On February 21, 1977, VH, a 17-year-old high school student, was raped and murdered in Monroe. VH had last been seen walking home from a dance, where she’d gotten into an argument with her ex-boyfriend. The next day, her body was discovered behind a vacant house, nude and with hands bound by her own clothing. There were signs that she’d been raped before being killed by a piece of wood left at the scene. She’d also been stabbed three times.
Police developed over 25 suspects after speaking with over 100 people during the course of their investigation. Mr. Manning, a local teenager, wound up confessing to the crime after being in the police station for over 30 hours. He also confessed to other crimes that further investigation proved he could not have committed. Though he immediately disavowed the confession in this case, a jury convicted him of second degree murder and attempted aggravated rape in June 1978. He was sentenced to life, though he was 17 years old at the time of the crime.
Mr. Manning’s post-conviction attorney began the case at Innocence & Justice Louisiana and we continued her representation of Mr. Manning when she went to the Louisiana Center for Children’s Rights. After post-conviction DNA testing was performed, the Ouachita Parish District Attorney’s office agreed to Mr. Manning taking an Alford plea, allowing him to maintain his innocence while pleading to lesser charges. Mr. Manning was resentenced and was freed from prison in June 2018, nearly 41 years after being convicted based on a false confession.
Photo credit: Andrew Hundley
