McCann, 47, pleaded no contest in February to one count of perjury for lies he told under oath in September 2012 during the Michigan State Police investigation of the 2007 slaying of 11-year-old. McCann said under oath that he had parked at the trailhead and was prepared to search for Parrack there when he got a call and went elsewhere. The system failed, and I saw it. But the only criminal charge that resulted was for perjury. Constantine police officers and detectives from a Michigan State Police task force questioned McCann nearly two dozen times over nearly five years after Parracks body was discovered. After spending 11 months in jail awaiting trial and facing a potential life sentence, McCann pled no contest to the count involving the Tumble Dam, believing that he had no chance of being acquitted if there was a video that contradicted his recollection, especially in a community that was convinced he had murdered Jodi Parrack. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. In 2014, the prosecutor charged McCann with perjury during a murder investigation, which carries a life sentence. Maybe if he sits in jail for a while, he will cooperate.. He lost his position as a reserve officer. information about the Registry, Perjury or False Accusation, Official Misconduct, Inadequate Legal Defense. Ray McCann knew he had no connection to the 2007 strangulation murder of 11-year-old Jodi Parrack in the small village of Constantin, Michigan, where he was a reserve police officer. He was sentenced to 20 months in prison in 2015. The detective also told lies about McCann to his family members and friends, going so far as to tell McCanns teenage son that McCann was a drug addict, in an apparent attempt to turn his family and friends against him and get McCann to confess. I lost my family, I lost my son Ive only seen him three times since I got out. He missed a grandchilds birth, and his sons high school graduation. I was a hostage, not a prisoner, and thats the way I felt, McCann, 50, says. . The Michigan State Police detective testified under oath that video footage from a surveillance camera on a nearby factory proved McCann was never there that night. One of the perjury counts stemmed from McCanns testimony that he had searched for Parrack at the Tumble Dam ruin. Get the latest news delivered to your inbox. Parracks body was found there a short time later. McCanns exoneration marks the end of a nightmare that began on November 8, 2007, when 11-year-old Jodi Parrack was reported missing in the small town of Constantine, Michigan. Its been rough, he says. Nov 30, 2015 40 Dislike Share WOOD TV8 170K subscribers A former Michigan State Police detective who came out of retirement to solve the Jodi Parrack murder said he has no regrets about how. Constantine police officers and detectives from a Michigan State Police task force questioned McCann nearly two dozen times over nearly five years after Parracks body was discovered. (516) 569-4000, To donate or for more information, click here, Tyler Flach sentenced to 25 years to life for Khaseen Morris killing, Nassau County passes new legislative district map, MTA prepares for season's first snowstorm, Valley Stream smoke shop manager charged in sale of THC products, Powered by Creative Circle Media Solutions. Police continued to pursue McCann aggressively for years even though DNA evidence found on the victim did not match McCann. McCanns victory working with the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern Universitys Pritzker School of Law and the Michigan Innocence Clinic at the University of Michigan Law School clears a man whom authorities openly accused and jailed in the stated hope that he would crack and admit involvement. 312.503.2391 phone Constantine A man who was repeatedly hounded by police during an investigation of a girls killing in southwestern Michigan has filed a lawsuit, two years after his wrongful conviction for perjury was thrown out. The office of St. Joseph County Prosecutor John McDonough, which won and then abandoned the perjury conviction, declined PEOPLEs request for comment. The big break in the case came as a result of brilliant work on the part of the Michigan Law students, said Swygert. McCANN-Raymond B. on March 9, 2012. the city's database of civilian complaints against the NYPD. The detective then persuaded the county prosecutor to issue a subpoena to require McCann to testify under oath concerning his whereabouts at the time of Parracks disappearance. He hopes to work to change the law that led to his wrongful conviction. In re the Marriage of RAYMOND C. and KATHLEEN D. McCANN. When I got out of prison, I went through a lot of depression wondering why this happened, he says. A reporter who followed the case, Ken Kolker of WOOD TV in Grand Rapids, helped bring McCanns experience to the attention of the wrongful conviction programs at Northwestern and Michigan. I wasnt going to take the chance of going to trial and being charged with life. Offered a deal that would lock him up for 20 months with credit for time already served, he accepted and pleaded no contest in March 2015. He expects them to say, Were sorry, we messed up, Swygert says. All of the charges stemmed from minor discrepancies between McCanns recall of the events surrounding Parracks disappearance five years earlier and the recollections of others. Investigators identified McCann as a suspect despite the fact his DNA did not match the DNA found on her body. Says McCann: The system already failed me. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. McCann said under oath that he had parked at the trailhead and was prepared to search for Parrack there when he got a call and went elsewhere. In 2014, the prosecutor then charged McCann with perjury during a murder investigation, which carries a life sentence. Stepping back into town, he feels really uncomfortable. A Michigan State Police detective falsely told McCann they had evidence tying him to the murderincluding that McCanns DNA was on Parracks body and Parracks DNA was in McCanns truck. He told authorities he saw Parrack riding her bike while he was cleaning his garage and asked her to help. Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. Steven DrizinAttorney at Northwesterns Center on Wrongful Convictions, This was one of the worst cases of police tunnel vision Ive ever seen.. Jodi was reported missing at about 7 p.m. by her mother, Valerie Carver, who found her strangled body later that same evening in the local cemetery. the city's database of civilian complaints against the NYPD, the department is not forthcoming despite, Read more about what weve included in the database and why, see our answers to questions we have received about this data, downloadable from ProPublicas Data Store, Abuse of Authority: Threat To Damage/Seize Property. Raymond was a graduate of Istrouma High School class of 1962 and Louisiana State University class of 1966. Although the tactics failed to coerce Ray into making a false confession, said Swygert, the tactics did succeed at ruining hisreputation and destroying his relationships with family and friends. McCann denied any role in the 2007 death of Parrack, but he was interviewed 20 times by state and local police in St. Joseph County. Second, further investigation and a closer look at the video revealed that video camera could not have captured McCanns car because the cameras were not facing the direction of the path to the Tumble Dam. Police continued to pursue McCann aggressively for years even though DNA evidence found on the victim did not match McCann. He. I felt like I was set up from day one.. Here the tunnel vision had such momentum that even after DNA and Furlongs confession completely exonerating Ray, it still took years and the force of two law school legal clinics to finally have his conviction vacated, Swygert said. Ray McCann II: Wrongly convicted, beaten, exonerated WOOD TV8 188K subscribers Subscribe 499 43K views 5 years ago Raymond McCann II was locked up for 20 months for a lie he never told over a. He became a person of interest in the case after he was one of several people to suggest searching the local cemetery. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel approved the. But a detective claimed that surveillance video recorded from a nearby factory showed McCann was never there though the video evidence was later discredited. Report an error or add more information about this case. Under interrogation, Furlong insisted he did not know McCann and told the authorities that when he learned that McCann had been arrested, he believed he was in the clear.. The Donald Pritzker Entrepreneurship Law Center (DPELC) continued its Future of Innovation, Sustainability and the Law Speaker Series in February. Hes also thankful that the prosecutor and judge agreed to consider the motion for his exoneration that was prepared by the two legal defense clinics, and then agreed to void his conviction. He was exonerated for the charge after an investigation by the Michigan Innocence Clinic. Beloved husband to Doris Fay. The Michigan students made two important discoveries that established there was no video evidence proving McCann had lied under oath about driving to the Tumble Dam. Best Match Powered by Whitepages Premium AGE 80+ Raymond E McCann Houston, TX (Westside) View Full Report Addresses Rolido Dr, Houston, TX Phone Numbers (713) nay - peek The judgment incorporated a marital settlement agreement (MSA) which, in part, awarded the family residence to wife, and required husband to pay $2,300 per month in support, one half was designated as child support and the other half as spousal support. I think now that my charges are reversed, Ill have a better chance.. The lawsuit alleges the defendants created a false probable cause document filled with information they knew was wrong in order to coerce a confession out of McCann. On the day Parrack went missing, McCann who knew the victim and her family well told at least four people that they should search the local cemetery, a suggestion also made by others. (Credit: Center on Wrongful Convictions, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law). Raymond McCann served 20 months for perjury after taking a plea deal in what a federal lawsuit claims was a scheme to manufacture charges to pressure him into confessing to the 2007 murder of 11-year-old Jodi Parrack. JOSEPH COUNTY, Mich. -- A man in St. Joseph County will be awarded approximately $40,000 for being wrongly convicted and imprisoned. After spending 11 months in jail awaiting trial and facing a potential life sentence, McCann pled no contest to the count involving the Tumble Dam. While elated that his legal nightmare is finally over, McCann is still trying to put the pieces of his life back together. His wife divorced him. Raymond McCann charged with perjury in connection with murder of Jodi Parrack McCann, 46, had been deemed a 'person of interest' by police Jodi, 11, was murdered in Michigan in 2007 after. The conviction was thrown out in 2017 at the. In fact, even after Furlong was identified by DNA evidence as the killer, the authorities went to McCanns prison and tried to pressure him into admitting that he and Furlong were accomplices. New York City and the New York Police Department have agreed to collectively pay millions to protesters who were arrested, detained or subjected to violence during a George Floyd demonstration in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx in June 2020, according to a court filing. Shortly after plaintiff's plea-based conviction, another man confessed to the murder of the 11-year-old girl. For more background information about the case, see Ken Kolkers Making a Monster on WOODTV. While McCann was in prison, a man named Daniel Furlong attempted to abduct another young girl in nearby White Pigeon, Michigan. McCann served 20 months in jail and prison after feeling pressured to plead no contest to perjury. For more recent information, visit The National Registry of Exonerations is a project of the Newkirk Center for Science & Society at University of California Irvine, the University of Michigan Law School and Michigan State University College of Law. He is seeking an unspecified amount in damages. I truly am thankful for that.. The Michigan State Police detective testified under oath that video footage from a surveillance camera on a nearby factory proved McCann was never there that night. He lost his job, was estranged from his son and his wife divorced him.. First, the students established that darkness made it impossible to tell whether McCanns car or any other specific cars were in the area near the Tumble Dam path. The Michigan students made two important discoveries that established there was no video evidence proving McCann had lied under oath about driving to the Tumble Dam. But it was former Constantine reserve police officer, Raymond McCann, who repeatedly suggested . On December 7, 2017, St. Joseph County, Michigan Circuit Court Judge Paul E. Stutesman signed an order today granting Raymond McCann IIs motion to vacate his 2015 perjury conviction. This was one of the worst cases of police tunnelvision Ive ever seen, said Drizin. A closer look at the video footage also revealed that it could not have captured McCanns car because the cameras were not facing the direction of the path to the Tumble Dam. McCannbecame "person of interest" in case after helping to find victims body. Capt. All of the charges stemmed from minor discrepancies between McCanns recall of the events surrounding Parracks disappearance five years earlier and the recollections of others. Drizin recruited his CWC colleagues Greg Swygert and Megan Crane, students Courtney Cronin and Caroline McMahon, David Moran, Director of the Michigan Innocence Clinic, to work on the case. Of Newton, December 16, 2007. This was one of the worst cases of police tunnel vision Ive ever seen. The settlement agreement called for more than 300 protesters confined that day using a police tactic they referred to as . All of the charges stemmed from minor discrepancies between McCanns recall of the events surrounding Parracks disappearance five years earlier and the recollections of others. The detective also told lies about McCann to his family members and friends, even telling McCanns teenage son that McCann was a drug addict, in an apparent attempt to turn his family and friends against him and get McCann to confess. Raymond McCann served 20 months for perjury after taking a plea deal in what a federal lawsuit claims was a scheme to manufacture charges to pressure him into confessing to the 2007 murder of. He had been driving to the hospital for his grandsons birth when he was arrested, and was not freed until his 20-month sentence was up in December 2015 the month after Furlong pleaded guilty. First, the students established that darkness made it impossible to tell whether McCanns car or any other specific cars were in the area near the Tumble Dam path. The detective also lied about McCann to his family and friends in an apparent attempt to turn them against him and get McCann to confess. The other exonerated clients include Jamie Peterson (Kalkaska County) and Davontae Sanford (Wayne County). We are grateful to John McDonough, said Gregory Swygert, the lead attorney from the Center on Wrongful Convictions team. Even Judge Stutesman, who accepted the plea and sentenced Ray has said the law as terrible, said Swygert. The motion was filed by the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern Universitys Pritzker School of Law and the Michigan Innocence Clinic at the University of Michigan Law School and was joined by St. Joseph County Prosecutor John McDonough who stipulated that the motion should be granted and the charges dropped. McCanns case marks the Center on Wrongful Convictions third partnership with the Michigan Innocence Clinic, all of which have resulted in exonerations. Despite intense pressure, McCann insisted that he was innocent. Even my sister turned against me at the time, he says. You may be included in this settlement if you bought certain Coffee-Mate powder creamers (listed on the settlement site) between January 1, 2017 and December 8, 2022. Thats why Im so thankful.. All content Copyright 2023 WBND. Contract Concerns: Did St. Joseph County overpay for County-City Building security? After spending 11 months in jail awaiting trial and facing a potential life sentence, McCann pleaded no contest to the count involving the Tumble Dam, believing he had no chance of acquittal if there was a video that contradicted his recollection, especially in a community convinced he had murdered Jodi Parrack. At the same time, theres a lot of people who will stop me in the streets and say, Hey, Im sorry, I crucified you before, and now I see what really happened,' he says. Even Judge Stutesman, who accepted the plea and sentenced Ray has said the law is terrible.. Police continued to pursue McCann aggressively for years even though DNA evidence found on the victim did not match McCann. Id definitely like to get back into coaching, he says. 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