2005
Having served 15 years, Mr. Deskovic went before the parole board. It was noted that he was a model inmate with letters of support, including one from a prison employee. However, he was denied because he contended his innocence by way of the negative DNA results from an FBI crime lab, and other facts of the case. The parole board’s decision noted that to grant parole after only 15 years would be to “lessen the seriousness” of the crime.
2006
The Innocence Project takes the case because of the heroic deeds of Maggie Taylor, an intake worker who convinced decision-makers in the organization, and Claudia Whitman, an investigator from Maine who Mr. Deskovic reached during his 4 years of letter writing. While Ms.Taylor worked from the inside, presenting Jeff’s case three times after the Project’s lawyers rejected it, Ms. Whitman lobbied from the outside with the help of several respected legal entities.
With new and competent legal representation and Jeanine Pirro out of office, new Westchester DA Janet DiFiore permits DNA testing. The result is that Steven Cunningham, who committed another murder via strangulation 3 ½ years after Mr. Deskovic’s incarceration, confessed. With the DA’s consent, Mr. Deskovic is exonerated.
His release from prison happens towards the end of Pirro’s campaign for NY Attorney General, causing a smattering of coverage as to her role in his case. Her opponent, current New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo, referenced the Deskovic tragedy in his debates with Pirro.
