Episode 89: The Exoneration of Ulysses Charles
Ulysses shortly before his release
On December 8th, 1980, three women living in their Boston, Massachusetts apartment were raped and robbed after a man broke in and attacked them. The man wielded a screwdriver as a weapon and threatened one of the women with it to force his way into the apartment. After attacking the women and ransacking the apartment, he pulled the phone from the wall and ran off.
The women called police from a neighbor’s apartment and were taken to the hospital for examination. In police interviews the women said the man was 5’10, had a scraggly beard and one woman told police he had an American accent. After being shown over 200 mug shots, all of the women identified one suspect: 30-year-old Ulysses Charles. What the women didn’t know was that Ulysses had gold front teeth, dreadlocks and a thick Caribbean accent as he was from Trinidad, and that these details contradicted the women’s statements.
Evidence from seminal fluid collected from a bed sheet at the crime scene revealed the perpetrator had type O blood. Ulysses has type B blood, but this evidence was intentionally suppressed by police who allowed the rape kits done on the women to be destroyed so the incompatibilities could be further concealed.
Ulysses was arrested on June 1st, 1981, and on June 14th, 1984, he was convicted for rape, robbery, entering a home with intent to commit a felony, and unlawful confinement. He was sentenced to 72-80 years in prison. After serving 17 years and working tirelessly to prove his innocence, Ulysses’ charges were dismissed on May 17, 2001. He was finally released over a year later on August 23, 2002 after being held in custody while authorities decided whether or not to deport Ulysses based on prior drug charges.
After his release Ulysses filed a wrongful conviction lawsuit against the City of Boston that was settled seven years later in 2009 for $3.25 million. He had also received $500,000 in state compensation in April of 2009. Investigation revealed Ulysses was targeted by police and harassed prior to his arrest and wrongful imprisonment.
Image sources:
innocenceproject.org - “Ulysses Rodriguez Charles”