Former Dallas County Prosecutor Richard E. Jackson has been disbarred after it was determined he withheld key evidence in a murder trial involving two Black defendants. The evidence that Jackson withheld includes pivotal documents, statements from key witnesses and much more that could have exonerated Dennis Allen and Stanley Mozee.
Jackson's actions pertain to a case that occurred in 1999 in Texas. Rev. Jesse Borns Jr. was stabbed nearly four dozen times as he stood in his leather and woodworking store. Allen and Mozee were later arrested and convicted for the murder despite there being evidence that would indicate the two are innocent. Most notably, one witness described the assailants as being remarkably tall. One suspect was also described as having a scar on his face and neck. However, Allen and Mozee do not meet the description provided by the witnesses.
Jackson was fired from the Dallas County District Attorney's Office in 2006. The Innocence Project has reported that Jackson is one of four people to be disbarred in the state of Texas for their actions regarding this case. While many of the people who handled the Borns Jr. murder have been removed, it still took 15 years and DNA evidence for Allen and Mozee to be released.
“This case is not about someone disbarred for making a mistake or a prosecutor who accidentally or even sloppily failed to turn over favorable evidence,” Morrison told The Dallas-News Observer.
“This is someone who repeatedly and intentionally hid favorable evidence from two defendants who were on trial for their lives.”
Jackson being disbarred is a rare occurrence. However, it does not appear that he will be charged after moving away to Alaska to start a new life.
“[This event is] a rare event indeed. And long overdue. We worked for over a decade to uncover the evidence hidden by former ADA Jackson and free our clients from their life sentences. And it took two more years for him to be held accountable," Morrison added.
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