A 61-year-old man walked out of a Brooklyn courthouse Monday as a free man after spending nearly two decades imprisoned for a robbery worth approximately $550 that he never committed.
Kenneth Windley expressed relief despite losing almost 20 years of his life to wrongful imprisonment. “It cost me 20 years, but they said they corrected it now. So that’s all that matters. So I’m good with that,” Windley stated as he exited the courthouse, experiencing freedom for the first time since his 2007 conviction.
The judge vacated Windley’s conviction and completely dismissed his case following a joint request from both prosecution and defense attorneys. District attorneys revealed that fresh evidence, including admissions of guilt from two other men who had been convicted in similar robbery cases, validated Windley’s consistent claims of innocence.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, a Democrat, acknowledged the system’s failure after meeting with Windley outside the courthouse. “This case is really a cautionary tale of how things can seem one way but, without careful analysis, not be what it purports to be,” Gonzalez explained.
“Had we known what the evidence was, this case should have never happened,” the district attorney continued, noting that he had offered Windley a private apology.
The case began in 2005 when Windley was taken into custody after purchasing an appliance for his mother using a money order that had been stolen.
The money order was part of items taken from Gerald Ross, a 70-year-old victim who was followed to his home by two criminals after visiting a bank and post office. The perpetrators restrained Ross in a chokehold before stealing his money orders, cash, and bank book, according to Monday’s prosecutorial report.
Ross frequently obtained money orders at the same post office for rent and insurance payments, which created a traceable record that authorities used to investigate the theft. This paper trail ultimately pointed to Windley, who had provided his identification, driver’s license, and home address when making the appliance purchase.
Throughout the ordeal, Windley maintained his innocence regarding the robbery. He explained that he had purchased the $542.77 money order at a reduced price from two people he knew, who assured him the document was legitimate but claimed they couldn’t use it due to administrative complications.
Defense attorney David Shanies told the court Monday that “He was duped.”
Ross picked Windley out of a police lineup as one of his attackers, leading to a jury conviction in 2007 on robbery charges. Due to previous felony convictions on his record, Windley received a sentence of 20 years to life imprisonment. His subsequent appeals were unsuccessful.
From the beginning, Windley provided prosecutors with details about the individuals who sold him the money order, including their street names and partial information about their real identities. Following his conviction, a friend and private investigators assisted him in determining the men’s full identities and convincing them to reveal the truth about the incident, the district attorney’s report states.
In official sworn declarations and later during questioning by district attorney’s office staff, both men admitted to robbing Ross together and confirmed that Windley had no involvement in the crime, the report indicates. Officials described their confessions as “compelling.”
The report protects their identities, identifying them only as “Suspect 1” and “Suspect 2.” Both individuals are currently incarcerated for separate robbery convictions, according to the district attorney’s office. These other convictions all involved elderly male victims in their 60s and beyond who were stalked from banks and check-cashing businesses throughout Brooklyn during 2005 and 2006.
Prosecutors determined that if the jury had been aware of these men’s identities and criminal histories involving similar robberies, this information would probably have created reasonable doubt about Windley’s guilt.
No additional charges will be filed in this matter. The statute of limitations expired years ago, and victim Gerald Ross has passed away.
As Windley departed Monday afternoon to reunite with his family for a celebration, he expressed no resentment about his ordeal.
“I’m just going to move on from there,” he said.
