Efren Paredes was convicted to three life sentences at the tender age of 15. He was prosecuted entirely on circumstantial evidence and the refuted testimony of habitual liars in desperate search of lenient sentences. Efren how now served 20 years for a crime he did not commit. Although this time has not gone to waste due to his pursuit of justice, knowledge, and constant selfless acts to help others, the time has come to bring him home.
The rush to false justice in the rape trial of 3 Duke University students reminds me of Efren's situation back in l989.
Durham's District Attorney Mike Nifong, after jumping to the conclusion initially that the victim was a reliable witness and that the 3 lacrosse players were guilty of rape, now admits that his case is too weak to stand up in court. Yet he seems determined to try the 3 tormented student athletes on related charges despite an outcry from other lawyers and the demand from some that he resign after using illegal tactics to bolster his faltering case. As one defense lawyer put it, "It is the ethical duty of a district attorney not to win a case, not to prosecute all cases, but to see that justice is done." Had Nifong checked first into the victim's reliability as a witness, he wouldn't be in the hot water he's in today.
In Efren's case, the prosecutor accepted the testimony volunteered by Steve Miller, Efren's fellow student and neighbor (but never a friend of his). He even promised immunity to Steve, who then invented, with his father's help, a detailed account of how Hispanic Efren drove regularly to Chicago (at 15 Efren didn't even know how to drive) to deal drugs with a Latino gang there. When the initial accusations trumpeted by the media proved unfounded, the prosecutor, under tremendous public pressure to win his unraveling case, resorted to tactics much like those used by Nifong. Steve and his father are now in federal prison for long sentences for drug crimes dating back two years before the murder of Rick Tetzlaff.
Even though Steve admitted later that he had been a party to the murder, he was never arrested or charged, nor were several other Caucasian friends of his who were known to have been a party to the brutal crime.
Knowing what he now knows about Steve's guilt, isn't it time for the prosecutor to step forward and a
I am a life long friend of Efren's and fully support him in everything. It seems like the right things are always the hardest to come by, unfortunately. He has been an inspiration to me as he deals with all this injustice so positively. He is a wonderful person and for that he will receive justice. Let's help him get it sooner than later.
Best of luck, Efren. If the Appellate Court dosen't grant you a new trial free of racism and official misconduct, I hope Michigan Governor Granholm does the right thing and pardons or commutes your sentence. I think it's well past time. I know Efren Paredes, Jr. will be a productive member of society if given the opportunity. Knowing him as I do and learning the details of his case, I feel he is innocent. I believe it's time for the injustice to end.
Hello Everyone.
The I Want Justice! Webring joins members who have been wrongfully convicted or who have experience corrupt activities in the courts.
If you or someone you know would like to join, please find the navigation bar for the I Want Justice! Webring near the bottom of my website at www.informapauperis.net/i ndex.html
Since I founded the I Want Justice! Webring, I have been very pleased to see quite a few "graduates"; people granted new trials and found not guilty, DNA results that prove innocence, and otherwise...
While it is impossible for me to know, for sure, if a new submission to the I Want Justice! Webring is innocent, I always ask myself a few questions before I accept the submissions.
I ask myself if the submission has a story to tell. I ask if their is evidence to support whatever is being said. I ask if their is a reluctance on the part of those in power to review the evidence at any time in the proceedings. I ask myself if I can put myself in the shoes of that person, and if I can, is my story sincere.
All of those questions were answered to my satisfaction in Efren Paredes, Jr.'s case.
I believe it is past time for Efren to "graduate" from the I Want Justice! Webring, and I hope you will all do whatever you can to help with this effort.
Please feel free to add this note to any communications you might make.
Hope this helps.
alan joseph samson
sallykish@aol.com
www.informapauperis.net/i ndex.html
I Want Justice! Webring - Ringmaster
I have known Efren for seven years.There is no question that he was wrongfully convicted. I an convinced of his absulute innocence. I know that he would make a great contribution to society if given the opportunity.
So many issues of injustice:
no physical evidence linked Efren to the crime;
Efren was a child at the time, an honor student, with no record, exemplayr behavior in school and at work...
the lenient sentences of those who admitted participation in the crime
the issues of race, class, and connections to the good old boy network
It is time for justice; indeed, well past time.
S. Meyer
I'm in full support of a new trial and/or pardon for Mr. Paredes. This is especially due to my first-hand exposure to injustice in a similar fashion. Damion Todd #186412 was given the same cruel and unusual punishment as Mr. Paredes was. We are currently seeking the same resolve in Damion's case. Although the circumstances are not identical, the excessive and unreasonable sentence is. Best wishes.
I feel that our govenor should pardon him from eveything. If there is evidence that he did not do this crime then he should be given a full pardon. Or atleast a new and fair trial. But i really hope the governor will read this and act on them as she should But I hope maybe she will find a concence and give him a pardon or a new trial.
There are several ways to identify a criminal...certaintly, Efren deserves to be tested with psychological existing tests that will tell if he was involved or not in the crime. Not only will be helpful to help Efren's case, but to the hundres of unjustices commited this way.
I am Efren's brother and know for a FACT that he is innocent! I was home the night Rick dropped my brother off from work; HE IS INNOCENT! The courts have unjustly issued a wrongful conviction.
I was at Efrens home the evening of the crime when Efren came home. He acted like a normal young man coming home from work. Nothing unusual!!! This is a complete sham!!!
Efren was railroaded by a justice system more concerned about an election and a speedy trial in the media. The young men who pointed their fingers and told stories were all involved in other issues with the law. The guilty parties are out free, the innocent one is still behind bars. Help stop this injustice.
i will iclude you in my prayers,i'm fighting a very simular battle for my own son's.& with God's help,one day soon Efren & my own two son's will be home.
If Efren had confessed to a crime he had no part in or knew anything about, he would have been released from prison years ago. It's time to stop insisting on a confession of guilt before releasing an innocent person. He has made an amazing record in prison and has much to offer society as a free man. His website is fascinating reading!
Efren is innocent. He hadn't heard of this crime until the police came and told him about it. He has refused to admit to something he never did. David Protess says that whenever a prisoner continues to profess his innocence he is usually telling the truth because year after year of lying in prison doesn't work for a guilty man.
