Comptroller Lander Announces Pre-Litigation Settlement for the Wrongful Conviction of Grant Williams

Comptroller Lander Announces Pre-Litigation Settlement for the Wrongful Conviction of Grant Williams

New York, NY - Today, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander announced the $7 million pre-litigation settlement of a claim filed by Grant Williams for his wrongful conviction. Mr. Williams was wrongfully convicted of a 1996 murder in Staten Island and served 23 years in prison. He was exonerated in 2021. After his exoneration, Mr. Williams filed a claim against New York City alleging police misconduct and violations of his civil rights.

"Grant Williams spent 23 years in jail for a crime that he did not commit," said Comptroller Brad Lander. "While no amount of money can bring those years back for Mr. Williams or his family, I am pleased that we were able to move quickly to a fair and early resolution of this claim. My office reached a settlement with Mr. Williams after a careful review of his claims and negotiations with his counsel. The early resolution of this claim is in the best interests of all parties and City taxpayers."

Mr. Williams was convicted in 1997 despite the fact that he did match the description given to police by witnesses, and that prosecutors did not have a confession, a murder weapon, or any significant evidence. Police ignored a witness who told them that Mr. Williams was not the shooter, and they did not make a record of that interview or share it with prosecutors before they indicted him.

Mr. Williams always maintained his innocence and appealed his conviction through the courts for many years. In 2017, newly obtained evidence presented to the Richmond County District Attorney's Office prompted a re-investigation. Based on the new evidence, Mr. Williams was paroled on October 15, 2019. Mr. Williams' application to the Court for a formal exoneration was joined by the Richmond County District Attorney. On July 22, 2021, the Supreme Court, Richmond County vacated Mr. Williams' conviction and dismissed the indictment.

Under Chapter 5, Section 93 of the New York City Charter, the Comptroller has the authority to settle claims made against the City. In FY 2021, the Comptroller's Office resolved two wrongful conviction claims prior to litigation, for a total of $19.3 million. Wrongful conviction settlements can be found in the Comptroller's Annual Claims Report.

The settlement was led by Justina K. Rivera, General Counsel and Deputy Comptroller for Legal Affairs; Seunghwan Kim, Assistant Comptroller, Bureau of Law and Adjustment; and was brought about by the investigation and negotiation of Director of Litigation Lynell Canagata, Deputy Director Rohit Mallick, and Senior Attorney Britton Kovachevich.

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