Defendants whose non-unanimous convictions were tossed take plea deals on lesser charges

Over a dozen people who recently had their convictions based on non-unanimous jury verdicts vacated by Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams office last month accepted plea deals to lesser charges at a court hearing on Wednesday. A number of them will walk free after spending years or decades in prison.

The hours-long virtual hearing, which took place in front of Judge Nandi Campbell in Section G of Criminal District Court, was the first look at what Williams said will be a regular occurrence during his term, as his office sets about vacating and renegotiating convictions that were based on non-unanimous verdicts.

Families joined on the Zoom call to support their incarcerated loved ones. Defendants testified about their experiences while in prison and the pain of being separated from their children, and defense lawyers described plans for those released to get back on their feet — including employment opportunities, housing, and support networks.

Officials in the DA’s office said they worked diligently to contact victims of the crimes in the cases. Some could not be located. Others gave statements that were read by the lawyers.

Read more: https://thelensnola.org/2021/03/31/defendants-whose-non-unanimous-convictions-were-tossed-take-plea-deals-on-lesser-charges/