Junk Justice and Okie Science Victims

Jeffrey Todd Pierce and Family

A most glaring example of "Junk Justice and Okie Science" is the remarkable case of Jeffrey Todd Pierce. This case is highly remarkable owing to the fact that at practically every step through out the history of this case the Oklahoma Criminal Justice System failed miserably at every opportunity and continued to do so for fifteen years while keeping an innocent man in prison and in the process destroying his family.

This case became the focal point for what has become known as the Oklahoma City Police Lab Scandal. A scandal in which forensic chemist Joyce Gilchrist has come under investigation by multiple agencies for providing scientific testimony which has been termed "untrue" and "misleading" by a Federal Judge.

An FBI lab review of a small portion of Gilchrist's testimony indicated that Gilchrist "went beyond the acceptable limits of forensic science or misidentified hair and fibers in at least six criminal cases". The FBI examined the evidence in a total of six of Gilchrist's cases and concluded she got it wrong in all six. One such case being that of Jeffrey Todd Pierce.

The Jeffrey Todd Pierce case began on May 8, 1985 when a woman temporarily residing in Oklahoma City was raped. Events involved and the actions of various parties involved were detailed in a Daily Oklahoman news report dated 5/06/01 and titled, Report expected to clear convict

Key portions of this news reports are presented below in Bold. Editorial comment on the part of the Bubbaworld Editor is presented in Italic:

On May 8, 1985, she was leaving to go to work when she noticed a man looking at her who quickly disappeared into the bushes. She thought the man was holding a yard tool, so she assumed he worked at the apartment complex.

When she returned to her apartment about noon, she discovered a window had been broken and the apartment was in disarray. Her attacker appeared from another room, threatening her with a knife and overpowering her.

The victim thought her attacker was the same man she had seen outside her apartment earlier that day. Pierce was a groundskeeper at the apartment complex and working the day of the attack.

Up to this point the details of the incident as reported in the referenced article would suggest that the apartment groundskeeper was a likely suspect. However, the following casts grievous doubts:

The patrol officer who first responded that day pointed out Pierce to the victim while she was sitting in the squad car. He asked her if there was any possibility Pierce was the attacker. She replied, "I don't think so."

Keep that "I don't think so." in mind as you read the remainder of this web page.

A detective wrote in a police report two months later that it was his "personal feeling" that the rapist was a maintenance man or groundskeeper.

Pierce, who had no prior criminal history, was arrested 10 months after the attack when the victim did identify him from a photo line-up as the rapist.

On the day of the attack when asked if Mr. Pierce was the attacker, the victim stated "I don't think so.". Two months later a police detective's "personal feeling" dictated it was a maintenance man or groundskeeper and eight months later still the victim decides she was wrong originally and it was Mr. Pierce that raped her.

All we at Bubbaworld could say after reading that was "YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING!"

The referenced news report went on to indicate:

Pierce, then 24, was tried in October 1986 before DNA analysis technology existed. He was identified as the assailant by the victim, who told jurors, "I will never forget his face." Pierce had two witnesses who said he was at lunch with them when the rape occurred.

How does one get from "I don't think so." to "I will never forget his face." without "help", lots of help? And just what party or parties supplied that help?

Further quoting that Daily Oklahoman report:

Gilchrist testified at the trial that 28 scalp hairs and three pubic hairs from the crime scene were all "microscopically consistent" with Pierce's hair. Jurors were told Gilchrist spent six days making the hair comparisons.

Prosecutor Barry Albert drove home the importance of the hair evidence in closing arguments, telling jurors the odds would be "totally astronomical" for Gilchrist to have made a mistake.

In the opinion of the Bubbaworld Editor, the ongoing scandal does nothing but cast Gilchrist as a gross incompetent, willing to say or do anything to please the district attorney's office.

Likewise, it is this writer's opinion that Mr. Albert might have been more truthful had he told the jury that the odds would be "totally astronomical" against Gilchrist getting it correct.

When Mr. Pierce's appeals attorney pointed out to the Oklahoma Appeals Court that Gilchrist had refused the trial judge's order to turn hair samples over to an independent lab for testing, the Oklahoma Appeals Court ruled that Gilchrist absolutely violated that order but refused to order a new trial. The court said the defense had an "equal obligation" to make sure the order was obeyed.

Search as we might, we here at Bubbaworld have failed to find any provision in the Oklahoma Statutes under which a defense attorney can compel a witness to do anything. The defense attorney can file a motion with the court and if the judge issues an order compelling a witness to provide evidence it is up to the court not the defense attorney to hold the witness responsible for their failure to comply. Evidently this fact is lost upon the members of the Oklahoma Appeals Court who are in the opinion of this writer exemplary of the systemic failures of the criminal justice system in the state.

There were several other startling revelations contained within that Daily Oklahoman report. We at Bubbaworld urge you to read the full reports and consider the repeated failures revealed therein. Failures which ultimately led to Mr. Pierce's conviction and 65 year sentence. A conviction which in hindsight resulted in the following comment from Mr. Roy D. Orr, one of the Pierce jurors:

"I feel like I was part of a scam. The evidence wasn't correct and we counted on the police department and forensic specialists to be honest and truthful, and that wasn't the case".

"I feel like everyone was done an injustice, especially Jeffrey. He was very young. His wife was very young and they had little babies. Where would he have been if this wouldn't have happened?"

While we at Bubbaworld can not "blame" Mr. Orr for being duped by the Oklahoma District Attorney's office and its so-called "forensic chemist", we urge anyone that might ever be called to jury duty to remember the words of Mr. Orr for they are the words of wisdom learned the hard way and at the expense of Mr. Pierce, his family and justice itself.

On August 29th, 2001 both the Tulsa World and the Daily Oklahoman carried reports of an announcement from Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation revealing the evidence used to falsely convict Jeffrey Todd Pierce matches the DNA profile of a prison inmate now serving 45 years for rape and robbery.

The fact that the statute of limitations has expired on the crime for which Mr. Pierce was falsely convicted likely means the real culprit will likely never be charged with the crime for which Mr. Pierce spent 15 years in prison.

On 4/18/2002 attorneys for Jeffrey Todd Pierce filled suit in the Federal Court in Oklahoma City, seeking $75 million dollars in damages on the basis that Mr. Pierce's civil rights were violated by Joyce Gilchrist, former District Attorney Bob Macy, the Oklahoma City Police Department and others.

Below are links to various reports on this shameful example of "Junk Justice and Okie Science" run amok.

Daily Oklahoman - 05/08/01 - Exonerated inmate freed
Daily Oklahoman - 05/09/01 - Freed man tries to pick up his life
Daily Oklahoman - 05/11/01 - Freed prisoner arrives to visit with twin sons
Daily Oklahoman - 05/15/01 - Pierce getting reacquainted with family
Daily Oklahoman - 08/20/01 - DNA yields new suspect in 1985 rape
Daily Oklahoman - 04/18/02 - Wrongful prison stint brings suit
Daily Oklahoman - 08/801/02 - Judge dismisses suit against fired chemist
Daily Oklahoman - 01/16/03 - Freed man sues ex-da, chemist for conviction
Daily Oklahoman - 9/16/03 - Macy, Gilchrist seek dismissal of lawsuit

Some notable quotes regarding this case:

I would like to see the DA and the police department take a little remorse and a little repentance here and say, We had a bad system here. We screwed up and now we want to do everything we can to make this right and straighten it out. This is a horrible deal, but the first part is for someone to take some blame here and fix it. - Gary Pierce, brother of Jeffrey Pierce, in Daily Oklahoma report 6 May 2001.

We were never given an opportunity to become a family.
We never got to sit down at mealtime, to go to baseball games, do the family vacations, birthdays, Christmas or holidays. That is what makes me upset. - Kathy Pierce - In Daily Oklahoman article, 7 May 2001

I've been sitting here for three weeks and I haven't heard M.T. Berry apologize to anybody except Joyce Gilchrist. My heart goes out to all the other people I know that are in here that are innocent because of the Oklahoma County district attorney's office and the Oklahoma City Police Department. I hope you all won't forget about them, too, because there are more. I'm just the one that opened the door and I feel there will be a lot more coming out behind me. - Jeffrey Todd Pierce upon his release, 8 May 2001 following 15 years in prison for a crime he did not commit.

I’m just trying to catch up with everybody on cell phones and computers. It’s just wild. The world goes so fast now compared to when I was out there the last time. - Jeffrey Todd Pierce, in Daily Oklahoman report on 11 May 2001, on adjusting to a world that has passed him by.

A good guy got put away for the wrong reasons. It just made me sick. W e’ve taken the best years of that man’s life. - Rep. Wayne Pettigrew, in Daily Oklahoman report on 9 May, 2001.

I really think there ought to be more than just an apology. I believe that citizens who are wrongfully convicted and imprisoned ought to receive some compensation for the grievous harm that the state has caused. Rep. Opio Toure following the defeat of his bill which would compensate Mr. Pierce and other innocents convicted of crimes they did not commit. A bill which Rep. Pettigrew voted AGAINST.

[Editor's commentary]

Once you are done, pause for a few minutes and consider the fact that what happened to Mr. Pierce and his family could just as easily happen to anyone and any family. Yes, even YOU and YOUR FAMILY.

As the heartbreaking case of Jeffrey Todd Pierce so clearly demonstrates, some police officers will substitute speculation for evidence, some witnesses will change their stories, some "forensic chemists" will say damned near anything to help some districts attorney gain convictions and this without regard to the actual guilt or innocence of the accused.

Likewise, some state legislators and government officials will express "regret" that an innocent man was robbed of fifteen years of his life, his family, his dignity and his freedom, but damned few of them are willing to compensate him or his family for their losses and suffering, choosing instead to basically tell him "Oops,we are sorry. Now go away and be a good little boy.".

While we might all like to believe that Mr. Pierce's case is rare, the fact is that there are numerous cases similar to his. In Oklahoma alone, six innocent men convicted of crimes they did not commit have been cleared thus far by DNA testing. One of these innocent men came within five days of being executed for a crime he did not commit.

How do these things happen?

More than anything else they are the result of a misplaced public confidence in "Junk Justice and Okie Science", a system wherein gullible jurors foolishly and without question accept as truth the muttering of districts attorney, police officers, forensic scientists and coached witness that wouldn't know real justice if it jumped up and bit them on the ass.

If ever you are called for jury duty, hopefully you will recall the painful lessons learned from Mr. Pierce's case and not make the mistakes of the jury in his trial.

If we do not learn from history we are doomed to repeat it.

How many Jeffrey Todd Pierces are "too many"?

What if the next one is YOU?

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