of Scarcella’s cases, over which he seemed a bit rattled.
“Could you get off my property, please?” Scarcella said as CBS 2 tried to ask him questions Monday.
Now the DA is looking into questionable convictions beyond the case of David Ranta.
“My office has known about Louis Scarcella, his partner, and their chain of command for some time, so this revelation comes as no surprise to us. We have been investigating several wrongful convictions that were the result of his police work,” said Pierre Sussman, Ranta’s lawyer.
The question is prosecutorial misconduct, which cases Detective Scarcella handled, and whether there are any other cases of wrongful convictions.
The attorney for former Ranta, who had an operation following his heart attack in March, was supposed to have another procedure last week. It had to be postponed because Ranta has no health insurance, according to his lawyer.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/05/13/retired-detective-refuses-to-comment-as-da-probes-his-cases/
Officers and district attorneys should serve the sentences inflicted on those they knew were innocent. Then the crimes of police of putting innocents in jail will stop.
Unfortunately this system has very often rewarded the district attorneys and cops doing this crime because of the business it generates. Everyone is a possible innocent patsy, if this type of crime is not punished.
yes exactly, anyone within the judicial system that knowingly puts someone in jail on trumped up charges or manufactured evidence should be forced to do some time themselves, why is it not like this allready?
It’s called communism.
“Probing my case” sounds more like getting rear-ended by a Ford Probe. Ouch!
“Guilty until proven innocent”!