The use of junk science in the courtroom is truly a Texas-sized injustice. With convictions resulting from the use of dog scent lineups, flawed arson science, and other forms of faulty scientific evidence, our organization has organized a campaign to exonerate those who have suffered wrongful convictions at the hands of these practices. Click here to learn more.
Timothy Cole
A recent opinion issued by the Attorney General cleared the way for Governor Perry to issue Texas's first posthumous pardon to Timothy Cole, who was exonerated by the Innocence Project of Texas in 2009. Click here to learn more about Tim's case and his pardon.
Statewide DNA Case Review
The State of Texas leads the nation with more than 40 DNA exonerations on record. Our organization is currently conducting a statewide review of cases where DNA evidence could prove a defendant's innocence. Click here to learn more about our work on DNA cases.
Featured Exoneration Timothy Cole: A Tragic Story Begets Hope for the Future
On April 7, 2009 the Innocence Project of Texas was successful in obtaining the exoneration of Timothy Cole, the first person in Texas history to be formally cleared of a crime after his death. He passed away in prison while serving a 25-year sentence for rape. He maintained his innocence until the end, hoping that one day he would receive vindication and a pardon from the Texas Governor.
Tim’s case is entirely unique in the annals of Texas legal history. Not only was it the first time a person was posthumously exonerated, it was also the first time a “Court of Inquiry” was used to seek justice on behalf of an innocent person. In addition, thanks to the bravery and compassion of the crime victim, Tim’s exoneration marked one of the greatest examples of a victim joining in the effort to exonerate someone falsely convicted of a crime in Texas.
This is the story of a brave young man whose life was taken by a broken criminal justice system, but whose legacy has encouraged the implementation of reforms to protect the innocent in Texas and beyond.
The Case Against Tim Cole
During the mid-1980s, the “Tech Rapist” terrorized the Texas Tech University campus. The assailant, an African American male, abducted women in parking lots near campus, drove them to a vacant location outside of the city, and raped them.
The fifth victim, Michele Mallin, was a sophomore at Tech and only 20 years old when she was attacked by the Tech Rapist. Michele was moving her car to a church parking lot across the street from her dormitory when a man approached her and asked for jumper cables. He then forced himself into the driver’s seat and held a knife to her throat as he drove out to a vacant field and assaulted her. After Michele was released by her attacker, she immediately called the police. About two weeks later, she picked Timothy Cole’s photo out of a photo lineup. She then identified him again in a physical lineup.
On September 17, 1986, a jury convicted Timothy Cole of rape and sentenced him to 25 years in prison. Prior to his trial, Tim was offered probation in exchange for a guilty plea, but he refused to admit guilt to a crime he did not commit. During his time in prison, he was offered parole in exchange for admitting his guilt. Again, he refused. On December 2, 1999 Cole died in prison from a massive heart attack caused by an asthmatic condition. He was 39 years old.
The Innocence Project of Texas Investigates
The Innocence Project of Texas (I.P.O.T.) began investigating Cole’s case in 2007 when we received a letter from Jerry Wayne Johnson, a Texas inmate who claimed to have committed the crime. We launched an investigation into the case and met with Johnson in prison. We became convinced that Johnson was responsible for Michele Mallin’s attack, but our suspicions would be difficult to prove absent the use of DNA testing.
In mid-2008, I.P.O.T. received word from a local reporter, Elliot Blackburn, that the Lubbock County District Attorney’s office had not only located physical DNA evidence from the case, but that they had also tested that evidence. This DNA test revealed what we knew all along: Jerry Wayne Johnson was Michele Mallin’s attacker, not Timothy Cole.
At that time, I.P.O.T. began a relentless effort to clear Tim’s name once and for all. Our attorneys and student law clerks initiated an extensive review of offense reports, trial records, news accounts, and other information necessary to piecing together the story of Tim’s arrest and conviction. A Texas Tech law student, Sarah Hegi, reached out to Tim’s family and began a relationship that remains strong to this day. She also contacted the crime victim, Michele Mallin, who decided to join in I.P.O.T.’s efforts to clear Tim’s name.
Timothy Cole is Exonerated
In order to win Timothy Cole’s exoneration, I.P.O.T. needed to devise a plan that would allow our organization to raise the innocence claim of a deceased defendant. Since ordinary remedies of post-conviction relief are only available to the living, this required an incredible level of creativity on the part of Jeff Blackburn, Chief Counsel and founder of I.P.O.T. He devised a plan to use a little known part of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure called a “Court of Inquiry” in order to obtain a hearing on Tim’s innocence. Although a Lubbock court denied Cole’s original Court of Inquiry motion, the strategy eventually worked in a Travis County courtroom located just down the road from the Texas capital.
Judge Charlie Baird, of the 299th district court in Austin, agreed to hear the case. On February 5th and 6th, I.P.O.T was joined by Innocence Project attorney Barry Scheck to present evidence and testimony from experts and witnesses demonstrating that Tim was not the man who attacked Michele Mallin. At the culmination of that hearing, Judge Baird declared that Tim was 100% factually innocent of the crime for which he was convicted. On April 7, 2009, Judge Baird released his official opinion, including a detailed overview of the factors leading to Tim’s wrongful conviction and the reforms the legislature could pass in order to reduce the number of wrongful convictions in the state.
Tim’s Legacy
Although Tim’s death was a travesty of justice, it was not in vain. Two pieces of important legislation passed by the 81st Texas legislature were named in his honor. The Tim Cole Compensation Act is the most generous exoneree compensation statute in the nation. The legislature also created the Timothy Cole Advisory Panel on Wrongful Convictions to investigate the causes of wrongful convictions and to make recommendations on how to prevent them in the future.
We are confident that Tim's story will continue to further the cause of justice and give hope to those incarcerated for crimes they did not commit. For more information about Tim’s exoneration and legacy, please see the documents below.
On March 1, 2010, Timothy Cole became the first person to receive a posthumous pardon from the Texas Governor. Click on the player below to listen to his mother speak to the BBC about the importance of this event to her family.
