Thats So Reddit Ep 5

The hosts of a podcast discuss a Reddit post about a wrongful conviction. The person shares their story of being arrested and charged for armed robbery, spending months in jail, and being coerced into a confession. The hosts discuss the importance of checking evidence, the rights of the accused, and the flaws in the criminal justice system. They express sympathy for the person's situation and highlight the need for legal representation. Hey you, that's so rich! Ha ha ha ha! What's good everybody, hey hey hey hey hey. We back with another one, you know what I'm saying, it's your boy KP32. And today I got two special guests with me. Introduce yourself. I'm Destiny. And we got, I'm back again, it's Big Gabe. You know what I'm saying, really little but you know what I'm saying, we ain't gonna talk about it. That's my seed. He's lying. He is lying, I carry that boy. You know what I'm saying, I change his diapers. Check the facts. We back with another episode of Ayo, That's So Reddit. Where we like to, you know, read comical, unhinged Reddit posts. So the title of this episode is, what is a life story that you may have that nobody will ever believe? Y'all have anything that's like crazy that people wouldn't believe? I got a hook stuck in my finger. Oh my god. Oh my goodness. Trips to the beach, honestly. You had wild trips to the beach? Yeah, we're not talking about that though. Mine would be, I'm interested now, I don't. About wrongful convictions. Basically, we got pulled over, I had all of these things. I am of age, but I had all these things that I wasn't supposed to have in the car. And so he confiscated everything, searched us, like, and then he just sent his voice. Like, let's go. No ticket, no nothing. Like, he was just able to, it was scary. It was just like, we forgot about it. We forgot about it. We were just like, oh yeah. He took all of our things. All the way to the beach. I'm on details. We'll talk about that later. Yeah, it was crazy. So this person, they don't have a name because they were deleted, obviously for some crazy reason probably. Just after I turned 19, I was arrested and charged for an armed robbery I was completely innocent of. I spent 10 months in jail, 6 of which I spent in solitary confinement on suicide watch. I spent my birthday at a resort hotel with my girlfriend at the time. That night at around 3 a.m., the front desk was robbed by two people, one with a gun and one with a knife. We were questioned when we left the hotel at 11 a.m. since we roughly, roughly matched the height, weight description of the mass robbers. Later that day, it was discovered that my girlfriend had used a bad credit card to pay for the room, and we were both publicly arrested on a sidewalk and taken to the state police barracks in handcuffs without a word on what we were being charged with. We were taken to separate rooms and questioned for hours on end about the robbery. The same questions over and over again. First off, first off, one, your girlfriend ain't. You paying, you paying for a resort with a bad credit card? Take your money first. Yeah, I mean, yeah, you can't be planning on knowing this bad. Cause she knew she ain't had no money. She had to know she ain't had no money. Get your money up. Get your money up. Get your money up. But, like, not like for real, though. Like, I'm not going to lie. I mean, I get that. So I applaud her for that. But it's just like, man, I'm like, you paying for a bad, like, you using a bad credit card? Like, that's something you really got to check. At the hotel, though, they check for stuff like that. Exactly. Like, you need to check that before you even go there or even actually fully plan it because, you know what I'm saying? But they was actually in a sticky situation. It's kind of ironic how they match the height and weight description. But, like, it's one I found. Like, pay attention to the details. Like, it's more details than height and weight. That's, like, a common theme. But, you know, police state. Yeah. It's always, you match the description. And the elephant in the room, were they black? Mmm. Really? Like, I mean. Mmm. If they was black, oh, man. They fit the height and weight, but were they black, though? Real talk. Anyway, let's proceed. Because I ain't going to lie, that was going to start a whole escapade of a whole other conversation. According to National Institute of Justice, it talks about wrongful convictions. Strength of our criminal justice system depends on its accuracy. But everybody knows it's not that accurate. You know what I'm saying? A conviction may be classified as wrongful for two reasons. One, the person convicted is factually innocent of the charges. And, two, there were procedural errors that violated the convicted person's rights. Which, in this case, their rights were. I wouldn't say their rights. First of all, they were factually innocent of the charges. The reason why I think that is so is because of the simple fact, like, truth be told, check cams, you know, hotels, resorts have cameras. Most definitely had accurate security. Exactly. So, if they would have really robbed a place, like, you really, like, you got to think, like, would they come and try to check out? No. No. They probably had cameras tracking them as soon as they walked in, got into their room, as soon as they walked out their room. Exactly. Check the cameras. Now, I wouldn't necessarily say that their rights was violated. Because, I mean, don't get me wrong, though. They was brought to the station without, like, a word on what they was being arrested. So, I guess you could say that is a violation of rights. But then again, like, they, I guess the cops just automatically assumed that they was, like, you know, armed and dangerous. So, they went to immediate, we're going to take you in once we catch you, instead of giving you reasons of why we catch you. Do they have to tell you that? Or they just got to read you when we ran the rights? But, I mean, don't it consist of, like, if you, if you're dealing with weaponry, like, if somebody is armed and dangerous, like, you got to just go for it, right? Yeah. That's what I'm thinking. I don't think, I mean, yeah, they can read you your rights, but I don't necessarily think it's going to matter at that moment. That is true. That is true. I mean, but at least they didn't shoot first. That don't mean they didn't come in guns drawn. That is also true. She ended up going to jail for the credit card, and I was released, but told to return the next day for further questioning. I did, and was taken to a back room, sat in a corner, and had two detectives relentlessly question me, picking apart everything I was saying, looking for circumstantial evidence that could connect me to the crime, and suggesting to me that my girlfriend had robbed a place, and I was going down with her if I didn't give them information. Being 19, I had no idea what to do and believe what they were telling me. I didn't question the falsified information they presented to me, and I was brought several times to the brink of giving a confession after being threatened with 10 years upstate if I did not cooperate. First off, first off. 19. I want a lawyer. Oh, God. First word I'm saying, as soon as I hear Robert. Y'all want to know what I was doing at 19? I was a freshman in college. 19. I thought I was a track queen. There's no way. I would have been so scared. 19, I was in my second semester of freshman year. First semester of freshman year. I was running the streets. Yeah, I was too, but like. I had just got here. Yeah, I had just got here. No. I'm not made for jail. I would have been, Mommy. I was working on my second freshman year. They wouldn't get a word out of me because I would have been crying the whole time. 19, every day I'd be like, Mom, I need you to get me out of here. In that situation, though, when they come to you like that, talking about robbery and stuff, and you know you didn't do it, go ahead and lawyer up, because then they can't say nothing to you no more. But like, the thing is, they know what they were doing. They see he's 19, he's scared, showing signs of fear. They're going to pressure him to come out and say something. I want my lawyer. That simple. Send my lawyer, don't talk to me. Now, it may be the simple fact that they're going to give him a public defender if the family don't have enough money to actually get a lawyer. I mean, that's cool. Look here, I'm trying to get out of the situation. They are pressuring me right now. I'm nervous. I know I didn't do it. I'm 19. I'm scared. Let me see my lawyer. Can I call my mom? That's simple. I'm 19. Now, hopefully he has a family. Hopefully he has a family. This is just me. I'm calling my mom and dad. I want a lawyer. So, according to U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs, they talk about admissibility of confessions in criminal proceedings. Magistrates are empowered to record professional statements made by accused persons at any time prior to the commencement of a trial. There is questions as to whether the magistrate before whom a trial is likely to take place are disqualified from recording a confession of the person involved. Confessions are admissible only when they are made voluntarily. And the burden for proving that a confession was made voluntarily rests with the prosecution. So, basically what that is saying is, truth be told, like, a person can confess, but it don't necessarily have to be admissible in court if they don't agree to it. Now, unless the confession is, like, hardcore evidence, then that's automatic. But if it's just some bull, no, you're not, you're not getting, that's not getting admissible. But you imagine how many black people are in jail over some bull, though? Like, like, even those seven boys, you know, that, yeah, that wasn't like a real confession. Yeah. Ten days later, two officers showed up at my door and arrested me for armed robbery. My girlfriend was coerced into giving a confession implicating me as an accomplice. I was placed immediately into solitary on 24-hour suicide watch and anxiously waited for a public defender. A week later, she showed up and I told her that I was totally innocent. She rolled her eyes and said, are you kidding me? I burst into tears, my last hope of release being dashed. And she realized that I was telling the truth. She said, there's no defense against my girlfriend's confession. And I sank into such a deep depression, coupled with shock, that I had a psychotic break a few months into my stay. 90 days in solitary at 19 with no hope of proving your innocence would do that. Okay. First of all, I watched too many shows that told, like, that showed how public defenders move. And I think it's just believable. All of them are basically the same. Look, they're looking for plea deals. That's all they're looking for. It sounds like a quick money thing. Like, they're, get you in, get you out if you're guilty. Okay, whatever. They're gonna get paid for it. I think they're told to get you the plea. Yeah. Yeah. Make it quick. They want you to admit that you're guilty. Yeah. They'll give you a deal. And then, you know, that's their whole scheme. Yeah. That's why I say that they, people, if you're going to do crimes, which I'm not, I'm not supporting that at all. But if you're going to do crimes, make sure you have an actual lawyer. Don't, don't get no public defender. Because if you do, you're in jail for life. I'm not even going to lie to you. You can go to jail for stealing a piece of candy out of the store. Public defenders will find a way to get you 25 to life. Yeah. I don't know how they do it, but they're going to make you sit in jail for maybe like five years and let you out on good behavior. It's the same damn thing every time. Like, it's just, no. Now, with him being under 24-hour suicide watch, that right there is so traumatizing. Because, like, you're, he's 19. He's so scared. He's scared and he knows he did not do that. Exactly. And his girlfriend knows he didn't do it. But I wonder what they did to make the girlfriend. So did the girlfriend snitch on him? Yeah, the girlfriend lied and said that he was a part of it. But what, what would make her do that, though? The way the question goes. Because he knew she was going down. But she, yeah. She tried to take him with her. If anything, she could have went down for what? A credit card problem? Probably got a slap on the wrist. She would have been there with JT. I'm serious. She might have done maybe a year or two. I forgot how much she did that. She would have been there with Herb, too. You know, Herb just got out of that little fraud situation. Yeah. They continue to say that the district attorney made periodic visits, offering two to five years deals for confessions and ten years if I fought the charges. But I told him I would not admit to something I didn't do. Fast forward to six months after the arrest, all spent in solitary confinement. I was woken and driven hurriedly early one morning to the state police barracks where the D.A. met with me in the back room and said, we have determined through further investigation that you are not at the scene of the crime. First of all, first of all. Thank you, Lord. Y'all going to get my what is it called? Community. Community. There you go. Thank you. Where they're going to sit there and give you, you know, your money, your whatever. Y'all going to have to pay me for the six months that I was in there. I ain't going to lie. Y'all don't have to. I need about two point five million. This is what kills me. They say a right to a speedy trial. Right. And this is what gets me with that. You'd be having people sitting in jail for like two, three years before they trial you to start. I don't see how that's speedy at all. They don't go by the Constitution no more, which is like if somebody was to bring that up, they could get out so fast. It's been five years. Why was my trial started? You said speedy trial. Five years is a long time. Think about it, fam. They don't go by the Constitution no more. So the deleted user continues to say that I was bursting with anger inside and said, so you'll be releasing me today and dropping all the charges. Great. And he got nervous and said, no, we can't let you go without charges because it would look very bad on us. But I'll tell you what, we'll drop all the charges and give you a charge of interfering with the investigation. You'll be out in less than six months. Absolutely not. You left me here for six months for something I didn't do. And you want to tell me to take it just so you don't look bad. Because you messed up. Interfering with an investigation when y'all harassed me. I didn't even know what was going on. Solitary confinement. Think about solitary confinement now. Think about it. It's not just. A box. Exactly. On suicide watch. On suicide. That means you probably. Put your food under the door. If you're on a suicide watch, you're probably in a straight jacket. You're not getting no. Or shackles in your hands and your feet. I don't want you to get shoestrings. They take your shoelaces out. They take your shoelaces off gate. Yeah, they take it. As soon as they process you in the system, they take your shoelaces. Okay. So according to National Library of Medicine, the National Center for Biotechnology Information. You know, I'm getting technical real quick. They talk about, you know, the introduction of like solitary confinement. And they said such studies have found that placement in solitary confinement has been associated with symptoms of increased psychological distress, such as anxiety, depression, paranoia and aggression. He was definitely dealing with anxiety, definitely dealing with depression and aggression. And I say aggression because deep down inside, I know he probably had built up anger, not only towards his girlfriend for using a bad credit card and putting him in a predicament, but also the way they was giving him a run around and forcing him to try to take a plea deal. Yeah. So then they said that they had a fairly heated exchange and agreed. They plead guilty to aiding and abetting the consummation of a crime after the fact and ended up doing 10 months total. So then a few months later, after my release, my girlfriend was released and we tried piecing together what happened. Out of nowhere, the mother of the man who planned. Cut. It ain't nothing to cut that. So Pete Pete came and said, out of nowhere, the mother of the man who planned and committed the robbery found us and told us in person that her son admitted to her that he robbed a place with a close friend of his. And he had been fired from the resort three days earlier and needed money to support his drug habit. And all the places you could. You didn't look at no records. Yeah, nothing. You just saw him and said, he got to be the guy. No, there was no due diligence in that investigation at all. Like they really just went on. And they were like, you know what? Are you messing up? It's probably all anyway. OK, so the dude knew what day would profit most, where the money was and how to easily get it as well, how to bypass all forms of security. That's what the former employee knew. She went to the police herself and they turned her away, saying they already had the people who did it and they didn't want to hear it. I just really hate it for this. Yeah, I really hate it for this person. I just just dealing with all of this at the age of 19. And like, that's just like you're still new to this adult life. I'll keep my 19. I mean, you are. But I'm I'm actually if this was still on his record, like his life even started for real. I wonder if it's still on the record because it's hard to get felonies off. So it didn't end up being a felony charge or a misdemeanor charge. But having to explain that to people like I didn't do nothing at all, but they still put it on here. Ain't nobody trying to hear that. Like, you know, and I think that's the issue. Now, according to NBC News, a recent study said that more than 97 percent of federal criminal convictions are obtained through plea bargains and the states are not far behind at 94 percent. That's how they get you. The plea bargains. They'll sit there and say, OK, I know you're facing 25 to life, but if we take this deal right now, I'll give you 10 years, 10 to 15 with. You can get out on good behavior. Yeah, you get out on good behavior and you got to serve five years on probation. You're innocent until proven guilty. Let's swap that around. If you're black and you're in a court, you are guilty until proven innocent. Yeah, yeah. Simple. But now, I really hope that your life is on a better path. I hope you're not really traumatized for what happened to you. I hope you're living well. And this is not affecting you at all. Facts. I know mentally it probably is because it happened, but hopefully everything else in your life is going well. If it really is still affecting you, I advise that you seek help the best way possible. Go find that person's mom again and tell her you need your reparations. Okay, so we tried hard to find a lawyer to take our case, but were never successful. The DA was later investigated for intimidation and abuse of power in a separate case. And to this day, that is my only sense of justice in the situation. Like my DA goes to jail. I was going to say, well, that is it for today's episode. Once again, I am KP32 and this was Ayo. That's so Reddit.