Elliot Porter, 15 years old, was killed in the Calliope project in New Orleans on October 31, 1975. The state would later rely on the testimony of a single witness, who claimed to see Mr. Porter run from and then struggle with two young men. Mr. Porter was shot to death. This witness claimed that Earl Truvia and Gregory Brightwent around a corner with Mr. Porter and returned without him. She claimed that they, after killing Mr. Porter, walked down the street after looking up at her. She saw all this through the window of her home. Both Mr. Truvia and Mr. Bright had alibis, but their lawyers performed no investigation. Based solely on the testimony of the single witness, Mr. Truvia and Mr. Bright were convicted by a jury of second degree murder in July 1976 and sentenced to life without parole.
Innocence & Justice Louisiana’s investigation of the case uncovered a wealth of evidence that was hidden by the state, evidence that the jury never heard. The state’s key witness had a long history of mental illness that caused hallucinations, a condition she medicated with heroin. She had testified under a false name to conceal her own criminal history and admitted to providing information to police for money and consideration for a new apartment. The jury also never heard, and trial lawyers never investigated, the fact that there was no line of sight between the witness’s window and the area where she claimed to see Mr. Bright and Mr. Truvia. The state concealed police reports that pointed to other suspects with motive to seek revenge against the victim. Innocence & Justice Louisiana presented this new evidence, as well as evidence from alibi witnesses that trial attorneys never bothered to contact, in its court filing in 2002. The convictions were overturned and Mr. Bright and Mr. Truvia were released from prison in June 2003, after the state dismissed all charges. They’d each spent over 27.5 years in prison for a murder they did not commit.
