Dallas man found innocent after 25 years in prison for murder he didn’t commit
A resident of Dallas who was incarcerated for over twenty-five years for a murder he did not commit was declared innocent during a court hearing on Wednesday, according to Dallas Metro News.
Judge Audra Riley expressed regret on behalf of Dallas County and the State of Texas for what she characterized as a “miscarriage of justice,” as Martin Santillán stood solemnly in the courtroom while the prosecutor read out the motion to dismiss his murder indictment.
District Attorney John Creuzot stated that Santillán was exonerated following an extensive investigation conducted by his office and Centurion Ministries, a New Jersey-based organization devoted to innocence cases. Santillán was accused of killing Damond Wittman in 1997, outside of a nightclub in Deep Ellum in the early hours of July 14. In 1998, he was convicted of capital murder and given a life sentence.
According to Creuzot, Dallas Police discovered a bloody Dallas Stars jersey that matched the description of what the perpetrator was wearing during the inquiry. Santillán was identified by one witness in a photo lineup, but he insisted on his innocence in court. Prosecutors claim that he had an alibi at the time, but he was found guilty nevertheless.
“The evidence really consisted of a lone eyewitness who maintained he could make an identification to an event that occurred at two o’clock in the morning after leaving a bar and being faced with a gun in his face and being held up,” said Paul Casteleiro, the legal director at Centurion Ministries.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the highest criminal court in Texas, ruled in February that Santillán should be granted a new trial, and the case was referred to Dallas County, resulting in Wednesday’s decision. Creuzot revealed at a press conference following the hearing that another suspect had been apprehended in Colorado for the 1997 killing. The suspect’s identity was not disclosed since they were a minor at the time of the offense, but Creuzot claimed that the DA’s conviction integrity unit collaborated with the Dallas and Colorado Springs Police Departments to obtain a DNA sample that resulted in the arrest.
Casteleiro stated that the wrongful conviction not only dishonored Santillán and his family but also the victim who died. “The bottom line is Mr. Santillan’s DNA was never on the jersey that we know the perpetrator of the crime was wearing,” Creuzot stated.
Santillán declined to speak to the judge or the press, but his sister Mayte Cantu stated that she had always believed in his innocence. “It’s been very tough,” Cantu stated. “He wasn’t able to be here when two of my family members passed away, and that was the hardest, especially my mom.” Cantu revealed that she and her family had continued to support Santillán throughout his time in prison, and now that he is free, she hopes to make up for lost time with him.
Santillán’s case is the 43rd exoneration in Dallas County since a post-conviction DNA statute was enacted in 2001. This law allows inmates to seek a DNA test to contest a conviction.
