Kenny in line for millions of pounds in compensation

Published on Thursday 27 January 2005 13:36

KENNY RICHEY could be in line for millions of pounds in compensation after his murder conviction was quashed by a United States judge.

Under Ohio state rules, the Edinburgh-born 40-year-old will be entitled to make a claim for a huge pay-out - including the reimbursement of legal fees and payment for false imprisonment - providing the quashing of his conviction is not overturned.

Kenny, who has been behind bars in the US for 18 years to the day, has been encouraged by relatives and friends to push for compensation as soon as he is back on Scottish soil.

He could be a free man in less than three months, as he must now be retried within 90 days or set free because he received incompetent counsel at trial.

But prosecutors have indicated they are considering appealing against the judge’s decision or ordering a retrial.

It is thought likely they will only agree to release Richey without a fight if he accepts a plea bargain and admit a lesser charge.

Richey has always refused any attempts at plea bargaining, even turning down one during his trial which would have seen him released seven years ago. His lawyer has said that he is determined to prove his innocence and will not plead guilty to anything.

That means Richey looks increasingly likely to be stuck behind bars in Ohio for several months more.

The Ohio Attorney General’s office today said it was disappointed with Tuesday’s decision.

Kim Norris, a spokeswoman for the office, said: "We are disappointed in the ruling. A three-judge panel, the Ohio Court of Appeals, Ohio Supreme Court and the Federal District Court all agree the evidence against Kenny proved his guilt in committing this terrible crime that killed two-year old Cynthia Collins.

"At least three people heard him threaten to burn down the building and Kenny admitted to one person after the fire that he set it. Ohio law allowed for the death penalty based on these facts."

The Attorney General can either ask for a full court review at the US 6th Circuit Court of Appeal, or appeal directly to the Supreme Court.

Kenny was on death row in Ohio after being convicted of killing a two-year-old girl in an arson attack in 1986.

His 60-year-old mother, Eileen, who lives in Orwell Terrace, Dalry, today said she believed her son should be reimbursed for his time in jail.

"I don’t know if he’ll want to do it, but I would certainly encourage him to go for some kind of compensation after they have taken so much of his life away from him," she said. "But the decision will be up to him.

"We are just thrilled at the result, because this was his last chance."

If Kenny’s conviction is overturned, it opens the door to a multi-million pound lawsuit against the state of Ohio for wrongful imprisonment.

In recent years, similar miscarriages of justice have generated pay-outs of up to 3.2 million.

If successful in a claim, the very least Kenny would stand to receive would be 385,000, or 21,000 for every year he spent in jail.

But he may also be able to claim for the loss of potential income that directly resulted from his wrongful imprisonment, as well as forcing the state to pay his legal fees - estimated to be more than 530,000.

Amnesty International, which described the case as "one of the most compelling cases of apparent innocence that human rights campaigners have ever come across", said compensation was not the first thing on Kenny’s mind, but that it had been discussed. A spokesman said today: "I have spoken to his partner, Karen Richey, and their objective is to get Kenny home to Scotland.

"Only then will they begin to think properly about compensation, because there is so much else to do first.

"However, it should be pointed out that Kenny has suffered an enormous trauma through all this."

John McManus, of Mojo (Miscarriages of Justice Organisation) Scotland, said he had been campaigning for Kenny’s release for more than ten years. He added: "I’m over the moon with the news, and we just have to hope that they don’t push for retrial.

"However, I’m worried about the psychological effect of 18 years in prison on Kenny. What he will need is a lot of support and Mojo will be offering that.

"He will certainly be entitled to compensation after what he has been through, and he may end up suing his defence team who let him down so badly."

Amnesty International today pressed ahead with a vigil for Kenny outside the Capital’s US consulate.

Students from Edinburgh University’s Amnesty International group joined lobbyists, politicians and Kenny’s partner, Karen, to petition the consulate against the use of the death penalty in the US.

Rosemary Burnett, programme director at Amnesty International in Scotland, said: "We feel that we still need to put pressure on Ohio not to appeal the judgement of the federal court and to release Kenny as soon as possible."

Boston-based lawyer Kenneth Parsigian has conducted Kenny’s appeals since 1993.

Since he was first sentenced to death in 1986, a total of 12 appeals failed to secure his release.

But by a two-to-one majority, judges on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati ruled Kenny’s original legal team committed fundamental errors during the 1986 trial in which he was found guilty of murdering his former girlfriend’s daughter, Cynthia Collins, by setting fire to her family home.

The appeal court ruling said the handling of the case in the trial "undermined our confidence in the reliability of Kenny’s conviction and sentence".

The state now has 14 days to appeal, and experts are divided on whether this is a likely scenario.

Over the past 18 years some of the original witnesses have died, others have reversed their testimony, and discredited forensic evidence has weakened any case against Kenny.

Mr Parsigian said his client is still on death row while he waits for a response from the state.

"If they do seek rehearing, we hope the court will act promptly. The vast majority of such requests are denied, but there is no way to know for sure."

Kenny’s mother said she did not believe the state would move for a re-trial.

"I cannot see that happening," she said. "They do have that option but the lawyers do not believe that is likely to happen.

"We will all just try and put this behind us now, although for Kenny I don’t know whether he will be able to."