Massacre case defendant free after 18 months in jail
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Looking pale and tired, but misty-eyed with joy, Jermel Lewis walked free from jail for the first time in 18 months Monday, a week after prosecutors dropped charges that he slaughtered seven people inside a West Philadelphia crack house. Lewis smiled as he left a downtown courthouse with his lawyers after a judge ordered him released.
“I’m just happy to go home,” Lewis said.
“I give my condolences to the family,” he added, referring to the relatives of the six men and one woman who were lined up and executed by four masked men on Dec. 28, 2000.
The release completes a stunning turnaround for a man who seemed doomed to life in prison when, two weeks after the killings, he confessed to being a lookout for the three gunmen.
Prosecutors dropped charges against all four defendants on July 10 – the day the case was scheduled to go to trial – saying they needed more time to investigate new evidence.
The decision came after weeks of reports that police detectives were reconsidering whether they had the right men behind bars.
Lewis recanted his confession shortly after his arrest, saying it had been coerced. Lawyers for the four men claimed they were innocent, and that another group was responsible for the slayings.
The three other former defendants remained jailed Monday on other charges.
One, Sacon Youk, could be released soon. A judge set his bail at $3,000 Monday on attempted murder charges in a shooting that took place several weeks before the massacre.
His lawyers said they were uncertain whether his family would be able to raise the cash.
Of the two other former suspects, Hezekiah Thomas, is being held on unrelated criminal cases dating back to 1999 and Quiante Perrin is serving time on an unrelated conviction.
The judge overseeing the case, Gregory E. Smith, has issued a gag order barring police and attorneys from talking about the probe or explaining why the charges were dismissed on the eve of trial.
District Attorney Lynne Abraham has refused to say whether she thinks the four men are guilty or innocent.
Stepping into the sunlight outside Philadelphia’s Criminal Justice Center, Lewis said he experienced some “dark” times in jail.
“It changed me a whole lot,” he said. His lawyers, Jules Epstein and Charles Mirarchi, instructed him not to talk about the specifics of the case.
Lewis had been free of charges in the massacre case since July 10, but he was held an additional five days on an 18-month-old charge that his arrest in the massacre case violated the terms of his probation. The charge was dismissed Monday.