Wow, that is truly amazing Randi. But, even though the dog handler has died, will these cases still be investigated? What happens now? And what happened to the dog since his owners death?

Donna Wood
Lexington, Tennessee

I'm almost relieved the poor guy is white, had he been black all the liberal victimologists would be screaming bloody racism.

I hope Dillon sues and gets some compensation for his troubles and his life being ruined by that fraudulent man. How do people sleep at night knowing they've destroyed an innocent person's life? I don't get it.

Annie,

Quit with the generalizations. You are making things worse.

WOW this is shocking, I really feel bad for the guy who spent his years in prison for nothing! That's such a shame

I hope no one was put to death on the basis of this dog's "work". That would be horrible – this is bad enough that this man was robbed of 28 years of his life for something he did not do.....I hope someone will go through the past cases and be sure there are no more people in jail because of this dog's "expert" talents.

How sad is this? Day after day too many innocent people are sitting in prison for no reason other than a mistake. Now what is this man supposed to do just go on with his life? Something is horribly wrong with the way i justice system works.

This is an amazing story. My son was also given life without the possibility of parole at the age of 23, based on "Dog Sniff Evidence".This story gives hope to the millions of individuals locked in cages without compassion. God Bless AC360 for continuously keeping the nation informed. I believe that my son will be freed, Prayer changes thing, and the truth will set him free!!!

Lol, donna the case happened in 81 so a good assumption is that the dog died a long time before the owner

Randi: Good article! I find it appalling that even after the dog and its owner were outed as frauds, the courts did not review cases in which the dog's nose was the primary factor in sentencing.

On another note–your intro paragraph needs work. The very first comma in the article is unnecessary. You've listed two nouns exposed as frauds, therefore you should use "have" rather than "has." Also, the last sentence would read better if it were written as such:

"Unfortunately, Bill Dillon had to spend 26 years in prison before the error in his case was rectified."

In addition, the first comma in the second paragraph is unnecessary.

Sincerely,
A freelance copy editor who wishes she could have made her suggestions in a more private forum

I think it is appalling that a man lost 26 years of his life over corruption in our justice system. I believe the prosecutors in those cases should be held accountable for their parts more than the Handler and his dog. I think this man is owed some sort of compensation!

I think this is a testimony to the massive failures of our judicial system.

uh, Donna, I think the dog is dead....probably a good 10 years ago or more.

This is a prime example of how our Judicial system don't work.
The most appalling thing is that they let the man sat in jail an additional 20 years after Mr. Preston was exposed. I know you conservative airheads like Annie would disagree and state the system worked, because Mr. Dillon was finally released from jail, proving the superiorness of the system. How do you compensate a man for 26 years of his life?

By the way Annie, I'm sure Black men were convicted by Mr. Sniff and his amazing crime dog. I guest we have to wait for the judicial process to work its self out to satisfy your racist view.

There were people who knew / found out this man and his sniffing dog were a fake. After the exposure many would have surely wondered who among those sent to jail were innocent.

It is in these moments you see, aside from the judicial system , other people around who KNEW and must have thought of those jailed victims were innocent are the ones also contributing to this societies ruin.

The indifference, the I'm-not-affected I-dont-care-attitude is what have made this man sitting there for 20 years more.

There were people who thought of it, but did nothing.

**WOW...I really hope that this gentleman has it in his heart to forgive what happened to him and this is an eye opener for the judicial system that you have to be thorough when dealing with peoples' lives! I hope that he will be able to forgive those who wronged him....so so sad...**

There was big time prosecutorial misconduct on this case. And anyone connected with it should be disbarred and/or prosecuted themselves. The other half of the story is that the blood on the t-shirt in question was of a DIFFERENT BLOOD TYPE than Dillon. The prosecution knew this at the time, but withheld that information from the defense.

Here we go again. Another innocent person becomes a victim of our system. These kind of stories make me sick!

I feel so sorry for the two dimensional people on here, that think everything in life is some kind of variation of "liberal" and conservative conflict. Whatever your agenda is, you're doing an excellent job of making people damn sick of it.

Actually I feel sorry for the people who have to live with them.

"If the dog can't pick up a scent,
you must acquit!"

Welcome to Florida.

Injustice is injustice regardless of peace or gender. I would never hope false imprisonment on any person so, I could write a stereotypical attack on liberals; venting my feeling of victimization by a vast liberal conspiracy in the press. Next; we will get our conservative misspelling of Obama parroting some childish name they hear of propaganda radio. This conservative victimization has gotten old.

We obviously owe it to the people this dog handler and the dog convicted to review evidence and convictions. How many more stories like this will we hear about innocent people being convicted based on flimsy evidence? It is shameful. We owe it to the convicted and their families to take another look at each case.

I dont' know what Flordia's compensation policy is.... assuming it even has one but I concur, this guy deserves hefty compensation. Anyone would after spending 26 years of their life in prison for something they didn't do. The prime of your life gone because of some hack. It is just amazing though how incompetant our justice system is that even after the handler is debunked, none of the cases are reviewed or the people convicted told of that. Common sense to me would dictate an automatic investigation after such a find.

I guess common sense though has no place within the justice system.

This is evidence that Justice is not only blind, but smells pretty badly too, especially in Florida. The real question is, are there people who knowingly put innocent people away for their own gain or to avoid embarrassment?

Uh, yeah.

It is an evil thing to do, but then some people are serial killers. Why not have friends of the court of the same persuasion?

Makes you realize how dumb most jurors are.

Annie...you asked " How do people sleep at night knowing they’ve destroyed an innocent person’s life? I don’t get it.

I would guess, the same way you do with statements like this"I’m almost relieved the poor guy is white, had he been black all the liberal victimologists would be screaming bloody racism.

Actually, being a "poor white guy" who could not afford a decent attorney is one of reasons he was not treated fairly..However when anyone sit in jail for 26 years for a crime they did not committ, based upon the fraudulent intends of others...They are a victim...So, I fail to see what liberal of being Black have to do with it, nor should you want anyone White or Black to sit in jail for 26 years for a crime he did not commit, so you can feel "relieved"

Pointing out a double standard isn't racist A.J.

"I’m almost relieved the poor guy is white, had he been black all the liberal victimologists would be screaming bloody racism."

What the hell is it with Americans.
WHY make a point about mentioning his race.
WHY make assumptions about what a liberal
MIGHT say over a conservative,
Thank god the guy is free..that's all you should really
be saying,
Hopefully he gets compensated for this travesty of justice.

No common sense whatsoever on the parts of the the authorities. No one thought to review ANY of the cases that this charlatan was involved with. Not a single person had the slightest inkling to maybe investigate to see that justice be served. Talk about a justice system run amok. This is why so many people distrust the government and rightly so.

Am I wrong in thinking that if a police officer or "expert witness" commits perjury during a trial and is eventually convicted of it, does it not automatically throw dirt on all their past testimonies and therefore all cases they were involved with would have to be reevaluated? I'm not a lawyer, but wouldn't you think that would be the "common sense" thing to do? Yet nobody bothered or cared. Just despicable.

Dear Freelance Copy Editor,

You sign off your post with, "A freelance copy editor who wishes she could have made her suggestions in a more private forum". Implicit herein is that you had to make these statements. If you wish you could have done it privately, then upon realizing this was not possible, why was it requisite that you post them? While the errors to which you allude are, indeed, errors, I find your post trite. Your suggested sentence, furthermore, would be trashed by Strunk & White for its usage of a transitional word to begin a sentence. S&W is moot to many, agreed, yet prose is a malleable art. My response is as inappropriate as your original post. For this – I apologize.

I suppose the war on crime is a lot like wars with other countries with acceptable losses in the process. I dont believe any justice system is without flaws, but if you can get it to about 98 percent, it much better than most third world countries. I for one would rather be judged here than abroad. My chances are so much better even if I am african american.

Annie,

You are a conservative, snobby narcissist who thinks they know it all when they don't. The story had nothing to do with race till your "reasoning" brought it into play.

They have no shame!

Bottom line:

If prosecutors are overturned on DNA evidence, the prosecutor, AND the judge should be fined and sanctioned. If it happens twice, the fine and sanction should double, and if it happens a third time to either a prosecutor or a judge, they should be charged with a felony. Too much power in the hands of too few idiots with career aspirations and self centered motives. If they were actual RISKS to prosecuting someone, it would be done more carefully. Just as if there were risks to suing someone, it would be done less often and more carefully. Loser of the lawsuit pays winner's legal fees, simple. Sue me, and if your case is garbage, enjoy paying my legal fees. Simple.

what really hurt is that dillon didn't find about the mistake for another 20 years.

"Tami July 30th, 2009 7:27 pm ET

uh, Donna, I think the dog is dead….probably a good 10 years ago or more"

Hahaha...ditto!

The dog would be long gone by now, they only live to about 15 for a big dog. The case was 1981, so the dog would be about 30 now. Rest assured, he's resting in peace somewhere.

The dog owner should be sentenced to life imprisonment.

I hate to say this but it sure was a hard way for Mr. Dillon to earn his retirement account, 26 years of hard time. With the money he wins through litigation, I hope he buys his own island with one stipulation "No Dogs Allowed".

i just cant beleve that is nuts i hope he is rotting in hell lol i hope he gets a lot of money

Lead Detective: "This is an obvious set-up."

Prosecuting Attonery: "C'mon man, I can win this! "

........and the band played on....?

Such a shame,I feel bad for the guy who spent years in prison for a crime that he did not commit.

Wow. That's the American judicial system. I was just in Daviess County Jail in Indiana for two months for an alleged rape. Of course I did no such thing and all the charges were dropped. But I still had to spend to months in jail which is long enough fo ryour life to be ripped away from you. I only had to do two months. I can't imagine what this guy had to go through and how he felt. He should get a huge amount of money from the state or whoever for this screw up. 26 six years!

This case is indeed disgusting. Unfortunately the fraud and coercion elements of it are not isolated.

Our whole attitude toward 'errors in judgment, mistakes and crime' is extremely punitive in the US evidenced by being the country with the most people in prison in the world. This is truly a national shame.

Lobbyists for companies supplying the prison industry are part of the problem, perpetuating a system that is very flawed, is very costly and does not work to rehabilitate anyone. The Obama administration has an opportunity to take a hard look at the data and analyze the so called 'criminal justice' system on its own merits and relative to the rest of the world and begin to make some serious changes so that justice is truly done, without throwing people's lives away for the sake a false security.

This is another appalling travesty, and it's become too common. It's not just sniffing dogs. It's fingerprint evidence (which is far more subjective than the CSI audience is lead to believe). It's hair and other trace evidence analysis.

The problem is compounded by some prosecutors, who are more concerned about keeping their win record than doing justice. Any doubts about that? After Harrass 2 was exposed, the prosecutor apparently did nothing to inform the previous criminal defendants of the dog's questionable talent. That prosecutor was not alone. Read Grisham's recent "An Innocent Man".

People cloaked with the credibility of "science" are frequently analyzing the evidence with their thumb on one of the scales of justice. And let's not forget the prosecutors who encourage that testimony.

Of course, none of this should be shocking (unless you're the criminal defendant or his family). We live at a time when actual innocence is considered a technicality.

Another example of our judicial system being corrupt. Cops run around with a chip on their shoulder tasing and beating people who won't kiss their ass, and prosecutors make up evidence, withhold evidence and pay so called 'experts' to perjure themselves so they can convict who they want to convict. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

disgusting. Something similar happened in Canada with a Dr. Smith that called himself an expert in infants death, and was sending innocent people to prison for a long time. But in this case, all his cases are under investigation. I hope the best for this guy. I hope he gets a big paycheck from these people that didn't re-investigate all those cases.

Larissa: you need more paying work. This isn't the forum to "correct" the author. Please, that's silly.

Amazing we would ever rely on a friggin ANIMAL's "testimony" for anything. Only in Omerika.

AJ,

Could you be more full of excrement?

First, it is our Judicial system DOESN'T work, not "don't." Mostly this is because of the incestuous nature of having attorneys make the laws in the legislature and then they and their buddies get to profit off what they've made back in private practice.

Second, I believe you've misrepresented Annie's opinion – perhaps if your command of the language was better, your comprehension would follow. None of this gets in the way of a good, indignant liberal screed, however. Annie never claimed justice worked in this case, only that she's glad no lefty gets to toss out the red herring of racism, probably to obfuscate the fact that most states that had Jim Crow laws can thank the "Democratic" party for that.

I believe the Conservative position is that so-called liberals would like to see very few people convicted (unless they've committed a thought...er...hate crime, and then only against those they classify as a minority group) of crimes because they'd rather blame circumstance than personal choice as the dominant determinant in criminal behavior. I can't recall any Conservatives jumping up and down about foisting injustice on the accused or otherwise condoning the conviction of a party based on fabricated evidence. I know I've never believed witness testimony unless corroborated by hard evidence and very few circumstantial cases sway me.

America's justice system. What a country!

And this is why I don't support the death penalty.

Sadly, this is not the first time someone was wrongly convicted. And in other cases, poor innocent souls have been executed. Something needs to change!

Well i hope he gets some money in reparation.
How many milliions are 26 years worth ?
I'd say a good 20 millions.

Shame on your judiciary.Its a must that all cases in connection with dog and the handler be reviewed.In any casethe prosecutors MUST be sued and prosecuted.Bill must be companseted by the state and the prosecutors involved in the case.

Well, she made a valid point, everyone. An innocent man was convicted and lost over a quarter century's worth of life, but because he's white, this will receive nowhere near the attention that the Gates vs. Crowley stupidity has reached. AJ fails: nobody said blacks weren't convicted on the strength of this "tracking dog." (And in case you didn't read the article, Preston and his dog never convicted anyone. Juries did.) What Annie said was that "had he been black all the liberal victimologists would be screaming bloody racism." That is true. You're going to have to get over it.

Did they execute anyone based on Preston's fake evidence ?

This guy is among the worst I've ever heard of. There is no explanation for knowingly rob people of their freedom, based on fake evidence, other than sadism and a truly evil character.

How the state of Florida didn't revisit the jusrisdictional cases where Preston was involved, is beyond me. Isn't this being complicit in a crime ?

There are three sides to every story: "Yours" "mine" and the "truth". Since we do not know all the details of this case because of space and advertising sponsership, we will never know the "truth". When I read a "news" story I am always asking for the "Rest of the Story" (channeling Paul Harvey).

While CNN used to be a retuable news source, I've notice lately the unrealibilty (and sensationalism) of the stories (shame on you...) in the name of readership. Free Press? It's only free because someone is paying advertising for the space.

Agreed with Annie,

good thing hes white or the race card would be brought out. This poor guy has to be getting restitution.

In response to theprevious comment, The article stated that the dog handler died last year. The convicted man had spent 26 years in prison. I would think the dog passed on years ago.

Compensation. What is it about this country that
makes that issue debatable? This man should
get a million for every year in prison. Anyone still
living who was a part of this hound dog railroading
should serve the time that was subtracted from his life.

I have zero tolerance for a story like this, zero
compassion for the criminals in law enforcement
who did it.

Mr. Dillon needs to be re-intoduced into society and given instruction on how to live on a daily basis (marketing, handling a check-book, job interview preparation); he should be given assistance in housing and a job search and be compensated by the State for the 26 years that he gave up.

Compassion is needed here.

Mr. President, you intervened for a man that spent 4 hours in jail by a law officer that may or may not have over reacted. It took you less then 10 days to intervene in the life of one man. Today hundreds if not thousands of men and women continue to have lives thrown away and waste away for years if not lifetimes when gross negligence and evidence clearly points to their innocence after their convictions. Why do we make a national media event out of a 4 hour inconvenience while authorities continue to ignore gross injustice. If you want to spend your time intervening on possible unfairness why don’t you call for a justice department commission to address as rapidly as you did for one man the obvious crimes of injustice that daily destroy lives all across this nation.

Respectfully, Davd Hetland, Bothell WA

The problem with our criminal justice system is something our new U.S. Attorney General Holder has already acknowledged with respect to the withholding of exculpatory evidence by the U.S. district attorney's office while prosecuting Senator Stevens in Alaska. The problem is that the success of prosecutors, whether state or federal, is judged almost solely based upon their rate of convictions, not on whether justice is done. Prosecutors sometimes bend the rules because they think they "know things" that they just can't prove and they fear guilty parties will walk unless they cheat. Their job then ceases to be about justice and becomes a score card where a conviction is a win, regardless of whether it is based on what really happened.

In an Illinois case, the 1983 rape/murder of 10-year-old Jeanine Nicarico,
an innocent man was sent to prison on the strength an "expert" witness in shoe prints. In this case, a boot print on the front door. The boot print was smudged, and the expert came up with such esoterica, that no one could refute her. She was subsequently exposed in another case, and the man was eventually let out of prison after a lengthy stay. She, like this guy, unfortunately went to her grave before she could be exposed as a fraud. Just within the last few days, Brian Dugan has agreed to confess to her murder. He had been willing to confess for a long time, if the death penalty was off the table. Now he will take what the jury gives him.

See, for this reason only I never trust american justice department. Simply the system is too faulty to be corrected. I think too many innosent people have been and will be convicted in USA due to glitches in system and no one can do nothing to save them.

im glad he is free for something he didnt do.its sad to waste that many years away.for nothing.may god be with him in every way.judy of west virginia

I love the fact that someone made reference to being happy the "Guy" is white...There are plenty of Blacks in prison falsely accused and believe it or not, some of them are "White" Our society is such a sham...

Annie you don't get it because you believe things like this can happen in your lilly white world. Sh*t happens all the time but people move on and it has nothing to do with color. For the most part our judicial system works 98% of the time but every now and then these kind of frauds are exposed.
Oh Annie I bet you believe profiling doesn't exist either. Years ago when I working my way through college I had to take a night job I can't tell you how many times I was pulled over for no reason at all. Routine stop maybe. I survived and so does the system God Bless this republic it is still the greatest country on Earth.

Radi, please post more information about who's running Project Innocence. Hopefully article like this one will inspire more people to join or donate. We need people like this to help the innocents who are still in jail.

Perhaps interviewing the judge who found out Preston is a crook will make this article extra interesting.

April,
Anna is right.

this is a horrible case and something horrible to have happen to someone who is innocent. i'm glad that Mr. Dillon found out about the dog being faulty, even if it was so many years after the fact

Dillon should be living the rest of his life as a millionaire, he should sue that state to the limit.

this is a said story. it goes to show you how much we need to modify and change are judicial system, because I'm sure there are many more people in prison sitting for crimes they didn't committed. dont get me wrong, i think we have the best justice system in the world, but i think in situations like that we have room for improvement. you don't convict a man on just a mere testimony from a man proclaiming his dog can smell under wate and that his dog smell a sent from the victim to dillion, that is rumbish. i think we really went away from the justice scale and the idea of without reasonable doubt. for god sake they didnt have a murder weapon, they didnt have dillions finger print on any murder weapon. so how do we change this we got to get it right. it flat out wrong and its not justice but yet injustice, some prosecutor would do anything to just win a case even if they know wha they are arguing is crap, if they can find somebody to pin the case on and make it stick they will do just that it dont matter if you are guilty or not. the system have to start carrying justice out about the right way

its too bad there isnt anyone to convict. Maybe Dillon and other potential victims can sue the state's judicial system. It seems that the state had plenty of opportunities to review these cases, but failed to do so.

A.J., it's interesting your comment about Black men likely being convicted by this fraud; the man in the picture is white or did you not notice? Do you have any facts to support for your supposition? I'm sick of the cops vs race (black, latino, etc.) aurgument. White people committ as many crimes as any other race. (BTW, I am white and I am not very proud of that fact these days because some very ugly crimes are committed by white people) while non-white folks are making our world a better place to live and I am NOT refering to our president and his family.

We have a God-given brain and the abilitiy to analyze, scrutinize, and think for ourselves. I have great respect for Anderson Cooper, but just because he is a journalist with an excellent reputation do not give up your critical thinking skills because someone has "reported the news". Dig deeper, go to other sources to check the "facts", and always, always "Trust, but Verify". IMHO.

excuse me, there is a big question mark under this event.Now , what should the government do for this man. He lost 26 years of his life in the jail because the dog hadn't sniffed him very well. HAS the government give him at least 100 million dollars because of this mess.

Aaron, if you think our judicial system is a failure then please dont freak out when it gets worse! Sotomayor will make it worse, since she evidently has ulterior motives. ie judging not one of those motives.

John Z. DeLorean and O.J. Simpson are two prime examples of how our justice system doesn't work, this was just another nail in the coffin for a system that needs to be fixed. I wonder if this guy just didn't have the money it takes to refute the evidence. The stronger the evidence, the more it costs!

So sad. I don't think Anne means what she said in a racist way. I think a better way to say what she was trying to say is that the mistreats everyone equally. Anyway, I find it unconscionable the dog handler was never charged, and even worse that the state didn't bother to go back and check on prior cases. That's just sick. I don't just want compensation for these men - compensation comes from my pocket in the form of taxes - I want CHANGE. I don't want this to happen any more, to anyone, White, Black, or, in my case, Asian.

Gee, Donna, since this was in 1981, I think it's safe to say the dog died long before the owner did in '08. Are you stupid, or just southern?

April and Annie:

we all know that there have been cases of great disjustice on both sides. But statistics show that minorities numbers are much higher. (That is not being racist, that is fact). Now that we have systems that I.D DNA, justice will be served. Justice is blind and sometimes you have to wait for technology to catch up to clear your name. Better late than never. The people may have an opportunity to file a suit against the city that hired an imcompetent person to do professional work, so they won't have to struggle so when they are finally released.

Preston never charged with perjury ? in the state of Florida in the 80's?

home to the ' good old boys' network?

THERE is your conspiracy...............follow the money

@annie

This your comment is the exact reason why the fear and desperation that is being exuded becuase of an honestly deep seeded feeling of losing one's supposed hold on power holds no wieght what so ever and also is soo devoid of a well though out position that it behooves me to no end. Instead of looking at this guy and saying and asking why the first knee jerk reaction for you is to say something as dumb as "Im glad this guy was white " . And im sure the words " I'm not a racist " will come from you at some point in the future or maybe you have already said them at one time or another lol.

Now as for MR Bill Dillion may God continue to shine his blessings onto him for which he has suffered a very great injustice.. This is why we as African Americans speak out so much against actions like this . Unfortunately to us merely for the color of our skin . But by speaking out and standing up both white and black and also any other race and/or ethnicty will not suffer the same injustices . I do afeel unfornately we get lost on the big picture and that is to stand up against such abuse of power by anyone in the position to have such a drastic effect on someone's life. Mr Dillion deserves the support of anyone who stands up for him. This is wrong flat out and if were in any situation beyond merely being pulled over while driving black which has happend to me numberous of times in younger< I have and will continue to ask questions and address my concerns so that maybe the authorites can do thier jobs better . Heck my tax dollars deserve not good but great work ..

Donna-i did some research for you..the dog died along time ago. I am a dog lover myself and i was also concerned about the fate of the 36 year old dog. But yes he is dead. So no worries about what happens to the dog.

Donna- i wanted to answer your question about if these cases will still be investigated..I too was concerend but i did some reading and this is what I came up with...

Florida’s Innocence Project believes dozens of inmates around the country may have been wrongly convicted as a result of John Preston and his dog. It is calling for an investigation of those cases.

Let me know what u think?

Don't you all know by now that prosecutors are more interested in their win-loss record than in truth and justice? It's the American way.

April..quick question...how is Annie making things worse...I believe nothing has changed...let me know if thing are worse..

To A.J.'s statement: I don't think it's racist to represent a view different than that of other racists. I think that constitutes merely a complaint. Again, if a white person doesn't agree with a black racist, the basis for that disagreement might also be an affinity for reason and logic and not a disdain for skin color. Also, I don't think that "superiorness" is actually an English word.

To Annie's statement: You're probably right because, given the state of popular strife in the US, it's an easy assumption. However, I don't think it was worth mentioning here.

It's nice that the fellow was released, but he's likely got a long road ahead of him. I don't suspect he'll make it.

Larissa...I hope you feel better,,,Everone is impressed. Get a job

Why are you jumping on Annie, and how is her view racial?

She's one hundred percent correct. The same thing happened with Obama and Gates. The lady who called 911 was determined by media to portray those who had been in suspect of robbery to be "black" males. The national media jumped on it and people made assumptions and were calling for her namesake as a racist, when she did nothing of the sort, and the tape actually has her describing one of the suspected robbers as a "Hispanic" , and neither as black or african american. The public outcries are dispicable. I recall all constituents of a Philadelphia pool being called racist after a camp of children who happened to be all African American were asked to stop coming back because the pool claimed they were under-staffed and unable to keep an eye on the kids from the camp. Just because one ignorant person made a comment about the kids all being African-American the club tried to make it seem they were refunded their contract because the entire club was racist. Then, an African American lady who was apparenly irate had the audacity to insinuate the entire pool and its members were all racist. She was some legal analyst too. How I don't know. I believe it was something along the lines of "Well now they (the members and board of the pool) won't have a pool (to swim in)." New racism at its finest. I am a white 20 year old who attends college and not once have i ever had a friend who preferred to be called African-American to black. This new racism is disgusting. Many of our generation grew up without racial slurs, and none of our friends were slaves, or had living family who were slaves. My family is third generation out of Italy, and needless to say, we have never owned slaves. Yet I feel at times that there is some inborn hatred against myself and others not unlike myself as perceived as white. I don't owe any one reperations for slavery the same way I don't believe I should be paying social security when I'm never going to see a dime. I'm not some priviledged kid getting a degree because I am white, I'm taking out loans and getting grants for my academics. I will basically have a house payment by the end of my senoir year, as it stands about 48,000 in debt. It's not being a racist, it's being a realist. I'm tired of everyone else making a big deal when it's nothing. It's sad that those who are supposed to be elderly and experienced arguing about the issues of yestercentury.

All men are created equal.
It goes both ways.

I am from India and I feel terrible reading the fate of Dillon. He spent 26 years of his youth in prison for a crime he never committed. The story says Preston's fraud was exposed in 1984..why dint nobody think of Dillon's conviction that was based on a fraudster's testimony . Why dint they order a re-trial ?

Dillion cant get his past life back and i hope the authorities will pay him a compensation that helps him live the rest of his life in peace and dignity

Dillion is right on when he states :
"Preston and his scent-tracking dog were part of a larger conspiracy.
“Preston could lead the dog to the suspect or the evidence. Any cases that were weak, not good enough to go to the jury, they [the prosecution] fed Preston information, paid him good money to come and lie.”

The cops and the prosecutors are the real criminals here. This is exactly how they operate. They did not bother reviewing their past cases as they are immune from wrong doing. Make them accountable and you wont be reading about such injustices.

America has only 5% of the worlds population. Yet it holds 25% of all the worlds prisoners. Land of the free, not by a long shot.

Broken Hearted Mom, I am so sorry to hear of your son's incarceration based on 'smell evidence', and I do believe that prayer changes things. I will pray for your son, and although I don't know your son's name, God will know who I am praying for. It's hard to believe that our justice system is so flawed as to convict people on 'evidence' submitted by an animal, an animal that has no reason and whose sense could be triggered by anything. It's a shame.

We all know that justice delayed is justice denied.
.........It's really sympathetic! The man should as matter of urgency be conpensated.

The only way to end this type of systemic and prosecutorial abuse is to increase the level of criminal liability imposed on prosecutors and police for wrongful persecution that is the generally driven by the desire to buld a "success record" leading to re-election, promotion or lucrative private sector jobs at the expense of the truth...

Well, Donna,I can tell you what that dog has been doing since it's owner's death last year.
The same thing it's been doing for years before that. Nothing. it's dead. It would be so far over 100 years old in human years that the odds are about one in a million that it's alive today. German Shepherds don't live as long as many breeds of dog. I've never heard of any that have reached 25 years. Dog years are ten to one for the first two years 2=20 then following years are about 4 to 1 so at 4=28 and 6 dog years equal about 36 human yearsand 10=52 and 15=72 and 20=92 and 25=112 So, I estimate the dog went to doggie heaven soon after he outlived his usefulness as a money maker and the cold, heartless son-of-a-human owner probably took it out for it's last walk as soon as Alpo went up a few pennies a can.
The dude who did the time could settle without breaking a sweat for millions. He could do a lot of good with that kind of money.
T

Yes the US justice system, a find system that states you are guilty till proven innocent. Its a sorry fact but true. I wonder how many other innocent people have been railroaded in this same manner.

The real murderer could still be out there in Florida free to do whatever.

Liberal victimologists? How assumptive.

And the freelance copy editor...your changes would make the article seem like it was written by a machine; far less human, less approachable and personal. There's too much distance in your suggestions. What should be typed if one wishes to pause right where the first comma is in the first paragraph?

Most copy editors try to reduce everything to dialog from Dragnet.

I wonder why his family didn't try to keep up with the case and try to save their son/brother... if anyone in my family went to jail , I would work tirelesly until I got them out. This poor boy was just all forgatten about... it would had been so easy to appeal the verdict

I am shocked - SHOCKED - to hear that a prosecutor would lie and fabricate evidence and destroy an innocent man's life just for the sake of getting another conviction.

Its too bad Sotomayor is another prosecutor.

That is just horrible.

I was the United States Attorney for Arizone between 1981-1985. A
postal worker was kidnapped and murdered on December 26, 1981.
The Postal Service brought Preston in as a witness. His dog Harass 2
supposedly tracked the decedent's footprints and made identification of four native Americans. The FBI Crime Lab later established that the prints attributed by Preston to the decedent came from a different shoe. I was the lead prosecutor on the case.
Preston also testified in another Arizona case involving the murder of a young girl, Laura Dunn. Her killer was convicted on the basis of Preston's testimony and his "miracle dog." I testified against Preston and it resulted in a new trial. I appeared on ABC 20/20 in 1986 or 1987 where Preston and his dog were exposed as frauds. How could this poor guy sit on death row for 22 years after Preston and his dog were exposed as "frauds." I am sickened by this story. How do you give Mr. Dillon back the quarter century of his life that was taken from him? Why did no one in Florida know about Preston being discredited? Preston was a complete scam artist who had so many people eating out of his hand with the stories of his wonder dog. He proved to be a complete embarrassment to the U.S. Postal Investigators in Arizona and to our office.

What a disgrace. This man deserves enough coin to not have to work again. Losing nearly three decades of his life is enough. However, his compensation should start by selling every asset the corrupt dog handler had and that arrogant jerk belongs in prision himself. I certainly hope Florida reviews every single case the K9 and his owner took part in.

I've heard of witch trials that made more sense than this. How can so many defendants, so many jurors, and so many judges believe this miracle dog crap without any kind of experimentation. Any competent defense attorney should have demanded some test; and it shouldn't have taken (at least) 3 years and several guilty verdicts for someone to have the common sense to check this clown's story!

This level of stupidity on account of jurors, judges, and prosecutors is beyond belief. In fact, the judges and prosecutors need to all be investigated for corruption and possibly sent to prison. Stupidity is not a valid defense.

...for the record, police, and the entire american legal system have historically been TERRORISTS to Black people in this country. Therefore, while we do appreciate proper delivery of justice, we are forced to view any miscarriage of justice to Blacks as a possible manifestation of this country's legacy. Considering that this country owes much of its wealth to slavery, our suspicion is nothing to complain about. deal with it.

Its been almost 30 years. The dog is dead. The handler is dead. The cases are being investigated. I blame juries for their ignorances when things like this happen. People just assume/take people at their word when they say something is as it is. Its up to the juries to question everything, looking at the case as if they themselves were on trial, and what plausible explanations and evidence there really is.

This article is so amazing. We are going through this exact situation. I knew that my son would be found innocent but with a twist of the police officers words, nothing factual (mostly emotion) and the sniffer dog, the entire case changed. We will see what happens. I'm hoping for the best.

Come to funny(-peculiar) Florida. Yet another irremediable tragedy in an injustice system.

And, dear pot Larissa ("July 30th, 2009 7:18 pm ET"), while we're in copy-editing mode regarding kettles I might as well point out that many a reader has probably been distracted by your nonsensical "as such" in a context that calls for something along the lines of "thus" or "as follows".

This article is so amazing. We are going through this exact situation. I knew that my son would be found innocent but with a twist of the police officers words, nothing factual (mostly emotion) and the sniffer dog, the entire case changed. We will see what happens. I’m hoping for the best..

"what happened to the dog since his owners death?"

Dogs don't live for 26 years....

Donna, the case was from 1981. The dog would have to be at least 30 to still be alive. Probably not the meat of the story here... (Good call Tami)

On the subject of not thinking, who sits in jail for 24 years while innocent and doesn't bother looking into ways to get out? Something tells me society didn't really miss much of Mr. Dillon's contributions.

Also, why does it take a year after new evidence proves someone innocent to get them released? Our system has more flaws than can be stomached... This whole story terrifies me.

I hope he sues for every day he was in Jail. He should get paid for every day he was locked up, as if he was free and working on a job. If he were free and makeing about $40,000 a year he should be paid $40,000 x 22 Years.

If was the states fault for not fallowing up on all the cases that the dog was the #1 factor, and informing the inmates.

Far too often people who perjure themselves for the state and are later found out completely escape punishment.

Those who sheltered the fraudulent dog handler from punishment should be tried and sentenced for obstruction of justice - with any public official's or police officer's breach of trust taken into account at their sentencing.

The judicial system is a contest between lawyers not a search for the truth. It's a like a game to them. The people are just game pieces. Often it's politcally motivated (especially for the prosecutors). Getting to the truth is no longer the focus of a court, even though it should be. Perception is everything! Why do you think the media gets information that is supposed to be secured? Duh!

Police officers are no longer keepers of the peace. They have become agents of the prosecution. They no longer serve real justice or truth. They're just part of the game as well. Like all humans they are flawed and will do things wrong to stay on good terms with their bosses by getting convictions any way possible. Everyone has a price.

By far, the jails are full of guilty men and women but the fact is mistakes will happen because the people running the system really don't care. They do the job they do because it makes money. They will lie, cheat, and manipulate the system to make sure they keep their jobs, just like anyone else. Until we start holding lazy prosecutors and police accountable for their mistakes, nothing will motivate them to change the way they play the game.

Jail is a way for society to hide away it's failures. Frankly, the world is full of criminals. We all do things wrong. Everyone has skeletons in their closet. The people in jail are just the one's that got caught! We point fingers at other people's faults so we can ignore our own.

Keep your receipts, always make sure someone knows where you are or can vouch for your whereabouts because ANYONE including YOU can be made to appear guilty, especially if you get the media involved. Oh, and take a look in the mirror before you go pointing fingers.

There should have been an investigation immediately upon finding out this man was a fraud. There are several people in prison because of fraudulent evidence. I know of two right now. A youth minister in NC, met a young lady online that had lied about her age. He had been counciling her online for quite sometime. She ran away from home and showed up at his appartment. Meantime, her sister informed her parents that she had run away and where she was going. Thirty minutes after she arrived at the ministers appartment the cops showed up. This young lady was underage, a habitual run-away. Upon being confronted by the cops, she began to fabracate her story that the minister had came an picked her up accross state line and took her to his appartment, and had sexually abused her. DNA was taken; but not presented in the court. DFACS was not called and a single police officer transported the young woman back accross the state line (a DFACS worker should have been present). There was no rape kit presented in court and no other evidence. Just the young lady's testimony and that of the cop that arrestedd him. He is serving 40 yrs. in prison.

AJ,

"How do you compensate a man for 26 years of his lift?"

C A S H

And lots of it...

hey donna, preston died last year
i'm sure the dog died long before

SHAME!

SHAME............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Wake up people..........America DOES NOT have a justice system. America has a legal system that has been destroyed by lawyers and judges who were lawyers previously. Common sense no longer prevails in the case of weak evidence and district attorneys who believe their job is to secure convictions and not seek justice. The system protects criminals, deadbeats and the irresponsible at the expense of honest and law abiding citizens....just try collecting from someone who has done something as simple as skipping out on rent. You have to pay your own court cost, legal fees and then good luck collecting the money once you do receive a judgment. Shameful, shameful shameful.

With the level of judicial sanity which the world admire the USA for, this is not good enough. I am of a very strong opinion that there are supposed to be some officials in the judicial ministry who are supposed to follow up on judicial/criminal cases of such individuals whose judgments/findings have been used as standards over time (in the judiciary); and pass their findings over to appropriate authorities for further scrutiny of the results arrived at based on the presumed professional methodologies of such individuals.

Reopening "closed" cases means the original
"do'er" is still out there. Which means a new cold investigation. Which means devoting additional expensive resources, or just let the (killer?) get away.

So going back and digging into "solved" closed cases is not the highest priority of the prosecution. With limited resources they are often viewed as better used addressing current - and more "noisy" - cases.

Really sounded like the movie "Shawshank Redemption". The injustice that have been done to this person for the 22 years more since the fraud has been uncovered is a huge crime. I really hope that the prosecutors are put to jail for framing an innocent man.

A.J., you're a racist and Annie is absolutely right.

Like SBS, MSbP. in Canada the province of Ont, held an inquest on MANY in jail for so called child abuse and murders. and the junk sceince in courts, opened up jury gate as well, how once accused has little chance against paid government crowns, and hired experts, that teach junk science. SBS now is NO longer to be used in Ontario, and Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy" de bunked, in the UK, down under, in Canada, still alive and well in the States. and injustice to one is an injustice to all,
JUNK sceince MUST stop, and Judges need to be educated and be the gate keepers of the courts.
for more, google Goudge inquest or charles smith blog, although it went far further then one Charles Smith, who I think took the fall for others errors.

In another dog handling case.. In 2004 Sandra M Anderson was prosecuted for planting evidence for her dog "Eagle" to find:
[Prosecutors said Anderson faked evidence in several cases in Michigan and Ohio. They said she planted bones in search areas and used her own body fluids to stain a saw blade, coins and a piece of cloth. ]
I'm wondering how many innocent people are still in prison because of her.
here is a link to the article... http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-03-11-planted-evidence_x.htm
by the way... she was facing 65 years.. she ended up getting 21 months..

As a K9 handler and trainer working on training my own drug dog ..
I can only tell you that there is alot of people out there who do this kind of thing.
Security companies who say there dog are fully trained in scent training ,, First off Dogs cant track under water,, secondly scenting after so much time after a murder and hurricane is total ridiclious. and so far fetched ..
Please dont blame the bred of the dog ,,,Shepards are intelligent.
There never is a bad Dog only Bad handlers
Sincerly yours
Susan

I have become very cynical about how citizens are supposed to be protected by our judicial system. I have worked in the judicial system, and I am saddened more and more by those who are in a position to enforce and interpret the law and become complacent in their role to uphold the law. There are many in an authoritive and respected role who have a "good ole boy" following and get away with destroying the laws they're meant to uphold. When those in that position don't uphold the law, there is no law. I don't know a lot about the Innocence Project, but I am grateful for them. Too bad they really don't have the funding to fully carry out their mission to the extent it deserves.

Glad that this guy lived to see himself vindicated. What a horrible thing to have to go through. I hope he gets to do everything he has always dreamed of doing before this awful nightmare started.

The Orlando Sentinel has been working on this story for the last few months. They've asked the State of Florida to investigate the cases where the dog was used to convict the defendant and see if they were wrongly sent away. Thus far, the State Attorney General and Governor have done nothing.

Thanks to Scott Maxwell of the Sentinel for keeping on this story, but thank you to Randi for giving it some national attention.

Donna Wood, Lil "Tennessee- You asked what has happened to the dog since the owner's death? This case is from 1981 sweetheart, I can pretty much guarantee you the dog died a long time ago...lol

Hey donna, I am pretty sure that any dog alive in 1984 is dead now.

Right on, A.J., I agree 100 percent. The system did not work, a man's life was ruined. Also, when I read Annie's words, I thought she was saying the guy deserves compensation only because he is white. I hope she did not mean for it to seem that way.

The system owes that guy at least 5 million dollars and a guarenteed job for life with full benefits.

How can an individual be compensated for 26 years. There is no dollar amount that can rectify this wrong doing. Bill will never be 22 again.

Cases like this will always create skepticism within the justice system.

How many more cases are fraud?

I heard the dog is on the run in Mexico. Let's get him!!

@Donna: How long do dogs live in Tennessee?

Oh please, my elegant shoes should be the topic of conversation and not this mutt who idolizes Bernie Madoff.

ruh roh.

Clearly, the right proceedure should be that when a systematic fraud is found in convictions, it is the DUTY of prosecuters to reopen those cases. If they do not, then they should be held accountable with criminal charges themselves. Not for the original conviction, but knowingly violating their duty to the accused, their country, and their god (if lawyers think they even have a higher authority). I am not a liberal, but you only need to have been wrongly accused of something once to feel the visceral outrage over something like this. I have no idea what a 22 years old kid did for his early prison time in a Florida State pennitentury for murdering a girl, but as Rodney Dangerfield once said , "I can tell you this, those guys aren't the boy scouts". The fact that this guy doesn't come out of jail and go postal and wipe out that prosecuter and his family with an assault rifle is a testament to human character. He is a better person than I am.

Waaaaaaaaaaaah! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Waaaaaaaaaah! De' mean ol' librals is always pickin' on me! Waaaaaaaaaah! Waaaaaaaaahhh! Make 'em stop! Waaaaaaaaaah! Waaaaaaaaaah!

This was 20 years ago. That dog is surely dead.

I would never have sent a person to prison like that , but I had a very small Min-Pin dog , trained to growl or attack on signal . I talked to a " suspect " in my homes robbery ..... Asking the dog if this was the person ? on que , it would growl and the suspect walked over to cops , and turned himself in .

Hey, Annie, why do I get the feeling you like to post so inject your racist nonsense into every single story you read?

Larissa,

Thank you for pointing out the punctuation and grammar errors. It never ceases to amaze me how illiterate our culture really is!

steve

Once Preston was exposed as a fraud, all cases that involved him should have been reviewed immediately. Dillon's life was ruined because of Preston and the State of Florida.

Donna, dogs only live at most 17 years, it's been 26 years....

All prosecutors involved should be stripped of their jobs and posted on the front page of the news. Take this thing as far as it goes and keep these fake wannabees in check.

I really hope that the state, who put him behind bars, make restitution to this man who lost the prime of his life. He has little chance at a career, retirement, family, and many other of the God given opportunities this great country provides. The state should stand up and make things right for him...I hope they do.

Are you people in denial? What justice system? Do you live your lives in a cocoon?

Quite honestly, putting a man way for 26 years on a so called expect testimony while having a day in court is a lot better than being denied harbes corpus for an undertermined period of time (potentially all live) all based in a simple allegation of terrorism (definition TBD...islamic, domestic, rightwing, leftwing, patriot, white power, black power, racists, founding fathers, constitution lovers, etc) without a day in court.

Annie is right. Just think about it; 1 random person making an somewhat racist statement over email has made the front page of CNN for the past 2 days. If this had been a black person we would have had Jesse Jackson preaching and riots in the streets. All this crap about race is making me tired and numb to the issue.

Great article and a sad commentary on the pursuit of a prosecution for the sake of careers and not justice. Although Mr. Preston is dead, there are still others alive who knowingly helped him put innocent people in prison. I would hope that those individuals can be brought to justice for their part in this fraud.

Donna, the dog may have had "magical" powers but living into his 30's probably wasn't one of them.

Typical "Justice in Anerica". As a 20 year vetran of our armed forces I feel ashamed of the corrupt law enforcement and our judicial system I helped perpetuate. The goal of conviction at all costs regardless of guilt is an abomination worthy of third world countries.

Only the rich and powerful can expect justice and even then it bought and paid for. No one will ever be prosocuted for crimes like these because that would mean the Government failed and that is not something the people in power will ever admit.

The people are seen as the enemy of the Government by those in power. Justice be damned!

Donna, I would assume the dog wouldn't live 26+ years.

Donna Wood asks "And what happened to the dog since his owners death?"

Huh? What part of 26 years ago is confusing to you? I'm guessing that the dog will remain buried where he likely has been for the last 15 years.

No way that Donna still thinks the dogs alive.........

This is a complete travesty of justice! Every one of the detectives and DA involved in cases where this trainer and dog were involved should be Federally investigated. That this fraud was discovered in 1984 and nothing was ever done is inexcusable. Florida judicial system has a dark dark stain on it. THIS MUST BE INVESTIGATED!!!

The guy was in prime of his life when sentenced, he lost his skills, education and reputation and now has to just start the count-down.

Should not the deptt. be more cautious in handling such cases, like verifying the dog's claim by other sources espcially when the sentence is so harsh.

i'm glad he's white too....NOW maybe those typical social biggots that always claim 'the white man got us down' blah, blah, blah....will shut their mouths and keep their racism to themselves!!!

lmao.....racism is for the biggots like that prof. gates.

they use it to distract, garner attention and as a crutch....nothing new there......oh...'what do i mean by "THEY"?'

I MEAN ALL OF YOU THAT BRING UP RACE AS A DAILY ISSUE...you know who you are and so do i.

it's the biggots like gates, and there are many of them, that keep racism alive in this country.

race had no part in the officers duties but gates HAD to make it the focal point of the issue at hand.......he got what he deserved and i would have gotten worse had i acted up to the pigs like he did....they turned soft, yellow and cowardly when they dropped the charges...but what's new there?

yea......racism is kept alive by those that need it most....like gates!

This is very sad story indeed!
Regarding Larissa's comments, I have to agree with her. The intro paragraph states "because the dog and the dog’s owner has been exposed as a fraud. " That should have been "because the dog and the dog’s owner HAVE been exposed as a fraud. "

Very sad! Let's hope that Mr. Dillon can return to society as a funtional citizen after so much time in prison!

are the police and prosecuters going to be free of all blame for this
injustice. How is it possible that such stupidity can be presented in
such a .way that a person is so wrongly treated. Did the real murderer ever get caught. This is not the first time that evidence has proved that people have been unjustly imprisoned and not released because the prosecution still believes that they were guilty.

Wow. What a waste of a life in prison. Totally innocent guy had to endure 26 years in prison when other convicted crimials are sentenced to rediculously low sentences, even when proven guilty. I don't lay any blame on the dog.... it was the owner!! Idiot!! I wish you well Bill and I hope you get compensation.

I believe the dog is buried in France's famous pet cemetary. There's actually no reason for me to believe that... but I do. I feel it in my heart somehow.

I have no sympathy for those who commit murder. But it's cases like these where an innocent man is convicted, which while common does happen more than we'd like to admit, that make me unable to support the death penalty. But still the thought of losing 26 years of ones life, especially one's prime years where you generally get married, raise a family, etc is almost worse than a death penalty. How does society make up for that to the wronged?

1) The State of Florida needs to getting working, 24/7 if neccesary, reopening cases involving this evidence and freeing those wrongfully incarcerated. Yes it will mean working weekends and holidays.

2) As for race, gender, religious beliefs, age.........enough.

3) As for compensation, yes Mr Dillon and for that matter anyone else wrongfully incarcerated reparations need to be made, how about a million dollars tax free for each year. Frankly I wouldnt have traded my freedom for any amount of money so it surely wouldnt be an incentive to test the justice system. Oh and where should the money come from, as much as possible from those involved in this scheme, the rest from the state of florida. That should teach the people of Florida to get involved with their government and not allow such backwoods shenanigans.

April,
You must be a public prosecutor....atleast you sound like one...

America has the HIGHEST INCARCERATION RATE IN THE WORLD. As long as Americans are eager to send other Americans to prison - including those who commit victimless "crimes" - we will continue to be Number One.

I have been following this case for over a year. Mr. Russo is our Public Defender here in Brevard County and Mr. Parillo has been representing Mr. Dillon. Brevard County Prosecutors office fought all attempts by the Public Defender's Office and Project Innocence to bring this grave injustice to light. They have even tried to keep Mr. Dillon from collecting any monies from the state due to a "former conviction" I think it was an arrest for marijuana. Most people with eyes wide open will attest to the horrible justice system here in Brevard County. What a State! and What a state.

This is the problem of crooked cops. They are everywhere and they do this all the time. Demand legislation doubling criminal penalties for lying cops, crooked prosecutors and anyone else involved in ruining peoples lives in the worst possible way, which prison, I'd rather be dead.

So-called eyewitness accounts from untrained bystanders or victims, unreliable tracking dogs, ... how is it that juries can convict with "beyond a reasonable doubt"? I would think that any of these types of evidence can and should always reasonably be doubted. They are just too unreliable for a criminal conviction.

I think you can be pretty certain that the dog died well before the owner. This happened in 1981...

Why does it always take 10 times longer to free the innocent than it did to lock them up?

I used to be for the death penalty, an eye for an eye. Unfortunately, this sort if thing happens so often in our "justice" system that it cannot be ignored. I wonder how many innocent people have been executed throughout the years because of these "experts".

Its a horrific injustice this man spent most of his life behind bars because of the incompetence of others and a dumb dog. what should one expect from a redneck state like Florida.

Annie:

This is about a much larger problem which seems to be systemic throughout law enforcement in general. Especially in Texas and Florida. I assume by now everyone has viewed the video of the Florida cops conspiring to frame a woman for a traffic accident she was not responsible for.

I find it odd that the only thing you get from this is an issue involving race. So, who's actually the bigot?

What seems most unbelievable to me about this is that there is no investigation in to possible misconduct of the prosecutor/prosecutors and investigating detectives who used this guy as an expert witness? And how is it so obvious to every one that the claims about the dog were unbelievable and yet ABC or any other news agency questioned the claims of the dogs abilities? It seems to me that any one of the police, investigators, the prosecuting attorney's and the District attorney should be investigated for witness and evidence tampering and lying. Any of them found guilty should go to jail for at least the same amount of time as this individual. Basically they committed the crime of kidnapping and false imprisonment. Had he been sentenced to death they would have committed premeditated homicide or attempted homicide. There are a lot of good people in the justice system, but the bad ones need to be punished. But no surprise they go unpunished. The medical community does the same thing, the backup and protect the bad doctors and nurses. 90% of medical mistakes are made by 10% of the doctors and nurses. Our justice system is no different. Why does it continue? Because we the public don't demand justice.

Donna – a 26 year old Dog. You're kidding right?

Larissa ~

How exactly does one become a freelance copy editor? I'm serious and interested. Do you have an email address to discuss away from here?

Thanks,
Mike

So, now that this dirty laundry has been aired, we can see how this state had a total lack of sense when it came to voting:).

The State of Florida really needs to take a good hard look at who they appoint as Prosecutors. The prosecutor who put this guy away for no reason should be disbarred, if he is still in practice. And then, he and the State of Florida should be sued for wrongful imprisionment/persecution.

This case is going to open up some major cans of worms here. Can't wait to see who else is going to be set free.

Bill Dillon is not the first man freed after being convicted with evidence from Preston; he is the third. And to this day Florida's idiot Governor and moron Attorney General both say that it is beyong their jurisdiction to call for a review of all cases involving evidence from Preston.

Beware America: Governor Charlie Crist is planning to run for the Senate in 2010 and there are rumors of a White House run in 2012. Don't fall for the tan and the happy smile, the man is worthless.

What happened to the dog??? Are you kidding? The dog was used to lock this man up in 1981... here we are 28 years later. That dog is long dead.

If you are a poor person in this country you will never get adequate legal representation. You simply cannot afford the best legal defense that money can buy. You are facing the might and wealth of the state.

Cases such as this are a travesty in our justice system. However, at least Mr. Dillon is now a free man. Every person convicted as a result of Mr. Preston's dog needs to have their case reviewed and have the benefit of modern forensic technology used to determine their guilt or innocence.

The dog was discovered as a fraud in 1984 and discredited again in 1987 but he remained in jail for another 25 years. Sounds like the DA was padding his resume to try and become State Attorney General. Everycase where the dog was primary source of evidence needs to be looked at. No conspiracy my @$$. Dillon needs to sue, be handsomely rewarded and make the TV rounds to bring this injustice to light.

I understood what Annie meant... And, She wasn't being a racist!
Since this is a white male... Where's Obama or Al Sharpton? No where to be found. It's less coverage and not really important... This article will be lost within 4 days. But, if this was a black man it would be on 24-7 for a month! And, good ole Al Sharpton would set up a trust fund for him and cry racism. That's reality... A.J....

nne, no one was talking about race until you brought it up. Victmoligist.....takes one to know one.

Annie can you please tell me how you were able to turn a story about a wrongly convicted man in a racial issue? I re-read the story and there is no mention of race anywhere.

Your politicizing of the issue for your own conservative agenda is assinine.

Yet another case where the unquestionable testimony of supposedly unbiased eyewitnesses, incompetent forensics specialists, fame-seeking paid "expert witnesses", or overzealous prosecutors has sent an innocent person to prison. The lack of DNA evidence doesn't guarantee innocence but I have seen too many examples of sloppy prosecution work that I am now in favor of revisiting cases where DNA might exonerate falsely accused persons –regardless of the monetary cost. The reluctance of courts to re-examine significant cases suggests they know they've railroaded people and are now trying to hide their tracks.

Donna,
Are you serious with that question? The whole article was talking about events that took place in 1981-1984. The article then says the owner died last year, in 2008. What planet do you live on? Do you think the dog is still living 27 years later making it more than three times older than the average dog lives. The dog has been dead for YEARS. I just wish Preston was still alive so Dillon could get out of jail and pay him a little visit. The criminal system is flawed for not immediately notifying Preston that the main piece of evidence in his case was not legitimate. Hopefully Preston gets some years back but it will be impossible to make up those precious missed years he spent in a prison.

Whether he is white or black, the system failed. Tear away from the race statement. The problem that we all are having of all races are problems with the judicial system in how they conduct their investigations. Their are persons behind these position that does not consider the evidence as key information, and for that reason accountability should be presented of its findings. Dillon, should be compensated for many of reasons.

The colour of skin does not perpetual your action, for we cannot change it. It is the characteristic is which lies inside that shows the real you and with that you have the responsibility to change your behaviour.

This man is definitely owed compensation, but another travesty is the fact that the person who did committ this crime has been free for 26 years. Unless of course he has been convicted of other unrelated crimes.

wow what kind of idiot believes that a dog can smell a trail under water.
And this is from judges and lawers who have spent years in school.
Thats Southern Justice for ya

Larissa – are you serious with your little grammar lesson?

Was there no other evidence other than this dog? Please. Typical CNN reporting leave out the details that may take away from the drama of this story. I agree that if the scent evidence was the highlight of the case, than yes that may have been the clincher that removed the reasonable doubt but I highly doubt the dog just randomly picked some dude off the street and they locked him up for life.

Remeber folks CNN like any other television, and or website can only operate with advertisments. How do you get those? Get the most people to watch your show by blowing up stories to look like there are conspiracies at every corner and when they are wrong, ie (Gates in Boston), make a story out of that as well.

Having recently had a son incarcerated I cringe at the hell Mr Dillon has had to endure for 26 years.

Were it "only" being locked up and not to move about freely, it would be bad enough, but, that is just the beginning of it. Prison is a dehumanizing environment in which every aspect of a person's being is challenged, trashed, and forever damaged.

No compensation is enough for what he has had to endure as an "innocent man".

I don't know how this was uncovered or by whom but God bless them. Please keep looking at all the others tainted by this sham of Justice.

I am afraid if it were me the first thing I'd do after exiting prison would be to burn the whole state down

It is horrid enough to hear of a conviction primarily based upon a dog sniffing out the accused, AFTER 8 days after the murder AND a hurricane!
And for the courts to give credence to "being able to smell under water" is beyond belief! Do the courts in Florida also give credence to witch doctors and counting horses?

THEN, to FAIL to investigate the other cases this flea circus visited its malfeasance on!
I'd have to say that the Florida judicial system is the MOST irresponsible judicial body in the ENTIRE nation!

I'll keep myself, my family and my business away from the never-never land of Florida! One of US might get convicted on the evidence of a talking tracking flea that only the handler can understand and translate for!

This is why the justice system depends on honesty and trustworthiness. It is when these standards are violated that something like this happens. This man has unjustly spent more than half of his life behind bars. That is a trajedy. How many others have done so as well. Our systems of justice were based on the notion that, "It is far better for a man to go wrong in freedom than to go right in chains." (Thomas H. Huxley) I don't like the idea of criminals being free but which side would you rather fall on? One criminal obtaining freedom or one innocent person spending 26 years in prison or even worse, being put to death,

Is the man truly innocent though? Or was it possibly that an accomplice’s DNA was on the shirt. Or just someone else’s acquainted with the victim? I am sure there was a LOT more evidence used to convict him. And now that he has discovered a loophole because of improper or illegal police procedures we may have set a murderer free. Something tells me that there is a possibility that the man was guilty and the police knew it, but were also aware that they wouldn’t be able to prove it absolutely in a court of law. (IE: for some reason or another his lawyer was going to be able to get some valuable evidence withheld from the trial) sooooo maybe there was a little bit of vigilante justice played out here to get a murderer off the street… Before everybody jumps on me… No I have no idea on the details of this case… Its just a thought.

Hey Anne,
Since your so glad the poor mans white, I bet my life that Mr. Preston the so called expert with his dog is too.. Isnt that sad how instead of focusing on the matter at hand you worry about race. What does that say of you. Thankfully he's out and hopehully he can live a normal life.

Guilty or innocent, if the cops come for you, fight for your life. Kill or be killed I say. Better to be dead or on the run than in prision, even for a year.

What happened to the dog since the owner died last year? Come on, the dog would be at least over 30 by now...the dog died before its owner...

Hey, Donna Wood, Lil' Tennessee, you're a bit daft, eh? it's been 28 years, I think the dog may be dead, too.

Wow check this link on CNN about 4 cops on tape caught framing a White Woman http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/crime/2009/07/30/pn.cops.accused.framing.cnn

The cops use fake dogs all the time. They watch for people fraking out then arrest them. They have been doing this for quite a while, and more so after 9/11. In the airport, the dogs just give a false sense of security so the num nuts think they are safe and the fanatics think they will get caught.

Donna,
The dog would have bee full grown (2 yrs old) in 1981, which would make the dog 30. How many 30 year old dogs do you see around? It's obvious the dog has passed on.

We only think we have the best justice system in the world because that is what we are told. Thank God for DNA but yet, we remain too reliant on so called proofs obtained from technology, or in this case, a fraud, instead of requiring collaborating evidence. Someday we can expect to see a conspiracy with doctored DNA results and fingerprint evidence. The justice system, not just the police, has the task of finding the truth and when they can"t they will make the evidence fit the suspect.

I'm curious about the guys attorneys duruing that time where are they

Scary that this could happen to anyone of us who stand by the law

"How do people sleep at night after convicting an innocent man?"

Well, it's like this... they don't believe they HAVE convicted an innocent man. Police investigators often develop an "intuitive sense" of who the guilty person might be, and then set out to find the evidence to "prove" it. That's what happened in Dillon's case, apparently. No one lost sleep over this. The dog owner felt that his dog had proved what the police already knew. The police felt the dog proved what they already knew. The prosecutor believed the police and the "evidence." Done deal.

I'd like to hear the other evidence in the case before declaring an innocent man has been in jail for 26 years and implying the state owes him a boat load of money. It's unlikely the prosecuters decided to bring in their sent tracking "ringer" unless they were pretty confident this guy was guiltly and just didn't have the evidence to make it stick.

He may be innocent, in which case this is a tragedy... but like I said, I'd like to see the other evidence, as the last thing I wanna do is feel sorry for a murderer.

Larissa, you could have simply *not* made a suggestion if the publicity of this forum bothers you.

To Donna in Tennessee – C'mon, do you really think the dog is alive after 20 plus years?

Convictions at any price. That is what prosecutors do. They had no incentive to go back on old cases. This would discredit the system.

Prosecutors say this time after time. Many don't care if someone is innocent as long as a jury convicts.

It has to be said that the system does not work perfectly or all of the time. Further, us white folks get profiled all of the time, too. I get what Annie is TRYING to say, and to rephrase it where it didn't sound racist would be impossible due to the nature of her comment. An interesting point to be made here is that I thought we were trying to open the race discussion and speak frankly. One of the ways to do this is to lay off of all races in the way we express our stereotypes of each other. Personally, every time I hear of a non-white being vindicated in the above scenario, I don't think quite the same way as Annie. All I think about is pretty much the same as others: the police are frequently corrupted (based on numerous experiences and news reports), and that the system doesn't work. Annie inadverdantly added a log to the fire by bringing up the race issue, and thanks to her, it occurrs to me that she probably is right...if only because I see comments by non-whites in other forums that actually say such things...and I believe that they, too, are correct. I'm not racist, not by a long shot. What's more, having been a victim of stereotyping, and watching my friends be victims as well, has given me what I hope is an insight to share with my fellow Americans: you don't have to be a racist to stereotype people, and if we all quit being so sensitive to the ignorant comments by others, this discussion will proceed with more success. You've got to reach over and say, "I totally understand what you are saying, Annie. Keep in miind, however, if our wrongfully incarcerated victim had been black, race COULD have been a factor. It's unfair to say that it isn't".

Hey Annie – for my part I'm glad the guy is white too, otherwise the jack-booted, torture loveing, bill of rights hating, wrong country invading, BuschReich voting, conservatives would be bewailing the "soft on crime" commie lib system that lets a "dangerious criminal" go free merely becasue he was framed.

And people wonder way so many of us simply don't trust the criminal justice system anymore.

Unfortunately, Dillon was recently denied compensation from the State under the "clean hands" law. The FL Wrongful Incarceration Act will not provide for payment if they had a prior nonrelated conviction. Dillion has a non violent drug conviction when he was 19 so he is not eligible.

How many people are in prisons serving time for the crime they didn't commit. We need serious review. You have no idea what is the reaction to the life lost or important time of your life lost or gone waste.

WOW. It is a shame this man lost most of his life, or at least his prime, behind bars for a crime he didn't commit, and they waited almost 20 years to tell him that. WHY WAS HE STILL IN JAIL after Preston was discredited and outed?!?! That's ridiculous. I hope more people get re-reviewed, but if they did it, it's good that they are where they are.

This has NOTHING to do with race people.

What about the 12 ass holes that sat on the poor guy's jury?

Unfortunately, we see this far too often – innocent men and women going to prison for something they did not do. How do we solve this problem? Read "The Innocent Man". Another horrific case of an innocent man being sent to prison for years only to be release many years later and die of cancer. I believe there is too much corruption within the system and unfortunately things like this will continue. If our congressmen can do anything about this, you have my vote!

Annie,

I'm not sure why you would want to bring into this discussion issues of racism in law enforcement, not to mention the fact that, for seemingly political reasons, you are glad that you don't have to argue with any charges that the court here or the fraudster are or were racist. I'm not sure why you would bring this into the discussion only to leave it and make an unrelated "i'm glad this turned out" comment. If you're going to try to score a political point by making an uninteresting platitude, then at least follow through with it.

Regards,

Justin

Annie....maybe you could understand if you where black! I apoligize if it is too much of a burden to hear of ethnic troubles. It's sad what happened to this guy, but it happens everyday where I live because of skin tone. So open your eyes..and close your mouth.

Again we fall under the Rich Get Richer and the Poor Get Poorer... My heart and prayers go to this man and his family!! To APRIL.... how do you generalize 26 years ??? He should of had a wife and family, be watching his children head to college. Once again we are shown our judicial system has major flaws. How many people are behind bars that don't belong there, maybe because someone just didn't do their job right, or feel like taking the time??? Compensation ?? who is he going to sue ?? Thanks to the Florida judge that was wise enough to call the scam of this fradulant man, otherwise how many others would be behind bars today??
To LARISSA.... you must be young... yes you could of and should of found a different way to critique an article!!

First, let me qualify myself.

I'm a Search Dog Handler and trainer.

I hate to hear stories like this one, as it discredits and hurts all the good dogs and handlers.

I remember another one like this with a female handler and her Doberman who also falsified evidence.

I've watched alot of poor work (By both volunteers and professionals) and can only feel sorry for what has happened.

I have slowly realized over time that the few dedicated and knowledgeable dog handlers have become fewer and fewer.

After 9/11 I realized how badly the system has fallen apart.

Maybe some smart reporter will do an expose, but I doubt it.

My husbands cousin (here in Mass) was arrested, convicted and spent 26 years in jail for a rape he did not committ...he was arrested walking down the street in the early 80's after the victim told the police her attacker was wearing a "Hooded sweatshirt and a blue jean jacket" well...guess what he was wearing...... Project Innocence helped free him too.

the words "W . T . F." can't even describe this situation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm happy to hear of his release! But what a shame,he had to sit for another 20 yrs after they knew fraud was involved.To Annie, You have no clue what blacks have been through,and other ethnic people have endured.Being hung,dragged,beaten,murdered and convicted of crimes they haven't committed.So until you wake-up ethnic,you don't have to worry about needing a victimologist to scream bloody racism for you.That will never be a concern.By the way the justice system failed this man,whether he was black or white.The difference is he wasn't falsely accused bc he was white,but a person of color is sometimes falsely accused bc of their skin.It's a fact!!!! That's why we have and need victimologist today.

I heard the dog died when the owner sent him underwater to find a drowning victim???

This appened years ago in Arizona, it may have been the same man, and dog. THe dog and his handler reconstruted the crime scene for the police and later all three of the murders, agreed they killed the person but not like the dog said. What happened to the Mr Sniff

How can the cops and DA sleep at night knowing the real killer has been free since '81? The dog and its owner are only part of what when wrong with this conviction.

A.J., by calling Annie's view "racist", you just proved her point.

Annie: Way to miss the point. And out yourself as a racist.

I am flabbergasted that Preston's cases were not reviewed. And he was never charged! How does that work, exactly? Does the Attorney General just say "oh well, those cases have been tried, so we might as well not ess with them."?

What a travesty. I hope Mr. Dillon gets PAID. It's the least he can receive in the way of restitution.