David Wayne Kingrea’s long search for justice took another step this month as Gov. Glenn Youngkin approved more than $50,000 in compensation for Kingrea’s wrongful conviction and the year he spent in jail.
Kingrea, 49, of the Pilot community in Montgomery County, said Thursday that the money will help him and his wife care for their special-needs son Dylan. What is planned to be a series of payments and community college tuition waivers is to begin in July.
“It’s a new beginning once this comes,” Kingrea said.
Kingrea traced his legal ordeal back almost 12 years, when detectives began questioning him in a child abuse case.
The son of a former girlfriend accused Kingrea of molesting him, launching a process that saw Kingrea arrested on six charges, five of which were dropped or thrown out, then convicted by a jury in 2014 of taking indecent liberties with a minor. Kingrea was jailed for 12 months and had his name put on the Virginia Sex Offender Registry.
“When you are on the Sex Offender Registry, it affects everything, from your ability to get a job to people’s willingness to speak to you at the Safeway,” Sullivan said.
“Besides carrying the bill to compensate Kingrea for his year behind bars, Sullivan introduced separate legislation that would also compensate anyone who is incorrectly placed on the Sex Offender Registry. The proposed rate was about $25,000 per year on the registry, or somewhat less than half the amount paid for a year of being wrongfully jailed.”
So this man was exonerated off the price club list but the quotes towards the end of the article seem to make it that the registry is punishment. Why would they give you money if they put you on the registry by mistake. Unless they know it’s detrimental to you.
Purgatory he says…ain’t that the truth!
Interesting that his own state rep didn’t reach out to help when queried…someone needs to follow up on that.
“Such cases are rare — Kingrea’s attorney, Fred Kellerman of Christiansburg, said that in 30 years of practice, he could not recall another case similar to Kingrea’s”
Just be because you haven’t ran across a case in your little sh*thole town doesn’t mean that these cases are rare. Many kids just never been caught or confessed to lying later on.
So the Gov figures it’s the best approach to wrongful conviction is to support victim’s stance thru financial compensation.
HEY GOV! How about FAIR TRIAL STANDARDS & PUNISHMENT for court officers who engage in wrongful conviction activity.
Defense Attorneys who ” fail” their clients pay a price if their advocacy is deficient, but District Attorneys rarely face repercussion for wrongful conviction. Attorney Generals who set the standard for county DAs and never really pay a personal price either.
There is a serious problem when untouchable DAs & lessor trained local law enforcement agents and agencies begin colluding to create cases out of thin air. We’re seen that form in everything from ” speeding traps” to “ordinance enforcement” to ” unreasonable searches that lead to possession charges.”
There are no winners in the Governors approach. It’s a bandaid for political security in a reality of rampant unfair trial processes. Bill Cosby’s case proves even the best represented defendants may not get a fair trial. Civil recourse must include personal liability for state agents. Those agents are free then to insure themselves for malpractice like doctors do.