About this episode

This episode covers the wrongful conviction of former police officer Daniel Holtzclaw, who is serving a lengthy sentence for crimes he did not commit.

At 2 AM, on June 18th, 2014, Daniel Holtzclaw finished up his shift as an Oklahoma City police officer and made his way home in his all black cruiser. He saw a car swerving and pulled over 57-year-old daycare provider Jannie Ligons. About 3 hours later, Ms Ligons would claim that Officer Holtzclaw forced her to perform oral sodomy through the fly of his uniform pants from the back seat of his squad car. Her mouth swab would come up empty for Daniel’s DNA, as would a search of his uniform for hers, but nonetheless, an investigation would be launched into Daniel Holtzclaw’s field contacts with at risk African American women, soliciting stories of sexual impropriety. 21 accusers made allegations, and a media circus ensued, bolstering a grim and growing narrative of law enforcement officers abusing their authority. 8 of those 21 claims were immediately dismissed by investigators, and they still moved forward with the 13 other questionable or otherwise ill-fitting claims. Through the misconstruing of DNA evidence, 8 of the remaining 13 allegations resulted in 18 convictions. Former Oklahoma City police officer Daniel Holtzclaw is currently serving a 263 year sentence in an undisclosed…

People in this episode

Host: Jason Flom

Guest: Daniel Holtzclaw

Topics covered

• wrongful conviction
• law enforcement
• sexual misconduct
• DNA evidence
• criminal justice
• media coverage

Keywords

• wrongful conviction
• Daniel Holtzclaw
• Jannie Ligons
• Oklahoma City
• sexual assault
• DNA evidence
• criminal justice reform

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Oklahoma City police, freedanielholtzclaw.com, change.org

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