September 2011
Michael S. Pascazi, Esq., has petitioned the N.Y.S. Supreme Court, Kings County (Brooklyn) to overturn, with the aid of DNA testing, Shaliq Peterson’s 1995 conviction for second degree murder. To date 251 individuals have been exonerated from wrongful convictions through the use of DNA testing. DNA testing was not widely used in New York State courts in the mid 90’s. Today it is commonplace. It can be used to establish guilt as well as innocence.
Shaliq’s conviction was based almost entirely upon the purported eye witness testimony of a seven year old boy. Eyewitness misidentification is the single greatest cause of wrongful convictions nationwide, playing a role in more than 75% of all convictions overturned through DNA testing. There existed at trial a significant body of forensic DNA containing evidence, including a smudged fingerprint on the murder weapon. Attorney Pascazi hopes to show that the smudged print does not match the DNA profile of either Shaliq or the victim, but does indeed match the profile of one of the nearly 10 million people, (virtually all convicted criminals) whose DNA profiles are now stored in the FBI’s CODIS-NDIS database. Should you, a loved one or a friend be faced with a wrongful criminal conviction, seek competent legal advice as soon as possible. Further, Attorney Pascazi would like to hear about it. Pascazi Law Offices PLLC represents defendants in wrongful conviction appeals and motions for vacatur.