Woman's 1998 manslaughter conviction overturned
Authorities overturned the 1998 manslaughter conviction of a Brooklyn woman Tuesday. The court exonerated 58-year-old Vanessa Gathers after a review by Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson's Conviction
News 12 Staff
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Feb 24, 2016, 4:48 AM
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Updated 2,981 days ago
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Authorities overturned the 1998 manslaughter conviction of a Brooklyn woman Tuesday.
The court exonerated 58-year-old Vanessa Gathers after a review by Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson's Conviction Review Unit.
Investigators determined that Gathers' 1998 conviction was wrongful.
Gathers has maintained for years that disgraced former NYPD Detective Louis Scarcella coerced her into a false confession. She spent 10 years behind bars.
Gathers is the 18th person -- and the first woman -- exonerated by Thompson's conviction review team.
The DA says his unit mostly probes cases of people who remain wrongfully imprisoned, but felt Gathers deserved to have her name cleared.
