December 13, 2023
New York City Sued By Formerly Incarcerated Man Exonerated After 27 Years
Thomas Malik is suing NYC and two detectives for $50 million after his wrongful conviction
A man who spent almost three decades in jail and was recently exonerated of the crime he was
A man who spent almost three decades in jail and was recently exonerated of the crime he was accused of committing is suing the city of New York as well as two detectives.
According to ABC News, on Monday, Dec. 11, Thomas Malik, who was convicted of killing a New York City subway token booth clerk in 1995, filed a lawsuit against New York City and two detectives who worked on the case. He stated that “a wanton and reckless” law enforcement culture forced him to suffer grave psychological damage due to decades of wrongful imprisonment.
Malik is one of three men who spent 27 years in prison before prosecutors disavowed the convictions of the men for the killing of Harry Kaufman. He is looking to get at least $50 million. His co-defendants, Vincent Ellerbe and James Irons, also have sought compensation for the wrongful imprisonment.
His attorneys, Ronald Kuby and Rhidaya Trivedi, stated: “Thomas Malik seeks redress for the official misconduct that caused him to spend nearly 27 years in prison, and the mental and physical injuries he sustained while incarcerated.”
The legal paperwork also stated that a “wanton and reckless culture” among the police officers and Brooklyn prosecutors let them violate citizens’ rights with impunity. The notoriety of Malik’s case subjected him to become a target for abuse and assaults while he was in prison.
On Nov. 26, 1995, the 50-year-old Kaufman was set on fire during an attempted robbery while he was working overnight in a Brooklyn subway station. The people who attempted the robbery squirted gasoline into the tollbooth coin slot and used matches to light the fuel.
Last year, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office concluded that the convictions of Malik, along with Ellerbe and Irons, were based on false and contradictory confessions and other flawed evidence against the three men. Problematic procedures plagued the way Malik was identified in a lineup back then, and a witness identified a different suspect, whom police officers eliminated as a suspect. It was also discovered that a jail informant had a reputation for lying, so he was not allowed to serve as an informant by a court.
The two former detectives who worked the case, Stephen Chmil and Louis Scarcella, have been accused of getting forced confessions and framing suspects in recent years. Over a dozen of Scarcella’s cases have also been overturned. Chmil and Scarcella are named in Malik’s lawsuit.
is suing the city of New York as well as two detectives.
According to ABC News, on Monday, Dec. 11, Thomas Malik, who was convicted of killing a New York City subway token booth clerk in 1995, filed a lawsuit against New York City and two detectives who worked on the case. He stated that “a wanton and reckless” law enforcement culture forced him to suffer grave psychological damage due to decades of wrongful imprisonment.
Malik is one of three men who spent 27 years in prison before prosecutors disavowed the convictions of the men for the killing of Harry Kaufman. He is looking to get at least $50 million. His co-defendants, Vincent Ellerbe and James Irons, also have sought compensation for the wrongful imprisonment.
His attorneys, Ronald Kuby and Rhidaya Trivedi, stated: “Thomas Malik seeks redress for the official misconduct that caused him to spend nearly 27 years in prison, and the mental and physical injuries he sustained while incarcerated.”
The legal paperwork also stated that a “wanton and reckless culture” among the police officers and Brooklyn prosecutors let them violate citizens’ rights with impunity. The notoriety of Malik’s case subjected him to become a target for abuse and assaults while he was in prison.
On Nov. 26, 1995, the 50-year-old Kaufman was set on fire during an attempted robbery while he was working overnight in a Brooklyn subway station. The people who attempted the robbery squirted gasoline into the tollbooth coin slot and used matches to light the fuel.
Last year, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office concluded that the convictions of Malik, along with Ellerbe and Irons, were based on false and contradictory confessions and other flawed evidence against the three men. Problematic procedures plagued the way Malik was identified in a lineup back then, and a witness identified a different suspect, whom police officers eliminated as a suspect. It was also discovered that a jail informant had a reputation for lying, so he was not allowed to serve as an informant by a court.
The two former detectives who worked the case, Stephen Chmil and Louis Scarcella, have been accused of getting forced confessions and framing suspects in recent years. Over a dozen of Scarcella’s cases have also been overturned. Chmil and Scarcella are named in Malik’s lawsuit.
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