Thread by @jaketapper

Speaking of fighting injustices....

My father, Philadelphia pediatrician Dr. Ted Tapper, has been trying FOR YEARS to get justice for C.J. Rice, a former patient locked up in a PA prison since 2012 for a crime my dad is convinced he could not have committed.

thread/

2/ Nine years ago, C.J. -- then 17 -- was riding his bicycle and was shot in the belly and elsewhere.

When he arrived in the ER he was opened up from breast bone to lower abdomen (over 8 inches).

Several bullets were removed from his belly. One bullet fractured his pelvis.

3/ C.J. was in the hospital from Sept 3-11, 2011, during which time he developed pneumonia. His incision was closed with over 25 staples, most of which remained in him when my dad saw him in his office on Sept 20 2011.

4/ C.J. was BARELY ABLE TO WALK when my dad saw him. He was bent over, walking very slowly, had a shuffling gait.
This was because of his long incision, fractured pelvis, and pneumonia.

5/ Five days later, on Sept 25, 2011, at about 9:30 p.m., on the 1600 block of 18th Street in South Philadelphia, Ms. Latrice Johnson was trying to gather her 7 children to go home for the evening.

2 - 3 males approached them, fired upon them, and then fled.

6/ 4 innocent people including a 6 year old were shot. Thankfully none of the wounds were life-threatening,

That night Latrice Johnson IDed to police the shooters as: 1 black male in a gray hoodie, 1 with a black hoodie, both In black sweatpants.

She didn't ID either by name

7/ The next day Phila. PD Sergeant Detective John Craig interviewed Latrice Johnson at the hospital.

He presented a photo array of eight individuals, one of whom was C.J. (who had a prior misdemeanor for marijuana possession)

Johnson identified C.J. as one of the shooters.

8/ It's interesting that she hadn't ID'ed him the night before.

Latrice knew C.J. He had once been friends with her son Khalief.

Once, she picked up Khalief from C.J.'s house because the two were working on a school project together.

She was C.J.'s “friend” on Facebook.

9/ My dad testified as a fact witness, describing C.J.'s injuries and pneumonia.

He told the court it was "extremely unlikely" C.J. could have run given his injuries.

10/ To rebut my dad, the prosecutor presented hospital records suggesting that one week after he was shot, C.J. had “complete independence” in locomotion (walking) and
transfer mobility (getting up and down), and that he could
return to school by Sept. 25.

11/ To state the obvious, none of that means C.J. could run.

Being able to walk or sit down doesn't mean one can flee.

His lawyer should have had the hospital worker who filled out the form testify to that, but she didn't.

12/ The prosecutor also tried to rebut my dad by arguing C.J. COULD HAVE taken the prescribed Percocets he had been reluctant to take days before.

My dad is honest and allowed he had no idea what happened that day.

There was no evidence presented C.J. had taken Percocets.

13/ To be blunt, my dad says C.J.'s defense lawyer was inept.

She, for instance, did not utilize expert testimony (of a trauma surgeon, for instance) to rebut the prosecutor's allegation that C.J. could have run. She didn't hire an outside crime scene investigator.

14/ There was of course much more to the trial, including questions about the credibility of C.J.'s alibi.

But the bottom line is the main evidence against him was one eyewitness's account.

No weapon.

No forensics.

And C.J. didn't have a good lawyer.

Why?

He's poor.

15/ We all know eyewitness testimony is not particularly reliable.

C.J.'s attorney did not bring any experts to point this out.

apa.org/monitor/apr06/…

16/ A jury convicted C.J. of 4 counts of attempted homicide, 3 counts of aggravated assault, 3 counts of conspiracy to commit homicide, 4 counts of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, and 1 count each of carrying firearms w/o a license, in public, & by a minor.

17/ C.J. was sentenced to an aggregate term of 30 to 60 years’ incarceration.

(As for Latrice Johnson's eyewitness skills, the jury found the other man she IDed, Tyler Linder, not guilty of all charges.)

18/ And now C.J. is stuck in prison, in a system where appeals depend upon judges reviewing the work of judges and the D.A.'s office investigates the D.A.'s office.

30-60 years in prison.

Hard to believe anyone who could afford a decent lawyer would have been convicted.

19/ My dad has tried to go through all the normal channels to help C.J. but he finally agreed today to let me tell you this story.

He remains convinced there's no way C.J. could have run that day.

And that an innocent man is in prison because our system sucks.